Enlarge / Uh, try not to let these guys grab you.
It’s impossible for a fan of From Software’s Dark Souls or Bloodborne to not see Nioh so clearly mimicking those games’ distinct styles. But the franchises Nioh cribs from rely so deeply on repetition, muscle memory, and hundreds of total hours of perseverance that even the smallest changes in dodge timing or invincibility frames are incredibly obvious. And Nioh changes a whole lot more than dodge timing.
One immediate difference Souls fans will notice after booting up the latest from Team Ninja (Dead or Alive, Ninja Gaiden) is that it’s not set in some ashy, dying Western fantasy world. While the tutorial starts in the Tower of London circa 1600, it’s less than an hour before you wash up on the shores of a very vibrant-looking Japan. Don’t let the looks fool you, though—this locale is no less hostile than From Software’s Lordran or Drangleic.
The time period places the game right at the tail end of Japan’s Sengoku period, which is more important than you might think. Another of Nioh‘s departures from the Souls games is a plot that’s plainly presented, if not exactly straightforward.
You play as The Witcher’s Geralt of Rivia “William,” a character based on the real-world William Adams—the first Western samurai and one of only a handful to ever exist. Circumstances draw him to Japan, where he becomes embroiled in the war-torn politics of the era. The oddly descriptive, intricate plot is told partly through encyclopedia entries on the fictionalized historical figures William does business with, interspersed with dramatic shots of shoguns staring each other down in council chambers.
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