It has taken Capcom 20 years to make another proper Onimusha game. In that time, Souls games have made parrying fashionable, while samurai-inspired adventures have become something of a gaming clich. So, in many ways Onimusha: Way of the Sword is returning to a crowded genre.
Capcom’s answer is not to turn Onimusha into another Soulslike title. There are familiar ideas here for sure, particularly the emphasis on studying attacks and responding to actions with precision timing, but this is a more forgiving and theatrical action game. In my time with it, I found Way of the Sword generously empowering me to feel like a formidable swordsman, and not like the poor Tarnished at the start of Elden Ring.
The standalone story also makes this an easy Onimusha for newcomers to start – you don’t have to be familiar with the previous games before Way of the Sword. We follow our protagonist Miyamoto Musashi (whose appearance is based on Japanese actor Toshiro Mifune), where after a fatal encounter with the demonic Genma, is revived with an Oni Gauntlet attached to his arm. This allows him to absorb souls, but also leaves him reluctantly responsible for stopping the corruption spreading across Kyoto.
Musashi is not immediately likeable, and I think that is partly the point. He is arrogant, impatient and far more interested in proving his strength than saving lives. His exaggerated expressions and dismissive remarks give the story an enjoyably pulpy quality, although the humour and more serious moments do not always sit well together. The wider plot is fairly conventional, but Musashi’s gradual shift from self-absorbed fighter to reluctant hero gives it enough personality to keep me interested.
Learning when not to swing
Image: Capcom
The sword fighting is easily the best aspect of Way of the Sword. Light and heavy attacks are simple enough, and mashing buttons will only carry you through the easier encounters. But stronger enemies demand that you recognise whether an incoming move should be parried, deflected or avoided entirely. Get the timing right and you can damage an opponent’s stamina, create an opening and finish the exchange with an Issen strike that lands heavy damage, if not outright kill them.
There is a pleasing physicality to every clash. Swords scrape, enemies recoil under heavier blows and finishing moves are brutal without becoming meaningless visual noise. The RE Engine helps with animation that sells the weight behind Musashi’s movements. Even after several hours, a clean counter followed by an execution rarely stopped being satisfying.
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