Sword battle games

Ghostrunner is a stylish first-person action game that casts you as a sword-wielding assassin tasked with leading a rebellion against a villainous figure known as The Keymaster. You ascend a massive structure performing fluid parkour maneuvers like wall-running in tandem with a fancy grappling hook that puts you in the crosshairs of armed guards. Combat in Ghostrunner is quite demanding, requiring you to dodge incoming fire using a time slow down ability before moving in for the kill with your cyber-enhanced katana.

Set during the Holy Roman Empire, this story-driven action RPG is about the son of a blacksmith who joins a rebellion to protect citizens from raiders. Parrying, in particular, can take a while to master but is satisfying to engage with while wielding medieval era weaponry such as longswords, sabers, maces, and spears. The game boasts a variety of modes ranging from small squad skirmishes to massive medieval battles with upwards of 60 players.

Combat is more robust than your average Star Wars game, making for technical lightsaber battles accented by visceral feedback and visual effects.

Nioh 2 leans even further into the tough-but-fair Soulslike design of the first game while ditching its handcrafted protagonist in favor of customizable characters. Set during the late s in Sengoku Era Japan, the game acts as a precursor to the events of the original and casts you as Hide, a half-spirit half-samurai.

They all fall into different playstyle categories and have their quirks, but are very effective at ripping into both human and non-human foes. Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice casts you as a deadly Shinobi on a quest to exact revenge against a samurai who chops off his arm.

Similar to Nioh 2, the game takes place during Sengoku Era Japan and consequently features traditional Japanese weapons with the classic FromSoftware touch to give them an otherworldly quality. However, their primary weapon of choice is the katana, with one designed to kill mortals and another for the undead. It sees you playing as a barbarian tasked with entering the dreaded City of Death to conquer their destiny.

Just like the first installment, this is a medieval setting game where battles take place with swords and shields. Mount your steed and gallop into the chaos as iron clashes against each other and arrows fly through the crowds. The Souls franchise is immensely popular. All-in-all, the combat is the same for the most part with each installment. While you have a wide range of weapons to choose from, the combat mainly comes down to successfully parries timed with offensive attacks.

Ghost of Tsushima is set in where the Samurai have been quickly taken out by the Mongol forces that invaded the island. Players in this title will be stepping into the role of Jin who is one of the very last samurai. Sucker Punch has made quite a fun, thrilling and gorgeous game for players to enjoy. Set on an island where you can pretty much explore or simply take in the visuals, Jin will have to go through a series of battles.

Combat is quite enjoyable here as well. Also, another aspect to keep track of when battling against enemies is the fact that you need to hit an enemy with the right attack to break through their block before you can deliver a barrage of slices. For the PlayStation 5, players will get a visual upgrade also new storyline content. Players can battle against another Mongol invasion from a nearby island called Iki. Naraka: Bladepoint is a game well worth checking into. This is a premium battle royale game where players can enter a sixty-player match.

This is more of a fantasy melee battle where players have a mixture of abilities and weapons that can range from spears, grappling hooks, and swords, just to name a few. This is also a relatively new game that launched in August of Chivalry: Medieval Warfare is a multiplayer hack and slash video game. Set in medieval times, players head into a brutal war where the only things available to attack the enemy with are various maces, longbows, and of course swords.

Still, throughout the game, you can find yourself wielding or facing against an opponent with a shortsword to a two-handed greatsword. At the time of writing this description, Chivalry: Medieval Warfare is still available to purchase today, but there is a sequel in the works for a launch at some point this year.

This upcoming sequel is not only going to provide players with a better visual experience but new mechanics, animation systems, to even large 64 player battles. Dishonored is set within a steampunk world where players step into a role of an assassin. The franchise features two installments along with a spin-off but all mainly play the same. Genre : Action , RPG. This is a horror title where players have access to several melee weapons such as swords or clubs while you face all sorts of hostile enemies.

These enemies can range from humans, skeletons, or other heinous monsters. War is all about perspective: Mordhau doesn't lock you with first-person view. If you want to see that new shiny helmet, you unlocked. You can switch to a third-person mode so you can see the glorious warrior you have created. Talk about a slow burn. You watch the trailers and look at the screenshots and think, wow, this looks like a great game. I get to become a knight in real medieval times, where I get to wear real armor wield real weapons.

You would be correct, but what the marketing media doesn't tell you is that for a good chunk, you'll be doing more farm boy stuff than knight stuff for the opening. A knight's tale: Better get comfortable.

This one's a long one. While it may take a while to get going once you start doing knight stuff, it gets exciting, and you begin to feel like a medieval knight. Despite the long journey to becoming a knight, the payoff is worth it.

After you learn the basics of swordplay and warfare, you're thrown into the fray and become a real knight. I hereby knight thee: Everything in the game's environment form the armor, to the weapons and structures were all used and authentic from the time. Say what you want about the pacing, but there's no denying that this game will go down in history and remain a piece of history.

Ever heard of Shadow Warrior? I didn't think so. Originally Shadow Warrior was a 3D first-person shooter that came out on Windows operating system in it was heavily inspired by the likes of doom, and other shooters at its time. Now we're not talking about the original no; we're talking about the sequel to the reboot that came out in This one kept a lot of its shooter elements but expanded on melee weapons. Laser katana's dual swords, chakrams, Tekko-Kagi Claws. You got the touch: games like Destiny, Borderlands, and the division are looter shooters.

Consider this a looter slasher. While it's got projectile weapons, the melee system was improved so that cutting and slashing became more viable.

The reboot kept it safe and went more the Doom route; Shadow Warrior 2 took more of Borderlands route and had in-game loot and different levels of each weapon. I don't think you'll find a better combination of games, killing Japanese demons doom style with the addictive loot system of Borderlands. Who wants some Wang: What's better than Lo Wang and his vulgar dialogue? How about 4 Wangs? Way of the Samurai is a story-driven RPG that gives the player choices that affect the story.

And lets you engage or not engage with enemy NPCs. The story, however, is the primary focus here as it takes place during the Meiji era, which is Japan's most significant moment in history as it started to go away from their traditions and became more modernized with the times.

Way of the warrior, or way of the pacifist: Each interaction is optional, and combat can be avoided. Now, what's the fun in that? Choosing to fight usually ends up with a large group attacking you. Pick your battles wisely. The later installments might have gotten a little goofy, but Way of the Samurai is a decent RPG in its own right and can hold itself up until Ghost of Tsushima gets released.

A truly underrated gem: This fell under the radar of most gamers at its time of release. It was released in February of just a month before Kingdom Hearts. Did Kingdom Hearts over shadow Way of the Samurai? That's unsure. But this game is a love letter to those who love the samurai culture. Samurai Shodown has returned. As part of the SNK line up, Samurai Shodown was one of their niche titles but still beloved to this day. What makes it stands out is its gameplay.

It's your typical 1v1 2D fighter. You have your special moves, and each character is unique and different. Fight like a true warrior: Fights are slow, and your best way to win is by reading your opponent and getting an excellent counter strike on them. A full-on offensive attack isn't going to do you much good. Waiting for the right moment will take you far in this game. Samurai Shodown stands out with how it plays.

It's all about finding the right opening and striking. Every hit is going to hit you like a truck, which is how a samurai fighting game should play. Waiting for the right moment and then striking your enemy down.

Fight with authenticity: The game features a dynamic range of ways to fight. You have your typical fast and heavy attacks with special attacks, and then you can clash with your opponent, If you happen to get disarmed you'll have to resort to the good ole' fisticuffs. Just don't lose your weapon.

It won't be fun for you. The Witcher 3 has never felt as weighty or as impactful as a game like God of War or Dark Souls, but the system shines in its fluidity and the satisfaction of landing counters and finishers at the right time. Using the Lightsaber feels great even when using the Move controllers on the PSVR, and the game offers a chance to duel Vader himself as well offering more longevity with the excellent Lightsaber Dojo mode.

Released in , Soul Calibur VI was something of a comeback for the series and a huge improvement over its predecessor. The combat still feels great for those familiar with its predecessors and it is more accessible than ever before and easy to pick up for almost anybody. Fights can go back and forth and a simple mistake is to turn the tide and break the flow of an offensive.

The Way of the Samurai series began on the PlayStation 2 in , with the series' final entry landing on the PlayStation 3 in with Way of the Samurai 4. The games are quirky action-adventure games with open-ended branching storylines that change the world around defined by the choices you'll make.

There are several combat styles to learn, and a push and pull parrying system that will take some time to learn but will make it feel like every battle is hard-fought, requiring tactics and timing. Released in and available for all current systems and arcades, Samurai Shodown is a weapons-based fighting game set during the Japanese Tenmai Era. The long-running series has prided itself on the requirement of each fight is a battle of skill and patience. There are no pointless gimmicks that can turn the tide of the battle with a simple button press, Samurai Shodown is all about skill.

Released in , The Surge 2 is the sequel to the science-fiction Souls-like that was released in Just like the Dark Souls series, The Surge 2 is a difficult but fair RPG with a variety of enemies that require some serious thought and strategy to defeat. The counter and parry system is a vast improvement over the original by implementing a new quad-directional parry mechanic that functions in s similar manner to For Honor and Kingdom Come Deliverance.