News roundup: Kenshin, Kasuga and Street Fighter IV headline today's Weekly Famitsu article

Here's all of the new Sengoku Basara 4 Sumeragi information from the latest issue of Weekly Famitsu magazine, which just went on sale in Japan. Like before, I'm using the same numbering system as the magazine to break the announcements into categories.

29. Presenting the pair's 'speedy action'!

They were unplayable in the previous game but Uesugi Kenshin and Kasuga have been confirmed this time, and they even have some new moves. The R2 specials are numbered in the article so they're presented in the same order in my list.

Uesugi Kenshin

• R2 #1: Shinran ('Divine Storm') - A new addition since the previous game. A freezing blizzard appears around the enemy soldiers in front of the player. The enemies can be frozen to the ground and prevented from moving as Kenshin continues to attack.
• R2 #2: Shinkyoku ('Divine Thorns') - A new special technique which combines a high-speed unsheathing of the katana with a slash. If you time the button press correctly, you can create a huge rose made of ice which blasts the enemies away then slows everything down in the area, putting it into the 'Divine Region' state.

There's a note that Kenshin still has his Shin Iki ('Divine Region') slowdown trait on other moves, in case anyone was wondering.

Kasuga

• R2 #1: Mitsugi: Maitsubomi ('Secret Rite: Dancing Flower Bud') - Kasuga climbs a pole and performs a seductive dance technique. It can be used to charm the surrounding enemy soldiers into handing over koban coins.
• R2 #2: Mitsugi: Nijikage ('Secret Rite: Rainbow Silhouette') - A new special technique involving clones created from threads. The threads add a binding effect to all of Kasuga's attacks. Furthermore, by using a particular move it's possible to make the clones add follow-up attacks.

For some reason Kenshin is wearing the Echigozuka costume previously shown as a Tenka Medal reward in all of the screenshots, and Kasuga is wearing her Tenka Medal spectacles (see below). The enemy soldiers in the pictures of Kenshin are the Kyougoku-Azai troops accompanied by Nagamasa.

The Weekly Famitsu writers comment that seeing these nostalgic old characters returning with the new gameplay system is one of the game's charms. There's no explanation for the story which led to the picture of the pair entangled in 'rose-hued Sengoku drama' at the top of the page so I expect that will be part of the next official website update in a few hours.

30. Strike 'Poem Amago' to receive Tenka Medals!

When certain conditions are met, the Battle Roulette begins to spin. The roulette's outcome can change the battlefield in a variety of ways. For example, if you achieve the 'Tenka' (red) result, the mysterious warrior 'Poem Amago' might appear. Poem Amago moves around the stage submerged below ground. If you're able to attack him when he appears above the surface, you'll receive Tenka Medals which you can trade in for fantastic rewards.

There's a special pink icon with Poem Amago's name and face which indicates the place where he will appear.

(Poem Amago is Amago Haruhisa from Sengoku Basara 3 with a pink veil partially covering his face, in case that wasn't obvious.)

31. Check out the next batch of Tenka Medal rewards.

There's another batch of reward descriptions, as usual. Some have already been shown at events.

• 24 of 167: Date Masamune's Fake 'Date Megane' Glasses Ver. costume.
• 25 of 167: Katsuie's red/white/blue costume is called the Tricolor Ver. - however it's written with the ateji for 'capture', 'kill' and 'yield' which makes the name quite strange.
• 26 of 167: A new blue/white costume for Keiji, the Clear Skies Striped Ver.
• 27 of 167: Kasuga also has a pair of glasses to wear; the Crimson Spectacles Ver.
• 28 of 167: A skill enhancement for Matsunaga Hisahide. It's a move where Hisahide sprinkles the enemy in front of him with gunpowder, then wraps a fuse around them so that they explode. The gunpowder can be sprinkled over a wider area by holding down the button.
• 29 of 167: A skill enhancement for Fuuma Kotarou. He instantly teleports from the ground to the air, or vice versa. After moving, it's possible to follow up quickly with a kick if he's on the ground, or a shuriken attack if he's in the air.
• 30 of 167: A skill enhancement for Uesugi Kenshin. If used on the ground, it launches the surrounding enemies upwards and acts as a combo opener. If used in the air, it changes into a lunging attack which can be used to pursue enemies.
• 31 of 167: A skill enhancement for Kasuga. Kasuga lands after an aerial spin, blasting the surrounding enemies away. The move can also be triggered while using other techniques in order to work as a follow-up, or to end a combo.

32. The Street Fighter IV crossover costumes are unveiled!

There's a little more detail on the outfits which were revealed on the Famitsu website yesterday.

• The screenshots show that his fans are emblazoned with the words 'Shouryuuken' and 'Hadouken' when Rikyuu is dressed up as Ken. The outfit is called the Street Fighter IV Ken Ver.
• Maria's outfit is called the Street Fighter IV Rose Ver. and all that the notes say is that fans can look forward to seeing Rose wielding cloth rather than 'soul power' this time.
• Ieyasu is described as being the perfect fit for the white gi of the Street Fighter IV Ryu Ver. outfit since he's the martial arts type. He also has a move which resembles the Shouryuuken.
• Kasuga's costume is the Street Fighter IV Chun-Li Ver. and the writers remark that it will be fun to use lots of stylish kick moves while dressed as Chun-Li. Another screenshot sets up Kasuga blasting an enemy with a move the staff compare to Chun-Li's Kikoushou.

The best part of this feature is probably the screenshot where they've lined the characters up as though it's a 2D fighting game and made Ieyasu uppercut Kojuurou while both characters' partners look on from the sidelines.

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The PS3 version of Sengoku Basara 4 Sumeragi is back up to 22nd place in the magazine's list of upcoming games while the PS4 version has vanished.

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That's all of the Weekly Famitsu content, but another piece of news came up today which I think is worth mentioning!

The game's opening theme DOUBLE-DEAL will be released as a single

The official T.M.Revolution website has announced that DOUBLE-DEAL will be released as a single - and the details will be of interest to Sengoku Basara fans. There will be two variants available.

The 2CD version of the single (ESCL-4490~4491) will cost ¥1,500 before tax and include a 'T.M.Revolution x Sengoku Basara 4 Sumeragi' trading card. To go with the CD with DOUBLE-DEAL, the second disc will include newly recorded, rearranged 'Re:boot' versions of Count ZERO, crosswise, FLAGS, SWORD SUMMIT, UTAGE, Naked arms and The party must go on. The bonus disc is being called Sengoku Basara Re:boot Tracks.

The CD+DVD version (ESCL-4492~4493) will be priced at ¥1,800 and include a different 'T.M.Revolution x Sengoku Basara 4 Sumeragi' trading card. It will include the DOUBLE-DEAL CD and a DVD with special video footage.

Both versions of the single will go on sale on 5th August 2015.