<s>
First	B-Application
Samurai	I-Application
,	O
alternatively	O
titled	O
The	O
First	B-Application
Samurai	I-Application
,	O
is	O
a	O
1991	O
beat	B-Application
'	I-Application
em	I-Application
up	I-Application
platform	O
game	O
developed	O
by	O
Vivid	O
Image	O
and	O
published	O
by	O
Image	O
Works	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
First	B-Application
Samurai	I-Application
was	O
originally	O
released	O
in	O
September	O
1991	O
for	O
the	O
Amiga	B-Device
and	O
Atari	B-Device
ST	I-Device
,	O
and	O
was	O
later	O
ported	O
to	O
the	O
Commodore	O
64	O
,	O
MS-DOS	B-Application
and	O
the	O
Super	B-Application
Nintendo	I-Application
Entertainment	I-Application
System	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
was	O
followed	O
by	O
a	O
sequel	O
,	O
Second	B-Application
Samurai	I-Application
,	O
in	O
1994	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
2011	O
a	O
port	O
was	O
released	O
for	O
iOS	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
The	O
First	B-Application
Samurai	I-Application
,	O
the	O
protagonist	O
undertakes	O
a	O
quest	O
as	O
the	O
first	B-Application
samurai	I-Application
in	O
the	O
history	O
of	O
feudal	O
Japan	O
,	O
and	O
must	O
compete	O
against	O
rival	O
swordsmen	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Eating	O
food	O
and	O
drinking	O
sake	O
will	O
help	O
the	O
player	O
get	O
stronger	O
,	O
while	O
fire	O
and	O
enemy	O
contact	O
will	O
weaken	O
the	O
samurai	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
player	O
starts	O
out	O
as	O
a	O
hermit	B-Application
in	O
an	O
ancient	O
forest	O
,	O
but	O
he	O
eventually	O
becomes	O
powerful	O
enough	O
to	O
fight	O
in	O
the	O
villages	O
and	O
towns	O
,	O
and	O
eventually	O
the	O
dungeons	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
First	B-Application
Samurai	I-Application
began	O
development	O
in	O
July	O
1990	O
,	O
and	O
was	O
originally	O
scheduled	O
for	O
a	O
September	O
1991	O
release	O
for	O
Amiga	B-Device
and	O
Atari	B-Device
ST	I-Device
,	O
with	O
an	O
MS-DOS	B-Application
port	O
stated	O
to	O
be	O
'	O
unplanned	O
 '	O
at	O
the	O
time	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
a	O
December	O
1990	O
issue	O
of	O
British	O
gaming	O
magazine	O
The	O
One	O
,	O
The	O
One	O
interviewed	O
team	O
members	O
from	O
Vivid	O
Image	O
for	O
information	O
regarding	O
The	O
First	B-Application
Samurai	I-Application
's	O
development	O
in	O
a	O
pre-release	O
interview	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
First	B-Application
Samurai	I-Application
's	O
samurai	B-Application
theme	O
was	O
first	O
conceived	O
by	O
graphic	O
artist	O
Paul	O
'	O
Dokk	O
 '	O
Docherty	O
as	O
a	O
'	O
random	O
thought	O
 '	O
while	O
watching	O
the	O
1954	O
monster	O
film	O
Them	O
!,	O
and	O
Docherty	O
expresses	O
that	O
"	O
At	O
the	O
time	O
we	O
were	O
in	O
the	O
middle	O
of	O
designing	O
another	O
game	O
but	O
we	O
were	O
n't	O
very	O
happy	O
with	O
it.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
One	O
purported	O
that	O
the	O
title	O
The	O
First	B-Application
Samurai	I-Application
's	O
correlation	O
to	O
The	B-Application
Last	I-Application
Ninja	I-Application
is	O
"	O
purely	O
coincidental	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Docherty	O
's	O
proposal	O
of	O
a	O
samurai	B-Application
theme	O
was	O
received	O
by	O
Vivid	O
Image	O
as	O
"	O
exactly	O
what	O
they	O
were	O
looking	O
for	O
"	O
,	O
and	O
Docherty	O
states	O
that	O
"	O
We	O
wanted	O
something	O
fairly	O
mystical	O
so	O
that	O
we	O
could	O
put	O
in	O
lots	O
of	O
special	O
effects	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Samurai	B-Application
also	O
have	O
a	O
very	O
strong	O
sense	O
of	O
honour	O
-	O
that	O
fitted	O
in	O
with	O
our	O
plot.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
Mev	O
Dinc	O
,	O
The	O
First	B-Application
Samurai	I-Application
's	O
project	O
manager	O
,	O
expressed	O
that	O
programmer	O
Raffaele	O
Cecco	O
was	O
invited	O
to	O
the	O
project	O
"	O
because	O
he	O
's	O
not	O
only	O
a	O
very	O
good	O
programmer	O
,	O
he	O
also	O
comes	O
up	O
with	O
lots	O
of	O
really	O
good	O
ideas	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
First	B-Application
Samurai	I-Application
's	O
development	O
was	O
described	O
by	O
The	O
One	O
as	O
"	O
an	O
ongoing	O
creative	O
process	O
in	O
which	O
everyone	O
is	O
encouraged	O
to	O
participate	O
"	O
,	O
and	O
Dinc	O
expressed	O
that	O
"	O
Deciding	O
on	O
sprites	O
and	O
backgrounds	O
that	O
everybody	O
is	O
happy	O
with	O
can	O
be	O
time-consuming	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
User-friendly	O
controls	O
were	O
a	O
priority	O
in	O
the	O
game	O
's	O
development	O
,	O
and	O
John	O
Twiddy	O
,	O
The	O
First	B-Application
Samurai	I-Application
's	O
map	O
editor	O
,	O
stated	O
that	O
"	O
You	O
have	O
to	O
be	O
able	O
to	O
pick	O
up	O
the	O
joystick	B-Device
and	O
just	O
play	O
the	O
game.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
balance	O
between	O
easy-to-learn	O
controls	O
and	O
allowing	O
the	O
player	O
an	O
array	O
of	O
different	O
attacks	O
was	O
an	O
important	O
factor	O
in	O
The	O
First	B-Application
Samurai	I-Application
's	O
design	O
,	O
and	O
Twiddy	O
stated	O
that	O
"	O
The	O
main	O
thing	O
is	O
to	O
get	O
lots	O
of	O
manoeuvres	O
in	O
there	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
looks	O
like	O
you	O
're	O
doing	O
something	O
spectacular	O
but	O
in	O
fact	O
it	O
's	O
the	O
computer	O
showing	O
standard	O
joystick	B-Device
moves	O
in	O
different	O
ways	O
on	O
screen	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
First	B-Application
Samurai	I-Application
was	O
the	O
first	O
16-bit	O
game	O
that	O
Raffaele	O
Cecco	O
worked	O
on	O
,	O
and	O
he	O
spent	O
the	O
first	O
two	O
months	O
on	O
the	O
project	O
learning	O
how	O
to	O
program	O
for	O
the	O
Amiga	B-Device
,	O
stating	O
that	O
"	O
Obviously	O
I	O
could	O
n't	O
use	O
any	O
old	O
sprite	O
handling	O
or	O
scrolling	O
routines	O
because	O
I	O
did	O
n't	O
have	O
any	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
First	B-Application
Samurai	I-Application
was	O
programmed	O
on	O
a	O
386	O
PC	O
using	O
the	O
Programmer	O
's	O
Development	O
System	O
(	O
PDS	O
)	O
developed	O
by	O
Fruad	O
Katon	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
First	B-Application
Samurai	I-Application
's	O
environment	O
is	O
defined	O
by	O
white	O
blocks	O
superimposed	O
over	O
the	O
game	O
's	O
graphics	O
;	O
these	O
blocks	O
determine	O
attributes	O
such	O
as	O
the	O
edge	O
of	O
a	O
platform	O
,	O
the	O
spawn	O
point	O
of	O
entities	O
,	O
whether	O
a	O
wall	O
is	O
climbable	O
,	O
and	O
collision	O
detection	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
For	O
the	O
Atari	B-Device
ST	I-Device
port	O
,	O
all	O
the	O
blocks	O
needed	O
to	O
be	O
'	O
pre-shifted	O
'	O
,	O
and	O
a	O
Vivid	O
Images	O
team	O
member	O
expressed	O
that	O
"	O
We	O
need	O
to	O
know	O
how	O
many	O
there	O
are	O
so	O
we	O
can	O
calculate	O
them	O
in	O
advance	O
;	O
the	O
editor	O
automatically	O
keeps	O
track	O
of	O
all	O
the	O
different	O
types	O
of	O
blocks	O
on	O
screen.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
John	O
Twiddy	O
created	O
a	O
custom	O
map	O
editor	O
for	O
The	O
First	B-Application
Samurai	I-Application
which	O
runs	O
concurrently	O
with	O
Deluxe	B-Application
Paint	I-Application
and	O
allows	O
graphics	O
to	O
be	O
loaded	O
in	O
,	O
background	O
graphics	O
to	O
be	O
selected	O
&	O
positioned	O
,	O
and	O
an	O
object	O
's	O
depth	O
to	O
be	O
defined	O
relative	O
to	O
other	O
objects	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
More	O
features	O
were	O
incorporated	O
into	O
The	O
First	B-Application
Samurai	I-Application
's	O
map	O
editor	O
over	O
the	O
course	O
of	O
the	O
game	O
's	O
development	O
,	O
and	O
Docherty	O
stated	O
that	O
"	O
Whenever	O
we	O
want	O
a	O
new	O
feature	O
we	O
simply	O
phone	O
John	O
up	O
and	O
ask	O
him	O
to	O
include	O
it.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
At	O
the	O
stage	O
of	O
development	O
at	O
which	O
the	O
interview	O
was	O
conducted	O
,	O
The	O
First	B-Application
Samurai	I-Application
had	O
105	O
different	O
limb	O
sprites	O
,	O
and	O
30	O
different	O
animations	O
using	O
those	O
sprites	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
First	B-Application
Samurai	I-Application
runs	O
at	O
25	O
frames	O
per	O
second	O
,	O
as	O
a	O
Vivid	O
Images	O
team	O
member	O
expressed	O
that	O
"	O
We	O
decided	O
not	O
to	O
go	O
for	O
50	O
frames	O
because	O
it	O
's	O
got	O
too	O
many	O
limitations	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Amiga	B-Device
version	O
of	O
First	B-Application
Samurai	I-Application
cost	O
'	O
around	O
84	O
 '	O
Deutschmark	O
in	O
1992	O
,	O
and	O
was	O
released	O
on	O
two	O
floppy	B-Device
disks	I-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
Amiga	B-Device
Joker	O
gave	O
the	O
Amiga	B-Device
version	O
of	O
First	B-Application
Samurai	I-Application
an	O
overall	O
score	O
of	O
82%	O
,	O
comparing	O
it	O
to	O
other	O
similar	O
games	O
such	O
as	O
Shadow	B-Application
Dancer	I-Application
and	O
The	B-Application
Last	I-Application
Ninja	I-Application
,	O
and	O
expressing	O
that	O
"	O
If	O
someone	O
were	O
to	O
say	O
that	O
the	O
game	O
is	O
n't	O
really	O
original	O
,	O
they	O
would	O
be	O
correct	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
However	O
,	O
First	B-Application
Samurai	I-Application
impresses	O
not	O
so	O
much	O
with	O
an	O
innovative	O
idea	O
,	O
but	O
more	O
with	O
technical	O
brilliance	O
and	O
excellent	O
gameplay.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
Amiga	B-Device
Joker	O
praises	O
First	B-Application
Samurai	I-Application
's	O
'	O
compelling	O
 '	O
gameplay	O
,	O
noting	O
the	O
number	O
of	O
usable	O
weapons	O
,	O
its	O
"	O
difficult	O
"	O
puzzles	O
,	O
and	O
"	O
crafty	O
"	O
level	O
design	O
,	O
particularly	O
praising	O
the	O
inclusion	O
of	O
hidden	O
areas	O
and	O
items	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
magazine	O
praises	O
First	B-Application
Samurai	I-Application
's	O
graphics	O
,	O
calling	O
them	O
"	O
gorgeously	O
colourful	O
"	O
and	O
noting	O
the	O
game	O
to	O
be	O
"	O
full	O
of	O
fantastic	O
minute	O
details	O
(	O
e.g.	O
</s>
<s>
Further	O
more	O
it	O
mentions	O
First	B-Application
Samurai	I-Application
's	O
"	O
nifty	O
"	O
title	O
screen	O
music	O
and	O
"	O
comical	O
"	O
sound	O
effects	O
,	O
and	O
concludes	O
by	O
stating	O
that	O
"	O
It	O
is	O
clear	O
that	O
the	O
programmers	O
at	O
Image	O
Works	O
have	O
put	O
care	O
into	O
the	O
game	O
and	O
successfully	O
created	O
a	O
masterpiece	O
...	O
</s>
<s>
Anyone	O
who	O
wants	O
to	O
sell	O
an	O
Asia-themed	O
beat	B-Application
'	I-Application
em	I-Application
up	I-Application
after	O
this	O
game	O
will	O
have	O
their	O
work	O
cut	O
out	O
for	O
them.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
Super	O
Gamer	O
reviewed	O
the	O
Super	B-Application
NES	I-Application
version	O
and	O
have	O
an	O
overall	O
score	O
of	O
79%	O
stating	O
:	O
"	O
A	O
novel	O
and	O
pretty	O
platformer	O
,	O
but	O
later	O
levels	O
are	O
disappointing.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Channel	O
4	O
video	O
game	O
programme	O
GamesMaster	O
gave	O
the	O
Amiga	B-Device
version	O
a	O
90%	O
rating	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Computer	O
and	O
Video	O
Games	O
magazine	O
also	O
said	O
the	O
game	O
borrowed	O
heavily	O
from	O
earlier	O
slash	B-Application
'	I-Application
em	I-Application
up	I-Application
games	O
such	O
as	O
Strider	O
,	O
The	B-Application
Legend	I-Application
of	I-Application
Kage	I-Application
,	O
and	O
Shadow	B-Application
Dancer	I-Application
,	O
but	O
nevertheless	O
gave	O
First	B-Application
Samurai	I-Application
a	O
positive	O
review	O
and	O
called	O
it	O
a	O
"	O
brilliant	O
"	O
game	O
.	O
</s>
