Onimusha: Warlords

"Great game engine, great graphics, way too short."

Onimusha: Warlords, a game announced before the PS2's debut, has gone through several console changes. It was first planned for the N64; then, it went to PS1; and, it finally landed here on PS2. Made by Capcom, it carries all of Capcom's adventure game elements, with a brand new combat engine for excellent gameplay.

CONTROL

Onimusha's control is superb. The game's combat system features a lock-on target ability that allows Samanoske to move always facing the target. This is engaged by holding down R1. When locked on, Samanoske can easily strafe around the current target, swinging his sword in just about any direction. Simple pressing Square a few times while standing still will prompt Samanoske to attack several times (a number that varies depending on the current sword). While moving, the attack will vary greatly depending on the direction. In addition to all of the sword-swinging moves, there is also a magic attack, activated by pressing Triangle, that will hit an area that varies depending on the current sword. L1 will block enemy attacks from all sides.

After an enemy is defeated, his body slumps to the ground, and is disintegrates instantly. Small floating orbs are released, and pressing Circle will enter a special stance that allows Samanoske to absorb them to gain health, magic energy or enhancement points.

The enhancement points can be spent at Save Points (Magic Mirrors) to make weapons stronger, make weapons' spells stronger, and make herbs or other items more effective.

The controls are very responsive and easy to use. It's never necessary to twist your hands around to reach a button, nor is it necessary to rapidly press buttons to dodge attacks. Dodging attacks can be done very easily by simple moving out of the way.

The only thing against the controls is that Samanoske only gains three swords, and thus only three magic spells. Thus, the controls are repetitive. However, they're still very fun and easy to use. The action is fast-paced, fun and interesting. Some even think that it's just as fun to watch as it is to play.

OVERALL CONTROL RATING: 9/10

GRAPHICS

The graphics in Onimusha are interesting. No one's ever tried to make an action game as quick as Onimusha with pre-rendered backgrounds before. And, the pre-rendered backgrounds in Onimusha are very well done. They're very detailed and crisp, they fit the active characters perfectly, and there are enough of them for each room to provide an excellent view of battles or whatever's happening.

The active characters are perhaps even better. Their animations all move at a constant 60 FPS. Every last detail, from the hair to the toe, is perfectly modeled and animated. The quality is amazing. The quality is sometimes so good, that sometimes players lose track of what's active and what isn't. It's that good.

OVERALL GRAPHICS RATING: 9/10

AUDIO

There isn't much music in Onimusha, but the music that there is usually doesn't fit the current scene in the gameplay very well. The music is feudal-Japanese type, and it is better suited for scenes in time with the music. . .which there are a lot of in Onimusha. The game features voice overs, which are not badly done, compared to some of the games that I've heard. The scripting isn't as good, unfortunately, but luckily there's a Japanese voice over option for those who don't care about what the characters are saying, or want to hear better voice overs.

The sound effects are pretty good. They're not annoying, and most of them fit the situations well.

OVERALL AUDIO RATING: 7/10

STORY

In a word. . .OK. The game is WAY to short; in some of my attempts to clear the game quickly, I managed to complete it in two and a half hours. That's not good. The concept behind the story is the old, overused, ''rescue the princess'' story. Samanoske Akechi, a samurai, receives a letter from a keep belonging to his cousin Yukihime's father. Strange things are happening in the castle, and Yuki wants Samanoske to come immediatly. He does so, and he only finds Yuki gone, the keep beseiged by demons, and an apparently-dead warlord alive again and approaching the keep with an army. With the aid of his ninja friend Kaede, he goes on a quest to save the princess. There is little in the way of plot twists in the game. And, to make matters worse, there's no way to skip already-seen story scenes. Therefore, you have to sit through boring, badly-scripted story scenes that you've seen already. This alone can discourage some gamers from spending their money.

OVERALL STORY RATING: 5/10

REPLAY VALUE

Like I said earlier, Onimusha is short. . .too short. There is one difficulty mode (with a second, easier one unlocked by dying too many times), and a bunch of secrets. For one thing, there is a VERY difficult mini-game with enormous rewards for completion. For another, there are two alternate costumes for the characters. One is too silly for me to look at too long, but the other one is rather interesting. The replay value in Onimusha ends up. . .well, OK.

OVERALL REPLAY VALUE RATING: 6/10

OVERALL SCORES:
CONTROL: 9/10
GRAPHICS: 9/10
AUDIO: 7/10
STORY: 5/10
REPLAY VALUE: 6/10

FINAL SCORE: 8/10

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 06/05/01, Updated 06/05/01