I've made no attempt to hide the fact that I am extremely excited for the slick new Sengoku BASARA 3, and as my fanboy mode has shifted into high gear this last week (wisdom teeth removed, won't go to school, nothing to do but games and internet), I decided I would post a synopsis of all the lovely details of this game I have come across as of recent.




Anyway, to get things rolling, here's [what I believe to be] the official logo for the North American/European release:


Well, it did come from Capcom's Europe site, so that seems legit.
I somewhat agree with complaints that the font for "Sengoku" looks a bit iffy, but I'm just glad it doesn't say "Devil Kings".


Now, onto the meat of the new revelations: the characters!

[for the record, I have the habit of using the English form of name order, i.e. Given name > Sir name.
I've seen people fervently argue that this is wrong when referring to Japanese people/characters such as this. I'm used to this order from playing Samurai Warriors. Deal with it.]


(confirmed)NEW CHARACTERS


Ieyasu Tokugawa


Whoa! Little Takechiyo sure decided to make some changes to his appearance!
At first I thought this was someone completely different, like maybe Ieyasu's son Hidetada (I think he was his first born), but as it turns out this is indeed Ieyasu (or "Irdene", for those of you familiar with Devil Kings).
He's ditched his spear and magic helmet (*waits for applause from Looney Tunes fans*) in favor of dishing out pain with his fists. I've heard stories abounding that some of his moves are based on techniques from Street Fighter, but I'm not very familiar with SF myself, so I can't confirm that.
I heard some of Hideyoshi's moves in SB2 were based on Zangief from SF as well, so go figure (not that that matters all that much, since Hideyoshi won't be in this game; but more on that later.

Here's a comparison pic, hastily prepared by myself, to see how different Ieyasu is:



His new moveset looks great, and is definitely miles ahead of being another Toshiie clone.
But what am I doing here talking to you about it, when you could could be watching it instead?


Here you can see Ieyasu going toe-to-toe with Sasuke Sarutobi.
Another interesting note to make: Enemy bosses can now use Basara attacks.
This means that this game will be a "tad" more difficult than previous iterations.
Don't bother trying to imagine taking the brunt of Tadakatsu's Basara on Extreme difficulty...*shivers*




Mitsunari Ishida



Well...he's different from Koei's Mitsunari, I'll give you that much. At first glance, I didn't know what to make of Mitsunari...let alone once I knew he IS Mitsunari. The white coat/haori thing, the absurd hairstyle...my skepticism loosened a bit once I saw him fight.

Mitsunari fights using Iaijutsu (a sword style that Kenshin Uesugi/Frost also fights with), but Mitsunari's seems, well, different. I suppose you could say Kenshin seems as if he's dancing while he's fighting, as if it's a "display of true beauty" of sorts (that fits in with his personality in these games quite well), while Mitsunari seems like he just has raw blood lust (which fits HIS vengeful personality here to a T).

Mitsunari's story revolves around him going out for revenge against Ieyasu Tokugawa, whom Mitsunari blames for the death of Hideyoshi Toyotomi.


This video also helped confirm that Tadakatsu 'Hondam' Honda (Iron Ox in DK) will be returning as well. Schweet!



As of this post, those are the only new characters I've seen concrete evidence of, as Capcom is being very sneaky with the way they're trickling details down (or maybe I'm just impatient).
It's been going around that the character opposite Tadakatsu in this scan is Yoshitsugu Otani:



More rumours too, such as Yoshiaki Mogami being in the game, and that Magoichi Saika will be there too (since the Saika crest was apparently spotted in the background in a screenshot from a while back).


[RETURNING CHARACTERS]


Yukimura Sanada


Ten! Ha! Sessou! Yukimura, the raging poster boy for Sengoku Basara. When he isn't plowing through the frail peons of the opposing army, he's exchanging sucker-punches to the face with his master and eternal mentor, Shingen Takeda (Red Minotaur in DK). Recent story details, however, alluded that "Oyakata-sama" is bed-ridden in this game. Whether or not that means he will appear during gameplay at all is a mystery for now...

Here's what we know about changes made to Yukimura Sanada (Scorpio in DK -_-).

He's gotten at least one new skill (in which he dashes forward and makes a sweeping slash; seems to take out shielded enemies very efficiently), his skill Rekka (FLAME DRILL!!!! ...dammit, DK) has an extension, called Dai-Rekka. Oh, and did I mention YOU CAN USE IT IN MID-AIR TOO?!?!

You can drill your enemies from 10 directions before they hit the ground!


Here's some footage of Yukimura in action (no, fangirls, not THAT kind of action):

This video confirmed 2 additional things: 1) Motonari Mori is returning, and 2) F***ing Solar Laser Beams. Yeah. That just happened.





Masamune Date


"Ok, are you ready? Psyche up guys! Put the guns on! Go straight! Have a party! Yee haw!"
Imagine these lines being spoken by Captain Falcon, and you will understand why Masamune is the most awesome person in the history of the existence of existing.
The Oushuu head's real life fascination with western culture was embodied in the BASARA series by having him constantly mix in english lines whenever he tried to sound cool. This leads to Pwnage. Sheer epic win was had. Punch was served.
Plus, he wields 6 swords...AT THE SAME TIME.

The most notable change to Masamune is indeed regarding his "Six Claws". In previous releases, Masamune is able to draw all his blades through the use of a special item, or skill, or after his BASARA attack. Ok, that hasn't changed from the looks of it. However, while in this state you were unable to block/dodge, and unless you were using Masamune's personal item, you would return to his "one blade state" after the use of any other skill.
We-he-he-ell, not so fast, buddy boy! Now when the "Dokuganryu" whips out his 6 claws, his skills change to accommodate them. Death Fang, Crazy Storm, and Magnum Step each now have their own 6 Claw version of themselves (and for those who don't know, those are the actual names of the attacks. Masamune says them, IN ENGLISH, as he uses them).

It's hard to put Masamune's epicness into words, so just watch the video:



In addition to the above details, a new "dash" system is in place (which supposedly acts like the running system in Dynasty Warriors where after a "wind mark" flashes you gain momentum and can execute a running/charging attack).
The skill system has also been revamped, allowing you to equip 3 (maybe 4 from the looks of it) skills at once. Oooooooh yes...

To finish off this section, I'll nab you the name and a picture of other returning characters!



Sasuke Sarutobi



Kojuuro Katakura



Tadakatsu Honda



Motonari Mori



------------------------------

Now, sadly, not all is merry in the land of spikey hair and catchy J-Rock openings (speaking of which, the SB3 opening theme is "Naked Arms" by T.M. Revolution).

First and foremost, I suggest reading through this forum post:

http://s13.zetaboards.com/koeiwarriors/topic/6615453/1/
This post also contains details pertaining to the storyline. Definitely worth a read.



That's where I've gotten a lot of my information, after some sleuthing of my own, mind you.
It is also where I learned a shocking twist to rain on my parade: CHARACTER CUTS.
Whether from a design standpoint, popularity, some crazy astrology reading or whatever, several characters will not be showing up in this new addition to the Basara series.
Apparently this is to push back some of the characters that wouldn't make sense to include in the events after Mitsuhide's Rebellion and Hideyoshi's rise to power, which makes sense, historically.
But it still brings my piss to a boil.

In case you were too lazy to check the link, here's the list of characters that are "taking a break" from Sengoku Basara:

- Yoshimoto Imagawa
- Nagamasa Azai
- Nobunaga Oda
- Nouhime
- Ranmaru Mori
- Mitsuhide Akechi
- Hideyoshi Toyotomi
- Hanbei Takenaka


I'll give you a moment of silence...
...
...
...
...alright, that's enough. While these cuts are quite sad, I'm trying to stay on the bright side. Yeah, Nobunaga was a badass, Mitsuhide was lovably insane, Nou was...oh, yes, that butterfly tattoo! Oooh...er, uh, Yoshimoto was funny for what he was worth, and Nagamasa was one of my personal faves...*sigh*

Like I said, stay on the positives. If those are the only characters that won't be returning, we'll have all the other ones to come back as well, and plenty of new character's to warm their seats until Sengoku Basara 3: Heroes gets released within 2 years (I assume).
But...is anyone really excited to play as Kennyo Honganji? Really? Even with his own moveset...

Well, it also lifted my spirits back up a little that a certain someone isn't on the cut list...guess who?





Ah, Oichi, my psychotic demoness, surely you escaped the clutches of these cut characters, yes?
(Plus, if she's in, then its a 99% guarantee that Katsuie Shibata will be here too, since I don't see Oichi's story working out well without "romance leading to tragedy", as it did in SB2H).

Also, if Motonari is confirmed, then Motochika Chosokabe can't be far around the corner!
There's also the large chance that Hisahide Matsunaga will be playable, provided he's in.
Then there's all the possibilities for new characters as well...*drooling*.

Ahem...there's still many more questions that need answering; for me, I needs to know the full roster NAO! But the game is slated to release in 2010, presumably in Q1 or Q2, so I've got a long while to wait for that...
(Just a friendly reminder, its releasing on both the PS3 and Wii)

So for now, we can only wait and ponder what Capcom has in store. Personally I'd like to see more female characters in this game (give me Ginchiyo Tachibana, please), as Basara has picked up a bit of a reputation of being "yaoi fangirl fuel".
Don't type the word "basara" into deviantart.com. You have been warned.
:P

I wait with bated breath for new news about this game, which is shaping up to be one of, if not THE best entries in the series to date!

See you all soon!