Even though graphically lacking Onimusha: Dawn of Dreams is by far the best in the Onimusha series
Onimusha: Dawn of Dreams is by far the best in the series, however when compared to Onimusha 3 a bit it seemed to be lacking in some departments but overall it was a great game. Capcom surprised us with Resident Evil 4 and it was no surprise they would do the same with this game series.
Graphically, Onimusha: Dawn of Dreams looks great, however comparing it to Onimusha 3 it seemed to be lacking a lot. The game is in full 3-D environments however it lacked the details, color and sharpness that Onimusha 3 had. The graphics looked watered down. Character renders and lighting effects also weren’t that well done when compared to previous games. The game was also not gory and bloody as previous installments. It should have been rated “T” instead of “M”. Onimusha: Dawn of Dreams however is loaded with FMVs and cut-scenes which carry on the somewhat good storyline.
The control of the game was fluent and very responsive. Sometimes the camera angles got in the way, but it’s a minor flaw. You still can’t jump in the game, just like all the others in the series, but that is not a problem since ground combat is almost perfect.
Gameplay wise, you play as one character and you have an option of 4 other players to select from to take with you in your adventure. So really and truly, the majority of the game is spent playing with 2 characters at a time. Whichever character you select to play as, the AI will control the other and you can quickly rotate between characters in gameplay. The AI controlled character can be told what to do with the directional buttons, and luckily the AI is quite good. Some puzzles require 2 players to solve. Each player has a special ability and other puzzles require their special ability to solve. Onimusha: Dawn of Dreams featured a level system, a first for the series, allowing your characters to level up however, leveling up only affects you HP, MP and OP. Your attack power, defense and magic are raised with equipped items or by powering up various weapons to unlock their added effect on the character. The game actually contains a very well done storyline unlike previous games and everything is carried out in rendered and pre-rendered cut scenes and FMVs.
The sound was really well done. You can feel heart race and blood boil at certain parts of the game because of the superior audio effects. The game has full voice acting and it was all done well.
This game is by far the longest in the series. It’s probably as long as the first 3 games combined. You’re looking at around 15 to 20 hours, even more, if you want to attempt the Dark Realm and back track to other areas with other characters to unlock new areas with their abilities.
Overall I recommend this game. It was clearly the best Onimusha game to date and if Capcom continues down this path for the series, I have no doubt it will become as big as the Resident Evil franchise.