Kessen Unlockables and Hints (PS2)

The ancient storied battlefield lies before you. At your command are 100,000 troops including archers, infantry, riflemen and the powerful cavalry. Kessen, or "strategic battle," is a real time strategy game designed for the PlayStation 2 computer entertainment system that gives players strategic command and control over huge armies during epic battle sequences from the Warring States period of seventeenth century Japan.

Players begin by taking the role of Ieyasu, one of Japan's most fearsome warlords and commander of the Tokugawa Shogunate as he engages 100,000 loyalists who stood with the Toyotomi family in a decisive battle at Sekigahara that will declare a new shogun with power throughout all Japan.

Kessen takes full advantage of the new and powerful Agent Technology capabilities of the PS2, which lets players command their armies as a group, allowing hundreds of soldiers in full 3-D to battle in real-time across varying terrain, guided by the tactics and strategy of the player.

Unlockables

Play as the West:
Successfully complete the game as the East.

Play as Minsunari Ishida, for the Kuzegawa, Sekigahara and Minakuchi battles:
Successfully complete the game as Tokugawa. Issue the "Enough! We must retire!" army order to play as Jousui Kuroda and Yuki Sanada in campaign mode.

Battle mode option:
Successfully complete the game as the East and the West. A new option that allows you to choose your battle mode will be unlocked at the main menu. Any previous battle may be fought, as either the East or the West.

Gameplay Hints

Battle strategies:
At the start of each campaign, go for a defensive approach.

- Gather your units and await enemy movements.

- Intercept advancing enemy units with long-range attacks (canonade/ballista).

- Attack enemy units with several units, using special-attacks first.

- Keep it going until the enemy unit is destroyed. Do not let routed units escape as they will reform. More importantly, when annihilating an enemy unit, your army's zeal will rise, allowing for more special attacks.

- Use "rally" to raise the zeal of your units when in battle, preferably on units with long-range special attacks.

- Check your unit's status regularly and retreat immediately if your unit is losing a battle.

- Try to limit the number of engagements, as to have a better chance of controlling the events on the battlefield. Press L2 to call up a map of the entire battlefield.

- Only at the very end (two or three enemy units remaining) should you call for an army attack, keeping the units with long-range attacks at some distance.

Some gameplay footage can be found below: