So briefly-
-The game still has that "PS2" look going on, but with a slightly cleaner image and a little more detail overall.
-Decent frame rate with a little slowdown here and there.
-Supports Wiimote+Nunchuk, Gamecube controller, Classic Controller, and the new Classic Controller Pro.
-There are three main play modes. Story and free mode are the standard fare. New is Muramasa Castle, based on an old Famicom game.
-Muramasa Castle doesn't really feel much different than the other modes. It's level based and has an overworld map; you fight on smaller stages against brain-dead enemies (there's no difficulty setting for this mode). There's some traps here and there and water damages your health, but otherwise it just feels like a stripped-down version of the regular modes, with fewer enemies to fight against. Hopefully it improves with more play time. Leveling up does carry over to the main game.
-CAW Character customization seems pretty limited. Just a a few character types and variations on them. There's a way to change the colors for main characters; didn't see anything about alternate outfits.
-You can now carry items in your inventory! There are three different item packs to choose from before battles, each with different health and enhancement power-ups. They can be selected and used at any time during the battle.
-There are now five orbs next to your life and musou gauge. These get filled up as you attack, and when full, they can enhance your musou attacks' power level. (These are pretty cool-looking!)
-The in-game map now has arrows to point you in the right direction to your next objective. This can be ignored if you want to explore or use an alternate route (The arrows will also readjust themselves if you do this.)
-The morale gauge seems to be gone! Not sure if this is a good or a bad thing.
-The rest of the game play is the same as the previous title. Two attacks, musou, rolling, and the character-specific ability/attack button all return.
It's pretty much more of the same overall. Feels like a minor upgrade to Samurai Warriors 2, which was to be expected. I'm playing the game using the Classic Controller, and it works well, although it's slightly annoying having to press the Zr to roll. This is where the Classic Controller Pro would be very beneficial.