But what does being Steam Deck Verified mean?

When a game is submitted for testing on the Steam Deck, it can be assigned one of three different badges depending on how it performs. The Unsupported badge means that the game does not run properly on the Steam Deck and the Playable badge means that the game can be played on the Steam Deck, but the player may need to make some manual adjustments to the game for it to function correctly.

The Verified badge is only awarded to games that operate well on the Steam Deck without the need for the player to make manual adjustments and don’t present any significant problems when it comes to installation, performance, controls, and display.

After a lot of hard work from the team, we’re so proud to have achieved Steam Deck Verified status for The Spirit of the Samurai!

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1507120/The_Spirit_of_the_Samurai/


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Alongside all of the new content, we’ve implemented lots of quality of life changes based on community feedback:

• Improved the AI for Sojobo and made the boss fight more difficult;
  
• Improved the AI for both boss fights with Shuten-dōji;
  
• Changed the Mother Spider boss fight so that she doesn’t spit out more than 4 spiders at a time. The speed at which she spits them out has also been fixed and a new VFX has been added to her spitting. The spit will also now damage the player if they’re in range;
  
• Improve the AI for the spider enemies in the Cave levels, particularly when they navigate between hanging from the ceiling and moving to the ground;
  
• Improved the AI for the Tengu, Archer, Undead, and Slave enemies;
  
• Removed the camera rotation effect when moving;
  
• Changed the health system so that you now cannot lose two lives in a row. When you lose a life, you now cannot lose another one until a certain amount of time has passed;
  
• Added a visual effect whenever you lose a life so it is more obvious when it has happened;
  
• Added a visual parry time indicator to enemies’ attack animations;
  
• Added a visual indicator whenever a parry is successful;
  
• Added a reward for a successful parry, where enemies will not be able to defend themselves for a period of time;
  
• Changed how kunai work so they have different effects depending on their type. The normal kunai will cause normal damage and guard break. The steel kunai will cause high damage and guard break. The gold kunai will cause even more damage and guard break;
  
• Changed the Tengu enemy type so it doesn’t recover energy during combat;
  
• Changed the way enemy armour works so it will now serve as a cover against attacks during combat;
  
• Changed the Combo Editor so selecting assigned moves will highlight them in the list;
  
• Added a button in the Combo Editor to reset to default combos;
  
• Improved hit boxes for all enemies;
  
• Added a transparency effect when passing the foreground columns of the Fortress level;
  
• Smoothed the slow motion effect;
  
• Added an option to disable controller vibration in the game menu;
  
• Optimized the game further so that most levels will now run at a stable 60fps;
  
• Changed how check points work so they have to be activated by interacting with them, rather than being triggered automatically;
  
• Added checkpoints before every boss fight and balanced out the number of checkpoints throughout the game;
  
• Added automatic checkpoints to the start of some levels to prevent blockers;
  
• Made the loading icon larger;
  
• Changed the VFX for the spider enemies;
  
• Added an independent volume control for cut-scenes and cinematics.

We’ve been working hard on improving the performance on Steam Deck specifically as well and have

• incorporated the following changes to the Steam Deck build:
  
• Added default settings to the Steam Deck build;
  
• Optimized the game on Steam Deck so that it should now achieve a stable 60fps across all levels;
  
• Adapted any text featured across the entire game (including UI, dialogue, etc.) to ensure they’re legible on the Steam Deck.

Last but certainly not least, we’ve also included the following bug fixes in this patch:

• Fixed the issue that caused the camera to start shaking when the player dies;
  
• Fixed an issue where some enemies would take cover when hit from behind;
  
• Fixed the camera jumping when turning during gameplay;
  
• Made the loading icon larger.

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1507120/The_Spirit_of_the_Samurai/


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The Spirit of the Samurai is a 2D stop-motion action adventure where you’ll get to play as three separate characters: the samurai Takeshi, his kitten Chisai, and the forest spirit Kodama. Traverse through beautifully realized 2.5D landscapes, fight against an army of horrifying monsters, and take on the demonic Shuten-dōji to save your village from total destruction.

So why are we featuring in the Myths & Legends Sale?

The Myths & Legends Sale is designed to showcase games that were heavily inspired by the mythologies of different cultures, whether that be the yōkai of Japan or the jötunn of Norse legend.

From the adorable forest spirits that populate Takeshi’s dreams to the horrifying spider-like creature Chisai must avoid to survive, every element of The Spirit of the Samurai has been inspired by the aesthetic, mythological characters, and legends of Japan.

Shuten-dōji, the central antagonist, is based on a mythical oni or demon leader of the same name from Japanese legend. Throughout the game, you’ll encounter the vicious hag Yama-uba, the towering Gashadokuro, and multiple other supernatural monstrosities known as yōkai torn straight from Japanese folklore.

Still not sure if The Spirit of the Samurai is the legendary Japanese epic you want to get lost in?

Then maybe our action-packed launch trailer can convince you 👇

Don’t forget, this discount stacks with the 10% discount you’ll get on bundles, so there’s never been a better time to buy one of our bundles! We’ve currently got 2 bundles available:

The Sinners & Samurai Bundle with the indie classic Blasphemous 2.

The ultimate bundle for aspiring samurai with Trek to Yomi.

If you already own any of the other games, you’ll still be able to take advantage of the bundle. Instead of buying the full bundle, however, you’ll be given the option to complete the set and receive a 10% bundle discount on the other games.

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1507120/The_Spirit_of_the_Samurai/


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Since our launch on December 12th 2024, our small team has continued to work steadily and very hard on The Spirit of the Samurai to improve the gameplay experience by listening to your feedback and suggestions, as well as adding new features and content. We’re extremely grateful to everyone who has taken the time to submit bug reports and give their feedback, which has helped us to make these updates and plan for the future of the game!

We’ve released two major updates so far, which came with quality of life improvements, balancing, improved combat controls, optimization of Steam Deck performance, a whole new cut-scene, and lots of bug fixes. If you want to know everything that was included in these updates, you can check out our patch notes for the first one here and the second one here.

So what does the road ahead look like for The Spirit of the Samurai?

We’re working on a third update at the moment, which will include a new enemy and brand new death cinematics! On top of that, we’ll also be adding more depth to the combo system, implementing more player feedback, and more bug fixes.

After that, we plan to update the game regularly as soon as we have new improvements ready. All of these updates and all of the new content will be free for all players.

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1507120/The_Spirit_of_the_Samurai/


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We’re excited to let you all know that we’ve released our second patch for The Spirit of the Samurai!

Thank you once again for all of the players who have submitted their feedback and provided us with bug reports. We wouldn’t have been able to do this without your help!

Here are the major changes we’ve implemented in this patch:

• Regenerated all videos for the cut-scenes to Webm format, which is fully compatible with the Steam Deck and all other systems. This has eliminated all performance issues related to the cut-scenes on Steam Deck.
  
• Optimised performance on Steam Deck and lower spec PCs for increased stability and frame-rate (average 60 FPS).
  
• Adjusted the visibility of the combo panel to better display on Steam Deck and smaller monitors.
  
• Improved the AI of the Undead enemies.
  
• Added new climbing points to the Tower level when you play as Chisai (the kitten).
  
• Combat balancing for Takeshi, particularly with the strength of his strikes.
  
• Improved controls during combat. Certain actions, such as the roll, can now be interrupted early so that players can attack if necessary.
  
• Reduced VRAM usage (around 1.2GB) in the final fight and Kodama cave scene.
  
• Adjusted the hitboxes of Takeshi’s strikes so they’re more accurate.
  
• Added a new cutscene featuring the Slave enemy type in the Dungeon level.
  
• General bug fixing.

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1507120/The_Spirit_of_the_Samurai/

We’re still going to be gathering bug reports and feedback to form the basis for future patches, but we hope you enjoy the new and improved performance of The Spirit of the Samurai in this patch!

If you do encounter any bugs or would like to share any feedback with us, we’d love to hear from you in the Steam Forums, in our Discord, or on social media 🦊

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First of all, we’d like to say a huge thank you to all of the players who have taken the time to provide feedback and submit bug reports on The Spirit of the Samurai!

Your help has been invaluable when it has come to diagnosing the bugs that needed fixing and deciding on what quality of life changes to include in our first patch.

Thanks to you all, here are the major changes we’ve made in Build 1.0.06 based on player feedback:

• Responsiveness of Combat & Other Controls: We’ve improved combat and general movement controls to create a more fluid and consistent player experience. Parries are easier to execute effectively and the player character can now perform other actions while drinking potions or picking up items, so players can defend themselves more easily from incoming enemies.
  
• Animation Speed: Character animations for the parry, item pick-up, and drinking health potions have been sped up.
  
• Level Navigation Improvements: The camera will now zoom out when players are navigating through the platforms in the Forest and Dungeon level, so that players have increased visibility when navigating the path ahead and jumping between platforms.
  
• Checkpoints & Shrines: We’ve added more checkpoints during the Basement, Forest, Cemetery, and Dungeon levels. We’ve also made it so that Shrines will function as checkpoints as well, meaning your game will now save after you’ve used the Shrine. We have also reduced the time it takes to offer items at the Shrine.
  
• Boss Balancing: We have balanced the bosses and made boss fights more challenging.
  
• Ranged Attacks: Archers and other ranged enemies will no longer attack you if they are off-screen.
  
• Steam Deck Performance: We’ve improved performance of the game on the Steam Deck and have managed to achieve a consistent 90+ FPS in most areas. There are a few areas where players may still experience frame rate issues, but overall performance on the Steam Deck has improved considerably.
  
• 4K Resolution: The bug causing black bars to appear around the screen in 4K resolution has been fixed, so you can enjoy The Spirit of the Samurai in the full glory of 4K!

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1507120/The_Spirit_of_the_Samurai/

We’re still working on other quality of life changes, performance improvements, and bug fixes based on the feedback you’ve given us, but we hope that these changes will significantly enhance your experience of The Spirit of the Samurai!

If you do encounter any bugs or would like to share any feedback with us, we’d love to hear from you in the Steam Forums, in our Discord, or on social media 🦊

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The Spirit of the Samurai is a 2D stop-motion action adventure where you’ll get to play as three separate characters: the samurai Takeshi, his kitten Chisai, and the forest spirit Kodama. Traverse through beautifully realized 2.5D landscapes, fight against an army of horrifying monsters inspired by Japanese mythology, and take on the demonic Shuten-dōji to save your village from total destruction.

Our stop-motion art style was inspired by the work of Ray Harryhausen, H.R. Giger, and Zdzisław Beksiński. We wanted our game to evoke the same feeling as the old claymation and stop motion horror films that we grew up watching, so we hope you will enjoy our unique style!

Still not sure if The Spirit of the Samurai is the cozy classic you need this winter?

Then maybe our action-packed launch trailer can convince you 👇

Don’t forget, this discount stacks with the 10% discount you’ll get on bundles, so there’s never been a better time to buy one of our bundles! We’ve currently got 2 bundles available:

The Sinners & Samurai Bundle with the indie classic Blasphemous 2.

The ultimate bundle for aspiring samurai with Trek to Yomi.

If you already own any of the other games, you’ll still be able to take advantage of the bundle. Instead of buying the full bundle, however, you’ll be given the option to complete the set and receive a 10% bundle discount on the other games.

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1507120/The_Spirit_of_the_Samurai/


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We’re thrilled to announce that we’ve formed a bundle with Trek to Yomi!

With their feudal Japanese settings, cinematic visuals, and epic mythical storytelling, The Spirit of the Samurai and Trek to Yomi felt like a natural fit to form this action-packed bundle.

The Spirit of the Samurai x Trek to Yomi Bundle includes:

The Spirit of the Samurai, a 2D stop-motion action adventure where you’ll get to play as three separate characters: the samurai Takeshi, his kitten Chisai, and the forest spirit Kodama. Traverse through beautifully realized 2.5D landscapes, fight against an army of horrifying monsters inspired by Japanese mythology, and take on the demonic Oni to save your village from total destruction.

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1507120/The_Spirit_of_the_Samurai/

Trek to Yomi, where you take on the role of the young swordsman Hiroki. As a vow to his dying master, Hiroki is sworn to protect his town and the people he loves against all threats. Faced with tragedy and bound to duty, the lone samurai must voyage beyond life and death to confront himself and decide his path forward.

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1370050/Trek_to_Yomi/

If you already own The Spirit of the Samurai or Trek to Yomi, you’ll still be able to take advantage of the bundle. Instead of buying the full bundle, however, you’ll be given the option to complete the set and receive a 10% bundle discount on the other games, which will stack with any other discounts that are available on the games at the time!


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With their uniquely dark art styles, thrilling combat systems, and grotesque monster designs, it was only natural that The Spirit of the Samurai and Blasphemous 2 should be paired together in this gore-geous bundle. Not to mention, both games were made by Spanish developers!

The Sinners and Samurai Bundle includes:

The Spirit of the Samurai, a 2D stop-motion action adventure where you’ll get to play as three separate characters: the samurai Takeshi, his kitten Chisai, and the forest spirit Kodama. Traverse through beautifully realized 2.5D landscapes, fight against an army of horrifying monsters inspired by Japanese mythology, and take on the demonic Oni to save your village from total destruction.

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1507120/The_Spirit_of_the_Samurai/

Blasphemous 2, a stunning 2D action-platformer where you reprise your role as The Penitent One, who awakens to continue his endless struggle against The Miracle. Dive into a perilous new world filled with mysteries and secrets to discover, and tear your way through monstrous foes that stand between you and your quest to end the cycle once and for all.

https://store.steampowered.com/app/2114740/Blasphemous_2/

If you already own The Spirit of the Samurai or Blasphemous 2, you’ll still be able to take advantage of the bundle. Instead of buying the full bundle, however, you’ll be given the option to complete the set and receive a 10% bundle discount on the other games, which will stack with any other discounts that are available on the games at the time!


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