Nioh 3 releases early next year, marking the long-awaited return of Team Ninja’s engagingly tough soulslike action series. The developer briefly switched tracks in 2023 with the excellent Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty, which applied a similar demonic mythological premise to the Three Kingdoms era of China. But for many, Nioh 3 will be the return many fans have been waiting for since 2020 and the release of Nioh 2.
I recently went hands-on with Nioh 3 at a preview event, and my impressions so far have been largely positive. At the same time, I was able to sit down with the game’s producers, Kohei Shibata and Fumihiko Yasuda, to learn more about its development, the team’s approach to difficulty, the balance of the new combat styles, and more.
