Samurai Slice (DS)

Samurai Slice (ゐあひ斬り外伝^?, Iai Giri Gaiden) is the 4th Endless Game in Rhythm Heaven, unlocked with 17 Medals.

Gameplay

The Wandering Samurai stands atop a wall with his foot on a wooden plank. Various items get thrown at the far end of the plank, which the samurai is tasked with popping up and then slicing. The sliced bits then are caught by the children below. Coins come out of the sliced objects, which serve as the player's score. When the full moon rises, all coins earned will be multiplied by 10x for a brief period of time. The game moves faster when it reaches the end of the loop in the music. After the first loop, particles indicating seasons begin falling for each loop (sakura leaves for spring, green leaves for summer, brown leaves for autumn, and snowflakes for winter).

The game begins with three lives, represented with flames. If the player loses them all, the game is over.

Each item thrown has a different rhythm.

Watermelon: The most basic item to slice. The watermelon bounces off the wooden plank once to then be sliced with the samurai's sword. Gives 1 coin.
Fish: This item bounces off the wooden plank twice before being sliced. A yellow version may appear at the end of the loop, which restores one life if sliced, up to a total of 5. Gives 2 coins.
Yokai: This enemy, returning from Iai Giri, bounces off the wooden plank, gets launched high in the air and out of sight, then falls down in front of the samurai. The timing for the slice matches the timing it would take in Iai Giri following the music. Gives 2 coins.

Controls

Tap: Step on plank
Tap (Hold): Keep foot on plank
Tap (Release): Release plank
Flick: Swing sword

Timing Display

Perfect!/Ace!: The object is sliced in half; the child catches the pieces and walks away happy.
Early!/Late!: The object bounces off the plank or the sword and crashes into the ground, causing the child to cry. One life is deducted.
Miss...: The object crashes into the ground, causing the child to cry. One life is deducted. If all lives are lost, the game is over.

Appearances

Samurai Slice

Video

Trivia

The sprites for the rock and tree in the background, along with the general aesthetic, are reused directly from the microgames Stick & Move, Arrow Space and Ninja Vision in WarioWare, Inc.: Mega Microgame$!. A sprite of Tiny Ninja, the character from these microgames, can also be found unused in this game.
The name of this game in Japanese uses a nearly obsolete Japanese kana, ゐ (wi^?), which is rarely used in modern Japanese. The modern spelling would be いあい斬り外伝 (Iai Slash Sidestory^?). "Iai" refers to the "art of quickly drawing one's sword, cutting down one's opponent and sheathing the sword afterwards". In short, a quick-draw sword technique.
The music in this game, named "Fresh Samurai" in the Music Corner, is a remix of the music from Iai Giri. Similar to that game, the phrases that play when two objects appear at once is a sound effect rather than part of the music, allowing the game to mix them up. Unlike Iai Giri though, which has a separate track with the phrases mixed in for the Studio, they are not represented in "Fresh Samurai".
Occasionally, the moon may appear with the text 555-SAMURAI (246936♪1^?) on it. If the player inputs this into the Phone, they will get sounds from Iai Giri from Rhythm Tengoku.
The seasonal particles make a return in Samurai Slice in Rhythm Heaven Fever, where snowflakes and sakura leaves fall during the first half of the game.

Development History

Main article: Samurai Slice/Development

In Other Languages

Language	Name	Meaning
Japanese	ゐあひ斬り外伝	Iai Slash Sidestory
English^NOA	Samurai Slice
English^NOE	Samurai Slice
French	Rythme tranchant	Sharp rhythm
Spanish	Samurái Rebanador	Samurai Slicer
German	Iai! Samurai
Italian	Spirito samurai	Spirit samurai
Korean	무사의 길	Samurai's Road