The alpha demo for Team Ninja’s Nioh 3 debuted last month to much excitement, albeit for a limited time. Several weeks later, the developer revealed the results of its player survey while outlining upcoming improvements and fixes. Overall, it plans to improve the controls, including fixes for “problem areas in control responsiveness” and providing more customization.
It’s also adjusting the “gimmicks and enemies” that were “unreasonably difficult”, while adjusting the performance and balance of “various actions.” The visibility and balance between the stages and open field will also improve, while notifications appearing on screen will become less distracting. It may also become possible to dismiss them with a button press.
Of course, that’s only a handful of planned improvements, as Team Ninja also wants to make it easier to perform control stick-dependent Martial Arts, increase the speed of Elixir motions, shorten the recovery frames for Burst Break, and more. Check out some of the planned adjustments below, and full details here.
Nioh 3 is coming to PS5 and PC next year. Stay tuned for more details and updates (including a potential new demo) in the coming months.
Overall Adjustment Plans
- Improve controls in response to high demand from players.
- Improve problem areas in control responsiveness.
- Make controls more customizable by adding options.
- Adjust gimmicks and enemies that were unreasonably difficult.
- Add and improve tutorial visibility.
- Adjust the performance and balance of various actions.
- Improve the overall quality of background graphics.
- Improve the visibility and balance of stages and the open field, and make exploration elements easier to understand and more well-balanced.
- Make notifications and other elements that appear on screen during combat less distracting, and make it possible to dismiss such notifications via button/key input.
- Improve the balance of progression elements.
- Improve the quality of multiplayer mode.
Player Actions and Controls
- Make it easier to perform Martial Arts that require the use of the control stick, and add an option to perform those Arts using buttons.
- Make changes to prioritize Martial Arts rather than grappling when the player presses △ following a Quick Attack against an enemy whose Ki has been depleted.
- Add an option to perform Guardian Spirit Skills with different inputs.
- Decrease the negative effects that come from using Transformed Arts.
- Enable the use of Ninjutsu after canceling Mist.
- Increase the number of actions that can be canceled using Guardian Spirit Skills.
- Increase the window during which a Guardian Spirit Skill can be canceled.
- Make the motions for using Elixirs faster.
- Make it possible to perform Martial Arts while using Living Artifact.
- Increase the Martial Arts commands available for use with all ninja weapons, and increase the types of Martial Arts that can be set.
- Make it easier to open the Gesture menu.
- Make it possible to unlock the option to swap weapons, allowing the player to switch between two equipped melee weapons in each play style, through game progression.
Style Shift and Burst Break
- Make it possible to change the method of differentiating Style Shift and Burst Break (by either pressing or holding the appropriate button) in the Options menu rather than the Skills menu.
- Add an option to differentiate Style Shift and Burst Break via different inputs.
- Shorten the recovery frame for Burst Break.
Summoning Seals
- Make it possible to use Summoning Seals while moving and improve usability.
- Add a skill to cancel other actions when the player uses a Summoning Seal.
Enemies
- Make highly requested adjustments while maintaining the tension of encounters with formidable enemies.
- Make adjustments to the performance of some overpowered enemies.
- Reduce the HP for some overpowered enemies.
- Make is so that Crucible Wasps can no longer movie to heights that are impossible to reach with jump attacks.
- Adjust the movement speed and behavior of Crucible Wasps so that it will be easier for Ninjutsu attacks to land.
- Reduce the target tracking abilities of enemies to make it possible to flee from them.
Level Design and Stages
- Improve GI (global illumination) behavior.
- Lessen the fog in some areas where it was too thick.
- Adjust elements that look as if they have a matte texture.
- Make it clearer which locations or elevations cannot be accessed.
- Improve visibility in dark or shadowed areas like inside buildings or in the Crucible.
- Reduce the amount of fall damage taken.
The Crucible
- Improve replayability by making it possible for players to fully recover from Life Corrosion when their Guardian Spirits return to their side.
- Make it possible to recover from Life Corrosion by using Elixirs via the effects of Jizo Blessings.
