If you’re in the market for games that are in some way similar to Team Ninja’s recently released Edo-period action RPGRise of the Ronin, then you’re in luck. There is no shortage of games with a basis in the history of Japan, replete with samurai, ninja and yokai of all shapes and sizes.
Whether you’re interested in fast-paced action games, cinematic side-scrollers, or even real-time strategy, there’s bound to be something for your tastes in the wide variety of games that have some mechanical or aesthetic similarities to Rise of the Ronin.
Wo Long: Fallen Dynastyis the previous game developed by Team Ninja and, unlike Rise of the Ronin and most of the other games on this list, takes place outside of a historical Japanese setting. Instead, it is set during the collapse of the Chinese Han Dynasty, withall the Chinese mythologythat this implies.
Similar to Rise of the Ronin, Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty is also an action RPG, and will be familiar for those moving from one game to the other.
7Total War: Shogun 2
Total War: Shogun 2might seem out of place alongside the other games on this list, but it should not be skipped over by fans of Japanese history. Developed by Creative Assembly, Total War: Shogun 2 continues the trends of the Total War series in featuring the depth of strategy and tactics.
It depicts the battlefields of the Japanese Warring States period. This is a time rife for conflict, offering an almost endless number of situations to command legions of troops on your path to victory.
Trek to Yomi is a cinematic action game with a side-scrolling perspective developed by Flying Wild Hog. Like many of the other games on this list, Trek to Yomi is also set during the Edo period, a time that spans over two hundred years of Japanese history, and concerns the journey of the main character into a world of myth and legend.
The combat system is deceptively simple, centered mainly around identifying the stances of enemies to best take advantage of their weaknesses. To this end, a variety of tools are at your disposal.
5Way Of The Samurai 4
Way of the Samurai is a long-running series of action games by Acquire, the same developers as the Tenchu series. The setting of Way of the Samurai 4 will be familiar for those coming from Rise of the Ronin, as both are set during the Bakumatsu stage of the Edo period.
Way of the Samurai 4 is centered around the delicate balance in Japan during this time period, as many different factions, both domestic and foreign, all vie for power.
Like a Dragon: Ishin!, an action-adventure game developed by Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio, is a historical spin-off of the Like a Dragon series. Unlike the modern games in the series, Like a Dragon: Ishin! is set in the same historical period as Rise of the Ronin.
Like a Dragon: Ishin! features a cast including many of the same character designs as the series it is based on, reinterpreted for the time period, lending itself a familiarity for those already invested or a jumping-off point for newcomers.
Ghost of Tsushima is an action game developed by Sucker Punch Productions, now available on PC while already being playable on the modern PlayStation consoles. Ghost of Tsushima is centered around the first Mongol invasion of Japan, and features an open world to explore in the defense of Tsushima Island.
The gameplay in Ghost of Tsushima is predominantly centered around the use of stealth in taking out foes and takes strong influence from the historical films of Akira Kurosawa with a particular focus on the game’s vistas.
Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice, developed by FromSoftware, is a sibling game to the popularDark Soulsseries. Unlikethe high fantasy worlds of the Dark Souls games, Sekiro has a more grounded setting, with all the action taking place in the Sengoku period of Japanese history.
Combat in Sekiro is fast and visceral, with very little to worry about outside the immediacies of combat. There is a rhythm to the combat in Sekiro that some may find demanding, but is highly rewarding once mastered.
Nioh 2is probably the game that will be most familiar to those looking for something similar to Rise of the Ronin. Nioh 2 was also developed by Team Ninja, and the sequel to the game that has defined their modern output as a studio.
Nioh 2 is all about battling yokai, monsters and spirits from Japanese folklore. Nioh 2 is set in a more fantastical world than Rise of the Ronin, the setting of which also predates that game by several hundred years.
