Development on Rise of the Ronin officially began in 2015 as a new passion project from Japanese development team Ninja, bringing their country’s history to life with fast-paced combat, an intricate story, and much more. However, the vision for the game reportedly began earlier. Other projects like Nioh got in the way, but the day has finally come. “Rise of the Ronin” is here and we are that rising Ronin. As the Sword of the Veiled Edge, we recover from a tragic event early in the story and shape our own future as we move through one of the most turbulent times in Japanese history.
Unlike Nioh and Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty, which are inspired by history but are fantasy games at their core, Team Ninja has done its best to enrich players with the history of 19th century Japan. We’re not just playing the video game version of a textbook, as we can influence the course of history if we want, but there’s an impressive level of detail and care in transporting us to this revolutionary time for Japan and introducing new key figures in the story to bring life to them as properly developed characters. It probably helps that there was of course a lot of conflict during this time, so there are plenty of great moments to draw our swords and roll a few heads, but the emphasis that Team Ninja places on setting and story, shouldn’t go unnoticed here. .
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“Rise of the Ronin” narratively feels like a culmination of Team Ninja’s work to date. The supporting characters in particular support the flow of the plot, and what might at first seem like a pretty clear case of good guys versus bad guys develops to the point where you’re no longer sure if the side you’ve chosen is actually the one you’ve chosen the right one is . The right thing.
Much of the strength of the NPCs comes from Rise of the Ronin’s bonding system. When you meet an important person in Rise of the Ronin, you won’t just approach them for a casual mission and watch them show up in cutscenes. You can expand your relationship with them through gifts and conversations. Story scenes can also help you strengthen bonds based on the choices you make, similar to the support system in Baldur’s Gate III. The stronger the bond with your allies, the more likely they are to do you favors and the stronger they will be in battle.
During certain missions, you can bring up to two NPC allies (or other regular players) to share the burden of taking down enemies. This is a big help in tougher battles, as Rise of the Ronin’s toughest enemies and bosses will descend on you like flies on honey if you’re not careful. In these breathless battles, it can be rare to have a moment of respite, so having an ally or two to take the heat is literally a lifesaver.
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True sadists won’t like to hear this, but luckily they can increase the difficulty and even exclude allies from these missions if they wish. Otherwise, Rise of the Ronin’s combat is a blast. It’s worth diving headfirst into battle because the further you progress, the more access to different fighting styles you’ll have and the more you’ll generally feel like a legendary swordsman or woman. The counterattack mechanic is particularly effective and makes you feel like a true combat god, because if you manage to stop an enemy, you are practically unstoppable.
Rise of the Ronin’s combat isn’t the most challenging I’ve ever played, but instead of focusing on rewarding you with that rush of adrenaline by narrowly defeating a boss, you keep returning to Ronin’s combat , because it’s just fun to play with him. Choosing a new fighting style with a primary and secondary weapon can completely change the way you approach duels. There’s plenty of variety, but Team Ninja hasn’t opted for quantity at the expense of quality, as there’s a satisfying depth to each of the weapons you can equip.
Although combat in Rise of the Ronin is fun, in some cases you’ll want to avoid it. If you are ambushed by even two enemies, you can easily find death. Stealth comes in handy in Rise of the Ronin, and while the game doesn’t put as much emphasis on moving like a ninja, it’s still incredibly rewarding to plan a route to grab an enemy off a roof before they breaking his neck, and floating down from there your glider will take care of the next one and deal a lot of damage to a boss by hitting him from behind.
Aside from the more exciting aspects of the game, there is a beautiful world to explore. The game isn’t the most impressive detail you’ve ever seen, but Rise of the Ronin is generally quite pretty, especially when you’re on a hill looking out at a cherry blossom field or Mount Fuji in the distance. However, in contrast to the game’s intense combat, the open world feels largely shallow and boring. It’s very reminiscent of a recent Assassin’s Creed game, where there’s a lot to do (cats to pet, clear out bandit camps, take photos, more cats to pet…), but you often wonder what the point is is: You have to do it, aside from gaining experience and filling out your long list of collectibles. Some will enjoy this open-world style, but it already feels like it’s a thing of the past, especially when we’ve had recent open-world experiences like Elden Ring and The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom. In Rise of the Ronin the world is just the world, more of a backdrop than a character per se that you always want to know more about. If the story, supporting characters and their missions are so compelling, it’s a shame.
Although Rise of the Ronin is a natural progression from Team Ninja’s previous work, it failed to address some of the shortcomings of its previous games. The loot system is, for lack of a better word, a disaster. After almost every battle, you will receive a piece of equipment that will remain in your inventory most of the time until you sell it or dismantle it. When every piece of loot that doesn’t sparkle in gold seems pretty unnecessary, it’s easy to get frustrated with the clutter as the game progresses. All you have to do is choose the item with the highest number and highest rarity, as the rest of the upgrades you get are often quite insignificant. If loot were scarcer and more important, I might not mind the inventory clutter, but the way Rise of the Ronin handles its loot prevents me from picking up items from enemies unless I need some healing .
Rise of the Ronin will draw a lot of comparisons as more people get their hands on it, and while it’s inspired by many successful games, Team Ninja’s work in creating a great, action-packed, superbly scrolling RPG shouldn’t be underestimated and a story that will keep you hooked throughout the game. There are a few flaws that prevent Rise of the Ronin from reaching outstanding heights, but it’s still an easy title to recommend.
