Capcom held a Spotlight showcase earlier this week, in which it gave viewers a sneak peek at some of its new and upcoming games, including Capcom Fighting Collection 2, Marvel vs. Capcom Fighting Collection: Arcade Classics, and Street Fighter 6. Perhaps the biggest highlight out of all the games shown at the event, though, was Onimusha: Way of the Sword. This new title, which was announced during The Game Awards 2024, is the first new mainline installment in the Onimusha franchise in nearly 20 years. Because the game is slated to release in 2026, Capcom didn't show a lot of gameplay for it at this showcase, but it did provide an insight as to what its developers hope to achieve.
Even though it was confirmed beforehand, Onimusha: Way of the Sword's appearance at the Capcom Spotlight event was quite surprising, given that most people probably weren't expecting to hear more about it so soon. What's even more surprising was the other Onimusha-related announcement Capcom made during the showcase—right as it was wrapping up its Way of the Sword preview, Capcom revealed that the classic 2002 hack-and-slash game, Onimusha 2: Samurai's Destiny, would finally be remastered for modern platforms. This re-release, which is scheduled to come out later this year, is intended to keep fans busy until Way of the Sword's launch. If it sells well, Capcom will hopefully be encouraged to bring the other mainline Onimusha installments to current-gen systems.
Onimusha: Way of the Sword Reveals 3 Core Aspects It Will Focus On
Capcom devs working on Onimusha: Way of the Sword reveal the three pillars that the forthcoming action-adventure game will focus on.
After Onimusha 2, Capcom Should Remaster Onimusha 3 and 4 As Well
The Onimusha series is widely beloved, but it had a surprisingly short life span. Pretty much every Onimusha game, excluding the Japan-only browser spin-off Onimusha Soul, was released within a five-year time frame, from 2001 to 2006. There are currently only four mainline Onimusha installments in the hack-and-slash franchise, all of which came out during the PlayStation 2 generation and have largely been stranded on retro consoles.
The First Onimusha Game Received a Remaster Several Years Ago
The first Onimusha game, Onimusha: Warlords, was initially released as a PlayStation 2 exclusive in 2001, but was later ported to the original Xbox and Windows PC. After years of inactivity with the franchise, Onimusha: Warlords was eventually remastered for PS4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, and PC in 2019. This re-release of the game wasn't a major upgrade over its predecessor like Capcom's recent Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster was but was instead more of an enhanced port. It featured high-resolution visuals, 16:9 widescreen support, improved analog controls, and a new soundtrack.
Many gamers thought that, since Onimusha: Warlords was being remastered out of the blue, other installments in the Onimusha franchise would also get the same treatment. However, as the years went by, Capcom shared no information about any future remasters in the series. According to some insiders and rumored claims at the time, Capcom decided to put the Onimusha franchise on ice due to the Onimusha: Warlords remaster selling poorly. Alas, the hopes for an Onimusha series revival were temporarily dashed thanks to these rumors.
Onimusha 3 and 4 Remasters Should Be Released Before Onimusha: Way of the Sword Comes Out
Luckily, now that Capcom is actively making a new Onimusha game and a remaster of Onimusha 2, the chances of other games in the franchise being brought to modern platforms are higher than ever before. Maybe Capcom will bring Onimusha 3: Demon Siege and Onimusha: Dawn of Dreams (also known as Onimusha 4) to current-gen consoles, as well. Both of these titles are currently stuck on the PlayStation 2 and, as such, are desperately in need of remasters. If Capcom does bring these games to modern platforms, it should do so before Onimusha: Way of the Sword comes out so that people can catch up with the series' plot.
