Bakumatsu Rouman: The Last Blade: Minakata Moriya

Ah, Moriya. He's the bishounen of the game. (Well, until Setsuna came along.. ^_~) Quite beautiful, our Moriya. He's also got that sour, jaded attitude that either makes you want to slap him, admire him, or kiss him. (Depending on your tastes and sexual preferences. ^_~) He's bitter about something, and he doesn't bother hiding it. When he wins a round, he smirks at his lesser opponent. He also says very cool things, like "scream to the moon" and "it seems you wish to die". Gotta love a man with attitude. ^_^

Some of Moriya's moves remind me somewhat of Ukyo from Samurai Shodown; his special is similar to Ukyo's famous apple-slicing move, and several of his normal attacks make me think Ukyo as well. Oh, and he wears the same pants. ^_^ He has no projectile, but he does have a good long reaching slash, as well as a move that lets him teleport around the screen. He's fast and a lot of fun to play.

Moriya in the second game plays pretty similar to the first one. However, I'm told (I don't play him myself, he belongs to my flatmate ^_~) that some of his moves have been altered in the way of comboing, so that although his moves are similar, the way of playing him can be quite different. Sounds like fun to me. ^_^

Last Blade 1 Story: Moriya was always an excellent swordsman, and at a young age he was accepted to train under a well respected swordsman. Within several years, he found he had excelled even that man, but he stayed with him because he (and the other children he had adopted) were more like family. But a day came, when he was seventeen, that he found himself standing over the dead body of the man he respected more than any other. Five years later, he's travelling still to atone for his past.

Last Blade 2 Story: After all that had happened with Kaede, Kagami, and Hell's Gate, Moriya left in disgust to train himself some more. But six months later he felt a strange, overwhelming urge to return home; not to any home he had lived in, but to the great black portal hanging low and evil in the sky. So he returns, seeking answers and truth.

Useless but fun facts: Moriya's birthdate is September 23rd, 1841, making him 22 years old at the time of the first game. The kanji for his name means something like distinguished gentleman (for Minakata) and guarding arrow (for Moriya).