It is absolutely no secret that Capcom is on one of the most impressive game release streaks ever. 2026 has already seen Resident Evil Requiem, Pragmata, and now, we arrive in the lead-up to Onimusha: Way of the Sword. Excluding Onimusha Soul (a web browser-based game), this is the first time in 20 years that we’ve seen a new Onimusha game. And for that alone, Way of the Sword is a huge deal.
It’s been a few years since we first saw Way of the Sword revealed, and after seeing a presentation on the game at SGF last year, I was finally able to check out the game for myself at Summer Game Fest: Play Days 2026. I’ve had incredibly high hopes for Way of the Sword, and based on my time with the game, it’s very well possible that this could be the best Onimusha game to date.
Onimusha: Way of the Sword stars Miyamoto Musashi (who, yes, is modeled after the legendary Toshiro Mifune) as he wanders around Edo-era Kyoto. My preview explored the Yasui Konpiragu Shrine, a real-life shrine located just north of Kiyomizu-Gojo Station. What I continue to be impressed by is Capcom’s attention to detail with the region. Every temple and shrine has been carefully and painstakingly recreated to the point of the development team going to the real-life locations and accessing areas not even available to the public to ensure accurate representation.
Something that surprised me about my time with Way of the Sword was how much exploration is available for players. The entire surrounding village and area of the shrine were explorable, and it was really hard not to ignore the objective and explore every corner. This isn’t an open world, but the area I had access to was pretty significant. Capcom mentioned that we can expect to see more areas like this in the full game, so I’m excited to see what else we’ll be able to check out in September. Exploration is definitely encouraged, as there’s a guided gold path you can summon using the Oni gauntlet to navigate to the objective.
This time around, I didn’t get much interaction between Musashi and the gauntlet like last year. However, I’m quite interested to see how that relationship and Musashi as a character will evolve over the course of the game. His accent does take a bit to get used to, but Musashi has a fun personality so far that is sure to make each encounter entertaining. I’m very impressed with Capcom’s depiction of Mifune, though. I feel like I’m transported to one of Kurosawa’s films in a way.
Now, to the part you’re probably waiting for: Does Onimusha: Way of the Sword play as good as it looks? Absolutely. This game is such a blast to play, and I was surprised at how much there is to experiment with. The base combat revolves around attacking enemies, parrying incoming attacks, dodging attacks, and sucking in souls to the Oni gauntlet. Slashing enemies as Musashi feels seriously good, with solid weight and an attack that also feels fair. Even with the dark fantasy elements throughout, the swordplay feels authentic and exactly as I’d want from a samurai. I had a huge smile on my face as I sliced away at enemies, parried attacks, and even blocked incoming arrows with my sword.
This demo had a key boss fight in Rasho-gan that was seriously so much fun. This was a giant spectacle that was far different from any other enemy I’d encountered at that point, and it required me to really think and use all of the abilities at my disposal. Musashi has a bow that can be used to hit ranged enemies, and I had to utilize that in between my slashes to prevent rubble from dropping on my head. Rasho-gan had a really neat moveset that provided some challenge, as he constantly tested my ability to defend while attacking.
As for upgrades, there is a ton available here. You have standard items like clothing for HP, your sword for attack power, and the gauntlet for Oni power. However, there are a ton of skill trees, with five standard skill trees for your sword, bow, stealth, and a mystery tree. Beyond that, I found 10 different channels for Special Skill Trees, which include upgrades for Oni Vision, Oni Armaments, and more. A lot of this was grayed out for the purposes of the demo, but I get the feeling that you are going to have a lot of customization available in how you want to play the game. Musashi has quite a few abilities up his sleeve beyond using his sword, and that is certainly reflected here with the Oni Armaments, especially.
While I had a blast checking out Onimusha: Way of the Sword, I do think a fair criticism that’s been discussed about the game thus far is its difficulty. I had the option to choose between action and story modes when playing the demo, and despite choosing action, no enemies really gave me much trouble. I only died to the boss once, and that was largely due to not being aware of a certain attack it could perform. I’m sure the game is going to have more difficulty options at launch (or at least I hope), but I do think some more challenge would be nice to see here. Way of the Sword is so much fun to play, but wiping out any enemy in your path in just a second or two can be a little much. Give me more challenge, Capcom!
After finally checking out the game hands-on, I can say without question that Onimusha: Way of the Sword is one of the games I’m looking forward to the most this year. It has style, it’s a blast to play, and I’m very intrigued with its world. It’s nice to see a real meaty combat system coming again from Capcom, and these boss fights are sure to be memorable.
Onimusha: Way of the Sword launches on September 25 for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, Nintendo Switch 2, and PC.
