Samurai Shodown (known as Samurai Spirits in Japan) is a 2019 fighting game developed and published by SNK for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, Stadia, Xbox Series X and Series S, Android and iOS via Netflix Games, and Windows as an entry in the Samurai Shodown series, as well as a reboot to the series. An arcade version was released by Taito.
Samurai Shodown is a 2D fighting game with 3D graphics that uses many elements from past games in the series. It shares similarities with The King of Fighters XIV and SNK Heroines: Tag Team Frenzy.
Each character has a Super Special Move, which deals very powerful damage when hitting an opponent. However, it can only be attempted once during the entire match.
The game uses a trainable artificial intelligence. The player can create his/her own so-called ghost. The AI will observe the player's actions and then try to copy them. In a battle with the player's own ghost, weaknesses in tactics, movement patterns and offensive and defensive habits can be observed, useful for the player's gameplay improvement.
Samurai Shodown takes place in the time period between Samurai Shodown V and the original Samurai Shodown, and has been commonly cited as a reboot of the series.
Samurai Shodown features a base roster of 16 playable characters, with extra ones available as paid and free downloadable content.