Rise of the Ronin is coming in 2024 and it looks set to be a classic RPG. Sword-based action-adventure games have changed and evolved in all sorts of ways within the last decade or so. Integrating both storytelling with gameplay, as well as reaching the uncanny valley with stunning visuals to boot. Most of these games seem to have high production values with solid voiceovers, well-choreographed animation, amazing sound, music scores, and so on.

Japanese game developers usually have more unique approaches to such things. They’d rather set their games in grand settings but also come up with unique gameplay to differentiate themselves. This unique aspect of their development makes the games more engaging and entertaining to play. With Rise of the Ronin, the question beckons, has anyone ever heard of or played Ninja Gaiden?

One of the early games that pioneered sword fighting combat, the same studio that also made Dead or Alive. The same studio named Team Ninja joined the souls-like trend after their first release of Nioh, then followed by Nioh 2, Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty, and is now working on something more ambitious as a PlayStation 5 exclusive that is Rise of the Ronin. You might get Assassin’s Creed vibes from the early gameplay teasers but surely there are major differences.

Rise Of The Ronin Story And Premise

Rise of the Ronin is set in the 19th century Edo Era, during the Bakumatsu period. A time when Japan would have to introduce itself to the world when being forced by the Western colonials (Namely Commodore Perry of the US Navy) and their navy ships. It’s a troubling time for a samurai as the old ways are being readily abandoned to modernize the entire Japanese culture based around it.

There won’t be a default protagonist in Rise of the Ronin as you can customize what your character avatar will be and decide where the story goes within certain key moments of the story. Unlike their prior games which pit demons and monsters against you, the game will be very much grounded with only human opponents. This is very intriguing as gamers will be able to enjoy a thrilling historical simulation with a custom character.

The Samurai Way Of Rise Of The Ronin

Based on what was seen from the Rise of the Ronin gameplay trailer, both sword and gun-based combat will be featured in most of the game’s core mechanics. Various weapons designs were largely inspired by the Boshin War, such as Katanas, spears, grappling hooks, different types of firearms, and so on. There will be role-playing mechanics embedded in the game, along with the unique fast-paced combat that Team Ninja has been known for.

Exploration seems also to be a part of the main game’s ethos, with flying instruments used such as a hang-glider which players can essentially land on any part of the map from a higher ground. The grappling hook could also be used the other way around by reaching areas difficult to climb from below. The exclusive exploration part of the Rise of the Ronin should be a very welcome edition for potential gamers.

I am not sure at this point if I am just playing as a samurai with swords, there could be shuriken or similar throwing objects. Not every scenario has to involve using firearms from range. The only other known video game that does grounded sword fighting with such weapons based in Japan is Ghost of Tsushima. Rise of the Ronin is a Sony-published exclusive, so we’ll have to see how creatively they can work around this.

Do note, that style over substance is something Team Ninja is quite known for, and a lot of cool things we’re going to see like being able to doze the grappling hook with flames and somehow have stylized execution with each of the weapons. Sounds like a difficult project, but their prior games have shown what they can actually do to elevate the intensity of each fight, through various means. And that is exactly why I have my hopes up for Rise of the Ronin.

Graphics Settings And PC Release

Sony has quite the track record as of late to release PlayStation exclusives to the PC platform. It’s something Microsoft has done for years, but the former is taking a bit more time to do so per game. So far, we know that Rise of the Ronin is an exclusive, with Sony’s own in-house assistant developers lending a hand. An off chance it might get ported to that platform.

As the trailer of Rise of the Ronin has shown, the visuals will have hyper fidelity, meaning that as much power from the console will be utilized, the game will run 30FPS. But in another way, there could be a 60FPS option which would be most fit for hyperactive gameplay.

Team Ninja might be developing this using their proprietary Katana engine for rendering and development. However, there is an off chance that Sony might provide some help with their middleware or that it’ll be fully developed using Unreal Engine 5.

Expectations, Release Date, And More Info

We only got one official trailer from the game, and that was featured in a State of Play showcase last year. However, more leaks and details coming out reveal that Rise of the Ronin will be heavily inspired by the likes of Assassin’s Creed, Tsushima, and Dark Souls.

While this might have some borrowed elements from souls-like, they have cleared for the record that this won’t be one. Just expect a fast-paced action-adventure game in a complete open-world setting, which is new for Team Ninja as their prior games were based on chapter-based large levels.

Their main goal is to create a world that heavily represents the era it is based on. No fantasy elements, and violence is toned down to only showcase the realistic aspects. I can’t say much about how the main story will be presented, but any ideas can be taken based on its premise, so your guess is as good as mine.

The release date is set for 2024, so we might see the game around early or middle of the year slate. Though that might also be the year we get to see other exclusives like The Wolverine or KOTOR remake. If more details come out, we’ll be sure to let you know as soon as the info is hot.