Plot. In 1560, a war erupts between Imagawa Yoshimoto and Nobunaga of the Oda clan. Historically, this event in Japan is known as the Battle of Okehazama. Nobunaga's purpose is to unify Japan, and crown himself it's sole king. A lone samurai warrior, Samanosuke Akechi watches from a cliff, and battles a group of soldiers of the Oda clan who attempt to murder him. When the victory of Nobunaga is absolute, he laughs triumphantly, until an arrow pierces his throat. A year later, Samanosuke receives a letter from his cousin, Princess Yuki, telling her concerns about her castle, which maids and servants are missing, and then are found eaten by the monsters. Samanosuke joins with his kunoichi (female ninja) partner Kaede, and together they fight to save Princess Yuki from the monsters. However, Nobunaga mysteriously returns from the dead, with a new purpose: to conquer not only Japan, but the world itself.
Concept. The concept of the game is similar to that of Resident Evil, except that players fight in close range combat with a katana. Sometimes if they like they can fight at a distance by using a bow, a gun, or with Kaede's kunais (ninja knives). Players must roam throughout the keep, until they get to the underworld, where the final confrontation awaits. There will be many revelations, conspiracies, and horrifying secrets revealed as players progress. At some time players take the role of Kaede in order to progress further in the game.
Music. The game's traditional Japanese orchestral music was composed by deaf Japanese composer, Mamoru Samuragoch, and performed by New Japan Philarmonic. The boss battle themes were actually very epic and well made. My personal favorite boss battle theme is against Marcellus, it gets me very pumped.
Voice Acting. Samanosuke Akechi was voiced and modeled after Chinese-Jap movie star, Takeshi Kaneshiro. In the English version, Samanosuke was voiced by Tig Fong. However, in the Japanese version, Akio Otsuka, known for his recurring role as Solid Snake in the Metal Gear Solid series, voices Nobunaga Oda and the game's main antagonist, Fortinbras.
Trivia. The enemies of the game: Osric, Hecuba, Fortinbras, Marcellus, and Guildenstern are named after characters of the William Shakespeare novel, Hamlet. I thought it was very interesting to name them after such characters. Great job Capcom!
History. The success of the first game has spawned spinoffs and sequels. Onimusha 2: Samurai's Destiny featured new characters, and a new protagonist, Yagyu Jubei. Jubei is very remembered in both history and pop culture. In Onimusha 3: Demon Siege, the game featured a new character modeled after movie star Jean Reno. Also, Onimusha spawned an animated movie as well.
Rantings. Well, there are many things I rant about this game. The enemies that pissed me off the most where the Reynaldos, those regenerating enemies that have the capacity to create others after being split in half. Also, I hated the crab-like creatures during the fight against Hecuba. Another thing that I hated is that Kaede could not power up her health bar, what a letdown. Another bad thing is that Kaede could not cross the doors that were sealed with elemental seals, obviously because she does not have the gauntlet. The large samurai genma (demons) were also a bother because they blocked and then counterattacked, especially the ones that had a shield.
Good Aspect. The graphics and gameplay of the game are memorable. The replay value is high, and also after beating the game, and getting 20 Fluorite rocks, you get to play a mini game called Oni-Souls, in which you go room to room, to gather every soul before time runs out. The music is epic, and the voice acting is very good.
Overall. Onimusha: Warlords is a great game, and one of Capcom's best titles in gaming. I give the game an 8 out of 10.