{"id":49201,"date":"2025-06-19T01:00:00","date_gmt":"2025-06-18T16:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/automaton-media.com\/en\/?p=49201"},"modified":"2025-06-18T17:05:21","modified_gmt":"2025-06-18T08:05:21","slug":"onimusha-way-of-the-sword-is-not-a-soulslike-and-not-open-world-director-says-instead-it-expands-on-what-the-series-is-known-for","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/automaton-media.com\/en\/interviews\/onimusha-way-of-the-sword-is-not-a-soulslike-and-not-open-world-director-says-instead-it-expands-on-what-the-series-is-known-for\/","title":{"rendered":"Onimusha: Way of the Sword is \u201cnot a soulslike and not open-world,\u201d director says. Instead, it expands on what the series is known for"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Onimusha: Way of the Sword<\/strong>, releasing in 2026, will be the series\u2019 first new mainline entry in 20 years, featuring legendary samurai Miyamoto Musashi as the protagonist. The game has been in production since early 2020, with Capcom taking 2 years just to get permission<\/a> to model the protagonist after a famous late actor Toshiro Mifune. In the meantime, trends have changed, and open-world games and soulslikes have become a strong presence in the video game market. We asked Onimusha director Satoru Nihei how much the game will be incorporating these trends after 20 years, and what changes it will bring compared to past titles.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cOnimusha: Way of The Sword isn\u2019t an open-world game, and it certainly isn\u2019t a punishing die-and-retry (soulslike) game either,\u201d Nihei remarked. \u201cWhile there\u2019s no doubt seasoned action-game players will be able to enjoy it, our goal was to make a game which gamers who don\u2019t 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.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

In their pursuit of realistic sword-on-sword combat, the devs implemented two new actions as key mechanics of the game \u2013 Deflecting and Redirecting. According to Nihei, Deflecting is especially effective in boss fights, as it depletes a special stamina gauge of the enemy which, when completely emptied, “allows you to trigger the Break Issen and destroy parts of the boss.\u201d Break Issen is another addition to the series, but it will not be replacing the good old Issen veteran players are expecting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cBeing able to insta-kill weaker enemies with the regular Issen is one of the series\u2019 representative game elements, and it also appears in the new title.\u201d It seems the series\u2019 trademark Issen will still be as difficult to pull off as it was in the past entries \u2013 and that is where the new Break Issen could come in handy. By repeatedly using Deflection, you\u2019ll be able to deplete the enemy\u2019s gauge and thus easily trigger the Break Issen. Nihei explains that the Onimusha team created Break Issen as a new mechanic to help make defeating bosses feel more rewarding. \u201cOther 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, [\u2026] and as a part of the series\u2019 identity, we consider it to be very important,\u201d he adds. \u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Despite introducing a bunch of new mechanics, it seems like Onimusha: Way of The Sword will be retaining many elements that are traditional to the series. Previously, Kadowaki had also confirmed that the game will be sticking to the series\u2019 roots, embracing a linear story and stage progression<\/a> rather than opting for an open-world exploration format. As a new mainline entry after 20 years, Way of The Sword seems to continue honing the spirit of Onimusha \u2013 and while it technically is a reboot, it looks like it will have enough to offer to both newcomers and longtime fans of the series.\u00a0 Onimusha: Way of the Sword is scheduled to release in 2026 for the PC (Steam), PS5 and Xbox Series X\u2758S.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

We talked to Onimusha director about Way of the Sword, how it stands out among current trends, and the new mechanics it brings to the series.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":79,"featured_media":49202,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_gspb_post_css":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[10,3],"tags":[17],"class_list":["post-49201","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-interviews","category-news","tag-japan-related-news"],"blocksy_meta":[],"yoast_head":"\nOnimusha: Way of the Sword is \u201cnot a soulslike and not open-world,\u201d director says. 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