December 15, 2025
AQUAPLUS

Utawarerumono: Zan

Utawarerumono: Zan abridges the original storyline far too much to be accessible to newcomers while also being fairly thin on content but delivers some solid core combat and plenty of variety with its character’s fighting styles.

68%Game Brain Score

story, gameplay

replayability, graphics

93% User Score Based on 30 reviews

Critic Score 61%Based on 7 reviews

Platforms

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About

Utawarerumono: Zan is a single player and multiplayer hack and slash game with fantasy, anime and science fiction themes. It was developed by AQUAPLUS and was released on December 15, 2025. It received mostly positive reviews from critics and very positive reviews from players.

Unveil a lost legend in a new light with Utawarerumono: ZAN! This action-packed brawler is a reimagination of the story of Haku, a man with no memories, and the great conflict that consumes the land he calls home. Take control of over 12 legendary heroes from the world of Utawarerumono, and utilize their unique strengths and abilities to engage hordes of enemies in ferocious melee combat. Venture …

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93%

Audience ScoreBased on 30 reviews

story6 positive mentions

graphics2 negative mentions

Engaging hack and slash combat with high quality animations and a dynamic soundtrack, appealing especially to fans of similar Musou-style games.
Well-executed character individuality and growth systems alongside satisfying co-op play and side content extending gameplay.
Faithful representation of Utawarerumono characters and music, providing fans with a fun way to relive and interact with familiar story moments.

Extremely abbreviated and condensed story that omits much of the original narrative and character development, making it unsuitable as an introduction to the series.
Short main campaign with repetitive and formulaic mission design, alongside a lack of content volume and limited enemy and stage variety.
Technical shortcomings in the PC port including inconsistent frame rates, limited graphics options, resolution issues, and minor visual bugs.

story
34 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
18%
73%
9%
The story in this game is a heavily abridged and compressed version of the original Utawarerumono: Mask of Deception narrative, leading to minimal character development and context that may confuse newcomers. Fans of the series might appreciate it as a quick refresher or supplement, but players seeking a deep, immersive, and faithful storytelling experience are better off playing the original visual novels. Overall, the story functions more as background for the hack-and-slash gameplay rather than a rich narrative centerpiece.
- “This is a character-focused title that reconstructs the world of the Utawarerumono series, known for its long-form storytelling, into a musou-style 3D action game.”
- “And if you fell in love with the story and characters like I had, then this is a good supplementary game to relive the experience once again.”
- “The story is an abridged version of Mask of Deception, so newcomers to the Utawarerumono series should play the trilogy first.”
- “The story here is a chainsawed cliffnotes version, except when it's talking heads.”
- “The story is based on one arc of the original work, but its progression is heavily compressed, with emotional development and relationship building kept to a minimum.”
- “The story is there, but it's been abridged to the point where it feels like you black out occasionally all while dragging on at the same time (more so for those who played the original story).”
gameplay
10 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
20%
30%
The gameplay offers enjoyable hack-and-slash, musou-inspired mechanics with fun hero switching and combo setups, but it features limited scale and small maps lacking tactical depth. It is best appreciated by fans of the Utawarerumono series seeking action-focused, casual play rather than a deep narrative or groundbreaking mechanics. Overall, the gameplay provides solid, mindless fun but may feel basic or underwhelming to newcomers.
- “I believe this game is best played simultaneously with Utawarerumono: Mask of Deception since this game is essentially a summed-up retelling of that game but with hack and slash gameplay like a Dynasty Warriors game.”
- “It has a great mechanic being able to switch heroes and has all these buffs, equipment, and chains you can set up for the heroes, but forces everything into these small maps with no tactics.”
- “Fun game with solid musou-inspired mechanics.”
- “Gameplay wise, it has a good base, but lacks the volume and scale you often see in musou games.”
- “If you're not already a fan of the Utawarerumono series, chances are you won't enjoy it quite as much since most of the story is absent and gameplay is decent but nothing ground-breaking.”
- “And if you're already a fan, it's enjoyable enough as long as you're not put off by the somewhat basic gameplay or the port's issues.”
music
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
75%
25%
The music is highly praised for its energetic electronic remix of an already excellent soundtrack, enhancing the combat experience. Combined with full Japanese voice acting, the polished audio contributes significantly to the game's immersive and satisfying character-driven narrative.
- “The absolutely bonkers soundtrack, featuring high-energy electronic mixes of Uta's already amazing compositions, guarantees a homerun and makes gameplay feel well spent.”
- “Full Japanese voice acting and familiar music are highly polished, supporting overall satisfaction as a character-driven game.”
- “Attacks look great and the music is still good.”
replayability
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
50%
Replayability is supported primarily through character growth and skill unlocking, despite formulaic missions and limited variety in stages and enemies. The gameplay feels smoother after updates, enhancing the experience, though some performance issues persist.
- “To be frank, the missions themselves are formulaic, and stage and enemy variety is not particularly high, but replay value through character growth and skill unlocking is maintained at a solid level.”
graphics
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game lacks customizable graphics settings, offering only basic display mode options and no controls for FPS, VSync, or other common visual adjustments.
- “You won't find 'graphics settings' for anything besides display modes.”
- “There aren't any graphic settings, no FPS options, no VSync, and other normal things people like to change.”
emotional
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game’s emotional impact is limited due to its highly compressed story arc, resulting in minimal emotional development and relationship building.
character development
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game’s character development is rushed and fragmented across chapters, causing players to miss out on meaningful storytelling and deeper character growth.

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61%Critics’ scoreBased on 7 critic reviews

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