Rise of the Ronin is Team Ninja’s most ambitious game to date, combining the studio’s best elements into a sort of “greatest hits” album. It’s also the developer’s biggest game to date, with an open world full of side activities to complete and map markers to track. There are a lot of mechanics here that you’ll need to get familiar with, especially if you haven’t played before Ninja Gaiden, Wo Long: The Fallen Dynastyor Nioh. But don’t worry, I’m here to help you get started with Japanese Bakumastu with some advice from my dozens of hours of exploration Rise of the RoninThe huge, beautiful world.
Look it up
You’ve no doubt seen the glider in the various gameplay and reveal trailers. This gadget is a great way to get around Rise of the RoninThere are three cities. It practically turns you into a bird as you soar over houses, pagodas, and trees, but you may be wondering how and when you can use it. Well, you have to be at a certain height above the ground to press X to make your glider wings extend. However, if you look up, you’ll notice that not only are there grappling points that allow you to easily reach the rooftops, but those same roofs also have launch points that allow you to use the glider immediately. The best part: you can chain grappling moves together. So if you see a launch point mid-flight, you can use your grappling hook to jump to that point and then use a speed boost to move to another paragliding slope. It’s almost like sitting in a biplane and enjoying the beautiful scenery from above.
Bring allies
During certain missions in Rise of the Roninyou will be transported to a linear plane not unlike those in Nioh or Wo Long: The Fallen Dynasty. These sections are in some cases completely cut off from the rest of the game’s open world and allow you to recruit up to two allies to make difficult enemy encounters a little easier to handle. And you really should bring a gang, not only because some thugs are tough, but also because you get some bonuses from having allies in your party. Some offer passive benefits, such as: Such as increasing the damage you deal or the effectiveness of healing items, and all add temporary buffs to your various stats. But more than that, it also gives you the opportunity to strengthen your bond with them, which is good when it comes to improving your effectiveness in combat.
Find some friends
Speaking of strengthening your bond with your gang and being friendly to them Rise of the RoninThe different characters are important for the progression of your created character. When you invite someone on a mission, give them gifts, or say something nice and sensible, you deepen your relationship with the characters. This in turn increases their effectiveness and stats in combat, making them stronger and more resilient the more you lean on them and treat them properly. Additionally, strengthening your bond with certain characters, such as anti-shogunate samurai Ryoma Sakamoto and Genzui Kusaka, deepens your understanding of their fighting style. This not only allows you to unlock new moves in this fighting style, but also increases its damage and performance. So even if it hurts you sometimes, make sure you get along.
Find cats, kill refugees
There are a number of activities you can do Rise of the Ronin. From archery training on horseback to gambling dens, you’ll find that your time can quickly be wasted if you try to do it all. However, if you want to prioritize optional targets, it should be the cats and refugees. Aside from the cute cuddle animation that plays, Find and pet cats can provide skill points for the Charm attribute, which allows you to influence people and move smoothly through conversations. Meanwhile, hunting and killing criminals – the complete opposite of finding and petting cats – allows you to gain skill points for your Strength attribute. There are other ways to gain skill points for the other two attributes of Dexterity and Intelligence, but since this game is largely about combat and chit-chat, I would focus on improving your Charm and Strength first. Don’t worry, you can reassign your skill points later.
Use the automatic settings
Rise of the Ronin There are a number of settings to tinker with, but the most convenient are any that do something automatically. Under “Accessibility” in the “Options” menu, there is a toggle for tons of automatic actions in the game: aiming, combo combos, crouching, collecting items, climbing ladders, and grabbing ropes. Turning them on will save you the frustration of having to remember how to perform these actions. It is not inconvenient to do it yourself. Crouching, for example, defaults to L3. However, since this is done automatically for you, you can focus more on the environment and gameplay rather than the details of the mechanics. It’s a nice little quality of life option.
Always return to Veiled Edge Banners
Rise of the Ronin has some Souls-y elements, such as the upgrade resource called Karma, which you lose when you die. This is something to watch out for because you can have a lot of karma and not realize it until you return to a Veiled Edge Banner, this game’s version Dark souls‘Campfire rest areas. Returning to a Veiled Edge banner will save the karma you have earned, which will be displayed in the top right corner of the screen. It is converted from this useless resource into skill points for your character and his attributes. Of course, if you lose your karma, you also lose the chance to improve your stats. But if you kill the enemy that killed you, you get your karma back, plus a small bonus on top for completing your revenge. However, remember that all that karma is useless if you don’t get to a Veiled Edge banner, so always return to one.
Don’t give these damn beggars any money
As you travel through Rise of the RoninIn the three cities you will come across a few old-sounding beggars. They ring their little bells in run-down villages or at random forks in the road and ask for an absurd sum of money. Do not do it! It doesn’t matter how much you give them, because at some point they will turn against you because they have had enough of the tiny amount of money you give them. I gave one of these beggars a lot of money three times at once and he still pulled out a huge sword and said, “Give it here, I know you have more!” Obviously these guys just want the bag and will do anything to get it . The worst part is that not only are these guys tough as hell, but you can’t even get back all the money you gave them for killing them. They are literally a money pit.
Use the different difficulty levels
Yes, Rise of the Ronin has difficulty options that you can change as long as you’re not in the middle of one of these linear levels. Under Game Settings in the Options menu, you’ll see a toggle for three difficulty levels: Dawn (easy), Dusk (medium), and Twilight (hard). While I’ve played through most of Dusk, I’ve also experimented with the other two options, and let me tell you: Dawn is no walk in the park. Enemies are still ferocious and you’re still at risk of dying easily, just not as often. So let it be known that you can have one souls-inspired game with difficulty levels. And I recommend you to make use of it because believe me, this game will be pretty difficult.
Your entry-level course is not as important as you think
As with most Soulslikes, you don’t have to worry about which class you start with. After creating your character at the beginning Rise of the Ronin, you have the option to choose the origin of your blade sharpening, which affects your starting stats and recommended weapons. However, it’s not that serious. Once you unlock your longhouse (your customizable living quarters) about an hour or two into the story, you’ll have the option to customize where your blade sharpens come from, allowing you to focus on a different set of weapons. In addition, in your safe house you also have the opportunity to redistribute skills, change your character’s equipment and appearance, and decorate your living space to gain passive buffs as you move around the world. So don’t worry too much about what you look like or what your entry level is. Everything is changeable and customizable. You just need a little patience.
And there you have it. Nine tips to get you started on your trip Rise of the Ronin‘s take over 19th century Japan. Of course, this is a massive action RPG that I’m still not finished with despite over 55 hours of playtime. There are undoubtedly things I missed, but these nine tips are a good starting point for beginners. So venture into the Bakumatsu period with sound advice to found a new Japan.
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