Rise of the Ronin Review – A Razor-Sharp Action RPG Adventure

fortressofsolitude.co.za:

Team Ninja returns with the PlayStation 5 exclusive title Rise of the Ronin. While there’s an understandably heavy influence of the Nioh franchise in the developer’s latest title, this action RPG forgoes monsters and magic for a straight-up samurai adventure set during the Bakumatsu of the Edo period. Resultantly, there’s a lot of history (and fiction) to explore in 19th century Japan.

Entering the game, players create their Blade Twins (two assassins). Here, it’s possible to carefully and meticulously design both characters with a variety of options and accessories. Does it feature the character customization options that something like WWE 2K24 boasts? Absolutely not. And especially not at first, since Rise of the Ronin features a rich loot system where players are encouraged to explore the areas and environment to discover new (and hidden) items to kit out their ronin.

As soon as the Blade Twins are created, it’s about choosing the combat style as well as the weapons at their disposal. This is where the real fun begins. The training session offers the player the opportunity to test out the different weapons and playing styles; however, do keep in mind it will be possible (and highly likely) to change weapons and styles later on in the game. So, don’t get too attached to dual swords like a certain author did.

There’s nothing quite like experiencing combat in a real high-stakes situation, though, and that’s exactly what the introductory mission does in Rise of the Ronin. It thrusts the Blade Twins into a dangerous scenario that forces them to learn how to use their weapons, block, parry, and also rotate between characters for maximum effect. While it’s far from the most grueling game ever created, it pays to invest time in getting the basics right since the gameplay mechanics build upon these fundamentals. Failure to learn how to parry, dodge, or block attacks will have serious repercussions down the line.

Combat aside, the Rise of the Ronin experience grows as a