Comprehensive Review and Evaluation of the Game Rise of the Ronin

Comprehensive Review and Evaluation of the Game Rise of the Ronin

After a long wait since the official announcement of the game, the game Rise of the Ronin has finally landed in our hands recently for the purpose of exploring its content and the richness of its world. We had the opportunity to review the new game from Team Ninja studio, which decided to make a strong comeback this year through this project. We will be delving into the content in the upcoming segments to find out if it truly lived up to expectations and our anticipation. Follow along with us.

Basic Information

Game Title: Rise of the Ronin

Genre: Action-adventure, Open world

Release Date: March 22, 2024

Game Modes: Single player and Co-op

Platforms: PlayStation 5

Developer: Team Ninja

Publisher: Sony Interactive Entertainment

Age Rating: Suitable for ages 18 and above

One of the key aspects we’ll start with in this review is the story and main events that lead us to embody the character of Ronin (fully customizable), a group of individuals who are samurai but have either lost their leader or decided to continue independently. The main character finds himself in this world after losing his leader and later his twin. The story unfolds as he searches for her and discovers her fate after a shocking event without delving into the details to avoid spoilers.

The story leads the main hero to the Japanese city of Yokohama during a period of significant and unprecedented transformation in Japan, immediately after the end of the Edo era, which lasted about 300 years. This was a very dark period characterized by the entry of Western forces to impose their political presence, with several rulers known for suppressing society. Apart from the spread of deadly diseases that led to several civil wars and a lack of security.

This mix has been well utilized through the stories told in the game world, whether through the main story path or through side missions that shed light on several details from Japan’s history. The main storyline was full of events, although at times it plunges you into a side plot, all of which are related to the main event.

The content of the world of Rise of the Ronin did not disappoint, as over hours of gameplay, you find yourself immersed in various activities between side missions that have a story background and event schedules related to each other. In addition to these side tasks distributed across most provinces in the game world, there are several other noteworthy contents.

One of them is the exploration events like confronting bandits who harass citizens, assisting travelers in securing their goods, and many similar scenarios. These events make the game world rich in content and diversity. When we talk about diversity, we must also mention the recreational activities in the world, such as glider challenges and weapon training, which provide rewards based on performance and total points.

Certainly, the content of Rise of the Ronin did not disappoint, and personally, I enjoyed every aspect of it, whether it was the main stages, side missions, or other events like training challenges and gliding. Along with reclaiming settlements from bandits, searching for treasures and precious loot, among many other things that are best left to exploration.

Now we move on to one of the most important aspects in our review of Rise of the Ronin, and this time we focus on gameplay style and elements. The game Rise of the Ronin offers a deep gameplay experience and can be considered a strong point in the game, in addition to the world content and the story in general. The game relies first on two systems to progress and earn development points, either through regular experience points (XP) that depend on completing missions and challenges scattered in the world, or through another system, karma, which depends primarily on your decisions in side missions and encounters with enemies. It also carries a touch of Team Ninja’s previous games.

Since the total points achieved in this indicator can only be used by activating the Twin Banner (save points spread throughout the game world), which, in addition to providing fast travel, serves as a save and utilization point for all karma points that are converted into development items. The game also integrates some elements of loyalty with all provinces in the world based on which the value of rewards and loot is determined, as well as the level of relationship with various characters in these regions.

On the other hand, the game provides dozens of armor pieces to customize the main character between headgear, chest pieces, hands, and upgradeable legs with a set of pieces that can be obtained from the world or by dismantling other items. The game also includes a great feature that allows you to customize the character’s appearance with uniform clothing while using the most powerful armor that may hide its shape from the settings.

Along with the diverse weapons such as katana swords in all their forms, dual swords, and other throwing weapons, due to their time with the entry of the West into the region, whether Americans or the French. Not to mention the bow and arrow and other ranged weapons that can be developed and improved as you progress in the game by using specific pieces demanded by specialized traders. Additionally, in combat, you can use certain attachments like flaming or poisonous coatings on weapons to weaken your opponents.

At the same time, and in addition to the distinctive parry system provided by the game using either the L1 button or the triangle button, you can use items to strengthen the main character’s defense against more aggressive enemies. When discussing the gameplay style, we cannot overlook one of the fundamental elements in the game.

And that is choosing the appropriate style to face enemies, as each enemy has a weakness that you can identify through its indicator. Based on it, you can customize the combat style between three options, which are Ten, Jin, and Chi, where these styles change the way of holding the weapon and special attacks. To activate them, you press R1 and the square, triangle, cross, and circle buttons, utilizing them through the Ki Power indicator, which depletes every time you use one of these special attacks.

An important aspect that would appeal to fans of classic studio games in particular, the game excels in this regard. It provides a variety of skills to deepen this aspect and capitalize on the opponents’ pets to your advantage. These are all elements that, in my opinion, made the gameplay style in Rise of the Ronin dynamic and diverse, as it offers you a range of options to deal with enemies, even the fiercest ones, as the game depends on a very strict counter system that allows you to surprise the enemy at any moment or resort to alternative weapons such as the bow and arrow, pistol, or sharp knives.

Moreover, with additional skills, you can dig deeper into this area and exploit the enemy’s pets for your benefit. This includes using tools that you can activate from the settings, such as the ability to automatically ride a horse and even specify its path, as well as automatically collecting resources and loot without pressing any buttons and climbing ladders automatically.

Moving on to one of the important elements of our review of Rise of the Ronin, we now focus on technical performance and graphics that rely on a custom engine from Team Ninja studio. Unfortunately, despite the improvements included, it did not succeed in providing the expected results, especially since we are dealing with a game tailored for current-gen consoles.

When compared to games with lower and limited budgets available in recent years, we can see a clear disparity, unfortunately, on the negative side as the game Rise of the Ronin, though offering three graphic styles, failed to take us to the anticipated level, especially considering that the game is exclusive to the PlayStation 5, which has offered a range of distinguished games over the years. Overall, Rise of the Ronin presents an opportunity for players who love the Japanese atmosphere and enjoy dynamic and expansive gameplay elements with fresh ideas, even though they are limited due to technical constraints.

Final Rating: 7.5/10