Less than a day away from the launch of Nioh 3, critics have been raving about Team Ninja’s open world entry in its Sengoku soulslike series. In our Nioh 3 review, we called it “joyfully over the top” thanks to its maximalist take on style-swapping combat mechanics, gluttonous loot density, and wide variety of monstrous enemy yokai.
In an email interview with PC Gamer, Nioh 3 director Masaki Fujita said the threequel incorporates lessons learned from the ARPGs Koei Tecmo has released since Nioh 2. But Nioh 3 wasn’t only informed by Team Ninja’s own work. According to Fujita, Neowiz’s Pinocchio soulslike Lies of P was a source of creative inspiration for Nioh 3’s boss and combat design.
When asked how player reactions to Koei Tecmo’s recent soulslike and ARPG releases influenced Nioh 3, Fujita said 2023’s Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty underscored that, while loot is a key part of Nioh’s appeal, “there’s a need to control the complexity of the game.” Likewise, he noted that some players felt the relationship between Wo Long’s protagonist and their counterpart in the Blindfolded Boy was underdeveloped, leading Team Ninja to “go into more depth” with how core character relationships are portrayed in Nioh 3.
2024’s Rise of the Ronin, meanwhile, helped the studio hone its open world craft, as players reported wanting “more to enjoy in exploration” and more sidequests. Fujita also said that Rise of the Ronin demonstrated that there can be “a benefit to holding back on fantasy-like elements.”
“As to how we used these learnings in this game, I’d like you to explore the open field of Nioh 3 and see for yourself,” Fujita said.
Beyond Team Ninja’s own games, Fujita said that in recent years, the game from another developer that he’s been most inspired by is Lies of P. Aside from the parallels in combat rhythm between the two games, Fujita said the Pinocchio soulslike was impressive both in the visual creativity of its boss designs and how Neowiz’s combat animations utilized the full potential of those designs. That, he said, was valuable food for thought when realizing Nioh 3’s colorful bestiary of enemy yokai.
“In addition to [Lies of P’s] solid action that requires careful use of guarding and evading, I really had a lot of fun in the battles against the bosses, who had a wide variety of designs,” Fujita said. “In particular, the bosses’ attack actions made full use of their distinctive designs, so it was great stimulation in giving me inspiration when thinking about the yokai actions in Nioh.”
We all owe puppets so much. If you’re eager to see when you can dive into Nioh 3 yourself, be sure to check out our rundown of Nioh 3 unlock times.
