Colors
You will notice "color flashes" as you are
playing the game. Each flash has a separate meaning:
Red: Fatal hit
Orange: Non-fatal hit
White: Weapon struck another weapon or an object
Blue: Attack was successfully defended
Green: Attack was defended, but the defender loses his/her balance
Defeat an off-balance enemy
If you manage to knock an enemy off balance, you can
usually kill him/her with an overhead attack. For example press
[Circle] for a frontal attack. Rarely, you can kill him/her
with a sideways attack. For example, press [X] for a reversal
attack.
Defeating Bosses
Defeating some bosses can be difficult because every
time you hit them, they block with their weapon. To easily defeat
the various Bosses in the game, wait for them to swing their weapons
at you -- letting their guard down for you to strike. Another
way to do this is to run around them using the upward attack ([Square])
until you slice them in the back.
Defeating Katze or Tsubame
Run into either of them from behind. They will fall
down and can easily be finished off with an overhead slash.
Katze and Tusambe have guns which requires both hands to reload.
By crippling one arm, you can run circles around them until they
are out of ammunition. When they stop to reload, move in and slash
them.
To kill Katze with a sword-type sub weapon, wait until he backflips
away from you and throw the sword. If timed correctly, it will
hit him in either the stomach or groin area.
Defeating main Shainto Boss
If you do a frontal attack, your chances of killing
him are slim because he wears body armor. To kill him, go for
his neck, sides, or better yet, his back.
Defeating main Narukagami Boss
Every time you get a clear shot and go for it, he will
teleport away. Fortunately you can make him "waste"
his magic by forcing him to teleport many times. He will then
start losing range and teleporting closer and in front of you.
When he teleports but does not move at all, do a combo of three
or more to kill him.
Sword in enemy's head
When fighting, use a character whose sub-weapon can
perform a lethal hit, such as Red Shadow (sword), Kaun (double
sided dagger), or Hongou (axe). Ninja Stars and Brass Fans will
not. If the enemy performs an attack that lowers his stance to
waist level, throw your sub-weapon. If done correctly, your sub-weapon
should be stuck in your enemy's head. This works especially well
with the sword, since it sticks in him and comes out the back
of his head.
"Final Fantasy 7
reference
"Chose Jo in versus mode. Win a battle and she will
do the same victory dance as Cloud does in Final Fantasy 7.
Honorable surrender
You can surrender to your enemy by pressing [Select].
Your character will get on his knees and your enemy will slice
his head off. You can also fake a surrender by pressing [Select]
quickly after you fall to your knees.