Nioh Review: PS4
Stating that the developers for Nioh, (Team Ninja) took some inspiration from Dark Souls and Bloodborne is a bit of an understatement. The difficulty, progression system, gameplay and atmosphere is nearly identical.
I guess that's why this game is so damned great.
The game is based around the real-life explorer William Adams. See below for details:
Quote:
William Adams (24 September 1564 – 16 May 1620), known in Japanese as Miura Anjin (三浦按針: "the pilot of Miura"), was an English navigator who, in 1600, was the first of his nation to reach Japan during a five-ship expedition for the Dutch East India Company. Of the few survivors of the only ship that reached Japan, Adams and his second mate Jan Joosten were not allowed to leave the country while Jacob Quaeckernaeck and Melchior van Santvoort were to bring messages back to the Netherlands inviting them to trade. Adams and Joosten settled there and became one of the first ever (and one of the very few) Western samurai.
Soon after Adams's arrival in Japan, he became a key advisor to the shogun Tokugawa Ieyasu. Adams directed construction for the shogun of the first Western-style ships in the country. Adams was later key to Japan's approving the establishment of trading factories by the Netherlands and England. He also was highly involved in Japan's Red Seal Asian trade, chartering and serving as captain of four expeditions to Southeast Asia. He died in Japan at age 55. He has been recognised as one of the most influential foreigners in Japan during this period.
Numerous novels were based on his life, beginning in the 19th century. He was the model for the character of John Blackthorne in James Clavell's best-selling novel Shōgun (1975), which was adapted as a 1980 TV mini-series, a 1989 computer game, and a 1990 Broadway musical. The 2017 video game Nioh also features him as the protagonist.
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Gameplay:
The game is damned difficult. I had my fair share of issues with Bloodborne back when I was a "Souls Virgin" but nothing like this. It is unforgiving and grueling but at no time has it been unfair.
I was a little disappointed in my last game, (Zero Dawn) because it was too easy. However, this has more than made up for that. Don't think you can go into it and be overly aggressive. You can and will die by even the lowest level enemy.
Graphics:
Locked in at 30FPS I experienced no lag whatsoever. You can adjust this to 60 at any time but when I did, I experienced a bit of phasing and blur.
The game is beautiful and fairly distinctive. It did seem a little outdated occasionally but it's very current gen.
Music/Voice:
The game is a lot more story driven than Dark Souls so the protagonist actually speaks. It's musical score is very "far eastern" and I enjoyed it immensely. They did a great job here.
Overall, when you really get the time to sit down and learn this game, it'll scratch that Dark Souls itch for quite a while. You're looking at 70-90 hours of gameplay with side missions. It's difficult to play and learn. If you've never experienced a game like this I do not recommend getting your start here. You will get frustrated quickly.
If you're a From-Soft vet however, pick it up ASAP. You'll love it.
8 out of 10.