Oninaki

 Switch
User Score
7.1

Mixed or average reviews- based on 71 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 41 out of 71
  2. Mixed: 15 out of 71
  3. Negative: 15 out of 71
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  1. duke_dobo
    Sep 26, 2019
    3
    Tokyo RPG factory trade marks are here: enemies designed as penguins and lots of long loading screen with sleepy piano music. If you’ve played their previous games you know what I mean. Not a bad game anyway definitely not worth the money they’re asking for it.
  2. Sunshadow87
    Jun 2, 2020
    7
    Oninaki es un juego que entra por los ojos por su estilo artístico peculiar, su historia, personajes, gameplay... pero que va cayendo en la monotonía a medida que el juego avanza. Con un solo pueblo sin mucho desarrollo, y una continua exploración de mazmorras medio descafeinadas, el juego acaba cayendo en la monotonía. Mantiene el interés hasta el final por la historia, y los misteriosOninaki es un juego que entra por los ojos por su estilo artístico peculiar, su historia, personajes, gameplay... pero que va cayendo en la monotonía a medida que el juego avanza. Con un solo pueblo sin mucho desarrollo, y una continua exploración de mazmorras medio descafeinadas, el juego acaba cayendo en la monotonía. Mantiene el interés hasta el final por la historia, y los misterios ligadas a ella, y los diferentes finales merecen la pena. Para aquellos que no les gusta la misma historia, este juego se aleja de ella, centrándose en la profundidad de la inevitabilidad de la muerte.
    Si no te interesa la historia, no recomendaría este juego, pero en caso contrario sus "puntos negativos" son muy pasables y la experiencia merece la pena.    … Expand
  3. verdammte
    Sep 2, 2019
    8
    Oninaki is a grade A game, but can disappoint you if you carry high expectations. The game is not that long, maybe 20-25 hours and has a number of plot holes and severe logic flaws. This is not the best game Square Enix has produced. It is, however, an excellent mid-cost game and well worth the money and time.

    Do not expect a happy, uplifting experience. The game is dark, depressing,    Oninaki is a grade A game, but can disappoint you if you carry high expectations. The game is not that long, maybe 20-25 hours and has a number of plot holes and severe logic flaws. This is not the best game Square Enix has produced. It is, however, an excellent mid-cost game and well worth the money and time.

    Do not expect a happy, uplifting experience. The game is dark, depressing, and mysterious. Regardless, I recommend it.    … Expand
  4. DreamCore
    Aug 25, 2019
    6
    Pros:
    * The story feels unique compared to traditional RPGs and I've personnaly never played anything similar, and I've played loooots of RPGs.
    * Even though the graphics aren't very good, I still like the art style which is similar, but not as good as, Zelda: Breath of the Wild. Cons: * Lots of loading screens (even before and after every cutscene). Also they are really lengthy.    Pros:
    * The story feels unique compared to traditional RPGs and I've personnaly never played anything similar, and I've played loooots of RPGs.
    * Even though the graphics aren't very good, I still like the art style which is similar, but not as good as, Zelda: Breath of the Wild.

    Cons:
    * Lots of loading screens (even before and after every cutscene). Also they are really lengthy. Sometimes you wait for a 1 min loading screen to see a 20 sec cutscene followed by another 1 min loading screen.
    * The performance (docked) is quite bad at times.
    * Enemy variate is severly lacking, even 15h into the games you will fight the same enemies you did in the first hours but with a different color. Also the design is bad (I mean, penguins, plants, really?). Almost all enemies are the same and you can just mindlessly hack and slash most of them like in Diablo.
    * There are lots of Daemons but really you can complete the entire game with just the one you start with plus the ranged one for bosses. The only reason to switch Daemon is for variety to prevent the combat from getting too boring.

    Verdict:
    Only play this game if you're interested in the story, because the combat is not very good. Also the game is definitely not worth the price. It's not a AAA game but still they ask for a AAA game. I would recommend waiting until it's on sale $20-30.    … Expand
  5. Onishini
    Aug 23, 2019
    10
    Don’t hesitate just buy this freaking game it is so darn good if you don’t care about some lag it is amazing the best best best game ever I thought I wasted my money but I didn’t because it’s a great game better than dragon quest better than Xenoblade better than fire emblem
  6. Zelda1979
    Aug 29, 2019
    8
    Under rated I believe. Good action RPG. Good story and doesn't hold your hand. Step up for Tokyo RPG factory.
  7. Stygy
    Aug 23, 2019
    8
    So far I love the game, specially its music & story. The only reason for the 8 as score is that on Switch there is an small input lag which could make a bit difficult the combats (specially on Maniac level that requires some precision); anyway... I was already expecting this before I bought it... "portability over performance"
    Totally recommend this game!
  8. Joedupp
    Sep 2, 2019
    9
    Se entiende que la gente lo quiera a 60 fps, pero que no te eche tanto para atras eso, ya que la historia desde el comienzo es bastante buena, aunque mas que la historia principal, son las mini historias de lo que es el trabajo del prota, y de todas las personas y espiritus, de como murieron y demas. Muy recomendado, lo jugué en nintendo switch, y no se ve mal (Ya que a todo el mundo leSe entiende que la gente lo quiera a 60 fps, pero que no te eche tanto para atras eso, ya que la historia desde el comienzo es bastante buena, aunque mas que la historia principal, son las mini historias de lo que es el trabajo del prota, y de todas las personas y espiritus, de como murieron y demas. Muy recomendado, lo jugué en nintendo switch, y no se ve mal (Ya que a todo el mundo le molesta que hayan 2 luces menos en comparación a las demas consolas)… Expand
  9. Pakon
    Feb 18, 2020
    9
    At first glance, the game's atmosphere and art style approach brought to my mind games like Bravely Default and Octopath Traveler. As charming as it looks, Oninaki's is really dark and heavy.

    The story is just descent and a bit complicated, but with some very interesting and notable moments (won't say more, I don't want to spoil anything to you). Especially the background    At first glance, the game's atmosphere and art style approach brought to my mind games like Bravely Default and Octopath Traveler. As charming as it looks, Oninaki's is really dark and heavy.

    The story is just descent and a bit complicated, but with some very interesting and notable moments (won't say more, I don't want to spoil anything to you). Especially the background stories/memories of your Daemons are compelling and in combination with chilling ambient background music, they create a mesmerizing atmosphere.

    The gameplay is solid for sure (and for me, really addictive) but some could say it is repetitive; getting a mission, travel to its location, kill its monsters and its final boss. It is not very fast but at the same time not very slow for an action game. The customization of your Daemons (weapons, skills) is well made and you can use the "points" you have for each Daemon not only for unlocking new skills, but also for unlocking its memories. Personally, I never felt that grinding was boring. I found myself playing for many hours, trying to proceed with the main story, clear each and every monster on both worlds of that location and even revisited some locations not only for side missions (lost souls), but also because I really wanted to power up some Daemons to use them as mains and learn their whole background stories.

    On the other hand, the game is not perfect. I noticed a few framerate drops in the main city and some bugs with regard to the characer models and their appearance (auras etc.). Loading times are a bit long and the overall graphics for the handheld mode could be less "blurry" and more "sharp". HD rumble is not present despite the fact that the game could really benefit from that feature. However, all these downsides, which could be improved by a future update, do not take away anything from the overall experience; the game is totally playable.

    All in all, Oninaki has a lot of potential. It combines interesting ideas and aristic approach , but its mediocre story and small flaws keep it from being perfect and my final thoughts were that it is good, but it could offer more. Apart from that, I had a great time playing it and got attached to its gameplay and art style. It is a chilling and solid Action JRPG and i recommend it for fans of the genre.    … Expand
  10. Lesh0
    Nov 4, 2019
    10
    Im fan of tokyo factory games and i really enjoyed Lost sphear and I Am Setsuna but Oninaki is best so far easy 10/10.Gameplay is amazing. Main character is so different and interesting and the story is super good. You got so many Daemons to play with that the game doesnt feel repetitive at all.
  11. onehitok
    Jun 22, 2021
    10
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Oninaki is a guilty pleasure title. It is a crude and honest game. You expect the game to have a classic story and defeat the demon-lord kind of ending. You expect the hero to be the main protagonist, but as you progress the story, you find out that you have become the one you are sworn to destroy, and there's nothing you can do to stop the calamity or the extinction of humanity. Much like Nier Automata, and Crystar. The game introduces a mission and a goal for you, but shatter it as soon as you reach it. You will feel despair but after revisiting the game months later. You realize it's a masterpiece and it is not afraid to touch on the taboo topics of video game storytelling. After playing this game, you will definitely grow more mature.… Expand
  12. RisingBlur
    Aug 11, 2020
    6
    Oninaki has an amazing artdirection and a lot of interesting visuals. The story is interesting and I like to play it.

    Now the bad: The game feels like you are playing in slow motion. Don’t listen to the fanboys who claim that this game has amazing combat. Ever played a hack and slash? Nice. You have played this, but at double the speed because this game feels so unbearably slow. I realy    Oninaki has an amazing artdirection and a lot of interesting visuals. The story is interesting and I like to play it.

    Now the bad: The game feels like you are playing in slow motion. Don’t listen to the fanboys who claim that this game has amazing combat. Ever played a hack and slash? Nice. You have played this, but at double the speed because this game feels so unbearably slow. I realy want to like the game and I mostly enjoy playing it. But every time I get to a Boss I wish Nintendo would allow refunds.
    So basically you have multiple weapons in the game and you can equip up to four of them. You have an attack button, 4 special attacks and a special ability for every weapon. The problem: on one blade you have a dodge and on another a jump and again on another a block and so on... This is fine in normal combat, because most enemies are mindless drones that just wait for you to attack them. But as soon as you have to fight a boss it‘s just annoying. Now have fun to very slowly switch to the right weapon for the right attack so that you can dodge, jump, block. So like every other player I just use the ranged weapon to avoid being attacked all the time.

    I don’t know who at Square thought this indie game is worth 50 bucks while you can get way deeper games with way better stories and way better gameplay and mechanics that also look better for less than half that price.    … Expand
  13. Galix
    Sep 23, 2019
    6
    Oninaki es un juego que va de más a menos. Más porque al principio llama la atención con sus aspectos positivos, sus mecánicas, etcétera y menos porque, con el tiempo, se le empiezan a ver las costuras.

    Lo bueno: -Si bien no es un portento gráfico, artísticamente es bastante bonito, tanto a nivel de diseño de personajes como de escenarios. -Hay muchos demonios para elegir lo que le da    Oninaki es un juego que va de más a menos. Más porque al principio llama la atención con sus aspectos positivos, sus mecánicas, etcétera y menos porque, con el tiempo, se le empiezan a ver las costuras.

    Lo bueno:
    -Si bien no es un portento gráfico, artísticamente es bastante bonito, tanto a nivel de diseño de personajes como de escenarios.
    -Hay muchos demonios para elegir lo que le da bastante variedad a la jugabilidad.
    -La premisa de la historia es curiosa y en general el argumento no está nada mal.

    Lo malo:
    -Técnicamente flojo e incluso pega algunos tirones en la ciudad.
    -Pantallas de carga ridículamente abundantes y largas.
    -A pesar de la variedad de demonios puedes entrenar mucho a uno y pasarte el juego con él. De hecho es prácticamente imposible usarlos a todos a menos que pases horas y horas entrenando a cada uno.
    -Cerca del final se puede volver repetitivo al estar haciendo siempre lo mismo.
    -Si bien la historia no está mal, el final es flojísimo (al menos para mi gusto).

    Juego más bien del montón que no está mal pero por el que no vale la pena dejarse cincuenta euros.    … Expand
  14. Hamilton93
    Sep 29, 2019
    8
    Very good games and all the demons to upgrade is a perfect to change de way to play The story is simple but de subject is new for a japenese rpg. I think this game will be difficult to find in a few years and it become a classic for rpg’s fan.
  15. Blundell92
    Mar 26, 2020
    7
    Pretty solid game from Tokyo RPG Factory. It would be nice if there was an English dub, just because the dialogue doesn't seem to translate well, imo. Good mechanics, gameplay is fun but uninspired, not really much setting it apart from it's contemporaries. Story is interesting, dark, and enjoyable. Over all it's a great game but I wouldn't pay full price for it. Great news is there's aPretty solid game from Tokyo RPG Factory. It would be nice if there was an English dub, just because the dialogue doesn't seem to translate well, imo. Good mechanics, gameplay is fun but uninspired, not really much setting it apart from it's contemporaries. Story is interesting, dark, and enjoyable. Over all it's a great game but I wouldn't pay full price for it. Great news is there's a demo so you can figure out whether it's for you before you pull the trigger on it.… Expand
  16. Apollo_96
    Apr 21, 2020
    9
    Wow! I didn’t know what to expect when I downloaded this game. I haven’t played anything by Tokyo RPG Factory before. The art style is very beautiful in my opinion. I played it with my switch docked and quickly became immersed in it’s gorgeous imagery. The game feels like you’re playing through an anime show, slow start but then very intense the more you get into it. The gameplay andWow! I didn’t know what to expect when I downloaded this game. I haven’t played anything by Tokyo RPG Factory before. The art style is very beautiful in my opinion. I played it with my switch docked and quickly became immersed in it’s gorgeous imagery. The game feels like you’re playing through an anime show, slow start but then very intense the more you get into it. The gameplay and fighting style may seem repetitive but with constant additions of new Daemons, the combat style you choose to equip yourself with has many fun combinations. The story is fantastic in that you see your characters growth intellectually and personality wise. The boss fights are my favorite part. They can be incredibly difficult, but the more you play the better you can come up with a winning strategy. When I first played the game, I caught myself marveling at the music. Every so often throughout the play through, I catch myself enjoying the music very much. My only complaint would be maneuvering the menu options when you first start playing as it can come off confusing. Other than that, this game is superb.… Expand
  17. Metamorphic
    Jul 26, 2020
    9
    From a gameplay perspective alone this game does a lot of things right and boasts some unique systems that other developers in the space should be looking at for inspiration, I could easily recommend it to any long-time fan of the ARPG genre. The story is solid, the art direction is nice, the soundtrack is acceptable.

    Sadly, there is a lack of challenge. Even on the highest difficulty    From a gameplay perspective alone this game does a lot of things right and boasts some unique systems that other developers in the space should be looking at for inspiration, I could easily recommend it to any long-time fan of the ARPG genre. The story is solid, the art direction is nice, the soundtrack is acceptable.

    Sadly, there is a lack of challenge. Even on the highest difficulty level a lot of enemies stand about lazily and you'd basically have to be trying to get killed. It would have been nice to see the developer offer additional support post-release, NG+ mode would have been a nice addition too, though the post-game dungeon is a solid alternative.    … Expand
  18. anonymous1112
    Sep 5, 2021
    8
    An OK RPG game with long hours of game to finish it at 100%

    Negative:
    - Graphics could be improved for switch
    - A bit repetitive
    - A bit too expensive
  19. Flammie
    Jul 9, 2021
    5
    Oninaki is an ARPG from the RPG factory, their third game and the first ARPG. When I first heard about the plot I was quite intrigued, the theme seemed interesting and the two previous had already shown promise... however, while the plot is still interesting, there's something in it that I quite cannot put my finger on that makes me not excited about, it's just not well presented in a way.Oninaki is an ARPG from the RPG factory, their third game and the first ARPG. When I first heard about the plot I was quite intrigued, the theme seemed interesting and the two previous had already shown promise... however, while the plot is still interesting, there's something in it that I quite cannot put my finger on that makes me not excited about, it's just not well presented in a way. There are characters whose story seems mostly unrelated to the game but you can unlock clips of the stories in the skill tree. The battle system is super boring altogether, and after finishing the game I still don't know how half the game mechanics are supposed to work, like shields and stuff. The battles are mostly buttonsmash anyways, and way too long, it is more like samurai warriors than secret of mana. The movement is super jerky, most moves have seconds of delay and framerate drops regularly to make it even more difficult. The graphics are abysmal, the colour palette is muted browns 90 % of the game, it's like someone's taken angry video game nerd's diarrhoea palette and actually thought it'd be a good idea. The music is decent, but the sound effects drown it and are annoying. In summary the game isn't like bad bad it's just meh, and I too regret wasting my time with it.… Expand
  20. iaszczvr
    Mar 28, 2021
    10
    This game is absolute masterpiece. Story is really great, characters are very well created and combat is amazing and rewarding. Every daemon is different and if you will change it you will feel like playing other, but also amazing, game.
  21. Mochimeplease
    May 19, 2023
    3
    This game is truly disappointing and in my opinion is only worth a quarter of the asking price. The design of the world is something expected back in the era of PS1 albeit with higher res graphics. The character design is straight from any generic JRPG which makes them unlikable and forgettable, not only this, they are in a position to make moral decisions therefore it is very difficult toThis game is truly disappointing and in my opinion is only worth a quarter of the asking price. The design of the world is something expected back in the era of PS1 albeit with higher res graphics. The character design is straight from any generic JRPG which makes them unlikable and forgettable, not only this, they are in a position to make moral decisions therefore it is very difficult to take them and the souls premise seriously since they are designed in such a basic way it really is difficult to grasp the responsibility and power they possess. The world itself is so basic, again, we are in 2023, the world design and creativity was much better in Final fantasy 3 a game made by square enix 30 years ago. This is a game which looks like it was made in a JRPG maker game, from the very moment you turn it on the initial gameplay is underwhelming and does not give you any inspiration to carry on to discover more to the game, the story also starts weak, giving you no real feeling of excitement or need to undertake a new adventure. I feel this game may appeal to the absolute first timers of JRPGS possibly very young pre teen gamers but for anybody who has ever played this type of game before it is massively underwhelming and not worth the time nor effort to invest into it.… Expand

Awards & Rankings

82
#82 Most Discussed Switch Game of 2019
71
#71 Most Shared Switch Game of 2019

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
68

Mixed or average reviews - based on 23 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 9 out of 23
  2. Mixed: 13 out of 23
  3. Negative: 1 out of 23
  1. TheSixthAxis
    Sep 13, 2019
    80
    Once you fall into the groove, Oninaki is greatly enjoyable, even if it initially falls flat because of its repetitive combat. The story heads to dark places surrounding the central theming, occasionally in a ham-fisted way, but still manages to have emotional impact. Ultimately though, Oninaki is a gem of a game if you’re persistent in putting in the work. Tokyo RPG Factory have done it again
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  2. Impulsegamer
    Sep 10, 2019
    50
    Oninaki is brimming with ideas and heavy themes. Unfortunately this is hidden behind some rudimentary, repetitive gameplay.
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  3. FNintendo
    Sep 10, 2019
    70
    Its combat may feel flawed at first but as the game goes on and the customization options open up to the player, ONINAKI becomes more and more enjoyable and its approximate twenty hours of lifespan make this a game that is worthy of the player's attention.
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