Onimusha: Way of the Sword — Ultimate Guide

Welcome to our Ultimate Guide to Onimusha Way of the Sword.

I went in to play Onimusha: Way of the Sword thinking it would be a new take on an old classic samurai action formula. After playing through it for just over 30 hours, I am now certain that Capcom has created a much more complex experience than I was originally anticipating. It may appear to be a standard action game, but the combat in Onimusha is dependent on timing, positioning, managing your stamina, your defense choices, and when to capitalize on your opponent’s attacks. It begins simply enough, allowing you to learn the mechanics before getting into the more difficult parts near the end, where you will need to use them effectively.

This guide is built around what I wish I had understood before finishing the game: how the combat systems interact, which upgrades matter, how to approach exploration, and how to make the most of Musashi’s expanding arsenal.

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1. Understand What Kind of Game You’re Playing

Mistake #1 involves considering Way of the Sword to be a hack-and-slash game. You have quick attacks, powerful attacks, dodges and defense mechanisms, but if you use them indiscriminately, you will sooner rather than later be on the wrong side of things. Enemies will become better at blocking, dodging and countering your predictable attacks, and a lengthy fight can become extremely dangerous when allowing the enemy to gain the upper hand. What makes this game’s combat mechanics so strong is player freedom.

You can go about the same confrontation using:

• blocking,
• parries,
• deflects,
• perfect dodges,
• Issen counters,
• Issen chains,
• blades barrages,
• heavy attacks,
• interaction with environment,
• ranged attacks,
• stamina depletion,

All of these mechanics do not replace one another. Your fight will become significantly more efficient if you know how to react to the enemy’s attack. This is becoming particularly important as you progress.

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2. The Golden Rule: Stop Holding Block

Blocking is useful, but holding the button continuously is one of the easiest habits to develop and one of the worst habits to keep. Your guard uses up stamina. If you stay blocked for too long, your stamina will worsen, and your guard may fail altogether, which would put you in danger precisely when you are not prepared.

Rather, try to see blocking as an opportunity window. Look at the opponent. Figure out his move.

And then choose how to react accordingly:

Block → Parry → Deflect → Dodge → Issen

The better you know the animations of the opponent, the less often you will have to fall back to pure blocking.

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3. Parry: Your Most Important Defensive Tool

The basic parry is performed by timing your block against an incoming attack. Successful parrying not only serves the purpose of keeping you safe but also shifts the momentum in your favor and helps fill up your Blaze gauge. Parrying becomes extremely beneficial when there are multiple enemies because the enemies can be thrown into each other or to the surroundings. Use the environment as The walls are like an extra weapon for you.

By parrying your opponent onto the wall, you can take away a large chunk of their stamina. You can even throw other enemies onto them, which will provide you with the advantage of damaging multiple enemies at the same time. It is important how you position yourself. When you are fighting in the presence of walls, carts or any other object in the surroundings, it may not always be a good idea to rush in the center of the arena.

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4. Parry vs. Deflect

Perhaps the most important difference throughout the whole combat system is that there is a difference between parrying and deflecting.

Parry

A successful parry:

• Redirection of an attacking move
• Creation of opportunities for offense
• Increases Blaze gauge
• Helps to get chain finishes
• Gives control over the fight

Deflect

A successful deflect:

• Deducts significantly more enemy stamina
• Allows redirection of enemies
• Allows redirecting projectiles
• Allows manipulating enemies into environmental dangers
• Especially effective against stronger enemies

For instance, if you fight a boss who wields a katana, a parry will deduct only a small amount of his stamina, whereas a successful deflect will deduct a noticeably larger amount. The conclusion is rather obvious: Parry to take control. Deflect to break stamina.

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5. Learn the Deflect Early

The deflect is not accessible right away but has to be unlocked during progression. Nevertheless, when you unlock it, it will become one of the best upgrades to your defense. Depending on how you configure your controls, the button for deflecting is actually a combination of block and a secondary directional or control input.

Deflecting is very useful against:

• Archers
• Large hits
• Stamina-focused opponents
• Hazardous environments
• Enemies whom you want to deflect somewhere else

You can deflect an arrow right back at the attacker. But that’s just the beginning.

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6. Turn Enemy Projectiles Against Them

It becomes significantly less dangerous when you know how to use projectile deflection against ranged enemies. Arrows can be parried and deflected. With proper timing, you can use the deflection to send the arrow back at its owner. This can be applied to certain other projectiles, making it possible for your intended attacks to actually harm you instead.

Then there is a fun trick involving explosive enemies. When one of those tries to blow up in your face, proper dodging timing enables you to pick it up and fling it away somewhere else. In other words, the most effective tactic against an enemy is often to use it as the projectile.

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7. Issen: The High-Skill Counter

Whereas parry is the base of the combat system, Issen is where it gets interesting. For one thing, Issen requires impeccable timing. Rather than blocking the incoming strike, Issen involves attacking the enemy precisely at the moment he attempts to hit you. Musashi dodges and counters instantly.

It’s a dangerous move. It’s also highly rewarding.

Once acquired, the Issen skill allows you to tear down your enemies without having to block or dodge that much.

Issen chains

The true magic happens if there are several enemies around. If you manage to trigger Issen properly, you get chances to extend the chain against other enemies. If performed flawlessly, whole groups can be wiped out within seconds. That is what one of the best illustrations of the game’s concept looks like: The better you know how your enemy attacks, the less the game becomes about surviving combat and the more it becomes about orchestrating it.

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8. Not Every Attack Can Be Countered the Same Way

Not all of the enemy’s attacks have to be defended using Issen. There are certain attacks that have a corresponding defense. Certain strong attacks or indicated attacks that cannot just be defended with Issen have to be understood visually and reacted accordingly.

In this aspect, the prompts available in the game can be very useful. If you are having problems defending against a certain enemy, you can activate the optional prompts. These may tell you whether the attack needs you to dodge, parry, deflect, or do something else. Instead of making these optional prompts your crutch in “easy mode,” try to use them to train yourself. Once you understand what to do based on how the enemy moves, you can disable them.

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9. Perfect Dodges and the Reflex Gauge

Dodge is not just an evasion technique. When executed at the right time, a perfect dodge will fill your Reflex meter.

There are two types of basic dodges that you can perform:

• Direction + dodge for a regular evasion action
• Dodge without direction for a stationary evasion action

The latter is especially cool-looking and convenient when you don’t need to move away from the conflict and prefer to stay put. When your Reflex meter is full, your next successful dodge will put you in slow-motion mode and allow you to perform a Reflex combo. Thus, the perfect dodge is not an emergency action but a very helpful technique.

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10. Use Different Defenses for Different Attacks

After the completion of the game, I realized that the best way was not to focus on one type of defense alone. Rather, I began to read the types of attacks based on their characteristics.

In case of weapon attacks

Prefer: Parry → Issen → Deflect

In case of unarmed attacks

Perfect dodges are highly useful since they help to fill the Reflex bar.

For projectile attacks

Prefer: Parry / Deflect

In case of attacks that cannot be countered with Issen

Defend in the right manner, and do not try to use Issen.

This flexibility is what makes the combat system work so well.

Against Groups

Position near environmental objects → Parry → Deflect → Exhaust enemies → Chain finishers

Against Weapon Users

Watch attack → Parry / Issen → Punish → Reposition

Against Archers

Deflect incoming arrows → Return them to the attacker → Close distance

Against Unarmed Enemies

Perfect dodge → Reflex gauge → Counterattack

Against Tough Enemies

Prioritize stamina damage → Deflect → Exhaust → Heavy attacks → Finisher

Against Bosses

Study the attack pattern → Identify the correct defensive response → Build Blaze/Reflex → Exploit openings → Repeat

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11. Master the Blade Barrage

Blade Barrage takes place when your blade hits the opponent’s weapon. Whenever this situation happens, consider what kind of attack you used to start the hit. If you started with the light attack, do the heavy attack move. If you started with the heavy attack, then do the light attack move.

The important thing here is that you should: Defeat the attack using the other move.

This will make Blade Barrage yet another method of turning the opponent’s attack into an opportunity for you.

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12. Build Combos Intelligently

In Musashi’s combat system, there is much more room for maneuvering than the control scheme might imply at first glance.

A light attack is a fast, one-handed attack. The heavy attack is a slow, two-handed attack. Of course, the first thought that comes to mind is that one can perform a lot of light attacks, since they are rather fast. However, using the same combination of light attacks will make them predictable and easier to block.

A much better combination is:

light – heavy,

or

light – light – heavy.

One may also perform several more light attacks before starting the heavy combination. This is possible because the light attack builds up momentum for a heavy one.

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13. When Starting With Heavy Attacks Makes Sense

However, there are instances wherein using a heavy attack right off the bat is a better option. Using a heavy attack may be able to stagger your opponent and throw them off-balance enough that they won’t be able to dodge it immediately. Therefore, you should not assume that the light-to-heavy combination is always the way to go.

You need to consider your attacks in terms of function:

• Light attacks = Speed + Set-up
• Heavy attacks = Stagger + Damage
• Counters = Punishment

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14. Exploit Stamina, Not Just Health

One of the most significant shifts that occurred in my approach to fighting throughout the course of the game was that I started caring about stamina depletion as much as health. Depleting stamina opens up many more opportunities for punishing an opponent.

This can be done by:

• Deflects
• Parry chains
• Environmental impacts
• Collisions between enemies
• Blazing attacks
• Heavy hits

When the enemy is depleted of stamina, the window for attacking them safely becomes much wider. This is particularly relevant when it comes to bosses.

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15. Chain Your Finishers

It may not be necessary to immediately kill off the enemy right after exhausting them. By damaging the stamina of many enemies before launching the finisher, one can arrange a series where Musashi will move to another vulnerable enemy after finishing off the first one.

This results in dismantling groups of enemies one after another very quickly. This makes the optimal order for some cases: Defend → Deflect → Exhaust many enemies → Finisher series

Instead of immediately killing off the first vulnerable enemy.

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16. Blaze: Reward Yourself for Perfect Defense

Effective parries charge the Blaze meter. With the growth of Blaze, the offensive capabilities of Musashi become higher, making it possible to cause more damage both in terms of health and stamina. This mechanism is a great way of encouraging those gamers who can show themselves to be good at defense.

It makes the following cycle possible:

Parry -> Charge Blaze -> Apply pressure -> Tiring opponents -> Finish.

For that reason, Blaze shouldn’t be considered as an ordinary meter. If it is charged, make your life easier using it.

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17. Environment Is a Weapon

One of the least considered aspects of fighting is the location of the fight.

Environment offers:

• Walls for stamina damage
• Obstructions in movement
• Hazards and traps
• The possibility of directing the enemy
• Surfaces that may immobilize some creatures

For instance, certain spiked rolling enemies could be knocked back by the player into the wall where they get stuck and can then be disposed of easily while they are immobile. The enemies could also be directed into other enemies making them effective tools in your battle against the enemy. The point is straightforward:

Do not concentrate on the enemy alone but also the battlefield.

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18. Pay Attention to Musashi’s Animations

The animation system does more than make the game look good. The stance of Musashi changes according to the direction of the incoming attacks. In case several opponents surround Musashi, his sword might slightly change its direction towards the opponent who is going to hit him next.

It will allow you to get an important hint in case you are surrounded and don’t know from which side the attack is coming. Moreover, his posture changes depending on your position in the combo, and his facial expressions react to the attack combo. If you start paying attention to animations, combat gets much easier to understand.

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19. Use Oni Vision Whenever You Enter a New Area

The ability that Musashi possesses is among the most helpful exploration items in the game.

He will be able to see:

• Items
• Treasures
• Enemies
• Hidden paths
• Ambushes
• Environmental dangers
• Traps

There is no need for constant spamming with it. It needs to become a part of your workflow:

Go into new location → Use Oni Vision → Look around → Explore

Later upgrades make the system even more valuable by allowing you to identify additional treasures.

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20. Upgrade Oni Vision Early

Among the early progression abilities, the Oni Vision ability is one of the upgrades that I would suggest focusing on. Upgrading it allows you to have better access to hidden materials and make exploring significantly more rewarding. The materials you gather are not just collectible objects.

Materials such as cloth and other upgrade materials help improve Musashi’s:

• Health
• Stamina
• Strength
• Other abilities

Different upgrade materials are used in different upgrade paths, so focusing on one doesn’t mean you can’t develop others. Simply put, exploration directly helps with combat progression.

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21. Never Ignore Items

If something seems collectible, check it out.

• Resources which the world holds include:
• Healing resources
• Resources for souls
• Resource for upgrading
• Power enhancing resources
• Stones and other progression resources

Also you should destroy environment objects. Barrels, crates and such objects may hold useful items, and there will be virtually no cost to destroy them. It is one of those tricks which seem not necessary at the start of the game, but become more and more helpful with the progress.

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22. Absorb Souls Quickly

The souls form a vital part of the game’s recipe, and leaving them scattered around is a poor practice. They can help towards your health or other weapon related needs, among others. What’s worse, you can allow the bosses to absorb the souls on their own if they remain unused.

It’s important to make sure that there’s time created to absorb them, rather than letting the battlefield fill with useless resources. Consider the souls part of your fighting economy.

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23. Explore Kyoto Between Missions

It is a game that marries well-designed, linear levels to an open core environment.

Eastern Kyoto serves as an ever-returning hub in which you can:

• Collect resources
• Discover random encounters
• Soul farm
• Find upgrades
• Explore areas that were previously inaccessible
• Clear away the malice recently stripped away
• Get ready for the next mission

This format seems odd at first when it comes to an Onimusha game. But once you complete it, you realize how well the juxtaposition works. Linear segments give the best narrative push, whereas Kyoto gives you the freedom to just be Musashi.

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24. Always Revisit Earlier Areas

Gaining new skills can totally shift the importance of places already discovered. A place which seemed totally exploited may present new paths and resources when Musashi gains new skills. Some skills are beneficial in both fight and exploration.

For instance, a skill related to physical strength can penetrate enemy shield defenses as well as destroy some malice defenses that have been blocking your path till now. When trying for 100% completion, always try returning to old places.

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25. Don’t Ignore the Training Grounds

When the training grounds become available, make use of them.

These areas can be helpful in:

• Combat mechanics learning
• Defensive timing practice
• Musashi abilities learning
• Bosses’ replay
• Execution improvement
• Some rewards gaining

It is particularly helpful to replay bosses. If there was some encounter which ruined you in the story, it will give you a chance to practice without going through all the game once again.

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26. Upgrade Your Medicinal Pouch

Increasing the capacity of Musashi’s medicinal pouch is one of the more practical upgrades you can make. The later portions of the game are considerably more demanding than the opening hours, and having additional recovery items gives you more room for error during difficult encounters. This becomes particularly valuable when you’re learning late-game bosses.

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27. Don’t Waste Strong Attacks on the Wrong Moment

Every foe doesn’t need to be taken on by quick light hits. There are some foes that get more dangerous with every extended fight. For example, there are foes that will start showing more aggression once they are covered with their own blood. This could happen by doing weak attacks on them but without killing them off.

When fighting such enemies, one should: Fewer attacks + more power instead of doing constant light attacks.

The goal isn’t always to do more attacks. Sometimes it’s about doing them better.

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28. The Bow Is More Important Than It Looks

The bow is not just an offensive tool to use against distant enemies and an environmental problem solving device. It can also be used to disrupt certain attacks by the bosses. Once a boss starts setting up a special attack on you, pay attention to his body language. There are some attacks during which the boss will reveal a vulnerable body part. Interrupting the attack using the bow can result in considerable damage.

In certain cases, the bow will help defend yourself from a boss’ attack rather than attacking him.

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29. Learn the Boss Before Trying to Beat the Boss

This is where all of the game’s systems come together. In early fights, there will probably be some slack about not executing perfectly. However, the later fights don’t show such mercy.

By the time I got to the end of my first run through the game, the difficulty had gotten very high, reaching a point where it required concentration and several tries to beat the last fight. What you need to do is not panic when the difficulty gets too hard.

Instead, you should figure out what:

• Can be parried.
• Can be deflected.
• Can be Issen countered.
• Should be dodged perfectly.
• Makes the boss show his vulnerabilities.
• How you can lower his stamina.
• When to use your Blaze and Reflex abilities.

After understanding the pattern of the fight, it will become much easier.

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30. Use Your Defensive Kit Together

However, by far the most significant personal development was when I stopped viewing the combat mechanics as independent mechanics.

I originally had plans for specialization. I wanted to Issen everything.

Finally, I started to naturally combine:

Parry → Deflect → Issen → Perfect Dodge → Reflex Combo → Finisher

This is when the Way of the Sword is at its most elegant. Combat is a dialogue between you and your opponent.

He attacks. You counter. You create an opening. He recovers. You adapt your strategy.

And when all the pieces align just right, the resulting sequences will seem like an elaborate dance routine.

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Once I completed Onimusha: Way of the Sword, none of the visual aspects, plot elements or even cool finishers left an impression on me. What did stick with me was the fighting rhythm.

At first, the game makes sure you learn how to stay alive, and after that shows you how to take control over the fight. In the end, parries, deflections, Issen attacks, perfect evades, stamina breakers, Blaze, Reflex and finishers become not separate mechanics, but a part of the continuous whole. This is where Way of the Sword is the strongest. Not only because you attack as fast as possible, but because you learn your enemy well enough to know that each of his attacks allows you to strike back.

Only when this finally happens, the game provides you with what a samurai action game deserves.