Onimusha 3: Demon Siege

As someone who really enjoys the genre of hack and slash, I was a little disappointed that none Onimusha games clicked with me in a way that I would've hoped. That being said I appreciated seeing the innovation in each game culminating in what I think is the best entry in the series. The presentation and gameplay work well to create a game that, while fun, is also a bit flawed.

Some of the complaints I have are enigmatic of many action games during this time, that being balancing and difficulty curves. Perhaps I have been too spoiled with games such as DMC 5 but I feel like some enemy encounters and bosses were only manageable if you had the right resources on hand rather than if you were just skilled enough. I'd rather be tested on how well I can use my fighting skills rather than I I saved up enough on mana. Some fights often boiled down to spamming magic because if you don't you are either fighting an enemy that will block all of your attacks, will deal massive damage to you, or will force you into a corner where enemies can potentially stun-lock you. This is not a problem exclusive to this game as I feel a lot of action games of this era test my patience in how much I am willing to get constantly ganked by enemies, the answer being not very much.

With my biggest complaints out of the way, I want to say how much I love the premise of this entry. The use of time travel and using present-day Paris as a second setting is a campy concept that I am all here for. The new main character Jaques is someone I greatly enjoyed playing as, with his move set bringing a little more depth to the combat that I felt was needed. Sending a gruff Frenchman back in time to Feudal Japan to kickass and shoot demons definitely makes for the most ridiculous plot in the series. That being said, I felt the story treads a fine line between attempting to be serious like its predecessors while also acknowledging the campiness of the whole premise.

Despite some of my misgivings with the gameplay, I still enjoyed my time with the game. The areas are all pretty unique and fun to explore, the introduction of vest items allowed for different playstyles, and overall I sorta miss the times when games like these used janky fixed camera angles. It is by no means a perfect experience but I think it's definitely worth checking out especially if you are fond of this era of gaming.