Samurai Shodown (video game)

Samurai Shodown
Cover art of the Neo Geo U.S. version of Samurai Shodown by Shinkiro.
Developer(s)	SNK
Publisher(s)	SNK
Series	Samurai Shodown
Platform(s)	Arcade, 3DO, FM Towns, Game Gear, Game Boy, Mega Drive/Genesis, Game Gear, Neo Geo, Neo-Geo CD, Sega CD, Super NES, PlayStation 2, Wii, Nintendo Switch
Release	Arcade JP: July 07, 1993 NA: 1993 Neo Geo WW: August 11, 1993 Neo-Geo CD WW: September 9, 1994 Neo Geo Pocket Color JP: December 25, 1998 EU: 1998 Game Boy JP: June 30, 1994 Super NES JP: September 22, 1994 NA: November 1994 Genesis JP: November 19, 1994 NA: 1994 EU: 1994 Game Gear JP: December 9, 1994 NA: 1994 Sega CD NA: 1995 EU: June 1995 3DO JP: February 10, 1995 NA: 1995 FM Towns JP: September 1995 PlayStation JP: March 26, 1998 PlayStation Network JP: May 30, 2007 Wii Virtual Console JP: October 16, 2007 NA: June 16, 2008 PAL: May 30, 2008 Nintendo Switch WW: July 20, 2017
Genre(s)	Fighting
Mode(s)	Single-player, multiplayer
Cabinet	Upright
Arcade system	Neo Geo
Display	Raster, 304 x 224 pixels (Horizontal), 4096 colors

Samurai Shodown, known as Samurai Spirits (サムライスピリッツ, Samurai Supirittsu, Samu Supi in short) in Japan, is a competitive fighting game developed and published by SNK for their Neo Geo arcade and home platform. Released in 1993, it is the first installment in the Samurai Shodown series. In contrast to other fighting games at the time, which were set in modern times and focused primarily on hand-to-hand combat, Samurai Shodown is set in feudal-era Japan (similar to Kaneko's Shogun Warriors) and was one of the first fighting games to focus primarily on weapon-based combat after the success of Capcom's Street Fighter II.

The game is set in the late 18th century, and all the characters wield weapons. The game uses comparatively authentic music from the time period, rife with sounds of traditional Japanese instruments, such as the shakuhachi and shamisen. A refined version of the camera zoom first found in Art of Fighting is used in Samurai Shodown; true to its use of bladed weapons, the game also includes copious amounts of blood.

The game quickly became renowned for its fast pace. Focusing more on quick, powerful strikes than combos, slow motion was added to intensify damage dealt from hard hits. During a match, a referee holds flags representing each player (Player 1 is white; Player 2 is red). When a player lands a successful hit, the referee lifts the corresponding flag, indicating who dealt the blow.

A delivery man occasionally appears in the background and throws items such as bombs or health-restoring chicken, which can significantly change the outcome.

Shiro Tokisada Amakusa, slain in 1638 by the forces of the Tokugawa Shogunate for his part in the Shimabara tax revolt, is an actual person and Japan's most famous Christian martyr. He is revived as a satanic demon. Driven by hatred for the Shogunate, he unleashes his dark powers to bring chaos to the world. An assortment of warriors--some historic, some fictional--converge upon the source of the chaos, each driven by their own reasons.