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Capcom |
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Capcom |
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Action RPG |
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| System |
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Playstation 2 |
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| Release Date |
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Japan - 03.07.02
USA - 08.27.02 |
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Onimusha 2: Samurai's Destiny (PS2)
Review by: Artavan Mkhikian (10.17.03)
Onimusha 2 tells the tale of Jubei Yagyu, the young samurai leader of Clan
Yagyu, who returns to his village to find everyone he loved slaughtered by
the legions of the warlord Nobunaga Oda. The events in this story take
place ten years after Samanosuke Akechi's encounter with the demon lord in
Onimusha Warlords. Nobunaga Oda has taken the demon lord's throne and
embarked on a campaign to conquer all of Japan. With the help of four
supporting characters, Jubei must wade through countless demon soldiers and
several of Nobunaga Oda's lieutenants to challenge and defeat the warlord
himself.
Graphics & Presentation:
The CGI cut scenes are incredibly authentic and stylish, easily among the
best available on the PS2 to date. Capcom used live models to build an
extensive motion capture library as the basis for all character movement in
all the FMV sequences and as well as in-game character actions. They went
so far as to motion capture samurai riders on horseback. The resulting
high level of realism shows through and through every aspect of the
game. The five-minute introductory sequence does a great job of setting
the mood and atmosphere for the game and every cutscene shown during the
game is a pleasure to watch.
Between the detailed pre-rendered backgrounds, the high polygon-count
character models, the sharp visual effects, and incredibly fluid character
movement, Onimusha 2 is one of the premiere visual feasts available for the
PS2 console. All character animation feels natural and realistic, often
looking better than most games' FMV sequences. Common visual effects
imperfections such as clipping and shimmering are virtually nonexistent.
Aesthetically, this is as good as PS2 games get.
Graphics Score: 10 / 10
Sound:
The deep ambiance of the Onimusha 2 world is communicated skillfully
through the soundtrack. Although none of the tunes are especially
memorable, this also means that the background music never gets tedious -
an extremely important trait for any game that encourages careful and
thorough exploration of every corner of every room.
Despite its polished, sophisticated soundtrack and clean, engaging sound
effects, Onimusha 2 has a glaring problem in the sound department.
Onimusha Warlords had an option to listen to the original Japanese voice
acting with English subtitles - an option missing from Onimusha 2. While
the English voice actors are competent and the translation is suitable,
attention to minor details is what separates a great game from a classic
game. Unfortunately, it really does get difficult to enjoy the deep
storyline and character development of Onimusha 2 with such mediocre
voice acting.
Sound Score: 7 / 10
NEXT >> Innovation & Gameplay
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