• Main Game: $59.99 USD (digital and physical); $99.99 (Digital Deluxe Version with main game, artbook, soundtrack, Season Pass with 3 DLC episodes, bonus equipment)
• DLC Season Pass: $39.99 (access to all 3 planned DLC episodes as they become available)
• DLC Episode 1: $14.99 by itself

A review code was kindly provided by ONE PR Studio on behalf of Omega Force and KOEI TECMO AMERICA. We thank them for being able to cover something they’ve worked so hard on.

We reviewed Fate/Samurai Remnant back in October; it’s a neat action RPG that anyone can get into, but fans of the Fate series will especially appreciate the experience. And Fate fans are in for another year of fantastic content, with the Fate/stay night visual novel getting its first (official) English localization, and Fate/Samurai Remnant DLC episodes releasing in waves.

The first DLC episode for Fate/Samurai Remnant is now available, with two more episodes coming later this year. You can access “Record’s Fragment: Keian Command Championship” after you’ve left Akasaka in Chapter 2 of the main game.

“Gather, mongrels! For a new battle is set to begin!” ⚔️

The boss of Babyloni-ya has summoned seven Master-Servant pairs to an arena, asking them to defeat everyone else to win “a wish granter that outshines even the moon.” You get to play through the tournament as each of the seven teams, but only start with access to Iori and Saber, Rider, and Berserker. The other four teams unlock after you’ve cleared the tournament with a specific duo, with multiple teams, and/or after reaching a certain point in the Lunar Chronicles.

Since they’re the focus of the main story, I started with Iori and Saber. “Boss” says that you must win three matches, so you don’t have to face each team yourself. The action combat is the same as it is in the main game, with opponents’ Shell Gauges to whittle down, Magecraft, stances, Affinity Techniques, the Valor Gauge, and of course the Noble Phantasms.

They did attempt to change things up a bit with the crowd excitement mechanic. The way you fight contributes to the crowd’s excitement in the arena; using Affinity Techniques or depleting your opponents’ Shell Gauges are just some examples of ways to increase their excitement. If your audience gets hyped up enough, that makes it easier for you to deplete Shell Gauges and fill your skill gauges.

You also earn some points after completing each match; the number of points depends on your performance in battle and what techniques you used. These points can then be exchanged for items at the “Suspicious Trade Shop” in the Arena. In between matches, you can also speak with a few characters in the stands, including the opponents you just faced.

Players get to “enjoy the tournament from multiple perspectives that were not depicted in the main story” before and after each match. There’s additional character dialogue, and you get to learn a little bit more about the cast. The episode has a basic storyline to introduce the new Servant into the game.

As you play through each “route,” you’ll notice that the events are essentially the same every time. The dialogue is often similar across routes for certain scenes, but the conversations between the Master-Servant pairs are different. You also face different opponents in every pair’s playthrough.

While the story wasn’t necessarily the most innovative, it was still entertaining. I particularly enjoyed Boss’ dialogue, like when he introduced the contestants. They also gave each pair an ending for the DLC tournament, and the endings are accompanied by a gorgeous CG depicting the Master with their Servant.

This episode took me about 7 hours to complete, and I think it’s a nice complement to the main game. You get more action combat and story content, and after meeting certain conditions you unlock 2 new Servants to use in the main game. It could have used more variety across the seven routes’ brief storylines, but overall I think the DLC is worth getting. The second episode has an estimated release date of July 2024, and the third one should come out around September. I’m curious to see if we’ll see more Servants added then!