Nioh 2 Review

In judging sequels of various games, Nioh 2 doesn’t hold for much of a change as it still features multiple similarities to its precursor. 

However, the action role-playing game has taken into an advantage of its strong gaming foundation, considered to be one of the best, and iterated upon it in making a sequel worthy of capturing the attention of the gaming industry.

While introducing some new touch such as new weapons, locations, and a noticeable difference in enemy variety. 

The game was developed by Team Ninja and published by Koei Tecmo in Japan and Sony Interactive Entertainment worldwide.

Read our full Nioh 2 review and overview of the gameplay and storyline.

Nioh 2 Storyline

Nioh 2 storyline chapters are a prelude to its precursor. It’s set in the late 1500s.

However, the end chapters of the story are set following its prequel game’s last storyline after Osaka’s Seige.

Players will assume the role of a half-yokai character named Hide.

Hide’s is a “Shiftling” who becomes a friend with a merchant, Tokichiro, in his travels through the Sengoku Era.

Tokichiro happens to be an ambitious merchant seeking to immortalized his name in history, thus selling Amrita, and Mumyo, a demon hunter of the Sohaya group.

At the time of happening, Hide’s past becomes an obstruction in the character personality of Kashin Koji, who crashes the party and becomes a deterrent to their goals.

Nioh 2 Gameplay

Like its predecessor, the action role-playing game gives players the freedom to create their own playing characters, which were once yokai spirit according to the game’s storyline.

Weapons such as odachi and Kusarigama are few fighting tools players can be equipped with and rely on for progress in the game.

Progress in the game as well means new skills unlocked or earned.

In the instance players prevail over an antipathetic adversary, a “Soul Core” maybe drop as a reward.

These “Soul Core” allow players to some yokai abilities, including transforming into a yokai.

However, this is only possible after the players place the core in a shrine.

There are locations called “Benevolent Graves.”

Combat in these locations is quite engaging and exciting as players can call forth artificial intelligence controlled players for assistance against yokai enemies.

Another grandeur feature of Nioh 2 is its mission development.

Missions come up visually in the least expected way, from a dungeon leading up into a castle tower with Amrita sneaking between its walls to a sunlit meadow surrounding a sludge fort.

Some missions in the game may require players teaming up with an NPC, and that is another incredible dimension of the gaming experience, playing tag team with artificial intelligence. 

Team Ninja should be praised endlessly for its expansion development of Yokai demons’ dark realm in Nioh 2.

In the prequel, demons appear and become an obstacle to a player’s progress in the game when patches of transparent mist block paths are touched, however in Nioh 2, a large percentage of the whole area are filled by the Yokai dimension, thus hindering players from gaining access to shrines and opening treasure boxes.

The only solution to overcoming the Yokai dimension’s odds and clearing the monsters’ whole infected area is by killing a particular creature responsible for the swarming yokai in the area.

However, it could be a tough challenge, but it’s no doubt great fun failing and trying again.

Nioh 2 Graphics

While Nioh 2 storyline fare average as it isn’t something that would likely stick in the head or interest you, it makes up for it in astounding graphics.

Playing at 60 frames per second, it a smooth run experience on PlayStation 4.

PS4 Pro offers the choice of swapping a more cinematic view for a 60 fps experience.

Whichever the choice, you are bound to enjoy a game utterly free from glitches and bugs error.

Its graphical designs might not be stretching to the limit of what the PS4 console offers from the graphics perspective, especially compared to modern new generation games. Still, it sure vindicates this for the perfect frame rate.

Nioh 2 Engaging combat system

Combat style, from the high, medium, and low stance makes a comeback in Nioh 2, giving players an amazing variety of engagement methods against yokai demons.

Players can as well customize ways yokai demons are tackled.

A stamina bar governs a player’s health, and hence, players will need to apply a bit of strategy to determine the right battles to fight and ensure victory. 

The combat style merely is phenomenal, just like its predecessor, with the most effective form of combat been a player’s ability to use a number of yokai skills.

The Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night, whereby enemies drop Soul Core, which players can pick up and, after purifying at a shine, use to their advantage in mirror move against enemies, is another exciting feature waiting on gamers to explore.

It adds more tension to gaming fun.

However, as powerful and helpful as these Soul Core abilities are, it also could prove militating against a player’s progress in the game as it leaves players extremely endangered to follow-up attacks after use.

Another intriguing combat mechanic in Nioh 2 is the Burst Counter. It is something similar to an attack move in Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice’s book.

Signified by a red aura circling an attacking enemy, the Burst Counter move can be carried out at the right timing that deals the enemy enough damage to their stamina level, even killing them.

The move is an excellent asset to players’ attacks; it changes the tide of defense for a quick assault offense within split seconds. 

Also, a new change, Team Ninja made a touch of improvement that was a problem in its prequel was the apparent absence in enemy variety.

The game now boasts a multitude of Yokai foes waiting to lay ambush to players on the path to victory. 

A significant fact to not ignore whenever Nioh 2 comes up in discussion or debates is its boss fights.

Every primary mission’s finale is certainly something players will indeed look forward to with the grandiose and theatrics enemies brings on to the battle in their own set of mechanics, making it worthy of a spectacle.

And be mindful, boss fights really demands the skill proficiency of a player.

In effect, it asks if a player is up to the task of fighting a boss; if no, it serves up straight up defeat.

The setback of defeats is, however, what makes the game addictive.

Nioh 2 Release

Nioh 2 was first mentioned to the public at a Sony press conference in 2018, and the following year in November, the open beta of the game began.

March 13, 2020, it was released for PlayStation 4 and peak over 90,000 sales in just its first week of release, thus becoming the best selling of its first week in Japan.

It was the bestselling game in the UK in its first week of release. The game features a single-player as well as multiplayer mode.

Nioh 2 Verdict

Although much similar to its predecessor, Nioh 2 still intrigues.

With a touch of new mechanism and depth to its combat system, it makes it one of the generation’s memorable game.

Excuse the poor story plot and minor balance issues, and you have yourself a game that boasts a phenomenal combat system, satisfying Burst Counter move, tons of fun Yokai skills, unique boss fights, better enemy variety, and stable frame rate.

Nioh 2 is simply excellent and worthy of the dedicated following they have.

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