History is a fickle thing. We like to pretend that it’s immutable—the stories we tell are the truth. However, history is never exactly like this, and as a people, we tend to change facts as we see fit. This applies to Nobunaga Oda the most, as while we see many records coming from this period of time, many of them tend to embellish the facts. So instead, we idolize him as the man who conquered and united Japan under his ambition. Nobunaga’s Ambition: Awakening Complete Edition is the latest in this series, which often tells a dramatized version of the unification of Japan.
This period of history, known as the Sengoku Period, has a lot of writing and superstition that can make it difficult to tell fact from fiction. The reason is that grand tales of a clan leader tended to make enemies fear them. This makes some of the battles feel more like a myth, begging to be dramatized.
So, it’s no surprise that the series has been going on since Koei’s original game from 1983 for Japanese PCs. Nearly four decades later, Koei Tecmo has re-released the latest title from 2022, which was then re-released onto the Nintendo Switch a year later. That very same game, Nobunaga’s Ambition: Awakening, has come to Nintendo Switch 2 with most of its DLC.
Defy Historical Accuracy in Nobunaga’s Ambition: Awakening Complete Edition
Nobunaga’s Ambition: Awakening follows many number of clans that were in the Sengoku Period, as all of Japan was divided by each clan. The main clan is the Oda Clan, which is run by Nobunaga himself after the death of his father, and the game will direct you to play through them first. The story itself is rather a small series of videos of historical events that affect gameplay. These events range from clans betraying each other, descriptions of historical battles, and political marriages.
However, while the game attempts to be as historically accurate as possible, it’s impossible to totally shift through some of the more… fictitious interpretations of events. For example, one battle between Shingen Takeda and Kenshin Uesugi depicts a fierce battle where Shingen deflects Kenshin’s blade. The art is stunning, and the battle itself, while being described, feels like reading a drama novelization. These scenes are worth watching for the political drama, though.
The real stickler is that you can turn off most of these events with the hearsay option. Hearsay includes videos detailing historical events that will greatly shift or affect the landscape of Japan. Turning Hearsay off will remove most of these scenarios, turning the game into a more straightforward experience. However, turning the option off makes the game more generic, as it will also remove most of the interesting stories being told.
This may not be a bad thing for some players, since you can have fun skipping the movies and uniting Japan as quickly as possible. However, these events can make each battle fun as they work against or with you, especially when tackling a clan that historically failed and was conquered early on. These can give you the challenge you want without forcing you to actually pump the difficulty up.
Battles and Diplomacy
Uniting Japan is not an easy task, and you need to utilize many different strategies to realize such a lofty goal. So, how would you go about conquering Japan? Will you forge alliances, betray friends, or even destroy everything in your path? After all, it will take an ambition far greater than Nobunaga’s to bring the clans under your power.
Despite the fact that you can forge alliances with the various clans, you will need to eventually betray alliances to achieve your ultimate goal. There are plenty of options, though, such as banning war, which is considered more of a diplomatic win. You can also create vassals, a semi-permanent alliance, that you can absorb to take the castle peacefully.
Unfortunately, I felt like the tutorial never truly prepared me to play, let alone win. Many of the important mechanics and features are explored through several in-game menus that you’ll need to go through on your own. This also meant that I had to restart numerous times before I got the hang of the game. However, I loved it once I truly got the hang of all the systems at play. I would spend hours playing the game and even take it on the go with me.
The first scenario I played was The Battle of Okehazama from 1560, which was a very important turning point in Japanese history. This is where Nobunaga first begins his rise to power by defeating Yoshimoto Imagawa, a clan leader with a significantly larger force. The game actually recommends you start here with the Oda clan because the road to victory is straightforward.
In order for you to emerge victorious, you must raise your armies, wage war on other clans, and claim their castles and land. This is mostly done through an overworld battle, where you watch little figures wage war on the map. There will be times when you will be able to direct a particular battle. These can be important historical battles or tiny skirmishes to occupy a county that holds no significant historical basis.
These battles are very simple, and you will need to either wipe out the opposing army or block their means of escape. At times, your troops will start making decisions on their own, forcing you to pause time to take control of a situation. However, if you are confident in your ability to win the battle, let your troops take care of it.
Taking Japan Out with You
On Nintendo Switch 2, Nobunaga’s Ambition: Awakening is locked at 30 FPS. However, I think that was the correct move for a title such as this, because of all the moving parts of each clan conquering each other. I never once noticed a dip in the framerate or the game freezing; it runs flawlessly.
The only massive gripe I have is that switching from mouse mode to controller mode is more difficult than I care for. It’s a special new feature of Nintendo Switch 2 that allows the right or left Joy-Con to be used like a mouse on a PC, allowing for a more stable experience in a real-time strategy game like this. Being able to click directly on the UI is greatly beneficial.
In fact, if I were playing docked, I would prefer to play in mouse mode most of the time. barring a few exceptions. This would mostly be when I decided to lie down and play rather than sit up. If you connect the Joy-Con 2 controllers to the console, it will register and automatically switch back to controller mode. However, if you wish to go from mouse mode to using the supplied Joy-Con 2 Grip, then you will need to enter settings and manually switch modes.
This could have been a killer feature if there were a button to switch the modes instantly. It’s still not a deal breaker, but I would have liked to be able to switch instantly. Many will appreciate the ability to use this mode, and I think it’s what helps the game stand apart from the original release on the Switch. Of course, there’s also a slew of included DLC to think about, including extra scenarios.
The game offers countless hours of extra content, and there are options to use different start states within a scenario. This ranges from starting from the death of Nobunaga’s father to entirely fictional and alternate history stories. I am personally excited to start branching out to these other scenarios and unify Japan in my own way.
Nobunaga’s Ambition: Awakening Complete Edition is Worth Celebrating on Switch 2
Nobunaga’s Ambition: Awakening Complete Edition is a great addition to the Nintendo Switch 2’s library and a hidden gem amongst its launch lineup. However, this won’t be a killer title for those who have purchased before, especially if you own it on the Switch. The reason for this is the inability to upgrade from the Switch to the Switch 2 version.
This means that you will need to pay full price for either the standard version or the collector’s edition. However, if this will be your first time playing the game, Nobunaga’s Ambition: Awakening Complete Edition will be the perfect buying point. Despite this being an old experience on new hardware, being able to experience Nobunaga’s Ambition: Awakening and its many DLC packs on the go feels great.
Disclaimer: Koei Tecmo provided a Nintendo Switch 2 copy of Nobunaga’s Ambition: Awakening Complete Edition to Final Weapon for review purposes.
