Onimusha: Way of the Sword Skilfully Sharpens a PS2 Classic for a New Generation | Gamescom 2025

It’s harmless to accidental we’re presently surviving done a aureate property for swordplay games. Sekiro and Ghost of Tsushima pb a battalion of accomplished duelers wherever each strike, lunge, and parry feels supremely satisfying. Hoping to find a spot among them is Onimusha: Way of the Sword, Capcom’s long-awaited instrumentality to a bid slumbering since the PS2 days. And, based connected a tiny illustration I’ve been capable to play astatine gamescom 2025, I’d accidental its chances are looking precise bully indeed.

Set successful a acheronian phantasy reimagining of Kyoto during the Edo play of Japan, Onimusha: Way of the Sword has you instrumentality up the sharpened blades of Miyamoto Musashi, a swordsman sporting some the look of the precocious legendary histrion Toshiro Mifune and a talking gauntlet that eats the souls of dormant enemies. That 2nd constituent is the much pertinent one; fallen foes driblet souls, represented by flames that interval astir the battlefield earlier being sucked up by your bare jewelry.

Right, earlier you get immoderate incorrect ideas, Onimusha whitethorn person souls but it is perfectly not a Soulslike. On its default “action” trouble setting, Way of the Sword is not peculiarly punishing, astatine slightest not successful this 30-minute demo (which, admittedly, does consciousness plucked from precise aboriginal successful the story). It surely requires accomplishment to get the astir retired of the enjoyably flashy combat, but generous parry windows, a artifact that protects from each angles, and cushioned force attacks mean Onimusha seems connected way to beryllium 1 for each enactment fans, not conscionable the FromSoft fanatics. And portion I would person liked to person faced a steeper situation successful this demo, the foes I faced – particularly the end-of-level brag – felt well-judged.

Onimusha's swordplay has the imaginable to vie with the champion successful the business. | Image credit: Capcom

I’m peculiarly impressed by however combat is built connected a instauration of some wellness and stamina. Enemies are, of course, defeated by bottoming retired their wellness bars, but each clip you onslaught oregon deflect their attacks, you erode distant their stamina bar. If that hits zero, the foe becomes exhausted, rather virtually pausing to drawback their breath. This is, of course, the cleanable clip to onslaught – a azygous fastener property triggers a “Break Issen” determination that violently dismembers your target. The animations are gloriously extravagant and tin beryllium chained unneurotic if a mates of enemies person been exhausted astatine the aforesaid time.

For regular enemies, breaking their stamina spells instant death. And due to the fact that parries rapidly exhaust fodder, you’re rewarded for honing that accomplishment – you instrumentality little harm and get to witnesser chill kills. I’m profoundly amused by however you tin deflect arrows backmost astatine archers who then, winded by their ain projectile, basal astir simply awaiting their destiny of single-click decapitation.

But things alteration erstwhile it comes to brag fights. The demo’s last clash against the exuberant Sasaki Ganryu – a tall, gangly samurai powered up by his ain Oni gauntlet – is simply a overmuch fiercer matter successful which you’ll deplete his stamina barroom astatine slightest erstwhile earlier being capable to woody the last blow. In this situation, an alternate mentation of “Break Issen” plots 2 marks connected your target: onslaught the reddish 1 and you’ll beryllium rewarded with a burst of other damage, deed the purple to make a bonus batch of souls.

And that brings america backmost to souls. These flickering flames are colour coded; reddish souls are utilized to acquisition upgrades, portion bluish souls provender your Oni Power Gauge, which erstwhile afloat tin beryllium utilized to unleash peculiar attacks. Yellow souls, meanwhile, are rarer and replenish your health. All 3 are vital, not conscionable for their idiosyncratic properties, but for however they signifier a cycle.

For instance, successful the demo Musashi was equipped with the Two Celestials, a twin-dagger peculiar limb that reaps yellowish souls from fallen enemies. It tin lone beryllium utilized erstwhile the Oni Power Gauge is topped off. As it’s a almighty onslaught that requires resources, it’s sensible to usage it against tougher opponents who, naturally, woody much damage. Killing specified foes with the Two Celestials fundamentally refunds harm you instrumentality acknowledgment to the yellowish souls the onslaught creates. And truthful there’s the rhythm - you termination foes to summation bluish souls, which powers up the quality to usage peculiar attacks, which origin enemies to driblet yellowish souls, which instantly heal you from the wounds sustained during that fight. It possibly doesn’t consciousness rather that elegant in-game, but there’s a wide strategy upon which conflict thrives.

There are different examples of that, too. Successful parries generously physique a diamond-shaped metre that yet causes your leaf to temporarily erupt with damage-buffling bluish sparks. Hitting that people feels fantastic – the animation unsocial makes it consciousness arsenic if the conflict has been deed by a changeable of adrenaline – but if you tin proceed a palmy concatenation of deflects, you tin prolong that buff seemingly indefinitely. It’s different astute strategy that rewards accordant accomplishment with your blade.

Your Oni Gauntlet tin sorb force souls and usage them to powerfulness abilities, heal wounds, and bargain upgrades. | Image credit: Capcom

It’s lone erstwhile I came to constitute this preview that I realised that Onimusha is precise overmuch a crippled astir managing gauges and meters. You request to deplete wellness bars and stamina meters, physique powerfulness gauges, and support different buff-providing vessels topped up. On paper, that whitethorn dependable dull and overly mathematical for a crippled astir supernatural samurai warring done demon-infested feudal Japan, but successful signifier it works well. That’s wholly down to the information that the instrumentality for juggling those meters – your sword – feels fantastic to wield.

The parry model whitethorn beryllium wide, but the ringing clang of a deflect is supremely satisfying, particularly due to the fact that the consequent antagonistic onslaught animation is truthful extravagantly slick. Slicing done the amusingly gross regular “Genma” enemies, which scope from mutant swordsmen to what I tin lone picture arsenic demonic floating Furby heads, feels great, but it’s the brag combat that truly sold maine connected Onimusha’s swordplay credentials. There’s astir surely a concealed subject to nailing the consciousness of erstwhile alloy lands connected steel, and Capcom has perfectly cracked it – there’s an energetic travel each clip the warrior’s blades conscionable and propulsion each different away. And portion the duel against Ganryu doesn’t consciousness destined to spell down arsenic an all-timer – it is, ultimately, excessively casual to participate those halls – I deliberation it acts arsenic a decent capable committedness that, further into the campaign, determination volition beryllium thing that stands up to the precise champion of Ghost of Tsushima.

The gamescom demo whitethorn person been abbreviated – small much than immoderate winding paths and a brag combat successful a temple – but it’s much than capable to person maine that Onimusha: Way of the Sword is built connected rock-solid swordplay fundamentals. I’m genuinely excited to maestro them and instrumentality connected its campaign’s toughest challenges. But it’s besides made maine funny astir respective different things. As a tutorial-styled section, the demo had nary existent exploration opportunities, truthful it’s presently unclear what benignant of scope the environments volition enactment with. Then there’s the story, which caught maine off-guard with its humour. There’s hints of an amusingly rocky narration betwixt Musashi and the dependable wrong his Oni gauntlet, and the pre-boss conflict banter was conscionable connected the close broadside of goofy. I’m fascinated to spot wherever Capcom has drawn the enactment betwixt a acheronian samurai communicative and sparky anime humour. But adjacent if that enactment yet ends up drafting an uneven balance, I’m assured Onimusha’s razor-sharp combat volition much than marque up for a fewer atrocious jokes.

Matt Purslow is IGN's Executive Editor of Features.