What a weird week it's been for me regarding Capcom. I mean, here's a company that showed off an impressive line of forthcoming games in Vegas, and have two very anticipated games coming down the line, and then they release...Final Fight Streetwise, which I already consider one of the bigger stinkers of the year. And it's not even April yet. But I said in that review that the company would be back, and here it is, a week later, and they have a piece of quality work that once again puts me on the right track of appreciation.

Onimusha: Dawn of Dreams is the latest in the long-running samurai action series, and yet, this chapter takes a fresh new approach that really has very little to do with previous chapters of the series. Earlier chapters had your character, the heroic Samanosuke, pitted against the evil Oda Nobunaga, who has finally been taken down after the Genma forces so strongly backing him have failed. This time around, a new villain is not only entering the fray, but a new hero as well- along with some interesting back-up.

The game puts you in control of Soki, this strange blonde-haired warrior who packs a mean sword and has an interesting pair of horns mounted on his head. This is explained as the game goes on. Soki has squarely given himself the task of bringing down Hideyoshi Toyotomi, Nobunaga's successor, who is headed the right way towards giving the land peace and finds himself tormented by demon forces upon seeing a new planet emerge in the sky. Of course, no road is easy, and the evil Toyotomi has set forth a series of monstrous demons to cut Soki down to size. But Soki's not fighting the battle alone, as he picks up a number of assisting sidekicks (fellow warriors?) along the way, each with their own battle techniques and helpful services to get Soki that much closer to stopping this monstrosity.

That's something that makes Dawn of Dreams stand out in the series, the ability to switch off between characters and greatly mix up the gameplay. Each of these characters have a series of attacks and items that will come into play over the course of your quest, and the gameplay is mounted really well. In fact, it almost seems separated from the original Onimusha formula to begin with. Most of the game, you're able to move the camera around and move rather freely in combat, with only a few fixed segments coming into play (probably for hardcore fans of the series). This fighting system manages to have some excitement to it, unlike other brawling games out there (dare I mention Streetwise again?), and a pair of upgrade systems allows you to help your characters reach the next level with ease. I also like the ability of switching to characters on the fly with the press of a button, and having to watch energy bars carefully to make sure they stay alive through combat situations. It's really got something going for it.

The quest is long and thoughtful, too. There's at least 15 hours of gameplay packed into the game's two discs, and the potential to come back and finish the game in a different way helps push you back into the action once you've defeated Toyotomi and the forces behind him. The bosses in the game pack a punch and a great deal of difficulty, so you can prepare yourself as you go through the level. I wish the general enemy difficulty was bumped up just as much, but I suppose not every warrior can be the smartest in the land, right?

The story moves along rather well, thanks to the integration of the game's events and the beautifully rendered cut-scenes that help form it. There are a couple of twists and turns here and there to keep you interested, even as you're trying to fathom the sometimes ridiculous dialogue that comes into play. Really, did we need another villain with a maniacal laugh? What's wrong with just providing a villainous scowl or just getting the urge to come ahead and kill somebody without having to provide a piece of dialogue better left for a Steven Seagal flick?

Besides the script lapses, the presentation does just fine. The way that the development team has rebuilt the engine to have a better free-flowing combat style is superb, and the visuals back them up with a lavish, beautiful representation of a war-torn world. The game never really drops that much in frame rate, and the animation is as smooth as it's ever been. Sound-wise, the actors do a fine job filling their roles, despite the corniness at times, and the music is concentrated on the subject at hand.

Dawn of Dreams does have a couple of lapses, however. First off, there are a few puzzles that come into play that are rather annoying, forcing you to do some back-tracking here and there. This interrupts the solid flow of play from time to time, and it's a slight bother. Not that I'm objectionable to puzzles, though. I liked the fact that some puzzles can only be solved using a particular sidekick (ally?) at hand. It's just the long-winded ones that bother me, instead of finding something along the lines of a puzzle box. Also, there are a couple of multiplayer integrations that come into play, including a co-op mode and a little battle arena mode, but they feel tacked on at best, instead of meaty additions that will prompt your friends to play with you on them more than once. They still deliver where needed, but you can't help but think they would've really been something special with just a little more time...and love...put into them.

But the fact that the formula has changed so much and yet still remains so dedicated to its source is reason enough to celebrate. Onimusha: Dawn of Dreams is a terrific addition in the series and will hopefully lead to some further signifying changes once Onimusha 5 eventually makes its appearance on the PS2...or maybe even the PS3. Don't miss it, it's the stuff that Dreams are made of. (Wow, now I've gotten corny.)