Genma Onimusha
Genma Onimushaby Capcom USA
Platform: Xbox
ESRB Rating: Mature
ASIN: B00005V5MZ
Check price @ amazon.com
Amazon.com Product Description: Tailored for hard-core gamers, Genma Onimusha is an enhanced version of the award-winning Onimusha Warlords and the ultimate action-packed adventure title to own on the Xbox.
The game takes place long ago in the days of darkness and magic. Strange things are occurring in a hillside castle surrounded by the warring chaos of power-hungry warlords. People are disappearing and the noble Princess Yuki fears for her future. One lone swordsman, Samanosuke, heeds the princess's call for help and rushes to her side, only to find she has mysteriously vanished. Outside the fortress walls, enemy troops are attacking the castle and now Samanosuke must stand by his vow to avenge the princess and defeat legions of demon warriors.
Customer Reviews:
Xbox's Premier Action Title, October 15, 2002
Reviewer: finnagain69 from Great Neck, NY United States
With gorgeous graphics, palpable atmosphere, and even the option to hear the original japanese voice actors, this game is a technical gem.
Beyond the flash and sparkle, its a very, very, smooth game. While it may take a bit of getting used to, the control scheme is ultimately rather intuitive and user friendly.
This is a "resident evil" style game: its capcom, a man and a woman against a bunch of demons in a sprawling complex, and of course puzzle solving to access different areas of the complex. The comparison ends there. Genma Onimusha is as far beyond Reesident Evil as Halo is beyond Quake.
The one downside is that the game is short. You may spend roughly 10 hours to beat it your first run through. There are easter eggs that are worth replaying the game for, but its also possible to run through the entire game in roughly 3 hours, if you're good. All in all a very solid game, and worth the [$$] dollars amazon is now charging.
Great but....., September 23, 2002
Reviewer: Aragorn son of Arathorn from Gondor, Middle Earth
Genma Onimusha is a great game, you get tons of weapons diffrent suits, great gameplay and great graphics.... You have no control over the camera so some times it can make you a little mad, when you dont know what is killing you, and there are some puzzels in there that are just about impossible to figure out.all in all this game was pretty good. if your in for a challenge i would get this game.
Great Game!, August 29, 2002
Reviewer: ajcar1992 from Baltimore, MD USA
This is a great game and it is highly (make that very highly) recomended. It took me hours to find a complaint and it is one simple one that could make you change from loving it to hating it or (if your like me) it dosen't matter at all. The game is hard. My friend tried playing it and he struggled. That didn't mean he didn't have any fun though. He also (like me) loved it, and I think you'll love it. I think it is fun just walking around talking to people and then beating them up. Again I would highly recomend this! (Unless you are the worste gamer in the world and hate hard games, but you don't, right?)
good but not great, August 23, 2002
Reviewer: A gamer from San Diego, California United States
After playing this game for about 2 hours i began to get bored with it. Its so repatative, all you do is doge and slash, dogde and slash. However you do get a bow so you can use that untill you run out of bows.
This game is pretty hard, well really the only reason this game is hard is because the controls suck for the x box, in my opinion this game would be better in the ps2 or gamecube. If you have a ps2 buy Onimusha 2, the graphics are equal to the x-box's and the controls are 10x better.
This overlooked Beauty is a Great Value at a used price!, July 9, 2002
Reviewer: Doug from Woodstock, GA United States
As fall 2002 nears, the Xbox is going to see an onslaught of incredible games. This holiday season is going to make non-xbox owners very envious. But before all of that occurs...
Take the time to look into Genma Onimusha. I have put about ten hours into this game and I am absolutely loving it. There is a touch of resident evil here with gorgeous backgrounds and superb character design, but the action is much faster paced and more satisfying.
The production values are extremely high with the music being some of the best video game music ever. The graphics and overall package really sweep you up into the samurai experience.
I've read that the Xbox version is harder and more complex than the PS2 version, but as I've never played it, this one seems great to me. The difficulty level is perfect with a few levels needing to be replayed but you always eventually get through.
The level ups are a lot of fun as you build up stones for a gauntlet on your arm that allows for magic attacks through your sword. Some heinously difficult level bosses can be smacked down with some upper level magic/sword attacks.
Add to this some very clever and original puzzle door locks and secret passageways and you have an awesome action game with plenty of fantastic art design and a thorougly in-depth experience.
Capcom needs to make a lot more of games like this!
If you can find Genma Onimusha at a used price I recommend you jump all over it.
Genma Onimusha is amazing, June 6, 2002
Reviewer: gsr_4_life@hotmail.com from Oakland, MD, USA
This game is amazing. Onimusha is not too long of a game and not too short of a game. The difficulty level set on normal is the perfect setting. The graphics are great. I loved the story line and I have yet to see a game with a better ending. The only game/s that I've played that would even compare to the quality of the story line would be the final fantasys for the PS. To anybody that doesn't have this game...BUY IT! After completing the game It still wasn't good enough because after you beat It you realize how much more there is in the game that you haven't seen yet. I still play it today and It's been a few months since I've beat it. So if anybody is wondering how the replay quality of the game is...I give it five out of five stars just like I rated it. The creatures in the game...including the bosses were extraordinary. I LOVED the last boss. The size, the form, and even the sound effects of him were amazing. He really topped Genma Onimusha off to be an excellent game. So all that I am saying is buy this game and you will not be disappointed.
Onimusha's high production values are easily apparent, June 4, 2002
Reviewer: Mirow from Dallas, TX USA
I've always had a love for samurai and ninja games and Genma Onimusha is a welcome addition to my collection. The game follows the story of Samanosuke and his quest to find the princess. As you can tell, Onimusha has a very basic and cliched storyline, but still ends up being an interesting experience. The game is very action oriented and resembles Resident Evil in both control and presentation. The fighting system is reasonably good and the character animation is fluid and realistic. I must note that the game is quite HARD and can get frustrating quite often. I should also note that Onimusha is a pretty short game. I finished it in about three days. The game doesn't offer much replay value, but the general presentation of the game is very well implemented and keeps the game interesting throughout your quest. I don't want to sound too negative, though. The music is very well orchestrated and the sound effects are appropriate, though some of the voice acting is a little strange at times. If you liked Resident Evil, but always thought it should have more action, it would be a good decision to pick up Genma Onimusha.
Pretty Sweet, May 17, 2002
Reviewer: A gamer from Spokane, WA
This game has it all! Sweet graphics, good plot, plenty of action, visually entertaining (eye candy), and challenging. You have to use your brain and master moves to advance. I didn't like it at first but after I got the hang of it I didn't want to stop. Too bad I have to go to a friends house to play.
Not much fun at all, May 13, 2002
Reviewer: A gamer from Houston, TX USA
Well, first of all let me say that I am glad that I rented this game. This is the first game that I rented when I bought my xbox. If I hadn't purchased another game with my xbox, I might have regretted my purchase.
It is true that the graphics are nice, but I am finding the game to be nearly unplayable. The first problem is with the control system. I do not like using the directional pad to move my character. I do not like the fact that whatever direction the awkward camera angles have me facing, I have to push up to move forwards. Perhaps I am not used to such controls, but I believe that controls should be intuitive. In this I mean that the character should move in the direction in which the control is pointed.
A second problem is with the camera angles. It is really annoying when, during battle, the camera angle changes and you can no longer see your attackers. It also seems to me that the angle changes are too frequent for fluid game play.
The third problem is with the saving system. In something this difficult it is frustrating to only be able to save at fixed points in the game. Occasionally I found myself having to redo large sections of the game because I was not able to save often.
I am sure that a purchaser of this game will derive some satisfaction from this game if they have the time to learn the awkward controls. Unfortunately I do not have that sort of time.
Resident Evil in Sengoku era Japan-what could be better?, May 12, 2002
Reviewer: Randy Schadel from Norwood, OH USA
The general consensus of Genma Onimusha is that it is too difficult. Well, it is-at least at first, particularly if you've played the PS2 version. You won't be able to hack n' slash your way through this one. Once you learn how to use the block button and the game's new special features (like charging up your weapons and using the invincibilty provided by green souls) it becomes far easier. You are forced to fight in a more defensive, well thought out manner , using your magic and items judiciously rather than blindly lashing out at everything. This takes patience so if you're easily frustrated Genma isn't for you. Still, despite being an average gamer at best, I was able to defeat the game on difficult mode along with all of the side quests without too many problems so with a little work everyone should be able to master the game.The new features really add to the game. If you are a PS2 version vet, ignore them at your own risk. The green souls can make you invincible and add to your health but will be sucked up by your enemies, turning them into furious berzerk red killing machines, if you don't get them first. There is another difficluty level to be unlocked, the aforementioned charging of weapons and magic attacks, and new enemies. One of these is the possessed adorable doll from hell, Ayame (same name as my fiance, which just makes it better for me!). Everyone seems to hate the near-indestructible Ayame, but with magic attacks, blocking, and charged weapons (or even better, the Bishamon Sword) you can kill her every time. And the payoff for sending her along is enormous! Still, keep your ears open for the tinkling of bells, girlish giggling, a glimpse of a little head, or the sudden appearance of pots in a hall where they weren't before. Ayame also likes to hide inside chests and make you think she's somewhere when she isn't. I like the unpredictability this brings to the game, and of course, since this game is so much like RE Ayame is serving the same function as Nemesis. That'll teach you to remove the Saito family crest from her lap!The game has 4 minigames/side quests as well. The Oni Spirits minigame unlocks after beating the game. Now, talk about hard...use a bullet when you shouldn't, hesitate a second, or kill a creature a second late...and you lose! The game has 12 levels of pot busting action, limited time, and enemies that can make you lose in a matter of seconds. It's beatable but extremely frustrating as you can't save at any point. Win it and get access to Ultimate Mode, enabling you to blow through the regular game and mercilessly obliterate everything in your path.There are two different Dark Realm side quests (one 10 level Realm with a secret key, and a 20 level one with the Bishamon Ocarina needed to unlock the all mighty Bishamon Sword). Best of all is the Ogre Tower that is unlocked with the secret key. 5 floors of 6 levels each, this contains the most powerful and numerous enemies in the game. When playing through it in difficult mode it is ridiculously challenging-the final level features parades of Moles, Dark Spider Ninjas, 4 (!) huge red Ogre bosses (2 at a time, no less), Soul Armors, everyone's favorite doll Ayame, and the lightning fast and deadly suit of haunted armor, the Tower Warrior. After this floor the final two bosses in the game, Marcellus and Fortinbras, seem like a Sunday School picnic.Best of all, the game is based on actual Japanese history (and allowing the characters to speak in subtitled Japanese makes this even cooler). Samanosuke's family name is Akechi, and it was an Akechi (Mitsuhide, I think) that assasinated Oda Nobunaga in the 1570's (this would work great as a sequel, but Onimusha 2 looks like it's using legendary warrior Fuma Kotaro as the hero instead). Okehazama (where Oda is shown as being killed in the game opening movie) was a pivotal battle in Japanese history. The Saito family castle in Inabayama (where most of the game takes place) was attacked by Oda at the time the game takes place and was conquered a couple of years later (and renamed Gifu by Oda). Putting the game in a historical framework makes it work a lot better. For those who care, Toei Movieland Amusement Park in Kyoto, Japan has a haunted house filled with demons and victims that looks like it was pulled straight from this game.All in all, this game has a lot to offer for those who are willing to work with it. Great graphics, sounds (give a listen to the soundtrack CD sometime-a full orchestra and great all on its own), extras, and secrets. Challenging but not impossible. Decent replay value, and Samanosuke's extra Panda costume with frolicking little pal (who actually has a function-he points out hidden items) has to be seen to be believed. The way-too-large-even-for-adults Xbox controller makes life a little tougher here. Great gaming with the best opening movie and "attract mode" you're likely to see!
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