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Onimusha: Way of the Sword offers a second run through the campaign after the credits, along with a separate option to return to the post-game state of a finished save. Both are documented in community guides to the shipped game; Capcom's own web manual does not describe either, so the detail below is recorded as community documentation rather than as first-party material.
Two Separate Post-Clear Options
Option | What It Does |
|---|---|
New Game Plus | Starts the story again from the beginning, carrying part of the previous save forward |
Return to the post-game hub | Resumes the finished save at the late-story chapter with the cleared state intact, for mopping up side content |
The second option is the one to use for completion work. Because Eastern Kyoto closes permanently once the endgame begins, a player who reached the credits with side activities outstanding needs this route rather than a fresh run.
What Carries Over
The carry-over list is unusually lossy for the genre. Abilities and collections persist; gear and currency do not. A player expecting to start a second run with a fully upgraded sword will not.
Carries Over | Does Not Carry Over |
|---|---|
Limb awakening progress | Main story and both side-quest tracks |
Basic and special ability states | Sword, garb and gauntlet upgrade levels |
Hozuki Pouch acquisition and upgrades | Equipment upgrade materials |
Items, some materials, and offerings | Red soul balance |
Charm collection and upgrades | Spirit Mirror unlock state |
Appearance and cosmetic collection | The Oni Bow itself |
Practice ground drills and boss rematch clears | The red soul exchange unlock list |
Genma Notes and Lion Dog collection |
The single most consequential line in that table is the Hozuki Pouch one. Pouch upgrades persist while equipment upgrades do not, so pouch materials are worth spending before a first clear and equipment materials are worth holding only to the extent they help finish the run.
What a First Clear Unlocks
Finishing the story once opens several things that cannot be reached on a first run at all:
A third difficulty level above the two available from the start
The strongest sword in the game, which is awarded for clearing the story on that third difficulty and is therefore unreachable before a second run
Two joke costumes, including a panda suit
The third difficulty as an option for boss rematches at the practice ground, with its own cosmetic reward for clearing the full roster
That chain is why the completion route runs through New Game Plus rather than around it. The rarest achievements in the game sit below every collection award in unlock rate, which is consistent with a reward tier that a first playthrough cannot reach.
Planning a Second Run
Because red souls and equipment levels reset, a second run starts weaker in raw numbers than the first ended, but far stronger in capability: every learned ability, every charm, and every pouch upgrade is still in hand. The practical effect is that the early chapters compress sharply while the damage ceiling stays low until materials are re-gathered.
Anyone planning the third difficulty should know it cannot be applied to an existing save. It requires a fresh run, and once a run is started on it the difficulty option is removed from the Spirit Mirror for that run, so there is no dropping down mid-way.