I do not blame you if you take a first glance at Onimusha: Way of the Sword and your first reaction is “ENOUGH WITH ALL THESE SAMURAI GAMES!” When you think of the enormous amount of games that have come out this past half decade with a similar motif, it can be easy to be skeptical about Capcom using this specific time to bring back Onimusha after a 20 year absence.
To be perfectly honest, if there was a time for Onimusha to make a comeback, now was absolutely the time. The series, alongside the Devil May Cry franchise, proved Capcom’s bonafides when it came to character action based games, providing two unique flavors that complemented each other in the early 2000’s. In this current era where the most common flavor of action games have been subsumed mostly by the stylings of From Software’s Dark Souls series, and a lot of the samurai themed games have mostly been riffs on that style, this was the perfect time for Capcom to remind people of a different kind of hack and slash.
And showed them with Onimusha: Way of the Sword they did, with glorious style.
Samurai’s Destiny
While not a direct sequel to the last released game in the franchise some 20 years ago, Onimusha: Way of the Sword maintains the tone and stylings of the past Onimusha games and serves as an effective starting point for newcomers. Continuing the series’ penchant of using Japanese historical figures and putting them in fictional, supernatural stories, Way of the Sword puts you in the shoes of Miyamoto Musashi, an expert swordsman who gets entangled with the invading demonic forces known as the Genma. Killed and resurrected with a soul absorbing Oni Gauntlet, Musashi journeys to clean up the demon ridden Kyoto, cleansing and liberating the city from the demon invasion as he takes the fight against the current leader of the Genma, the also historical figure Minamoto no Yoshitsune.
While a very simple premise to get you going and I wouldn’t say I come to this game for its story, Onimusha: Way of the Sword truly succeeds in conveying the basics of the Onimusha premise, wrapped up with some fun characters to root for, a delicious villain to despise, and an expert tone that manages to swing wildly from comedic absurdity to shocking violence without missing a beat.
Musashi is an absolute hoot of a protagonist, balancing his heroic goal with plenty of unpretentious comedic beats that gives the game a unique flavor amongst so many other recent samurai-themed games. And that tone also extends to the game’s bosses, which may be some of the most memorable boss fights since the days of Metal Gear Solid, with such gonzo personality and absurdity that matches well against Musashi’s goofy intentions. They all have their own ticks, and leave a great impression long after the credits roll.
Dawn of Dreams
Onimusha: Way of the Sword marks Capcom returning to a character action based game since 2019’s Devil May Cry V, and the way that they have approached this game’s combat has been fascinating.
While at first glance it may seem like this is Capcom doing an action game in the vein of the Soulslike formula, that couldn’t be further from the truth. Via that first glance familiarity, they have cooked up a unique fighting system that manages to perfectly hit the sweet spot between all out hack and slash and satisfying reaction based dexterity that mixes attacks, parrying, and dodging like a true swordsman. There is an effective tactile feeling to the combat where you feel every attack and are not animation locked to a specific move, creating a sword and dance flow with a variety of different mechanics that has the most satisfying swordsmanship this side of Sekiro.
But unlike the rigidity and punishing nature of Sekiro, Onimusha: Way of the Sword is a little more measured with how it throws the gauntlet at you, while also providing different difficulty options to see it through. In its normal “Action” difficulty, during the normal fights against rank-and-file enemies, the game may initially seem like it’s a bit on the easy side, with enemies going down in easy ways and not providing much in the way of challenge. But then you realize it’s the game acclimating you to the different mechanical dance of all its systems, because once you hit the boss fights, the kid gloves come off immediately and those a-holes will sometimes curb stomp you with reckless abandon, and even dance on your grave after beating you.
The boss fights of Onimusha: Way of the Sword are the absolute highlight of the game, as the mechanical complexity of figuring out attack patterns through patience and dexterity is rewarded, and you absolutely feel like you stood toe to toe against an insurmountable rival. When even some of them commend you for defeating them, you feel that sense of “MAN, that was a damn good fight.”
Onimusha: Way of the Sword is almost pitch perfect in the pace with which it adds new combat wrinkles to your arsenal that complement the game’s excellent systems. The way Mushasi evolves from beginning to end fits Capcom’s action mold of true character progression, and there is such a cool vibe pulling off all these unlocked moves against increasingly difficult enemies. At times, an impossible boss gets humiliated to an “I own you now” feeling when you’ve learned the perfect time to deflect attacks, perfect dodge specific melee moves, and even pull off the franchise’s super difficult but entirely satisfying “Break Issen” one hit mega attack/kills.
The combat is so good, it almost makes up for the fact that at 20-to-30 hours long, it mostly sustains the game even when the length slightly threatens to drag the game down. While Onimusha: Way of the Sword mostly unfolds in excellently curated linear levels, it breaks most of the pacing with an explorable open hub in Kyoto where you get to engage on some side quests and collectible hunting to find better equipment charms that can better help you. While it can be helpful getting things that provide better healing and recharges to mechanics like your perfect dodge attacks and the flame buildup of parry, most of these side activities come off a bit simplistic and grind-heavy in spots, thus leading to extensive repetition when most of them have you running back through previously completed areas and fighting the same sub bosses ad nauseam.
I fought the same hairy monster with an axe about ten times because he kept showing up with barely any mechanical changes during a bunch of side quests. Onimusha: Way of the Sword in turn does fall victim to its extended length, which is surprising considering two other Capcom games this year, Resident Evil Requiem and Pragmata, delivered mostly all killer, no filler experiences, and I feel Onimusha didn’t gain anything with its length. A tighter game would have made an already excellent game into an all timer, which says a lot about how much this game absolutely nails already.
Running on the RE Engine, Onimusha Way of the Sword once again proves Capcom’s in-house technology is the studio’s trojan horse. The game is quite the looker, mixing an initially detailed but pedestrian looking Feudal Kyoto with all the dark fantasy bells and whistles that gives the game such a unique vibe with its stylized realism. The monster and boss designs are Capcom once again at the peak of their powers, with so many bosses having great personalities both due to their looks alongside and eccentric personalities, which has remained true since the heyday of the PlayStation 2 days. And the game runs wonderfully on both a base PlayStation 5 and the PlayStation 5 Pro even during the open area segments, which demonstrates Capcom has finally optimized the engine after the woes they saw with 2024’s Dragons Dogma 2 and 2025’s Monster Hunter Wilds.
Once upon a time, Capcom was seen as the true king of the action game. After ceding that crown to different styles and flavors over the years, it’s amazing to see they still have it in them to show up and provide one of the best action games in recent years. Even amongst the glut of so many samurai-themed games over this past several years, Onimusha: Way of the Sword stands tall above many of them thanks to its unique tone, style, and exemplary modern approach to hack and slash combat. This proves action games can thrive outside the trappings established by Dark Souls, and I hope this take on action combat can inspire a new wave of imitators. If you’ve been missing hack and slash action games with depth and unique style and expression, Onimusha: Way of the Sword is an absolute must own.
You can find Seasoned Gaming’s review policy here