For the Kurosawa heavyweight title
If there’s one thing I was hyped for and wanted to ask the community about, it was the reveal of three new, high-profile samurai games. There have been a lot of samurai games in the past, but that era not only passed, but it passed us pretty quietly without much fanfare. Now, three major samurai titles had screen time at E3 press conferences, all from major developers.
First is a follow-up to Team Ninja’s breakout hit,Nioh. Second is a new game from the biggest name in difficult games,Sekiro: Shadows Die Twicefrom From Software. Lastly is the dark horse,Ghost of Tsushima, from Sucker Punch.
After getting a taste last year withNioh, I knew this onslaught of samurai games was going to be exciting. But buying all three won’t be cheap. I asked the community which ones they’re excited for, if any or all of them.
Gokart Mozarthasn’t playedNiohand I recommend he does:
I’m least interested inNioh 2, but that’s probably due to not having playedNioh 1yet. I plan on doing it eventually, but I really want to work through my pile of shame that includesPersona 5, Dark Souls III, andGod of Warat the moment.
I’m very interested inSekiro. The removal of RPG elements doesn’t bug me as I liked the more action-oriented focus ofBloodborne. Between my fondness forBloodborne‘s combat (which this appears to build upon) and this game’s addition of traversal mechanics, my interest in this game is very high.
Then there’sGhost of Tsushima. I’m also very interested in this game, and again it’s due to the developer’s pedigree. I like the traversal mechanics and streamlined nature of their open worlds from theInfamousseries, and I’d like to see what they’ll do in this new setting. The melee combat looks like it may be more complex than what was in any of theInfamoustitles, but knowing Sucker Punch, I suspect the controls will be intuitive and fun. I noticed that the protagonist had a rope with a grappling hook for climbing, so I’m also curious to see how that works and whether there’s some ninja-ass parkour going on in that game. I’m also curious to see whether the final version on Pro looks nearly has good as the stage presentation or whether that’s a PS5 game like some have wondered aloud.
GajKnightis interested in a respectable samurai game:
Least interested inNioh 2. The loot grind got really tedious in the late game and almost unbearable in the DLC’s. And Team Ninja just fail at telling good stories with good characters. Should still be good fun though.
I’m edging towardGhost of Tsushimamyself. It is just so gorgeous looking and a grounded samurai game is something I really want (don’t remember the last samurai game with no demon stuff, perhapsYakuza Ishin?).
Siddartha85is looking forward to someTsushimashenanigans:
Thank you for bringing this up. It’s been at the forefront of my mind, because I’m probably playing all three. They all look dope-as-fuck.
Weirdly,Sekirois the one I least anticipate.Niohwas my favoriteSouls-like, and in my mind, does it better than From does. SoNioh 2ranks higher thanSekiro, although I still HAVE to try that grappling hook and parasol shield stuff, obviously.
But the real standout for me wasGhost of Tsushima. It apparently wasn’t designed to haveSouls-like difficulty, but still looks like it has someBushido Blade-style one-hits and high damage strikes. It also looks like Sucker Punch is attempting to hit us with feels. (Always an ambitious move in this industry.) It looks like they’re taking the setting seriously and semi-historically. My confidence is high for that one.
FakePlasticTreehas a gutArkhamsense and prefers a female samurai:
Nioh 2allows me to play as a female Samurai, the game that gives me a CC is a winner in my eyes. Grants more replay ability too I feel.Sekirolooks like it wants to be an action game likeBayoorDMC, but its protagonist and story doesn’t exactly seem to have the charm of either. The combat seems to take cues from theirSoulsgames, which I’m not sure is enough to sell me on it.
AndGhost of SushiMamajust looks like anotherArkhamoffspring, the combat is turning me off. It does seem like it wants to portray a more faithful depiction of a rarely portrayed period in Japanese history (usually it is Sengoku or Bakumatsu), namely the Mongol invasion. That aspect is still interesting. But I’m gonna go withNioh 2so far as the combat in the original was still a lot of fun.
VespythinksTsushimais Sucker Punch’s moment to truly shine:
I want to be wrong, butSekirodoesn’t look that interesting to me. I’m sure it will be good at least, but it doesn’t look all that original and I personally like the RPG elements inSouls… I’m more interested in whatDeracineis, tbh – VR turns me off but everything From’s done with Japan Studio is pure gold so far.
Niohwas just pretty good, imo, maybe a sequel can refine it for something special. I’m thinking it’ll probably just be more of the same, though. Character creator is a nice addition, hopefully they barely even bother with a story this time and focus on the gameplay.
I thinkGhostmight turn out great – Sucker Punch make fun games but they always fall short of true classics, I think. Maybe this will be their moment. No magic or spirit stuff is nice to see, and what they showed all looked really polished and pretty. The gameplay looks like standardArkhamstuff to me, but I like that so w/e. It pretty much comes down to the quality of the writing.
All three will at least be good, I’m sure. I’ll buy em all. If I had to pick one, thenSekirojust cos it’s FromSoftware.
Scrustleis pitching Ronin Simulator 2019:
It’s weird how samurai action games tend to be so rare, despite the idea seeming like a no-brainer. And now we get three coming along at once!
I’m only really interested inGhost of Tsushimathough. I’m sure both of the other games will be great, but I’m done with From games, and games like them. The only one I’ve enjoyed wasDark Souls III, so I think that was just a fluke and the genre/style just isn’t for me. Plus this open world “ronin simulator” in particular is something that I’ve really wanted to get my hands on. Seems like the other games are going in a slightly different direction.
Crank up the bloom forMajor Tom’s Cup of Coffee:
Ghost, Sekiro, and thenNioh 2.Sekirowould have been 1, but it wont let me create a character so that makes me sad.Ghostis number 1 for me right now. The art style looks like it will have plenty of high bloomy “wow” moments and I am excited to play an open world samurai game.Niohnever interested me, but maybe the second one will.
Roageris piqued by some Soulsy-ness:
Sekiromight be the first soulsy game I actually want, thanks to no multiplayer and no RPG elements.Ghost of Tsushimalooks badical, but the final game isn’t planned to be as minimal-HUD as the presentation was, and that worries me.Nioh 2… I genuinely didn’t realize was a thing. I thought people were doing jokes about the other two.
From Software has never failedGamemaniac3434before:
The From Software one, because they have a good track record so far and I want to see how this change turns out. I prefer doing new stuff to rehashing old stuff-leave them wanting more, and so on-so seeing them do something new and try something new gameplaywise is encouraging. Whether or not it pays off is another matter.
Sharukurusuis itching for some realism:
Ghost of Tsushimasits at the top of my list, mainly because of its real world setting. There are plenty of games that involve magic so I’d like to see how these guys handle the “realistic” samurai story and gameplay.
I picked the header becausePixiereminded me of Kurosawa:
Ghost of Tsushimais what I’m looking at first and foremost. I like the focus on quick, decisive combat and the whole Kurosawa look about it. I feel like we get a lot of samurai characters in games, but few games about samurai themselves.
vxxyhas got top picks and top nep onGhost of Tsushima:
Ghost of Tsushimais my top pick. It looked so good and I love the idea of playing what looks like a damn samurai film. That’s the shit right there.Sekiromight be good. No thoughts onNioh 2since I never played or seen much of the first one beyond a short demo.
DR Ubiodares to invoke the dead name that isTenchu:
Sekiro, Nioh 2andGhost of Tsushima. I WAS interested the most inGhost, but I was not expecting two different games that cater a lot more closely to what I enjoy to be presented.
As far asSekirogoes it looks like typical (can we say that by now?) Miyazaki/FromSoft flair with a reimaginedTenchustyle verticality to its level design (the hookshot and the fact we got a jump) and a more linear style of play. We won’t have the death/bonfire shtick this time, so I’m thinking something along the lines ofDemon’s Souls, but with added verticality.
Then we got my boyNioh. I’m actually kind of disappointed we won’t be using William anymore as I like the more streamlined approach and character… made me feel like I was in the middle ground between aNinja Gaidenand aSoulsgame. I’m a bit worried as I feel they’re catering more to the Soulsborne fandom (which I’m ironically a part of as well) rather than the character action fandom (I’m a sucker forDMC, BayonettaandNinja Gaiden…also ANYTHING Platinum/Clover) and we could actually use the return of the big guys. The firstNiohwas a test for them, they tried some stuff and some stuff worked. I fear they’re missing the non-apologetic nature of Itagaki. I’m one of the guys that enjoyedNioh‘s alpha more so than the actual released game and I would love Team Ninja to be able to find marriage between both things and not cater to being derivative. Hopefully I’m wrong.
Finally we’ve gotGhost of Tsushima. This game had me interested since the first reveal and after watching the gameplay parts and knowing the developer this seems like the thing theWay of the Samuraigames always WANTED to be. I’m hoping the combat is moreBushidoand less generic western game combat. Really liking the details and am really excited for the game, this would have been my #1 “Eastern Samurai tale” game to be excited if I wasn’t so much of a Character Action Game/Soulsborne buff.
Now that we’re on it… Can we get Capcom to release a newOnimusha? Perhaps someone to release a newShinobi? The time is now basically. Hopefully Itsuno can finishDMC V(thank god, thank you Itsuno-San) and he can get into developing a newOnimusha. I’ve been reading a lot of Capcom’s quarterly reports and they’re mentioning a heavy focus in porting games to PC, creating new IPs and reviving dormant IPs (Dead RisingandDragon’s Dogmaare mentioned as outstanding IPs saleswise, so expect news on those two soon enough) as well as bringing more HD ports (not surprising huh? They do talk about how they plan to support their IPs going forward settingMonster Hunter Worldas an example).
Agent9needs more details onSekirobefore a judgment call:
I am interested somewhat inSekiro. If it can still capture that souls like combat I’ll be happy. Overall however the more I look at it, the less hype I feel. Something about it just doesn’t jive with me. Perhaps it looks just a bit too plain. Time will tell however and I hope it does really well.
GhostandNiohalso look great, but I would like to see more as well. I’m far happier with these at the moment. I can’t quite say why though, unlikeSekirothey don’t generate the same feelings on repeat views.
Kevin Mersereauis infamous for his interest inGhost of Tsushima:
Tsushimais the only one I’m crazy hype for. I love theinFamousseries, and I’ve been waiting for Sucker Punch’s next game announcement for a minute now. After seeing it in action, I’m all in.
