"Nioh" protagonist William Adams is introduced to a young lady with mysterious powers. (Photo : YouTube/GameSpot)
"Nioh" director Fumihiko Yasuda discussed the story, gameplay, opinion on the beta test, and its comparison to "Dark Souls." He also revealed the reason for the development team to continue the project.
Yasuda discussed with Dual Shockers in an interview of the factor that stands out about the game's story, its unique gameplay, and what makes it different from the others. He also clarified that the character design of the protagonist was not inspired by "The Witcher" protagonist Geralt.
The director explained that the story will start with the protagonist William Adams chasing his enemy to Japan. During the chase, an evil Yokai gets in his way and he fights for his and his companion's survival. His companion is Hanzo Hattori, a ninja who is helping him follow his enemy, and also teaching him techniques as a Yokai hunter.
Yasuda said that the game is not a true story, but it is set in Japan during the 1600s. It includes historical battles in Japan like the Battle of Sekigahara, which is also known as the most massive war in its history. They wanted the players to enjoy this type of historical fantasy by aligning the plot with historical events.
Yasuda clarified that the protagonist is a samurai, and they wanted to incorporate samurai-inspired elements into its design. They wanted elements like a unique approach of contrasting stillness and motion. The hack and slash elements will also be a big difference in this game, particularly regarding weapons like katanas, spears, and Japanese armors, he said.
The director revealed the motivation of the team to continue to develop this game. It was due to the strong will from the Koei founder and "Nioh's" general producer Kou Shibusawa to complete the mission of making the game for the past 10 years. They were also inspired by the presence of Masocore games growing in the market.
Yasuda told Eurogamer in an interview that they were surprised of the big contrast of the alpha player feedback results. He expected that the Japanese would be more resistant to the higher difficulty, but to his surprise, it was the opposite. The Americans and the Europeans were more appreciative of the difficulty upgrade.
Yasuda revealed that there are times that they will not listen to the fans, if the idea was not good. He clarified that they are game creators and not servants. He also said that it all comes down to "Nioh" not losing its spirit and its essence.
Check out "Nioh" TGS 2016 trailer video below:
