Sakura Samurai: Art of the Sword captures the essence of what makes simple video game mechanics so enticing. Its big hook comes from rewarding players for perfectly-timed dodges, and while this type of required precision satisfies, it also points to one of the game’s biggest flaws: its grueling and uneven difficulty.
I’m not one to complain about difficulty in games. Repetitively grinding through the harsh corners of Dark Souls doesn’t bother me and, nearly a decade ago, I spent hours slicing my way through Shinobi — a notoriously difficult game that pushed people’s patience to its limits in 2002. But the thing about game difficultly is the rules have to feel fair. They need to convey that you’re losing due to skill gaps and not improper balancing.
