Onimusha is back, baby! Despite being one of Capcom’s best-selling series, later games failed to meet high sales expectations. The games’ budgets were ballooning, and Capcom stopped at four mainline games and two spin-offs, all locked in the PS2 console generation. The first two games in the series have gotten successful modern remasters, so Capcom has finally decided to do a proper mainline sequel, in the form of Onimusha: Way of the Sword. Capcom is on a role right now, with games like Street Fighter 6, Resident Evil: Requiem, and Pragmata receiving universal acclaim. Read on to find out if this latest attempt, to combine a classic IP with modern dev game, has paid off.
Onimusha: Way of the Sword is about legendary samurai Miyamoto Musashi. It takes place in Kyoto during the Edo Period. When the game begins, Musashi is a hobo Ronin, walking the Earth. But he’s a skilled fighter, capable of walking up to a sword school, and easily defeating its master. Very early, Musashi’s given a gauntlet that can absorb the souls of Genma demons. He’s told of the existence of Hell, and Oni gates, which could result in demons leaving Hell and spilling onto Earth. Musashi works towards keeping the Oni gates sealed. On paper this doesn’t sound like a phenomenal narrative, but the story is told incredibly well. The cutscenes are frequent and create a story-heavy structure similar to the Uncharted series.
I should also mention that even though Onimusha: Way of the Sword’s plot takes place in the same dark fantasy version of Japan as other games in the series, its story stands on its own. There are Genma demons and an Oni gauntlet, but no Nobunaga or Samanosuke. The game is meant to be a franchise reboot, and no prior story knowledge is needed to fully enjoy the experience.
Onimusha: Way of the Sword follows the series trend of using famous actors’ likenesses for game protagonist models. In this case, Miyamoto Musashi is modelled after Toshiro Mifune. Mifune is best known for leading roles in many of the major Akira Kurosawa films, including Seven Samurai and Rashomon. But maybe more importantly, Mifune’s also known for already portraying Miyamoto Musashi in Hiroshi Inagaki’s Samurai Trilogy. The films are an adaptation of Eiji Yoshikawa’s classic novel about Musashi, which is the source of almost all the Musashi media that people are likely familiar with, including the manga Vagabond.
Onimusha: Way of the Sword’s combat is fast-paced, and close to third person action games like Devil May Cry and Bayonetta. Before beginning the game, there are lots of settings to adjust. I chose to play with controls the game calls a “Defensive Layout”. It’s a much more traditional action game control setup. The game seemed to want players to use an “Aggressive Layout” if they’re “confident with action games”. The differences in these set ups really boil down to shuffling the buttons for one-handed attack, two-handed attack, block, evade, and examine. I chose to play Onimusha: Way of the Sword with “Action” difficulty, and a Defensive Layout.
Onimusha: Way of the Sword is a third person action game, and despite its more deliberate parry-based combat, it’s not a Soulslike. Square performs a one-handed attack, triangle performs a two-handed attack. One-handed attacks are quicker and harder for enemies to avoid, whereas two-handed attacks are stronger and easier to avoid. Depleting an enemy’s stamina adds a prompt for a finishing attack. If not executed, an enemy’s stamina will slowly increase. If multiple enemies have low stamina, a sequence can be triggered where Musashi will cut all of them down, in-sequence, by pressing square for each one.
Onimusha: Way of the Sword has an incredible amount of parrying options. L1 blocks, and blocking with precise timing results in a normal parry. Parries leave opponents vulnerable, and can even knock them back into damage-dealing scenarios. They also heavily deplete enemy stamina. Pressing circle evades attacks. Dodging right before an enemy attack moves Musashi directly behind his opponent, opening them up for an easy follow up attack. Enemies can grab, and pressing circle right before a grab will knock them down. Pressing attack right before getting hit performs a stronger counterattack parry. This is a greater risk, because it doesn’t result in a block or dodge if not timed right, but the counterattack is much stronger, instant killing weaker enemies.
Movement is done with the left joystick, and camera control is done with the right joystick. Pressing the left joystick sprints, and pressing the right joystick locks-on to enemies. Flicking the right joystick changes targets while locked-on. Holding L2 absorbs souls left behind by enemies. Yellow souls restore health, red souls are used to buy upgrades, and blue souls power up the Oni Power Gauge. The Oni Power Gauge allows Musashi to use Oni Armaments when full. Oni Armaments are powerful weapons used by pressing R1. They have different effects, such as granting more orbs of a certain kind when their attacks successfully land. The d-pad selects and uses items. Holding right allows the player to select between Oni Armaments. R2 fires an Oni projectile attack.
Some objects can be interacted with by pressing X. For example, a large wooden door can be picked up and used an easy shield to block, but pressing square while holding it will also kick it into a group of enemies. Oni Vision is activated by pressing L2 and R2 at the same time. It allows Musashi to see things that help him with progress, such as the invisible threads attached to a spider blocking a gate.
Onimusha: Way of the Sword has so many combat options. There is so much breadth within the game’s systems. I love the way combat feels too. You can tell the developers really wanted players to feel the physics of swords clashing together. The game really sets a high standard for video game melee combat. I can’t wait to see how Capcom and other developers build upon the ideas in Onimusha: Way of the Sword’s systems.
Onimusha: Way of the Sword is a very linear game. Different regions of Kyoto function as levels. and are connected by fast travel. Fast travel is done through a spirit mirror. Spirit mirrors have other functions. They heal the player, replenish healing pouches, allow manual saves, allow access to item storage, and allow the player to change the difficulty (penalty-free). Regions have some openness and offer a small amount of side quests, but the game is largely on rails. While I found this quite refreshing, I could see it being a complaint for many. I really appreciate a well-crafted experience, and don’t think exploration has to be a part of every game. I love the way Onimusha: Way of the Sword has a fast pace, and a combat focus.
Onimusha: Way of the Sword is an incredibly gorgeous game. It looks phenomenal on PS5. There’s tons of detail in every environment. The story cutscenes are so well-directed, and the motion capture acting is next level. Capcom is clearly showing this off too, as the opening scenes are loaded with little details like Musashi cleaning the inside of his mouth with his tongue. The story presentation is a vital part of Onimusha: Way of the Sword’s appeal, and the game nails it.
Onimusha: Way of the Sword’s music has an atmospheric blend of Hollywood fantasy score and traditional Japanese instrumentation. There are a few musical cues from past games thrown in for franchise fans. But, to be honest, I had to turn off the English voiceacting right away. Hearing Toshiro Mifune speak with a British accent was incredibly off-putting. The game’s identity is so Japanese that the British accents didn’t work at all for my Canadian ear. Thankfully the Japanese voiceacting is superb. I should also note that there were occasional UK colloquialisms in the subtitle translation that took me out of the narrative.
Onimusha: Way of the Sword is such a refreshing action game, with focus on its combat systems and cinematic narrative. In those respects, it sets a high standard for all other video games. The only critiques some could make is that it’s a very linear game, and that could be a problem for some. It’s also maybe 20 hours long, and once the story’s finished, there isn’t a breadth of post-game modes. Onimusha: Way of the Sword is a cinematic action game, and Capcom exceeded any expectations people could have in that regard. It just lacks some kind of score mode, or Bloody Palace to keep players invested beyond the main story. I loved Onimusha: Way of the Sword, and I think it will be celebrated as a modern action classic.
