Onimusha

For the first video game in the series, see Onimusha: Warlords.

Onimusha
The logo of Onimusha: Warlords, the first game in the series. Subsequent titles use a similar logo.
Genres	Action-adventure, hack and slash
Developers	Capcom
Publishers	Capcom
Platforms	Game Boy Advance, Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 2, Xbox
First release	Onimusha: Warlords Playstation 2 JP January 25, 2001 NA March 13, 2001 EU July 6, 2001 Xbox NA January 28, 2002 JP February 22, 2002 EU March 22, 2002 Windows CN 2003
Latest release	Onimusha Soul June 28, 2012 (2012-June-28)
Official website	www.capcom.com/onimusha/

Onimusha series fictional chronology
Warlords Samurai's Destiny Tactics Blade Warriors Demon Siege Dawn of Dreams

Onimusha (鬼武者, literally "Demon Warrior") is a series of video games by developer Capcom. The series makes use of the historic figures that shaped Japan's history, retelling their stories with supernatural elements. Most of the games are of the action-adventure game genre, a combination of third person combat and puzzle solving, where the protagonist wields the power of the Oni, enabling them to fight the Genma, the main enemy of the series. As of 2012, Onimusha is Capcom's sixth biggest franchise, behind the Resident Evil, Street Fighter, Mega Man, Monster Hunter, and Devil May Cry series.

Games

Onimusha series

Year	Game	Platforms
2001	Onimusha: Warlords	PlayStation 2, Xbox, Windows
2002	Onimusha 2: Samurai's Destiny	PlayStation 2
2003	Onimusha Tactics	Game Boy Advance
2003	Onimusha Blade Warriors	PlayStation 2
2004	Onimusha 3: Demon Siege	PlayStation 2, Windows
2005	Jissen Pachi-Slot Hisshouhou! Onimusha 3	PlayStation 2
2006	Onimusha: Dawn of Dreams	PlayStation 2
2012	Onimusha Soul	Browser-based

The series originates in Yoshiki Okamoto's 1997 idea to create Sengoku Biohazard, a ninja version of Capcom's own 1996 Resident Evil (Biohazard in Japan), set in Japan's Sengoku era and featuring a "ninja house" filled with booby traps, similar to the mansion from Resident Evil, where battles would be fought using swords and shuriken: "The house will contain hidden doors behind walls, ceilings that fall down to you, scrolls and ninja magic, and many other ninja techniques."

Onimusha: Warlords was originally being developed for the original PlayStation, but the project was eventually moved to the PlayStation 2. The half-finished original PlayStation version of Onimusha was then scrapped and never released. Resident Evil creator Shinji Mikami is credited as an adviser to the original game's production team.

The central character of the series, Samanosuke Akechi, is modeled after Takeshi Kaneshiro, who also voiced the character. Real people were used as models for other characters in the series, including the late Yusaku Matsuda in Onimusha 2: Samurai's Destiny and Jean Reno (alongside Takeshi Kaneshiro) in Onimusha 3: Demon Siege. Character movements throughout the series were created using motion capture.

The series was initially planned to be only a trilogy, but a fourth installment, Onimusha: Dawn of Dreams was released in 2006. In 2012, Capcom announced a browser-based game Onimusha Soul.

Gameplay

Although the protagonist changes in every Onimusha title, he is always a skilled swordsman who embarks on a set mission which involves slaying demons and fearsome enemies during the waning years of the Sengoku period of feudal Japan. In each game, the protagonist has the ability to absorb Genma souls from defeated enemies, which help to restore health, infuse power in weapons and armor, and provide power for the elemental attacks of special weapons.

The player controls their character using the D-pad (although later games such as Onimusha 3: Demon Siege and Onimusha: Dawn of Dreams introduced analog stick control) and travels in a fairly linear method, able to rotate slowly with the input of an opposing direction. Characters tend to move slowly and can only slightly increase their speed with the dash maneuver by tapping twice in any direction. Actions common to many action-oriented games, such as jumping, grabbing, and climbing over obstacles, cannot be performed in Onimusha games.

Onimusha is very action-oriented with an emphasis on combat, and employing some horror elements. The player has an arsenal of weaponry, ranging from katana to elemental-based broadswords. The player possesses a limited supply of spiritual energy which can be used for magical attacks. These magical attacks, which vary depending upon which weapon is equipped and other offensive attributes, can be improved throughout the game by accumulation of souls from defeated enemies.

Plot

Characters

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Based primarily throughout the Japanese Sengoku and Azuchi-Momoyama periods, the games feature a number of historical figures as characters, including various members of the Akechi Hidemitsu family, the Yagyū family on both sides of the story, as well as Oda Nobunaga and his vassal Toyotomi Hideyoshi as key antagonists. Other historical figures, such as Tokugawa Ieyasu and Honda Tadakatsu, also feature throughout the story. A number of the enemies' (Guildenstern, Reynaldo, Osric, Marcellus, Hecuba, and Fortinbras) are named for characters from William Shakespeare's Hamlet.

Protagonists

• Samanosuke Akechi: One of the main protagonists, Samanosuke Akechi (明智 左馬介, Akechi Samanosuke) is a master swordsman who travels across Japan in search of his rival. Often perceived as a passionless soldier because of his quiet ways, Samanosuke is actually a hot-blooded warrior with a noble sense of justice. He first appears in Onimusha: Warlords; and Onimusha 3: Demon Siege, where he is also one of the two main characters, his full name is revealed as Hidemitsu Samanosuke Akechi.
• Jubei Yagyu: The protagonist in the second game, Onimusha 2: Samurai's Destiny, Jubei Yagyū (柳生十兵衛, Jubei Yagyū) is an ambitious young warrior who is first leader of the Yagyū clan and originator of Shinin style sword combat. Also known as Sougen Yagyu or Sekishusai. All leaders of the Yagyu clan are given a childhood name of Jubei. His father was the late Head of his clan, who was seduced and had a child by a female oni named Takajo (高女). Jubei and his descendants possess the blood and ability of Oni-Clan; as Jubei is Half-Oni. Jubei was modelled after the late Japanese actor Yusaku Matsuda. After a period of solitary training, Jubei returns to Yagyu Village to find that his home has been raided and destroyed by Nobunaga's army.
• Sōki (黒き, Sōki) is a strong warrior who possesses the dark power of the Oni, referred as the Black Oni. Having learned about Hideyoshi's insidious scheme, he sets out on a journey to burn the Genma trees and defeat the Genma running rampant across the land. Wielding two swords with such grace, precision and power, Sōki is soon referred to by townsfolk as "Oni of the Ash" (灰燼の蒼鬼, Kaijin no Sōki). He is also called the "Black Oni" due to his extreme resemblance to the Oni God. Sōki uses a variety of heavy broadswords and katanas. Soki appears as a playable character in the crossover fighting game Tatsunoko vs. Capcom: Ultimate All-Stars, being the only Onimusha character in the entire series to appear in a Capcom crossover fighting game.

Antagonists

• Nobunaga Oda (織田 信長, Oda Nobunaga) is a key antagonist in the first three games. An exceptional warlord who aspires to unify Japan. With the victory against Imagawa at Okehazama, he rides a tidal wave of success. Nobunaga's victory is short-lived when he is stuck in the throat by an arrow. Thought to have been dead, he is revived by the genma lord Fortinbras to serve as his general.
• Hideyoshi Toyotomi (豊臣 秀吉, Toyotomi Hideyoshi) is one of the key antagonists in Onimusha: Dawn of Dreams. Formerly known as Tokichiro Kinoshita, he succeeded Nobunaga in not only setting up the new government of Japan and reuniting the country, but in league with the Genma to resurrect Fortinbras.

Film adaptation

In May 2003, Paramount Pictures, Davis Films and Gaga Productions announced its joint venture to adapt the action-adventure game series into a $50 million live-action feature film. According to Paramount Pictures and Davis Films' Samuel Hadida, "It's samurai fighting against demons – it's very close to this simple pitch. There's also a love story woven in. It's a big adventure movie with lots of special effects." Hadida also proposed the possibility of a film franchise. In December 2006, director Christophe Gans said that he had Onimusha lined up to film. The film, budgeted at over $70 million, was to begin production in China in February 2008 for a December 2009 release. In June 2007, Ain't It Cool News revealed that Takeshi Kaneshiro would be in the movie, reprising his role as Samanosuke. Hadida had to delay the filming of Onimusha, which has resulted in the film's Japanese cast working on other film projects during the delay, and being unavailable to start filming Onimusha. These factors meant that French director Christophe Gans will now direct an adaptation of Leo Perutz's novel The Swedish Cavalier first, taking over the reins from Gilles Mimouni. Satomi Ishihara and Tsuyoshi Ihara remain attached to the project. As of 2013, there has been no new news of an Onimusha movie in production.

Reception

Aggregate review scores
As of May 6, 2011.

Game	GameRankings	Metacritic
Onimusha: Warlords	(PS2) 84.41% (Xbox) 81.44%	(PS2) 86 (Xbox) 83
Onimusha 2: Samurai's Destiny	(PS2) 84.44%	(PS2) 84
Onimusha 3: Demon Siege	(PS2) 85.74% (PC) 64.40%	(PS2) 85 (PC) 69
Onimusha: Dawn of Dreams	(PS2) 81.82%	(PS2) 81

The Onimusha series has received overall positive reviews with most of the main games on the PlayStation 2 receiving average scores of more than 80%. As a comparison, most spin-offs from the series have not been as successful.

The original game was a major hit on the PS2, selling over two million copies. As December 31, 2012, the series has sold at least 7.9 million copies to date.

External links

• Official website of the series