Onimusha: Warlords Reviews

played this game when I was a kid...Just as good as I remembered!

I think everyone knows why I quit near the beginning of the game. Yeah no. Let me skip cutscenes I'm not wasting my fucking time lol. Good game regardless but one section is so bad I lost interest.

The Best Japanese Fantasy Action Game from 24 Years Ago 1.Introduction Onimusha: Warlords is a remastered take on the 2001 classic, set in Japan’s Sengoku period with a fantasy twist. You play as Samanosuke Akechi, a samurai battling demonic Genma in a sprawling Japanese castle. Heavily inspired by Resident Evil 1, it blends pre-rendered backgrounds with 3D characters, offering a mix of exploration and puzzles in a box-like world—a Japanese fantasy spin on Resident Evil. 2.Gameplay Mechanics Three Elemental Weapons As you progress, you’ll wield three elemental weapons, each with unique strengths and magic attacks fueled by blue souls: • Raizan: A lightning katana with balanced speed, great for chaining hits on single foes. Its magic unleashes a flurry of electric slashes, capped with a massive thunderbolt—perfect for tough enemies. • Enryuu: A fire broadsword that’s slow but hits hard, staggering foes with ease. Its magic sprays a line of flames, piercing shields and shredding bosses or elites. • Shippuu: A wind-based double naginata, fast and wide-ranging but lighter on damage. Its 360-degree whirlwind magic clears out mobs in a flash. Issen (Critical Strike) The “Issen” mechanic is the series’ standout feature. Time your attack just as an enemy swings, and you’ll land a one-hit kill, dropping a pile of souls—especially the rare yellow ones that heal. It’s tricky to nail the timing, a hurdle for newbies, but for veterans, it’s a clutch move when health’s low and supplies are gone. Box-World Exploration & Puzzles Like Resident Evil 1’s mansion, Onimusha unfolds in a Japanese castle. You’ll roam compact rooms, rummaging through books and chests while fighting off enemies. Some doors require puzzle items, earned via mini-games, to unlock new areas. Others are sealed by magic, needing a specific weapon leveled up—like a purple seal tied to a Lv2 Raizan. Soul Absorption & Survival Pressure Killing enemies drops red, yellow, and blue souls. You absorb them by holding a button, leaving yourself open to attack, and they vanish if you’re too slow: • Red Souls: Upgrade weapons (Lv1 to Lv3) or enhance items—like turning herbs into medicine or arrows into fire arrows. • Yellow Souls: Rare and vital, they restore health. With scarce medicine and no auto-healing, they’re a lifeline. • Blue Souls: Also rare, they refill magic, key for taking down elites since magic doesn’t regen otherwise. No auto-recovery, limited ammo, and finite medicine mean every hit counts. Run out of healing at low HP, and you’re stuck reloading an old save. 3.Progression & Collectibles Exploration yields goodies to boost your stats: • Fluorite: 20 hidden pieces, invisible without a special item. Collect all for “Oni Mode.” • Magic Jewels: 5 total, boosting max magic. • Power Jewels: 5 total, raising max health. • Files: 32 bits of lore, like letters and maps. Four books (16 files) unlock treasure chests with Jewels inside. • Bishamon Sword: The ultimate weapon, trivializing the final boss. Earn it by clearing 20 waves in the Dark Realm and using a puzzle item before the end. 4.Unique Flavor I first played Onimusha 20 years ago, and it blew me away—a 3D action game pitting a samurai against fantasy beasts in feudal Japan. The detailed castles and stylish monsters stuck with me. Revisiting it now, it still holds up as one of the best in its niche, outdone only by the Nioh series. The Issen mechanic adds a thrilling edge that’s hard to beat. 5.Story & Worldbuilding Plot Summary Set in the Sengoku era, Samanosuke returns to a castle after a plea from Princess Yuki, only to find it overrun by Genma. Nearly killed, he’s saved by the Oni, who grant him a magic gauntlet. Teaming up with ninja Kaede, he fights to stop the Genma from sacrificing Yuki. Characters & Depth Historical figures like Samanosuke, Hideyoshi, and Nobunaga pop up, but they’re far from their real selves—more like cardboard cutouts. Kaede and Yuki fare no better, leaving the story shallow and forgettable. Worldbuilding Files paint a mythic clash between Genma and Oni, but with limited levels, it barely comes to life. Most of the game sticks to realistic castles, with scant fantasy flair to flesh out the lore. 6.Visual Experience Art Style Pre-rendered realism meets Japanese flair. Characters and settings feel authentic, while monsters and weapons carry the fantasy vibe. Samanosuke, modeled after actor Takeshi Kaneshiro, was a bold choice for 2001, letting you soak in feudal Japan’s aesthetic. Design Consistency Early enemies—think ashigaru, samurai, ninja—fit the historical vibe perfectly. But later tentacle monsters and the final boss feel out of place, clashing with the Japanese tone. Detail & Impact For 2001, the visuals were jaw-dropping—cinematic scenes and detailed armor. In 2025, they’re dated next to Nioh or Ghost of Tsushima, though the pre-rendered backgrounds still hold charm. 7.Controls & UI Control Feel The original tank controls and fixed camera carry over, though the remaster adds stick movement. Enemies can hide off-screen, and no lock-on makes aiming clunky for modern players. UI Design The combat UI is clean but barebones—no weapon wheel or hotbar. Healing means pausing and digging through menus, a relic the remaster didn’t fix. 8.Difficulty & Challenge Difficulty Curve Normal mode is forgiving—enemies aren’t too aggressive—but no auto-healing and scarce supplies demand caution. Grab the Bishamon Sword, and it’s a cakewalk. Challenge Factor Issen steals the show. Its tight timing window, with no cues, tests your reflexes. Nailing it feels amazing, especially when it saves you from death. Learning Curve Controls click fast, but Issen’s a trial-and-error beast with no hand-holding. 9.Conclusion & Rating Overall Take Onimusha: Warlords is a stellar Japanese fantasy action game that still shines 24 years later. Its short 3-hour runtime and simple mechanics make it a “dessert” title—best for fans of historical fantasy or retro vibes. Strengths • Punchy combat and thrilling Issen mechanics • Nostalgic pre-rendered beauty Weaknesses • Thin content and low forgiveness • Dated visuals by today’s standards Who’s It For? Fans of Japanese historical fantasy or vintage games. Scores • Gameplay: 7/10 • Story: 6/10 • Visuals: 7/10 • Controls: 7/10 • Overall: 7/10

Plays like Resident Evil in a bad Sekiro costume. Short, Sweet, satisfying, nostalgic. Probably overpriced.

cool game, albeit short. floor puzzle and the water puzzle were bullshit though

A great hidden gem samurai action game created by the company that brought us Resident Evil and Devil May Cry. It's also completely playable on Steam Deck. Just google and follow the steps on the post "Onimusha on SteamDeck - take or go Switch?" by user u/DreadMore0.

For its time, this is a pretty fun game. Very much like the original Resident Evil games, but with Samurai, Demons, and Swords. Camera angles can be quite bad at times, and I'm not using tank controls so movement is smoother that way, but it's fun. So far it's not overly difficult but not always easy either, playing on Normal. Not a huge amount of enemy variety but there's just enough that it's not a big deal. Finishing moves aren't overly responsive either, but they're not super necessary if you can't pull them off. Overall the combat works pretty well and is fun. Different weapons with different special moves, but it would be nice if there were more. A dodge roll is absent but would be nice, although it's a 24 year old game so I won't really criticize it, and blocking is highly effective in most scenarios. Also, some enemies have really cheap attacks that drain a lot of health, but some enemies also drop health which is not a feature of Resident Evil so it's nice and helpful when it happens. If you go into the game with the expectation that it's a survival horror Samurai game from 2001, and understand that it has flaws that are very much a product of its time, I think you'll enjoy it. The negatives of the game I cut slack because of the era and modern quality of life doesn't really apply to 24 year old games. Judge the game not as you would a new release, but judge it as a PS2 game.

[i]We are the clan of Ogres that has been subverted by the Demons... Samonosuke, defeat and seal their souls to your right hand! Destroy all the demons! [/i] In the years preceding the release of Resident Evil 4, CAPCOM was hard at work experimenting and refining the formula for their star franchise, BIOHAZARD (or as we in the west know it, Resident Evil). Years before, ideas had been floated around for a game that was "BIOHAZARD/Resident Evil, but set in Sengoku era Japan". This would of course become Onimusha. I mention all of this because Onimusha wears it's Resident Evil influences on it's sleeve. Despite being much more straightforward and lacking much of the algorithm like design of the early RE games, from the very beginning it has the same sort of feeling (and this goes double for if you use it's original Tank control scheme and not the analog stick control they added for the remaster). With all that being said however, it's still an action game. R1 serves as a dedicated "lock on" button, L1 blocks and parries, and you can perform critical hit/Issen attacks with parry counters and timing. Kaede the ninja character can flip over enemies and perform assassinations. Combat is fun, the puzzles aren't too bad (the notorious water puzzle notwithstanding), and it doesn't overstay it's welcome at probably 4 hours for a first time playthrough (and like RE games, that time can be shaved down to 2-3 hrs). Onimusha was one of my favorites back on PS2, and while I haven't been happy with CAPCOM recently, the remaster fulfills basically everything I would want out of a HD PC release of a beloved classic. While there's a completely new soundtrack (due to Mamoru Samuragochi feigning deafness and plagiarizing his music), I found that it was excellent. If emulating isn't an option for you and you have yet to play Onimusha this one is an easy recommendation.

An excellent remaster of a classic. It’s a huge step up from emulating the original PS2 version, especially since you're no longer stuck with tank controls. Being able to move freely with the control stick makes the gameplay feel smoother—though admittedly, it also makes the game a bit easier.

as Onimusha 2 coming on May i decided to play Warloards. idk why it took my 6 years to play it here "played back in 2000s". capcom did minimal work "i downloaded mod 12gb AI enhancement and improved the graphic 2X time". Steamdeck: it shows game not supported but it run perfect in 60fps " game locked at 60". control: you can play with PS5 controller by enabling steam input. As usual xbox controller works fine. control ingame not perfect but i am glad i dont have to use dpad. Combat is simple but can be deep for parry timing, side step ...etc I actually enjoyed the story for old game. cant wait for Onimusha 2, 3, 4 "Capcom plz" so i dont have to emulate them.