The Nioh series has always been celebrated for its diverse combat styles, blending Samurai-era weaponry like swords and tonfa with agile ninja tools such as sickle and chains. Players fluidly switch between high, medium, and low stances, tailoring their approach to each enemy—a core appeal that defines the series’ action-RPG depth and extensive build possibilities.
Nioh 3 promises to elevate this signature combat system. This highly anticipated sequel introduces a refined dual-style approach: the familiar, steadfast Samurai Style and the entirely new, lightning-fast Ninja Style. A single button press now seamlessly transforms your character’s weapons, armor, and even abilities, essentially giving players two distinct loadouts at their fingertips. This innovative system truly amplifies Nioh’s charm as both a dynamic action title and a deep RPG.
Ninja Style isn’t just about combat; it also visually alters your character’s appearance, reflecting their swift movements. You’ll even design unique looks for both Samurai and Ninja Styles during character creation.
Ninja Style even changes how your character looks as you ninja run and more.
Traditionally, Nioh has centered on a samurai warrior, though ninja-inspired moves were always an option. The decision to fully separate these playstyles in Nioh 3 was a conscious one. General Producer Fumihiko Yasuda explained, “We aimed to forge a new, central action mechanic that makes players feel the game has genuinely progressed.”
Yasuda highlighted Team Ninja’s rich heritage with the Ninja Gaiden series. “We possess equal expertise in crafting intense ninja action as we do with Nioh’s samurai combat. Ninjas are immensely popular globally, and we believed this would greatly excite players. Nioh’s unique Japanese setting also perfectly complements the inclusion of a dedicated ninja style,” he added.
This new Ninja Style truly differentiates itself from the Samurai Style. Samurai combat maintains the methodical, block-focused gameplay Nioh fans expect, complete with adaptable weapon stances and the crucial Ki Pulse for stamina recovery.
Pressing a button after attacking while in Ninja Style will allow you to use Mist, creating a clone as you move.
On the other hand, Ninja Style emphasizes rapid, evasion-based combat. While it forgoes weapon stances, it introduces a suite of powerful ninjutsu abilities. Most notably, the familiar Ki Pulse is replaced by a brand-new action: Mist.
The Mist ability allows you to swiftly create a clone after an attack, letting you instantly reposition behind an enemy for increased damage. While this offers incredibly fluid and stylish combat, some people do seem disappointed that it takes away their ability to use Ki Pulse as they always could. Using it becomes second nature to an experienced Nioh player, likely in part because it also links to dispelling special zones created by enemies known as yokai realms.
Why make it so that Ki Pulse is only available in Samurai Style? According to producer Kohei Shibata, this was done to clearly distinguish between the feeling of being a samurai versus a ninja through these styles. Ki Pulse is known as Zanshin in Japanese, a term related to kendo and swordsmanship that refers to a state of mind that prevents one from being open to an attack after striking. Shibata says that the way this manifests in-game, where you carefully manage your ki as you fight, is its way of incorporating a samurai’s style of fighting that draws on both stillness and motion.
A black aura will sometimes appear on the ground while fighting an enemy. This is a yokai realm, an area that will reduce your Ki recovery speed.
“Giving Ninja Style Ki Pulse as well resulted in an issue where the tempo of its combat resembled Samurai Style,” says Shibata. “For ninja, we wanted players to use Mist, an action that makes use of the style’s mobility, when they would normally use Ki Pulse. The stance system also comes from sword kata, or forms, and it seemed wrong to apply that to ninja. That’s why the same button activates both Mist and Ki Pulse. We wanted to create distinct styles of movement and combat, and that’s why we made the decision to not give ninja Ki Pulse.”
“There is a skill that allows you to dispel yokai realms by using Mist in Ninja Style.”
Shibata adds, “There is a skill that allows you to dispel yokai realms by using Mist in Ninja Style.” So while players won’t be able to dispel them at first with Ninja Style, it will become possible as you progress.
We also ask Yasuda why the decision was made to limit Ki Pulse to Samurai Style. He replies, “Though Ki Pulse is a trademark mechanic in the Nioh series, we couldn’t simply reuse it. We needed something ninja-like that would stand out. Part of why Ninja Style has the Mist action is because Samurai Style has Ki Pulse. The style didn’t have Mist at first, but it was created in order to give it a play style just as distinctive as Ki Pulse.”
While the original name for Ki Pulse comes from a kendo term, Mist, or Kasumi in Japanese, is meant to bring to mind the speed and cloning abilities of a ninja. “I promise we didn’t take it from Dead or Alive’s Kasumi,” Yasuda said with a laugh, referring to the name of a ninja character from the series.
But while Dead or Alive references would be a bit too much to expect in Nioh 3, Ninja Gaiden 4 is in development. Could we see some elements from that series in the game? We ask Yasuda if we’ll be able to use Ninja Gaiden-like techniques such as Izuna Drop. He responds promisingly, saying that “We’ll look into creating the sort of action that fans of both series will enjoy.” That said, it could be possible that such techniques or abilities are different from what we’ve seen in Ninja Gaiden.
“There have already been Ninja Gaiden references in the Nioh series, such as in DLC,” says Yasuda. “This time we’ve gone so far as to add Ninja Style, and I think that players will be excited to see some of its elements given that Ninja Gaiden 4 is on the horizon.”
We expect these to be more like Easter eggs, so there’s no telling if we’ll be getting any major news announcements in the future about Ninja Gaiden elements in the game. They may even be put into the final game as surprises, so we’re looking forward to checking the final game with a fine-tooth comb.
Look out for more exclusive Nioh 3 coverage during this month’s IGN First, including our exclusive boss battle featuring the Tiger of Kai, Takeda Shingen!
This article was written by Yuichi Shigeta for IGN Japan and translated by Ko Ransom.