Reviving a dormant franchise is always a challenge, but based on the 20-minute Gamescom demo for Onimusha: Way of the Sword, Capcom absolutely understood the assignment. The short but polished demo evokes the best of the first two games while effectively modernizing the visuals and controls for a modern audience. The moment I knew the team had gotten everything right was midway through the demo, when a cut scene played and Miyamoto Musashi called the spirit in his Oni Gauntlet "gauntlet lady," and she promptly ignored him. The tone would be right at home in the original games, which were known for their combat as well as the (possibly unintentionally) humorous English dialogue.

With Way of the Sword, the humor is clearly intentional, and from what's present in the demo, it works. It also highlights the fact that Musashi and the Oni Gauntlet are something of an odd couple who have to learn to work together. Although the demo is likely from early on in the game (as we've seen the spirit in the trailers), the humor is right in the middle of an otherwise serious scene. Musashi is having a vision of villagers carting off their kids to be killed, and he's arguing with his Oni Gauntlet. This is not a polished pair, but a main character who is clearly a little out of his element.

The action in Way of the Sword will be familiar to series veterans, but it's also easy enough for someone new to the series. No, you're not going to be an Issen master on your first run, but the parry system is also a bit more forgiving than what you'll find in Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 or Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice. Way of the Sword wants to challenge you, but it also wants you to feel like a badass early on. This game is a power fantasy, and it doesn't shy away from that aspect.

Your standard attacks are light (one-handed) and heavy (two-handed). These will allow you to dispatch most enemies, but the catch is that you have to be somewhat deliberate. Way of the Sword doesn't reward button-mashing. Instead, you need to commit to an attack, so you want to time them right. The same is true of your block and parry moves. You don't really have to worry about directionality so much as timing.

Get the timing right, and you can reflect attacks back or break an opponent's stamina. After a stamina break, your opponent is vulnerable to a Break Issen attack which, for normal enemies, is typically a dramatic killing blow.

Defeating enemies releases different-colored Genma souls, which you can use to restore health and charge the Oni power gauge for a special attack. You will also be able to upgrade your weapons, like in prior games. Since the demo was short and focused on action, I didn't get a chance to experience that aspect.

The Way of the Sword Gamescom demo concluded with a boss fight against Sasaki Ganryu, someone Musashi has encountered before and who also has an Oni Gauntlet. Fighting Ganryu is a noticeable step up from the regular enemies, but if you've gotten into a rhythm on parrying and countering, you shouldn't have an issue. Wearing down Ganryu's stamina is key, and performing a Break Issen on the boss opens up a bit of strategy. You can target a red area to dish out extra damage or hit a purple area to release a large number of souls. The latter is a good way to quickly restore some of your own health if needed.

One aspect of the Ganryu fight that stuck with me was the fact that he didn't seem to have a pattern, but beating him required you to build on the skills you learned earlier in the demo. It's almost as though the demo level was a tutorial for techniques you need to use in the boss fight. None of it felt like a tutorial, though, which was part of the magic.

If you find yourself needing a little extra help learning the necessary timing, there is an option to turn on button prompts. This is automatically enabled in Story difficulty, and it displays the correct button to press during the attack and parry window. It's a brilliant feature for new players, as it shows you how to succeed but still makes you feel like you're kicking ass because you are the one actually pressing the buttons. Before long, it'll become second nature.

Onimusha: Way of the Sword is scheduled for release sometime in 2026. If the Gamescom demo is any indication, it is an absolute return to form for the Onimusha series. I can't wait to play more.