Berserk and The Band of the Hawk Reviews
Berserk and the Band of the Hawk is a guilty pleasure that is best digested in small doses. It's really entertaining to savagely murder dozens of enemies with such a large weapon in a single swing, but with such simplistic combat and generally unaggressive enemy forces, the novelty wears thin after a while. On one hand, it can be a great entry point for those who have been curious about the original manga and anime, but at the same time, this is also a fairly dumbed down telling of these stories and characters. Long-time berserk fans will be excited to hear that the story does go further than the "Golden Age" arc (an overly represented arc) and actually has extensive story that goes into the "Falcon of the Millennium Empire" arcs. Any Musou fan already knows if they are interested in Berserk and the Band of the Hawk, but this is not the grand Berserk game Guts deserved.
Berserk and the Band of Hawk is a fun and beautiful experience, especially for those who read the Manga or watched the anime. The soundtrack and the fast paced gameplay give you intense moments that will make your experience even better. Unfortunately, after a couple of hours, the game start to feel repetitive, and the lack of additional modes gives you no reason to play the game again after finishing the main story.
Review in Arabic | Read full review
Though you may do get bored from time to time with its unchallenging levels and repetitive gameplay, blasting through enemies and beating monsters’ asses are still fun experiences. You may also choose stay for its gripping and emotionally captivating story, as well as the intensity of the characters you get to control. I love it simply for its stunning manga-style yet realistic graphics, its story, and because I can still appreciate a Dynasty Warriors format. You may choose it for these reasons too, and especially if you are someone that enjoys a good hack-and-slash.
Berserk is a nice fit for Omega Force's Warrior/Musou series, but I was left a little disappointed that they took a step back with the gameplay.
Berserk and the Band of the Hawk offers an interesting story full of action but fails to deliver on the gameplay. It is a game for the fans of the series but it should also serve as an introduction to newcomers.
Overall, Berserk: Band of the Hawk is probably the best adaptation of the manga's story to date, and lives up to the chaos, havoc and authentic visual style of Berserk - Where it falls short, however, is when you start to compare it to other Musou titles, or if you try to jump in without ever seeing a single speck of the original story - My recommendation? Read the first 16-or-so chapters of the Berserk manga, to learn the underlying characters, story and premise, then move onto playing Band of the Hawk; that way the movie cutscenes and dialogue will fill in all blanks up until the end of the game, which stops short around an arc or two where the manga currently rests. If you've played Musou games in the past, this title may seem extremely simplistic and a bit watered down, but for newcomers to this subgenre of war game, there really isn't a better introduction, or a better time to get into them than right now.
Taking everything in to account, “Berserk and the Band of the Hawk” is a decent Dynasty Warriors spinoff and an excellent Berserk game the fans have been eagerly awaiting. There are a few nitpicks as well as some weird design choices that might hold some people back from enjoying the game to its fullest; but, if you can enjoy an extreme power trip with memorable characters and a shocking story, this is one game definitely worth checking out.
Berserk and The Band Of The Hawk is one of the best musou titles to date, offering tons of quality content, a well told story and fun gameplay that will enthrall fans of the franchise and newcomers alike.
An astonishingly shallow and repetitive game even by Dynasty Warriors standards, and one that’s unlike to satisfy even the most hardcore fan.
With a horrifically conflicting relationship between mechanics and narrative, Berserk and the Band of the Hawk is a great example of two great tastes that don't taste great together.
Berserk is targeting its niche audience, those of which are fans and those who don't mind limited gameplay style, content and ideas in the light of experiencing the story of this classic series with their beloved characters.
Review in Arabic | Read full review
Dynasty Warriors-style slasher with characters and brutality from Berserk. There are some flaws, but fans should be satisfied.
Review in Polish | Read full review
Berserk and The Band of The Hawk is certainly a nice change from the regular Dynasty Warriors games- It was a pleasant surprise and something I greatly enjoyed. The source material makes for a very entertaining story in the main campaign mode, and it kept me playing for several hours straight at a time! There is a lot of content and plenty of extra modes to keep you playing for a while… not to mention a Platinum trophy that will certainly require dozens of hours to secure!
Berserk and the Band of the Hawk is the definition of phoned in, as even compared to other Warriors titles the combat is bare and they do little to nothing to mechanically bring you into the world of the game. Limited maps take away the extra juggling the series needs to keep interest and the result is just a pretty boring time.
Berserk and the Band of the Hawk is an average but frustrating game.
The only reason you should be picking this game up is if you are a huge hack-and-slash fan, a big fan of Musou games like Dynasty Warriors, or a Berserk fan. If you aren't any of those, then you should skip this game.
If you can overlook the small roster and annoying to defeat boss encounters, you will find that Berserk and the Band of the Hawk is a fine experience and a must have for anyone who is a fan of the series as a whole.
Berserk and the Band of the Hawk is a strictly by-the-books Warriors-style game. There's enough value here for die-hard Berserk fans, if only for collecting Behelits, which unlock artwork and galleries, and they can enjoy the fun of mowing down tons of helpless foes. However, in comparison to most other recent Warriors titles, Berserk feels unambitious. As an anime adaptation, it's a darn sight better than something like Fist of the North Star: Ken's Rage, but it seems to coast on its popular license rather than trying to do something special.
This vision of Berserk loses a lot of its narrative potency because it cuts around it and provides only the most basic of skeletons for narrative context.
A standard musou experience, graced by an impressive narrative universe that makes it unmissable for the fans... and rather boring for anyone else.
Review in Italian | Read full review