Summary
- The Hell mode in the Onimusha 2 remaster is so difficult that only a couple of developers managed to beat it.
- The new difficulty level makes players die from a single hit, essentially rendering the health bar meaningless.
Only a few developers working on the Onimusha 2: Samurai's Destiny remaster managed to beat its Hell difficulty. The new difficulty level in the modernized version of Onimusha 2 will hence plausibly prove more than most players can handle.
March 7 marked the 23rd anniversary of Samurai's Destiny being released in Japan. A month earlier, Capcom announced its Onimusha 2 remaster, which is currently on course to hit the market in late May 2025.
Capcom Producer Hopes to See More Onimusha Remasters in the Future
The Best War Games speaks with Capcom producer/Onimusha 2 director Motohide Eshiro about the franchise's growth and the possibility of future remasters.
As part of the game's pre-release marketing campaign, Onimusha 2 director Motohide Eshiro has recently been giving interviews discussing both the original game and its upcoming remaster. Speaking to Automaton, the industry veteran discussed the new Hell difficulty, noting that only "one or two" developers on the project have managed to complete it so far. If even the people who understand the game inside and out are struggling to overcome it, the Hell difficulty will ostensibly be too much for most players to handle.
How Does Hell Difficulty Work in the Onimusha 2 Remaster?
The main reason Onimusha 2 remaster’s Hell mode is so challenging is that a single hit results in instant death. Because of this design choice, the health bar is essentially meaningless—players must defend perfectly or face the "You Died" screen and start over. Additionally, Hell makes items scarcer, while significantly upping enemy aggression. "Hell mode is very challenging and is implemented for those who are confident in their skills," Eshiro explained.
Onimusha 2 Remaster Almost Skipped the Hell Difficulty
An equivalent Hell difficulty was recently added to the Onimusha: Warlords remaster as part of a free update, which rolled out on April 22. As for the modernized version of the second game, Eshiro explained that the team decided to only include the mode if at least one developer could beat it. With so few of them managing to do so, the Onimusha 2 remaster came close to skipping the Hell mode entirely. A similar self-imposed requirement ostensibly also applied to the addition of the new difficulty in Onimusha: Warlords.
Hell mode is very challenging and is implemented for those who are confident in their skills.
The remaster of Onimusha 2: Samurai's Destiny is scheduled for release on May 23. The game will debut on the PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, Nintendo Switch, and PC. Pre-orders are already live, priced at $29.99. Capcom is giving away a five-track Orchestra Album Selection Pack and a handful of in-game consumables as pre-order bonuses. Apart from the Hell difficulty, the upcoming remaster will also feature improved visuals, modernized controls, a digital soundtrack selection mode, and auto-save. Additionally, several mini-games that were originally unlocked after completing the game will now be available from the start.
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