Capcom's new Onimusha isn't a 'punishing die-and-retry soulslike game'

Onimusha: Way of the Sword is the first game in the Onimusha series in decades, but that doesn't mean Capcom will chase the current modern gaming trends.

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Just because Capcom's new Onimusha game has samurai fighting with swords in third-person combat doesn't mean it'll be a soulslike. Way of the Sword isn't about using grit, strategy, and luck to conquer bosses in a grueling gauntlet of skill. The new Onimusha game is more nuanced in its swordplay than dodge-and-attack mechanics, focusing on striking, clashing, and evading--and the series' trademark Issen critical strikes are also back for Way of the Sword.

"Onimusha: Way of the Sword isn't an open-world game, and it certainly isn't a punishing die-and-retry (soulslike) game either," game director Satoru Nihei said in a recent interview with Automaton.

Nihei says that Capcom designed Way of the Sword to be playable by everyone, but long-time fans will appreciate nostalgic callbacks.

"While there's no doubt that seasoned action-game players will be able to enjoy it, our goal was to make a game which gamers who don't consider action games their forte will also have fun playing. In Way of the Sword, our main focus was to express the clashing of blades through the action."

Elsewhere in the interview, Nihei talks about the Issen attack and the Oni Gauntlet and why Capcom included them in the new game:

"Being able to insta-kill weaker enemies with the regular Issen is one of the series' representative game elements, and it also appears in the new title."

"Other actions that we decided to keep as-is were those related to the Oni Gauntlet. The soul absorption ability appears in Way of the Sword as well, [...] and as a part of the series' identity, we consider it to be very important."

In other interviews, Nihei tells Game File's Stephen Totilo that Way of the Sword uses an accurate sword-to-sword physics clashing system. These mechanics aren't cheap, though, and require some decent processing power to pull off.

"When Musashi and another enemy attack each other, their swords clash. With the latest technology that we're using right now, they are accurately clashing with each other, like sword to sword.

"It takes a lot of processing power as well to pull off. So even though it is a small detail on the screen, it's something that takes a lot of energy to invest into to get it perfect."

Onimusha: Way of the Sword will release sometime in 2026 on consoles and PC.