Onimusha 2: Samurai's Destiny

Onimusha 2: Samurai's Destiny, released in Japan as Onimusha 2 (鬼武者2), is an action adventure hack and slash video game developed and released by Capcom for the PlayStation 2. It is the second installment in the Onimusha series of video games released in March 2002. Set in medieval Japan, the plot revolves around a new protagonist, Jubei Yagyu, who is on a quest of revenge as he battles a demon army led by Nobunaga Oda, a sinister warlord who eliminated the Yagyu clan. Across his quest, Jubei learns of his oni heritage which grants him powers to slay the demons and meets new allies who also wish to defeat Nobunaga and his army of Genma. The game retains the action elements from its predecessor such as the use of multiple special weapons that can be upgraded by defeating enemies. Apart from the main character, the game features four playable sub characters, each of whom shares a part in the story. The player's actions determine which characters will decide to help Jubei in his quest. These characters were added by the Capcom staff to give a bigger depth to the game and expand the game's feeling of adventure. Each character that the player befriends will have different cutscenes as well as personal story arcs that Jubei gets to experience, although the main narrative will largely remain the same. There are certain characters or cutscenes that cannot be experienced on the same playthrough, due to plot reasons. Publications for video games generally praised Onimusha 2 for its branching storyline paths, music, re playability, and for keeping the action elements from its predecessor and adding new gameplay elements, although the game was criticized for abandoning its RPG element about 40% of the way through and becoming a little bit too similar to the original. Also the American release did not contain the Japanese audio unlike the first game. On another note, the graphics and the CGI intro were highly praised.

Samurai's Destiny features a control scheme found in many survival horror games published by Capcom, most notably Resident Evil. Other similarities include open ended gameplay, the use of herbs and medicine to restore health, and the inclusion of puzzles which must be solved in order to progress. Hostile demons known as Genma inhabit most areas, and will attack and chase Jubei. Jubei collects an assortment of short and long range weapons throughout the game, including a bow and a matchlock rifle.

Since the death of Fortinbras by the hands of Samanosuke, Nobunaga Oda has taken command of the Genma as he continues his campaign to unite Japan while wiping out any threat to his power. Among the villages he targeted is the Yagyu village. The clan's only survivor, Jubei Yagyu, who was away at the time of the Genma attack, finds the destroyed village and goes to search for the culprit. He encounters a female oni named Takajo (高女) who explains Nobunaga's actions. Revealing herself as Jubei's mother, Takajo unleashes Jubei's Oni powers and tells him to search for five orbs that were created to protect humans from demons. Jubei then embarks on a quest to find the orbs in order to defeat Nobunaga, first traveling to the mining town of Imasho. In the town of Imasho, Jubei witnesses a group of villagers sexually harassing Oyu. As Oyu fights them off he notices that she has an Oni orb. He comes in to rescue her and fights the villagers as Oyu disappears into the mines. Before entering the mines, Jubei meets Ekei and Magoichi and Kotaro Fuma. Jubei meets a demon called Ginghamphatts, who battles Jubei but loses. Ginghamphatts tells Jubei he will return before dying. Jubei finds out that there is a secret entry into the demon world from the mines and enters, finding himself transported to Gifu Castle. In Gifu Castle Jubei meets Hideyoshi Toyotomi and finds out of him that the Oda clan wanted him dead, thus attacking his village. Jubei saves Oyu from Hideyoshi Toyotomi before getting into a fight with Gogadantess, a self proclaimed "greatest swordsman of all the demons". Jubei is unable to damage Gogadantess and chooses to escape with Oyu. Back at Imasho Town, Oyu gifts Jubei her Oni orb for saving her. While investigating Imasho Town, Jubei meets a demon name Jujudormah, who reveals to Jubei she was sent by Nobunaga to kill Jubei and his mother before leaving back to Yagyu Village. Jubei returns to Yagyu Village but is unable to save his mother in time. Vowing revenge, he finds a secret passage out of the village and in the process fights against a resurrected Ginghamphatts. Jubei kills him again before fighting and killing Jujudormah. Jubei discovers an Oni vessel and activates it, which it then proceeds to take Jubei to the Oni Sacred Island. While on the island he fights Gogadantess again but is still unable to damage him. Jubei is wounded in the process but Oyu saves him. Gogadantess praises Oyu's strength and berates Jubei for having to be saved by a woman for a second time. Gogadantess stops his battle and leaves, but decides to tell Jubei Nobunaga's plan. As Jubei rest, Oyu explores the island, meeting the ghost of Jubei's mom and getting the scared flute for Jubei, which will help Jubei defeat Gogadantess. Oyu returns to Jubei with the flute and Jubei uses it when he meets Gogadantess again for the third time in the lower level of the island. After dispelling the barrier that protects Gogadantess, Jubei kills him. Before dying, Jubei praises Gogadantess skills and reaffirms to him that he truly is the "greatest swordsman of all the demons". Gogadantess thanks Jubei and gives him his Oni orb before dying. Oyu and Jubei finds a flying machine and catches up to Hideyoshi Toyotomi who is piloting a war zeppelin. Jubei takes control of the zeppelin while Hideyoshi Toyotomi escapes, detonating explosions in the process. As the zeppelin descends, Jubei is able to manoeuvre it enough to crash into Gifu Castle where Nobunaga resides. In the process, Oyu falls with the zeppelin as it explodes. Jubei grieves for Oyu's death and makes his way to Nobunagas chamber, fighting and finally killing Ginghamphatts for the final time. Before confronting Nobunaga, Oyu is revealed to have survived the explosion and embraces Jubei. Jubei tells her to return home as Nobunaga is his fight to take. Jubei confronts Nobunaga and seemingly defeats Nobunaga after a hard battle. As Jubei begins to leave, Nobunaga gets back up and uses his power to suck Jubei into the demon world. In the demon world, Jubei finally understands the power of the Oni Orbs and uses them to turn him into the ultimate Oni warrior. Jubei destroys Nobunaga again for the final time, but before dying Nobunaga threatens Jubei that he may have won for now, but he will rise again. Gifu Castle begins to collapse and Jubei is last seen escaping the castle and disappearing into the darkness. In a post credit scene, Jubei is shown sitting on a horse at the edge of a mountain overlooking a castle in the distance. It is shown that Oyu resides there with her family and has finally embraced being a mother and wife. Jubei leaves on his horse as a raven flies by, laughing in the voice of Nobunaga.

The first sequel to Onimusha: Warlords was confirmed by Capcom in April 2001 when it was released in America. This quick announcement was made because Onimusha 2 was developed alongside Warlords. The game's story and characters were revealed in June of that same year. The hero Jubei Yagyu was modelled after the late Japanese actor Yūsaku Matsuda. While the game is graphically similar to its predecessor, the character models look more realistic and the backgrounds were given more animations, such as using real footage of water for lakes and river. One of these scenes which includes down pouring of rain was made as a homage to the staff's favorite film, Seven Samurai. Onimusha 2: Samurai's Destiny was made by a different team from the one that made the first game. The team implemented a bigger focus in adventure rather than action for this game in order to give more depth. Producer Keiji Inafune saw this game as a way to include many things he wanted in the first game but in the end could not. The music in the game was composed by Hideki Okugawa. Japanese musician Tomoyasu Hotei contributed to the game with the theme "Russian Roulette" which is used as the game's alternate intro theme.

Onimusha 2 was originally released in Japan on March 7, 2002, followed by the releases in North America on August 27 and Europe on October 4. The game was also re released with its Warlords and Demon Siege into the 2008 compilation Onimusha Essentials for North America. The same day the game was released in Japan, Capcom also published a fan DVD containing a guide and movies featuring the development staff. A 44 track CD original soundtrack was released by Capcom on March 20, 2002, while ADV Films published it in North America next year on June 3. The soundtrack Onimusha 2 Orchestra Album ~ Taro Iwashiro Selection was also released in 2003.