Honour - virtue of the Samurai (oh and guns!) news

'Honor' is one of the cornerstones of the Bushido code. It encapsulates the essence of the Samurai warrior- noble born and respectable, an icon of chivalry that others should strive for.

Sadly, not all Samurai adhered to this strict code. In fact- some of them were right sneaky bastards that poisoned water supplies, assassinated their peers and generally sullied the same of the noble warrior (these chaps went on to become the Ninja).

Honor plays an important role in Bushido- it dictates what unlocks will become available to you and how you'll be perceived by your peers (visually by the armor and weapons you have at your disposal). Dishonorable actions will detract from your honor 'score', whilst honorable actions will add to it.Examples of dishonorable actions include:

• Stabbing an enemy player in the back
• Poisoning water supplies (each map objective will have an honorable or dishonorable option)
• Team killing (there will be additional penalties for this as well...)
• Kill stealing
• Using weapons deemed 'dishonorable' (e.g. the Tanegashima or Kama)

We're also playing around with some more conceptual ideas such as:

• Refusing a duel request
• Refusing to commit Seppuku if beaten in a duel (instead of dying and going back to spawn, you'll have the option to stand back up after a recovery period)
• Killing an incapacitated player

Examples of more honorable actions are (including some of the more conceptual ideas):

• Accepting a duel request
• Killing an enemy fairly in a duel
• Helping up friendly players who are incapacitated
• Acting as Kaishakunin (second) for a defeated opponent committing Seppuku
• Defeating an enemy using a significantly 'weaker' weapon
• Killing multiple enemies (fairly) within a small time frame (e.g. multi-kills)

Its worth mentioning that players wont be penalized for pursuing a dishonorable play style. In fact, if you make a conscious decision to act dishonorable then you'll be rewarded with unique weapons and armors- allowing you to develop your own way of playing the game. Players will be equally rewarded for going down the honorable route- and also for staying totally neutral.

We're still at the relatively early stages of designing this mechanic, so if you've got some feedback, let us know below...

In other news, we'll be releasing screenshots of our working Character Customization Screen and 'Dojo' level soon! Until then, be sure to follow us on Facebook/Twitter for all the latest announcements.