Onimusha: Way of the Sword brings Japanese cinematic royalty to the samurai fantasy series

Engadget

11-06-2025

While the surprise of a new Resident Evil might have been Capcom's biggest story at SGF, it's got other series – and other sequels – to show off, like Onimusha . Previously a banner PS2 series, Onimusha spanned four mainline games between 2001 and 2006. We've since seen remastered editions of the first two episodes.
Still, a true sequel was long overdue, especially after games like Sekiro and Ghost of Tsushima showed a renewed appetite for feudal Japan swordplay. Through a theater presentation during SGF 2025, I got a closer look at Onimusha: Way of the Sword, which features a new hero and a new setting. Also, no more static backgrounds.
Players will control Miyamoto Musashi, a legendary (but historically real) Japanese swordsman, artist and writer. This is interesting, but the more compelling wrinkle is that his face is modeled on the legendary (but historically real) actor Toshiro Mifune, who passed away in 1997. Mifune was a leading actor in several Akira Kurosawa movies in the 1950s and '60s, including Rashomon, Seven Samurai and Yojimb o. In short, he was arguably the most famous samurai actor there ever was. I'm not counting Tom Cruise. (Mifune, while alive, portrayed the same character, Musashi, in three separate movies.) To view this content, you'll need to update your privacy settings. Please click here and view the "Content and social-media partners" setting to do so.
Several gameplay features have carried over to the latest edition of the Onimusha series. Once again, you're equipped with the Oni gauntlet, now possessing its own sentient voice. The gauntlet is crucial to collecting different types of orbs from enemies. Some will repair health, while others add experience points, skill points and more. We were also shown some mild puzzle-solving, using the power of the Oni gauntlet to see invisible demons and unlock areas that were spiritually blocked. Absorbing sinister dark masses will let Musashi relive harrowing scenes from the past, powered by his cursed gauntlet.
The early gameplay demo focused on swordplay, mainly, with barely any mystical attacks and special moves. Like in previous games, you'll have to balance attack, movement, guarding and counters. Once again, Issen attacks (both through interrupting sword strikes and well-timed guards) are key to applying major damage to waves of attacking demons. Musashi can also apply Issen attacks multiple times to finish off groups of enemies – if your timing is good enough. He can also parry arrows and send them back to where they came from.
Environmental damage can also prove useful against enemies, like fire. At times, you'll even be able to wield objects for defense, like a raised tatami mat to block arrow fire. It seems we were only glimpsing the basics of Onimusha battle dynamics and attacks.
The guard system appears relatively forgiving, and I saw Musashi block light sword attacks from behind without even turning around. I'm intrigued to see how the game's difficulty will scale in an era of Soulslikes.
Fans of those games will be more intrigued with boss battles, in particular, ones where you face off against Ganryu, seen above. He appears to be Musashi's swordsman rival – and one that's been gifted his very own Oni gauntlet. The confrontation between the two was a valuable opportunity to demonstrate how Break Issen operates. After wearing down the guard gauge of enemies, you can perform a severe attack which can be channeled to specific areas or body parts. Do you go for the head to hit for maximum damage, or the sword arm to reduce damage going forward? I also love having an antagonist to face off against, each time upping the ante. Ganryu, who seems a bit of a dick, is that guy.
Onimusha: Way of the Sword is scheduled for release in 2026 on PS5, Xbox Series S|X, and PC.