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Onimusha 3: Demon Siege Review
Chris Leyton
12/07/2004
The popular Onimusha trilogy finally concludes, as Samanosuke teams up with Jean Reno to thwart Nobunga...
The Onimusha series has rightfully built up a popular following, and so it comes that the trilogy is finally concluded with the release of Onimusha 3: Demon Siege ā“ although given recent suggestions we wouldnāt be too surprised to see Nobunga once again rise from his grave and give Capcom the chance to release another title in the series.
Certainly Capcom have pulled out all the stops for the final chapter in the trilogy; fans can expect even more impressive FMV sequences, the appearance of Jean Reno and more action then you can shake a wooden stick at.
The lengthy and impressive opening sequence depicts Samanosukeās final assault on Nobungaās fortress; fans will certainly be impressed by the quality of these scenes as they represent some of the finest use of FMV footage that weāve seen within a videogame, however those with little perseverance may baulk at the 10 minutes it takes to actually get into the game.
Whilst it looks as though Nobunga may finally be coming to his end, a mysterious rift hurtles Samanosuke into the future, however he quickly learns that heās not the only one thrown into the strange world of modern-day Paris. Samanosuke soon discovers that the Genma have also been sent into the future, and itās not long before he discovers them causing havoc and slaughtering every innocent civilian in their path.
One of the few members set up in a Special Forces task group to counter the mysterious threat is Jaques, a hard-hitting French character styled after Jean Reno; itās not long before both Jaques and Samanosuke find themselves fighting together to combat the threat of Nobunga and the Genma ā“ although a language barrier prevents the two from being able to piece together exactly what is happening.
Certainly the opening moments move at a fair pace and itās not long before both become empowered with soul-sucking gauntlets and the ability to wield elemental weapons. It comes as little surprise to discover that the time-shifting continues and sends Jaques spiralling back into feudal Japan, whilst Samanosuke must struggle through present day Paris. Thankfully they quickly enlist the assistance of Ako, a spirit who can helpfully whisk her way through time and space to travel between the past and present, aiding both Jaques and Samanosuke as they battle against Nobunga in strange dimensions and hopefully find a way back to their true time periods.
The time travelling aspect is certainly one of the games stronger aspects and provides fantastic scope for the puzzles within the game; quite often youāre tasked with completing events within the past that will have an effect on what Samanosuke sees in the future, whilst Ako will provide crucial assistance between the two characters and also breaks down the language barrier.
Despite the inclusion of some impressive puzzles, the main emphasis is very much on intense action, as you slice your way through the hordes of Genma that attack you. Fans will know what to expect as this aspect has changed very little from previous titles in the series, although the transition to full 3D has resulted in the controls being far more responsive. When Onimusha was first released it made use of a similar control system to Capcomās Resident Evil series; now players can make use of the thumbsticks for full control and whilst itās still very much reliant on button-bashing there is an element of skill and finesse to the proceedings.
The combat system features a wide variety of manoeuvres which take some working out as itās too easy just to mash your way through the game to begin with; those willing to experiment with the setup will quickly discover a wide range of moves from deadly counter attacks to impressive combos. As you progress through the game youāll have the option to learn new techniques through a variety of training sequences, which highlight some of the more impressive manoeuvres offered to both characters.
Whilst we usually find ourselves bemoaning button-bashers there can be no doubt that the combination of a fast tempo, responsive controls and a slick variety of manoeuvres creates a thoroughly rewarding combat system within Onimusha 3 ā“ the actual execution is more impressive then what it should be, and unlike many other titles you wonāt find yourself beginning to get tired of the experience after a relatively short stint with the game.
As with previous titles killing the Genma releases their souls, which both Samanosuke and Jaques can gather and use to power up their weapons and techniques, whilst other orbs increase both the magic and energy gauges ā“ itās a system that works and adds a subtle level of depth to the relatively straightforward experience.
As we mentioned before Onimusha has finally made the move to 3D replacing the static 2D pre-rendered backgrounds with real-time environments. This has a number of effects on the actual game, some good some bad; as we claimed before the move has allowed the control system to evolve and is far more responsive then previous titles in the series, however the downside is that occasionally the game is prone to slowdown when more then 5-6 characters populate the screen.
Sadly the game doesnāt take the full effect of having entirely 3D visuals and thereās a distinct lack of interaction with the environment, as such the end result feels very similar to the stilted feeling in previous proceedings. The game is also prone to chuck up the odd occasional frustrating camera angle, as you find yourself attacked by somebody who you thought wasnāt there; whilst weād expect this from the previous titles it shouldnāt be tolerated now that the game is in full 3D. Certainly we expected more in this area from Capcom and it feels as though they didnāt really take the transition as far as they could have.
Whilst the main game will last between 10-15 hours, Onimusha 3: Demon Siege features a wide selection of extra content and unlokable goodies to keep Onimusha fans hooked for a substantially longer period.
