I got into the closed alpha demo. Ask me anything

Hey everyone! I recently got an invite to join the alpha demo of this game. Ask me any questions and I will answer them for you here. I am currently in the middle of playing it so I will answer questions when I can.

1. How is the character creation like?

So far, you can't create an unique character in the alpha. You can create a male or female character. Each gender has 4 preset looks that you can choose from currently. There are a lot of ways to change the appearance of your characters, but I can see the options for each individual traits like types of mustaches you can have. You can also change the look of your yokai appearance when you go into yokai form.

2. What are the yokai forms like?

Currently, I find that they are similar to the last game's guardian spirits where you enter a supercharged form for a brief amount of time. It appears that yokai form has an added bonus ability where you can absorb energy around you to perform super moves.

Sweet, I didn't know this was a thing.

What's the most significant gameplay change you've noticed?

Is the setting still the same era and are there story connections to the first game?

Sorry if some of these things are widely known but I haven't heard anything about this game other than the fact it exists.

Is it fun?

What's the running around like?

@acura_max: From the limited trailer they ran the game looked like basically more Nioh. I couldn't tell if the graphics or anything were significantly improved or even changed. It really looked like a direct continuation of the previous game. So does it feel different? Like have systems been tweaked in major ways? I saw you can turn into a demon thing now which seems to be a big mechanic.

Has the game fully applied the "Cat Watch" mechanic that was excluded from the first game? I need to be able to tell time by looking at a cat's eyes otherwise the experience is ruined for me.

So far I am about 1 hour into the game and have encountered my first mini boss. I won't spoil the boss (unless someone asks), so I will give some general thoughts.

In the last game, one of my biggest gripes is that there was too much recycling content for my liking. Bosses were reused, sometimes with little changes. I remember fighting a boss called Nue at least 4 times throughout my playthrough. The side missions were also not that great. There were at least 2 missions where I had to go through a level that I already been through but in reverse. So far, my impression of the sequel is that I am not holding my breath that this aspect will change. For example, the tutorial mission where you learn the buttons for the game is cut from the first game with one change to end to account for that fact that you're using yokai forms and not living weapons. Hopefully, I am wrong because it's still in Alpha.

The general gameplay so far is very similar to the first nioh. If you liked the first game, you will most likely like this one.

I like how they changed the UI for leveling up skills. It's closer to modern skill trees from games like the witcher 2 (https://i.ytimg.com/vi/Ib8Nxtfpoxk/maxresdefault.jpg). I have not looked into the skills much. So far, I found that they have nerfed the kick from last game. Previously, you could add

1. What's the most significant gameplay change you've noticed?

One of the changes is the addition of a summon sign that you can put down. Unlike the red swords from the last game, these are blue swords that summon an AI bot to help you through the mission.

The other big change I've noticed is the change from the living weapon to the yokai form. The yokai form are basically the living weapons from last game with some alterations. Each yokai form is based on the guardian spirit you're using. You get 3 guardian spirits in the demo so you have 3 yokai forms.

I like this time around, they made the yokai forms more distinct from one another. Each time you go into yokai form, you are locked into a certain weapon type. For example, if you choose the ogre form, you will have to fight with a giant hammer. If you choose the shark form, your character will be hovering above ground with twin swords that your character controls telepathically. You can also dispel the aura of enemy yokai auras (I can't remember if this was in the last game or not). You can absorb the amrita like a magnet by holding down a button. Each yokai form has a charge move and absorbing amrita seems to speed up the charge.

2. Is the setting still the same era and are there story connections to the first game?

The game is set in 1550 which is about 50 years before the first game. So far, I haven't encountered any story stuff.

It's pretty much the same as the last game. On PS4, you can run by holding x while moving. I prefer it over the hold O while moving in the dark souls games.

To sum it up, it's more Nioh. If you didn't like the last game, you won't like this game. And for someone you played the last game and all the dark souls/bloodborne games, the answer to your question is hella yeah.

I like the demon mechanic more than the living weapon system from the last game. I really love how they made each spirit form more distinct. You can read more about my thoughts on it in my response to someoneproud.

No cats yet but I will be on the look out!

I, too, have been "chosen" to play the closed alpha. After a couple of hours though, I'm not sure Nioh is for me. It draws inspiration from games that I really like, but its giant skill trees and focus on loot have put me off a bit. That said, I do appreciate that there's nothing like it.

Based on my brief time with the alpha, the combat seems competent in the very least; I imagine some of the depth comes from mastering the Ki recovery mechanic. Although, as a gameplay mechanic, it's too abstract and it kind of doesn't feed into any "fantasy" that I have playing the game.

I got in as well, how big is the file size?

@acura_max: Good to know, thanks for the info.

I'm assuming the game has the same mission/stage based strucutre? Like mentioned above, one of my biggest problems with the game was a recycled feel but personally, comparing to Souls, I really felt the stage format was much less interesting than the way things could flow together and create a sense of place in those games.

Otherwise I really loved a lot of the gameplay. That and the story/atmosphere being so lacking really took a ton away to leave me merely feeling okay about the first game.