Upon its release, Onimusha: Warlords became an instant hit. It was the first Playstation 2 title to ship more than one million copies in Japan and it gained a huge following here in the United States, as well. Based on this success, Capcom saw fit to port the game to the Xbox under the guise of Genma Onimusha, adding a host of features not found in the original along the way.
It is 1560 A.D. and a powerful warlord named Yoshimoto is attempting to conquer Japan and crown himself emperor. His conquest comes to an end, however, when a small army led by Nobunaga Oda launches a surprise attack and kills Yoshimoto. In a twist of fate, an enemy arrow kills Nobunaga just as he is about to declare victory. A man named Samanosuke witnesses everything from a distance.
A year later, Samanosuke receives a distress call from Princess Suki. When he arrives at her castle, he finds the place overrun with enemy soldiers and demons being led by a resurrected Nobunaga. It is up to Samanosuke and his companion, Kaede, to rescue the princess and defeat Nobunaga’s army once and for all.
When the game begins, you’ll find yourself in the role of Samanosuke. The combat system is solid and it works very well. Onimusha utilizes a lock-on system similar to that found Zelda 64. Samanosuke’s main attack is a simple three-step combo with his sword. He also has a lunge attack that can be used to catch opponents by surprise and a kick that can beat back weaker foes. Knocking an enemy to the ground will give Samanosuke the opportunity to quickly end it’s life by plunging his sword through the defenseless creature’s chest. Blocking attacks and dodging are done with the press of a button and both are essential to your success.
Samanosuke eventually finds an item called the Ogre Gauntlet, granting him the ability to absorb the souls of slain enemies. Souls come in four varieties and each is beneficial in a different way. Yellow and blue souls partially restore Samanosuke’s health and magic meters, respectively. Red souls can be used to strengthen items and orbs that you have acquired. Unique to the Xbox version of the game are green souls. Obtaining five green souls will restore a bit of Samanosuke’s health and render him invincible for a few moments. The catch is that enemies will also attempt to absorb green souls, often resulting in a “tug-of-war”, so to speak. Winning these little contests of will is easy when there are no other enemies around, but it becomes much more difficult when you’re surrounded by adversaries. To make things more interesting, enemies that absorb green souls become much stronger and more difficult to defeat. The inclusion of green souls in Genma Onimusha adds another layer of depth to the game and creates some rather intense moments.
Over the course of his adventure, Samanosuke will find thunder, fire, and wind orbs that change the properties of his sword and grant him new abilities. Equipping the fire orb will make your sword slow but powerful and will grant a special attack that causes heavy damage to a group of enemies. The wind orb is fast but weak. Its special attack has the best range but the weakest damage. The thunder orb is somewhere in-between and its special attack causes massive damage to one or two opponents. Red souls that Samanosuke has collected can be used to enhance the power of these orbs or to enhance other items such as arrows and healing items.
Scattered throughout the game are various puzzles that must be solved in order to acquire items and gain access to certain areas. Most of these are fairly simple and can be solved in just a few attempts, but a few will give you fits. One of the more frustrating sections in the game involves a series of three puzzles that Samanosuke must solve. Two of these puzzles are deadly and one wrong move will send you back to the last save point. The last puzzle is especially difficult and is even more aggravating because you must solve the first two again if you fail. The final puzzle is also timed, so many players will find themselves reloading saved games a number of times before figuring out how the puzzle works.
In addition to the regular enemies you’ll face, there are a number of bosses that must be defeated. The bosses themselves are powerful and more than a bit disturbing…exactly how I like them. These fights are very well thought out and force you to use your entire repertoire of moves. Victory doesn’t come easily, but it’s satisfying when it does.
At certain points in the game, you’ll take control of Kaede, Samanosuke’s companion. Playing as Kaede is a refreshing change of pace until you realize that she isn’t nearly as good a fighter as Samanosuke. She also doesn’t have the Ogre Gauntlet, so she can only regain health by using medicines and herbs. During these scenarios the game starts to feel a bit like Resident Evil, in that you will find yourself running away from enemies as opposed to fighting them. Thankfully, they don’t last very long and you’ll be in control of Samanosuke again before you know it.
Like the Resident Evil games, the backgrounds in Genma Onimusha are pre-rendered. This allows for some really amazing graphics and Onimusha doesn’t disappoint. The backgrounds and scenery that make up the game look incredibly life-like, as do the enemies and other characters you’ll meet. Everything also looks sharper on the Xbox, giving the game a cleaner look. The CG sequences are absolutely amazing and are a testament to the time and effort that Capcom put into making the game.
Genma Onimusha’s sound effects are excellent. Every gunshot, groan, and clash sounds authentic. The orchestral music is perfectly eerie and blends well with the game’s setting. As with pretty much every Capcom game, however, the voice acting is laughable. It isn’t quite as bad as Resident Evil’s, but that really isn’t saying much.
Genma Onimusha is an excellent game in nearly every way and actually manages to be an improvement over the original. While it doesn’t add quite enough to justify a purchase if you’ve already played Onimusha: Warlords, it is certainly the version to get if you have yet to experience Capcom’s masterpiece.
