Onimusha Way of the Sword Review

Onimusha: Way of the Sword launched to strong reviews: Metacritic sits around 86 (PS5), OpenCritic rates it 85 "Mighty" with a 94% critic recommendation, and IGN handed out a rare 10/10. Steam players are slightly more mixed at ~79%. Here is the scoreboard, what critics agree on, and where the criticism lands.

The Scoreboard

What Critics Praise

• The combat: the Issen counter system, parrying, posture-breaking and dismemberment are called some of the best action combat of 2026 — IGN calls the boss fights among the best on PS5.
• The bosses: 18 main fights, each a posture-and-timing puzzle, are the consensus highlight.
• The presentation: RE Engine’s demon-haunted Kyoto — blood-soaked, gorgeous, and dripping with period atmosphere.
• The kintsugi-flavoured story: Musashi’s resurrection arc is widely praised as a thematic fit for the series’ return.

Where the Criticism Lands

• Slow opening: the prologue and tutorial sections drag before the combat clicks.
• Hub filler: the Kyoto hub has padding and reused sub-bosses; side content is called uninspired by several outlets.
• Linearity: the ~20-hour campaign is linear with no meaningful post-game mode beyond the boss rematches.
• Boss-fight camera: corners and walls occasionally fight the camera.
• Item use: several reviews note item usage feels slow under pressure.
• VGC’s dissent (60): argues the game is bloated outside combat and misplaced in focus.

The Consensus Verdict

If you play action games for parry-and-punish combat and demanding bosses, critics are near-unanimous: this is one of 2026’s best action games, and a worthy return for the series after 20 years. If you want open-world variety or a long tail of post-game content, temper expectations: it is a focused, linear ~20-hour campaign. Steam’s slightly lower score mostly reflects PC launch jank — crashes and shader stutter — rather than the game itself.