Fans and followers of video game history, particularly that of the long-running first-person shooter genre, will likely recognize Daikatana as being widely regarded as one of the worst first-person shooters ever made. The brainchild of game designer John Romero, who formerly served as a primary designer and creative mind at id Software, Daikatana was the first release from the Dallas branch of his self-founded studio Ion Storm. Having started development shortly after Quake in 1996, Romero's last game with id Software, Daikatana had one of the most protracted and controversial development cycles at the time. It started in 1997, with Romero stating the ambitious nature of the project to contain four time periods, more than fifty monsters, twenty five weapons, and two AI-controlled sidekicks that would assist the player throughout the campaign. But then the development time started and, by connection, the ensuing drama. Consisting of engine changes, team changes (including Romero hiring his then-girlfriend Stevie Case), several delays, and an unimpressive E3 demonstrations, and a now infamously vulgar advertisement, Daikatana and Romero lost the goodwill of gamers. By the time the game hit shelves in 2000, everyone seemed ready to rip Daikatana apart, and that they did. It's a reaction that still seems existent today. But is Daikatana really that bad? To be honest, it really isn't. Daikatana is a textbook example of a game falling victim to extreme hype, and while Daikatana certainly has its fair share of problems, the end result and ultimate product is one that acts as a callback to the hardcore first-person shooters of the 1990s with some truly creative ideas and satisfying shooting. It's an idea and result clear in the initial release, though increased by the benefit of hindsight.

Graphically, Daikatana was behind the times upon its 2000 release. Running on the then-dated id Tech 2 engine, rather than more advanced engines like id Tech 3 or the recent Unreal Engine, Daikatana certainly shows its age plenty in this department. Textures can be blurry, animations can be rough (especially for enemies), a lack of facial animations, and models with a comparatively low polygon count. However, other parts of Daikatana's engine and graphical design still shine through. For one thing, the variety across the whole campaign is incredible. The four time periods differ greatly in every aspect, from enemies to buildings to weapons. These levels are also very well designed, with plenty of secrets and occasional traps to keep the player on their toes. The art style is also worth mention, and is arguably the best part of Daikatana's look. Combining Japanese influences with science fiction, modern, and historical areas is unique, even today. Ultimately, the use of the engine isn't bad, just dated.

The same can't be said for the sound design, which is largely good overall. Effects are nicely done and varied, ranging from well done weapon sounds to weather effects. There is also variety here, dependent on the time period. Gunshots and computers dominate the first and fourth episodes, while the second episode takes the mystical powers of the gods and the third episode contains crossbows and magic. These are all well done and theme-appropriate. Voice acting, meanwhile, is somewhat of a mixed bag. Some voices are surprisingly professional and convincing, such as J. Paul Slavens' performance as protagonist Hiro Miyamoto. Other performances are just laughably bad, such as Deborah Jolly's role as sidekick Mikiko Ebihara, who gives off one of the most ridiculous accents ever spoken in a video game. Finally, there's Daikatana's soundtrack, which is comprised of well composed tracks for each time periods, as well as the occasional nod to his past work.

As for the story, this really is one of Daikatana's most unique aspects. Set in the backdrop of a dystopian world, the story follows Hiro Miyamoto, a swordsman and dojo instructor, as he is contacted by an old man named Toshiro Ebihara. Toshiro tells Hiro that the world only exists as it is because its ruler, Kage Mishima, has gained the power of a sword named the Daikatana. A powerful sword, it was crafted by the legendary swordsmith Usagi Miyamoto (Hiro's ancestor) during the ancient conflict between the Mishimas and the Ebiharas. Not only has Kage captured the sword, but he is holding Toshiro's daughter Mikiko prisoner. Hiro enters the base and rescues Mikiko and the Daikatana, as well as a former guard named Superfly Johnson, before encountering Kage Mishima himself. Wielding a second Daikatana, he uses its power to scatter the trio throughout time, with Hiro landing in ancient Greece. This begins a quest to stop Kage and fix the timeline.

This setup, and the story overall, is easily one of the more surprising elements of the overall experience. At a time when first-person shooters were just starting to gain a larger focus and interest in telling a story thanks to the efforts of titles like Thief: The Dark Project and Half-Life, Daikatana told a unique and original tale among the growing sea of science fiction and military focused tales. While, at the core, Daikatana could be described as a simple good-vs-evil story, the way it's held together and told is highly engaging. However, there are occasional faults in the story. While there are some of these moments throughout the campaign, it's the first cutscene that pretty much sums up the occasional faults, with some unbelievably clumsy exposition and continuity-bending dialogue.

Across all four episodes of the game's rather lengthy campaign, Daikatana is a mixture of the violent and difficult action of the 1990s first-person shooter with some light elements of role-playing and squad combat. In the modern day, this combination seems somewhat generic, given that titles like Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six and Far Cry have used combinations of those elements. However in 2000, shortly after defining titles like Half-Life and System Shock 2 and a mere month before Ion Storm's highly successful Deus Ex, this mixture used by Daikatana was still rather unique. But it's apparent that the most solid and prominent element of the gameplay is the shooting, which doesn't come as a surprise given Romero's past with id Software. In this respect, the shooting works really well. The weapons are highly original and varied, from the six shell-firing Shotcycler in the first episode to a razor-edged discus in the second episode, and they work well, aside from a few in the first and fourth episodes. Hit detection works well, especially with the more creative weapons, and heavy gibbing effects make the shooting feel extremely satisfying. However, this feeling can be muted somewhat by the enemy AI. It's not bad, even though enemies will occasionally get stuck against level geometry. The problem is that, compared to other games at the time, the AI is horribly simplistic. All they seem to know how to do is either charge the player head on or stay back and fire projectiles. In comparison, the AI seen in Half-Life two years earlier knew when to do that, but it was also programmed to run away, take cover, and even throw grenades. It makes Daikatana seem more behind the times than it should.

Daikatana also uses the two unique and slowly emerging mechanics of light role-playing elements and squad combat with Mikiko and Superfly. The former is largely self-explanatory, with the player earning experience for each enemy killed. Each level awards a point that can be spent in one of five skills, ranging from Vitality to Power. The system works well and does give off a bit of replayability, even if it isn't always clear as to what the skills affect. But it was the aforementioned squad combat that was the most advertised and also the most disappointing feature of the gameplay. At the time, it was practically revolutionary to have sidekicks with the player the entire game, and many games certainly use similar ideas today, such as the so-called "pet NPCs" of Half-Life 2 and Bioshock Infinite and the teams of modern day Tom Clancy games. So it was a large step ahead. However, Romero and his team simply didn't have the technology at the time to do this. The big problem with the sidekicks is the AI. For most of the game, the friendly AI is just bad. They'll get stuck on the level geometry, fall behind, not follow the player's orders, or charge into combat in a suicidal fashion. It isn't always this bad, as the AI does work in quite a few areas, and there is a noticeable improvement when just one NPC is following. But when it fails, it really shows.

That being said, while the friendly AI is the most pronounced problem with Daikatana's gameplay, there are other irritants, though most are minor. The first is that Daikatana gives off one of the worst first impressions perhaps in video game history, with a swamp-set level with mechanical animals and turrets being the only enemies. It gives an awful impression of the game and may turn away some players before they experience what the game offers. The second is that some weapons feel flat out awkward to use. Weapons like the Ion Blaster are just weak peashooters, while others like the Shotcycler give off too much recoil. The final problem is the gem-based save system, which takes inspiration from Japanese role-playing games. While this system, which limits saves to how many gems the player has, works in those games, it doesn't work in an old school-style first-person shooter. Thankfully, an option for regular saves was added in later patches.

When looking at it now, Daikatana appears to be the kind of game people love to hate, if that makes sense. The infamous reputation the game garnered through its developmental drama appears to be half the reason most players will check it out, if not the only reason. Some have even gone on to call Daikatana one of the worst video games ever made, calling it worse than other developmental disasters like Duke Nukem Forever, Aliens: Colonial Marines, and Postal III. But to say Daikatana is deserving of any of that feels like ignoring the game's other factors and placing too much emphasis on the faults it does have. Daikatana is a victim of too much hype, and negative hype at that. It's been overshadowed by the bad marketing and hype, and has seemingly been drowned in the harsh criticism it gained. But it isn't deserving of any of it, at least not in this modern age. Sure, it has its faults. But overall, Daikatana isn't that bad. In fact, it's a highly enjoyable first-person shooter, especially in its second and third episodes. Some may still find it to be garbage, and it can be understood as to why. But if most are willing to give it a try and can ignore some faults, what lies underneath is an unique and enjoyable title.