Nobunaga's Ambition

Nobunaga's Ambition

Developer(s) Koei
Publisher(s) Koei
Platform(s) MSX, NES, Game Boy, Sega Mega Drive, SNES, DOS, Mac OS, Amiga, 3DO Interactive Multiplayer, PC Engine Super CD-ROM², PlayStation 2, Virtual Console
Release date(s) MSX
  • JP April 1983
Famicom Virtual Console
  • JP December 24, 2008
  • NA April 27, 2009
PlayStation 3
  • JP March 4, 2010
Xbox 360
  • JP March 4, 2010
Genre(s) Grand strategy wargame
Historical simulation
Turn-based strategy RPG
Mode(s) Up to 8 players using hotseat mode
Rating(s)
Media/distribution Cartridge, Floppy disks, CD-ROM

Nobunaga's Ambition (信長の野望 Nobunaga no Yabō?) is a series of turn-based grand strategy role-playing simulation video games,[1] first released in 1983 by the Japanese video game developer Koei.[2]

Games in the franchise have been released on a variety of gaming platforms, including the Nintendo Entertainment System, Game Boy, Mega Drive, 3DO Interactive Multiplayer, Super Nintendo Entertainment System, PlayStation, Sega Saturn, PlayStation 2, Virtual Console, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, and the Wii. The title was also released for Macintosh as well as Amiga and computers with DOS-compatibility.

Contents

Story

Nobunaga's Ambition takes place during the Sengoku period of feudal Japan. As the title suggests, the player is tasked with achieving the ultimate goal of warlord Oda Nobunaga: the conquest and unification of Japan. Selecting Oda Nobunaga is optional, however, as the player is also able to choose from a variety of other regional daimyos of the time.

Gameplay

The player may choose from four campaign scenarios including: "Battle for the East" (beginning in 1560), "Daimyo Power Struggles" (1560), "Ambition Untamed" (1571) and "Road Towards Unification" (1582). In each scenario, the player must allocate resources to raise a capable military force, provide a productive economy to support both military and civilian expansion and support the peasants in order to sustain their respect and loyalty. Gameplay is taken in turns, with each turn in the map view corresponding to a season and each turn during battle corresponding to a day. The player may achieve victory through numerous means, among which are forcing the enemy to retreat, destroying the enemy command unit, outlasting an invading force, or prolonging battle until the opposing force has exhausted its supplies.

The player can make many choices during the campaign, such as, according to Evan Brooks of Computer Gaming World: "One may transfer soldiers between fiefs, go to war, increase taxes (which causes a decrease in peasant loyalty which may lead to rebellion), transfer rice or gold to another fief, raise the level of flood control (which decreases productivity), make a non-aggression pact or arrange a marriage, cultivate (which increases productivity, but decreases peasant loyalty), use a merchant (to buy/sell rice, borrow funds, or purchase weapons), recruit for the military (soldiers or ninja), train the army (which increases fighting efficiency), spy on a rival, expand a town (which increases taxes collected, but decreases peasant loyalty), give food/rice to peasants/soldiers (to raise morale), steal peasants from rival daimyos, allocate military strength, recuperate (even a daimyo can get sick), turn over a controlled fief to the computer for administration, or pass a turn (hint: when one has no idea of what to do, train the troops.)"[3]

Titles in the series

For personal computers and consoles

For mobile platforms

For Game Boy:

For WonderSwan:

For Game Boy Color:

For Game Boy Advance:

For Nintendo DS

Online games

Reception

The Nobunaga's Ambition series has garnered several awards over the years. According to Koei's website, various releases in the series have won Log-In magazine's "BHS Prize", the "Minister of Post & Telecommunications Prize", Nikkei BP's 12th, 13th and 14th annual "Best PC Software" awards and CD-ROM Fan's "Fan of the Year 2001 Grand Prize".[6]

In North America, where it was released five years after its Japanese release, critical reception was also positive in 1988. The game was positively reviewed by Computer Gaming World, where reviewer Evan Brooks introduced it as "a detailed economic / diplomatic / political / military simulation of the unification of Japan in the Sixteenth Century." He praised the graphics for being "among the best that this reviewer has ever seen for the IBM" and the 5x10 hex map battles, and noted that it used role-playing game elements, including assigning various statistics to a selected persona, a time system where each turn represents a year, as the daimyo ages and eventually dies of old age, and a multiplayer option. He stated that he "thoroughly enjoyed Nobunaga's Ambition" and concluded with a "Highly Recommended" rating.[7]

Fan reception has also been positive, with GameSpot's users rating the original Nobunaga's Ambition an overall score of 8.8 of 10.[8]

See also

References

  1. ^ Vestal, Andrew (1998-11-02). [http:/www.gamespot.com/features/vgs/universal/rpg_hs/nes8.html "The History of Console RPGs"]. GameSpot. http:/www.gamespot.com/features/vgs/universal/rpg_hs/nes8.html. Retrieved 2011-01-06. 
  2. ^ Nobunaga's Ambition Rekindled for PS2, 1UP.com
  3. ^ Brooks, Evan (September 1988), "Nobunaga's Ambition", Computer Gaming World (51): p. 48 
  4. ^ "Poker, Planes and Platform Games Fuel Players' Ambition". Nintendo of America. 2009-04-27. http://www.nintendo.com/whatsnew/detail/cVpQNH660NOKJkP95-_D9BprlwaTXvHg. Retrieved 2009-04-27. 
  5. ^ Gifford, Kevin. "Nobunaga's Ambition: Rise to Power". Newtype USA. 7 (2) p. 118. February 2008. ISSN 1541-4817.
  6. ^ "KOEI Company Introduction". http://www.koei.co.jp/english/html/introduction/intro_03.html. 
  7. ^ Brooks, Evan (September 1988), "Nobunaga's Ambition", Computer Gaming World (51): pp. 12, 34, 48–9, "Nobunaga's Ambition is a detailed economic / diplomatic / political / military simulation of the unification of Japan in the Sixteenth Century. ... The graphics for Nobunaga's Ambition are among the best that this reviewer has ever seen for the IBM. While much of the graphics are composed of maps, the small touches reveal the craft that went into this product. Thus, when the daimyo distributes rice to the peasants, a vignette shows the lord throwing sheaves to the peasants who gratefully pick it up; as taxes are increased, the peasants flow with tears. When war begins, the screen changes to a 5x10 hex area for the execution of the battle. Terrain is effectively delineated as hill, mountain, village, river, plain or castle; deployment is dependent on the route of invasion. ... After deciding upon a daimyo, one must select a persona. Akin to role playing games, characteristics are composed of health, ambition, luck, charm and IQ. Generally, one should reselect if any single characteristic is under 80 (especially luck and/or IQ; there is nothing worse than a stupid daimyo). ... Each turn (year) is composed of four seasons, during which the daimyo ages (and will eventually die of old age). Each daimyo may accomplish one action each season for each fief he personally controls; these actions often affect other parameters of play. ... This reviewer thoroughly enjoyed Nobunaga's Ambition. ... Koei stresses that Nobunaga's Ambition is both a solitaire and a multi-player game. ... Highly Recommended. This reviewer was glued to his computer for 13 hours, stopping at 3:00 am. Not since Gunship has this occurred. The end result is that the computer gamer must have, at least, one Koei game in his inventory!" 
  8. ^ "Nobunaga's Ambition for NES Review". http://au.gamespot.com/nes/strategy/nobunaganoyabouzenkokuban/review.html. 

External links