RPGamers Network > Reviews > Game Reviews > Onimusha - Warlords
The battle system is quite familiar. You start out with a sword. ^_^ Then you're blessed with this magical device called a "Gauntlet." This allows you to put Orbs in your arm (a total of 3 orbs exist) and have access to a new sword with every orb. As you kill the demons in your path, you can absorb their "soul power" into your gauntlet, which can be used to increase the levels of your swords or orbs. Each sword and orb can be increased to a level of 3, at which point it has been maxed out. Each level of sword and orb has a neat picture and are much more powerful than the last level (except, of course, level 1). You also have magic, which stems from what sword you're using at the time. Your MP bar tends to only be able to have enough for 1-2 castings of your spell.
You can also find bows and arrows, some nice armor, and later in the game a "matchlock" (gun).
The gameplay is simple and smooth. No quirky things of getting stuck near between walls or anything, though the fact that the camera is stuck in one position (means, most likely, that the backgrounds are pre-rendered) can get rather annoying.
The music is fabulous. Absolutely amazing. Very Japanese, and always fitting the mood. One of my friends (you hear that, Moiee? If I'm wrong, you're going down with me!) said that the music was composed by a deaf man - if that's true, I'm all the more impressed. It's usually quite tense and adrenaline pumping, although it can be quiet and hardly noticeable at times.
The storyline is a mix of unoriginal with original. The unoriginal is that you're killing demons. The original is that they're employed by old Japanese military leaders. The general idea is you have to save this princess (oh me, oh my) who's being used by the demons as a sacrifice so they can complete their dealings with Nobunaga Oda. This story is not true. ^_^
As for the sounds and visuals, both are exemplary. The clash of sword-on-sword sounds amazingly real (as does the growling of demons for that matter... eek!) and the visuals are, like any PS2 game, stunning.
The replay value is found in a secret after game that you can get after finding 20 flourite rocks hidden in the main game. It's a very hard mini-game called "Oni Spirits" that's kind of like a time trial versus bad guys. It's hard, let's leave it at that.
The only true downside to this game is that it's pretty easy. Any relatively competent gamer can complete it in 15 hours. There is no leveling up (unless you consider that sword / orb business leveling up) and you can do almost everything the first time around. Oh well. ^_~
The Final Word
Overall, this game is fun yet easy. So if you want a fun, easy game... get this!
| Game Stats | |
|---|---|
| Genre | Action |
| Platform | PlayStation 2 |
| Format | DVD |
| # of Players | 1 |
| Released Jap | 01.25.2001 |
| Released US | 03.15.2001 |
| Released EU | 07.06.2001 |
| Aprox. Length | 10-25 hrs. |
| Reviewer Rankings | |
| Battle System | 9.0 |
| Gameplay | 9.0 |
| Music | 10.0 |
| Originality | 8.0 |
| Plot | 9.0 |
| Replay Value | 9.0 |
| Sound | 9.0 |
| Visuals | 10.0 |
| Difficulty | Medium |
| Overall | |
| 9.1 | |
Onimusha - Warlords
By: CapcomReviewed By: S3KI
This game is truly an Action-RPG, but since there is no category for that... (curses Locke). This game is immense fun. Hack-and-slash with a decent plot behind it, this game is truly a must-have for the PlayStation 2.The battle system is quite familiar. You start out with a sword. ^_^ Then you're blessed with this magical device called a "Gauntlet." This allows you to put Orbs in your arm (a total of 3 orbs exist) and have access to a new sword with every orb. As you kill the demons in your path, you can absorb their "soul power" into your gauntlet, which can be used to increase the levels of your swords or orbs. Each sword and orb can be increased to a level of 3, at which point it has been maxed out. Each level of sword and orb has a neat picture and are much more powerful than the last level (except, of course, level 1). You also have magic, which stems from what sword you're using at the time. Your MP bar tends to only be able to have enough for 1-2 castings of your spell.
You can also find bows and arrows, some nice armor, and later in the game a "matchlock" (gun). The gameplay is simple and smooth. No quirky things of getting stuck near between walls or anything, though the fact that the camera is stuck in one position (means, most likely, that the backgrounds are pre-rendered) can get rather annoying.
The music is fabulous. Absolutely amazing. Very Japanese, and always fitting the mood. One of my friends (you hear that, Moiee? If I'm wrong, you're going down with me!) said that the music was composed by a deaf man - if that's true, I'm all the more impressed. It's usually quite tense and adrenaline pumping, although it can be quiet and hardly noticeable at times.
The storyline is a mix of unoriginal with original. The unoriginal is that you're killing demons. The original is that they're employed by old Japanese military leaders. The general idea is you have to save this princess (oh me, oh my) who's being used by the demons as a sacrifice so they can complete their dealings with Nobunaga Oda. This story is not true. ^_^
As for the sounds and visuals, both are exemplary. The clash of sword-on-sword sounds amazingly real (as does the growling of demons for that matter... eek!) and the visuals are, like any PS2 game, stunning.
The replay value is found in a secret after game that you can get after finding 20 flourite rocks hidden in the main game. It's a very hard mini-game called "Oni Spirits" that's kind of like a time trial versus bad guys. It's hard, let's leave it at that.
The only true downside to this game is that it's pretty easy. Any relatively competent gamer can complete it in 15 hours. There is no leveling up (unless you consider that sword / orb business leveling up) and you can do almost everything the first time around. Oh well. ^_~
The Final Word
Overall, this game is fun yet easy. So if you want a fun, easy game... get this!
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