Why Nioh 2 was able to win and motivate for many hours despite too much loot, technical deficits, and a somewhat labored story? Each of the nine weapon types feels different, plus useful samurai, ninja, and spell techniques. Particularly noteworthy are the cool Yokai abilities, including demonic transformation, as well as the brute force counterattacks. The wonderful finishers also provide plenty of bloody hacks & play flair.
Nioh 2 runs super smoothly, looks a tad better, and naturally benefits from faster loading times, even if not everything is polished to a high gloss. You don't reach the graphical quality of a Demon's Souls here, but this old Japan offers some eye-catchers especially with the transformations and demons.
Although the mapping on the keyboard can be customized in detail, the game always shows the controller mapping as a prompt - both in the menu and in the game itself. Instead of showing that you should press "E", there is only the "circle" of the PlayStation controller as a prompt. So you would have to learn both the mapping for the controller and the transfer to the keyboard, which is of course complete nonsense, instead of showing the correct keys right away. The developers knew about this circumstance but were not able to fix it in time. Therefore, players who want to play with a keyboard should still wait for updates or use a controller. It is unclear whether the developers are aware of the mouse problem.
Conclusion
You like adventures à la Dark Souls or Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice? You haven't played Nioh 2 yet? Then go for it! It's very good entertainment with a varied battle system that looks even better on PS5 and PC, runs faster and of course loads faster than on PS4. However, if you want to play with a mouse and keyboard on the computer, you will find a poor implementation. This costs the award, but if you use a gamepad, which I strongly recommend for this kind of game, there is nothing to complain about. Team Ninja serves you the full program here with all three expansions of Nioh 2 as well as a great service for those who already own the game on PS4. After the disappointing Celts and Werewolves, this is a fight worth recommending. Have fun among all the demons in ancient Japan!
