Reported by 2 outlets
The story so far
AI summary of the reporting below · Updated · How we work
Capcom director Satoru Nihei stated that player telemetry confirms Onimusha: Way of the Sword achieved its intended balance, despite early complaints that combat encounters felt too forgiving. Released last month as a million-seller, the action game faced criticism during its pre-launch demo over passive basic enemies waiting to be attacked. [1][2]
Nihei told PC Gamer that Capcom never intended the title to match the brutal difficulty of contemporaries like Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice or Nioh. In-game data shows that players regularly die and stumble during the campaign before overcoming obstacles, satisfying the studio's goal of maintaining story progression with occasional friction. For players seeking stiffer competition, a harder difficulty setting remains locked behind completing the story, which prompted community modders to release unofficial patches boosting enemy aggression. [1][2]
Beyond combat difficulty, Nihei acknowledged player fatigue regarding repeated encounters with bosses such as Byakue and Dohatsu-ten across the game's Kyoto hub. The development team aimed for a linear, 20-hour experience with optional exploration, choosing to refine reusable boss battles rather than stretch the game toward a 40-hour open-world scale. [2]
Even before Onimusha: Way of the Sword came out, the topic of enemy and encounter difficulty was a contentious one. The pre-launch demo had players divided; Dom found the combat exciting and challenging, likening it to the Nioh series, whereas I thought it was a little too easy, almost like the game played itself.
via Eurogamer