Nioh 2: The First Samurai DLC Impressions

I have spent quite a bit of time this year getting my hands dirty with Nioh 2 and it’s expansions. Much of which has been an enjoyable experience into a game style I typically don’t enjoy much. The final DLC expansion came out last week titled The First Samurai.

The First Samurai expansion will add the “Dream of Nioh” difficulty, along with new Guardian Spirits. The DLC expansion will also feature new yokai for players to encounter, such as the Konaki-Jiji and the Itsumade. In addition, a series of new end game content will be added to Nioh 2 and based on the first Nioh‘s Abyss mode.

Nioh 2‘s The First Samurai DLC will tie up the main story’s loose ends. This scenario will be set during the early Heian period, sending players back into the past. The hero will meet an important figure that resembles a character that players will be more than familiar with, provided they beat the base game. Sadly, this expansion did not add in any new weapon types, which is always one of the more fun elements to this game when they introduce them.

Nioh 2 as a complete package is a fantastic game that I can’t recommend enough to gamers who like a challenge. Unfortunately, this final expansion damped my excitement a bit, The First Samurai felt more like an obligation to finish rather than something to have fun and explore through. The drab environments continue until you get into a vibrant forest environment which thankfully added some splashes of color. Much of this expansion felt more like a reskin of stuff I’ve already done over and over in this game rather than a new experience. The enemies you encounter are just the same as the base game but with a different look to them, which is honestly something this game has suffered from all along, a variety not in just looks but mechanics of its enemies.  The boss battles were cool and felt different but honestly, that’s about it. Depending on how good you are you can expect 10-15 hours added to your game time on this title.

If you bought the season pass, all in all, no regrets it’s more content for you. However, if you have been buying each thing piece-meal, I would have to say unless you are a die-hard Nioh fan (which if you are you should have bought the pass) you can skip this expansion. If you haven’t jumped into Nioh 2, it’s definitely worth experiencing as the PS5 remaster which will include everything for next-gen owners.