Now there's a game I haven't seen in a very long time. I remember playing the demo years ago. I thought the combat mechanics, specifically when it came to melee, were excellent at the time. The only real complaint I read about the game which you may be able to confirm/deny is that from some point onwards the game feels a bit rushed or devoid of content?

Mine is too long to fit in!

Kinky... and ouch! =P

I don't remember if it felt rushed in the end. Thus far, with a couple of "missions" (ie levels) left to complete the game, I'm just having fun with fightings, exploration and stuff. Oni's close combat still is one of the best I've ever experienced in my gaming career. It's just... satisfying. And fun.

i used a generic ps3 controller, which was fine since the l2 and r2 buttons are trigger like and worked good for aiming up and down. i couldnt get it to use the d-pad though. just use what ever you got or works.

nvm

i cant bring myself to.shoot them anymore

It really is, and very satisfying, if you manage to pull it off that is :) It definitely has some of the more(most?) technical melee mechanics I've seen in a game, but that just made you feel like a badass when you used it right. I used to play that demo to death because I just had to dispatch each enemy in the coolest possible way.
Kind of reminds me of Batman Arkham Asylum in that respect, except Oni's more difficult iirc.

Yeah, Oni isn't a particularly user-friendly game but I don't mind. A lot of modern "gamers" are pussies, and all the "friendly" crap available on the market doesn't interest me in the slightest :-P

By the way, it's not as technical, but if you enjoy a high skill ceiling on your combat system, in a third person action game, that makes you look like a badass when you pull it off correctly then there's also :
Urban Chaos, PoP:Warrior Within, Jedi Knight Jedi Outcast and its sequel Academy
(Possibly Rune as well)
Ever tried any of those?

I played a lot of Prince of Persia: Warrior Within, the PoP saga is one of my favorite indeed. It's nice, but I prefer the mechanics of Sands of Time: pretty solid and simple gameplay, at least for me, that I know inside-out and that makes me kill foes in pretty spectacular and satisfying ways...

Rune is on my list, but nothing beats Severance - Blade of Darkness if we are talking about brutal and gory sword-fighting...

Interesting, I definitely prefer the overall style and vibe of Sands of Time, but I found the combat aged poorly for me. I felt that I didn't have enough options to dispatch enemies quickly enough, like those various Mortal Kombat type combos of Warrior Within. Combat often felt like a slog for me on my last playthrough. But of course it's possible that I hadn't actually come close to mastering the combat, and that there actually are ways to dispatch the enemies quicker.

Yup, I regret not having grabbed Blade of Darkness while I still could. I played the demo years back and while it's similar to Rune I do recall thinking that it was better.

As for me: I don't think anything beats the lightsaber combat of Jedi Outcast and Academy :)
https://www.reddit.com/r/gaming/comments/5s2tl2/awesome_lightsaber_fighting/

Kirby has finally done it. He saved everyone! Three cheers for our favourite puffball!

On the bright side, I did manage to get that squirrel.

Extreme Christmas makeover!