Samurai Derby (ダービー無双, Derby Musou) is a Samurai Warriors 4 collaboration project with the Japanese Racing Association (JRA). One part of the project is a free-to-play online browser game. Its gimmick pairs Samurai Warriors characters with famous Japanese racehorses as they race on the Tokyo Race Course against their rivals. Music and voice actors from the game are reused for each character's story.
Koinuma stated that business talks for Samurai Derby were light so its realization surprised him, much like JRA's 2013 Shingeki no Kyojin collaboration. JRA were the ones mainly in charge of directorial decisions for the project. They wanted to use Tomu Miyazaki's Internet popularity and Matthew Perry to associate Perry's infamous "black ships" with the horse bearing them as its namesake.
The collaboration commemorates and raises awareness to the 81st Nihon Debry (G1 race) on June 1, 2014. Visitors uninterested in the webgame may want to enjoy the fully voiced cinematics on the website that lightly parody the fourth title's seriousness.
Gameplay
Use the mouse to direct the star horse rider's movements. Left click to have the character attack and tap the spacebar to use their Musou.
The first challenge is to keep the horse rider's current speed. The goal is to defeat a variable number of soldiers within the thirty second time limit. Rapidly left clicking five times unleashes a character's crowd attack on mobs. Banner holders are harder to dispatch than regular units yet defeating them quickly replenishes the three Musou gauges. Musou clears the screen of enemies and greatly increases the duo's speed. Failing to swap away enemies from their horse causes the racer's endurance to suffer. If it drops to nothing, it will make the following missions harder to complete.
Surpassing the crowd leads to a one-on-one challenge with the mid-boss and/or last boss of the derby. The player's goal is to outrun their competition by rapidly clicking the middle of the screen and reaching the "Victory" mark on the progress bar. Mid-bosses can be outrun within a forty second time limit. Last bosses have an additional eight second challenge for the race's last stretch. Musou greatly increases the rider's speed.
Choosing to fail or succeed either mission can alter character dialogue and the final results of the race. Gold medal winners can share their results on Twitter and Facebook. Play the other derbies to unlock other routes.
Characters
Player characters for each derby are bolded.
Tenka Fubu Derby
Nobunaga and Deep Impact have proved themselves as the land's indomitable duo. Nagamasa and Mitsuhide challenge their right to be claimed the derby kings, and Nobunaga decides to answer the call at Honnōji.
- Difficulty: Easy
| Jockey | Racehorse |
|---|---|
| Nobunaga Oda | Deep Impact |
| Nagamasa Azai | Meisho Samson |
| Mitsuhide Akechi | Heart's Cry |
Family Feud Derby
Yukimura wants to become independent and see the world with Orfevre. His overprotective family fear that the gesture is premature for him and challenge him to prove himself. The younger Sanada brother races with his partner to win his freedom.
- Difficulty: Easy
| Jockey | Racehorse |
|---|---|
| Yukimura Sanada | Orfevre |
| Tadakatsu Honda | Symboli Rudolf |
| Nobuyuki Sanada | Dream Journey |
Ladies' Derby
Oichi and Vodka have been regularly competing against Nene and Daiwa Scarlet. Since Honnōji somehow ended with her brother's demise, Oichi wishes to avenge him by racing Gracia and Buena Vista and to settle the score with Nene in an all ladies derby.
- Difficulty: Easy
| Jockey | Racehorse |
|---|---|
| Oichi | Vodka |
| Gracia | Buena Vista |
| Nene | Daiwa Scarlet |
Kawanakajima Derby
Shingen and Winning Ticket have faced against their rivals Kenshin and Biwa Hayahide for some time. Planning to end his rivalry with Ujiyasu and Narita Taishin in one fell swoop, he forces their hand and engages them at the "Kawanakajima Derby".
- Difficulty: Normal
| Jockey | Racehorse |
|---|---|
| Shingen Takeda | Winning Ticket |
| Ujiyasu Hōjō | Narita Taishin |
| Kenshin Uesugi | Biwa Hayahide |
Strategist Derby
Kojūrō and Seiun Sky wish to learn from Takakage and Special Week's tactics. Hanbei and Glass Wonder overhear the cordial competition between strategists, deciding to tag along in the race of wits.
- Difficulty: Normal
| Jockey | Racehorse |
|---|---|
| Takakage Kobayakawa | Special Week |
| Kojūrō Katakura | Seiun Sky |
| Hanbei Takenaka | Glass Wonder |
The Grand Regent Derby
With Nobunaga gone, Hideyoshi and Narita Brian desire to inherit their lord's will as the land's greatest riders. The duo ride against their immediate rivals to fame.
- Difficulty: Hard
| Jockey | Racehorse |
|---|---|
| Hideyoshi Toyotomi | Narita Brian |
| Katsuie Shibata | Mayano Top Gun |
| Motonari Mōri | Sakura Laurel |
Sekigahara Derby
Ieyasu has engaged in sporadic competitions with Yoshitsugu and Mitsunari. When Ieyasu suddenly rides his beloved horse, Toukai Teioh, he worries his rivals enough to start the "Sekigahara Derby".
- Difficulty: Hard
| Jockey | Racehorse |
|---|---|
| Ieyasu Tokugawa | Toukai Teioh |
| Yoshitsugu Ōtani | King Kamehameha |
| Mitsunari Ishida | Mejiro McQueen |
Taiga Derby
Hideyoshi reigns as the Grand Regent and decides to host a derby to celebrate. Three heroes gather to prove their prowess to the land's spectators.
- Difficulty: Hard
| Jockey | Racehorse |
|---|---|
| Masamune Date | Jungle Pocket |
| Kanbei Kuroda | TM Opera O |
| Kanetsugu Naoe | Agnes Tachyon |
Open Country Derby
Perry arrives to Japan centuries earlier than history and is surprised to see what he has discovered. He seeks to establish relations and open the country's boarders to the world.
- Difficulty: ?
| Jockey | Racehorse |
|---|---|
| Matthew Perry (Perry) | Kurofune |
| Ieyasu Tokugawa | Toukai Teioh |
| Tadakatsu Honda | Symboli Rudolf |
Related Media
Sandwich-Man comedian Mikio Date was brought into the JRA office to play and pose as his distant (but not direct) ancestor, Masamune. His session was recorded and posted onto the official YouTube channel. Fans who attend the 2014 Takarazuka Kinen race can obtain a Samurai Derby clear file.
Gallery
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Date x Date promotional image
