Oniken

About

Oniken is a single-player "Violence Platformer" game with an interesting plot, set in a post-apocalyptic world dominated by the evil military organization Oniken. As the ninja mercenary Zaku, players must fight against Oniken's forces in challenging, retro-style levels, with exceptional graphics and an excellent soundtrack reminiscent of the 1980s. Prepare to die a lot, as the game stays true to the tough difficulty of its inspirations. Each copy includes a digital version of the game manual and soundtrack.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player

77%

Audience ScoreBased on 917 reviews

graphics98 positive mentions

grinding20 negative mentions

Oniken captures the essence of classic NES games with its tight controls, challenging gameplay, and nostalgic graphics and music.
The game features a fair difficulty curve that rewards players for learning enemy patterns and mastering levels, making it a satisfying experience.
The pixel art and cutscenes are well-crafted, providing a charming retro aesthetic that resonates with fans of 80s and 90s action platformers.

The game can be frustratingly difficult, with scarce checkpoints and a punishing lives system that forces players to replay entire levels after dying.
Some players find the controls to be unresponsive or awkward, leading to cheap deaths and a lack of enjoyment in gameplay.
The game lacks innovation and can feel repetitive, relying heavily on trial-and-error mechanics that may not appeal to all players.

graphics
228 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
43%
55%
2%
The graphics of Oniken are a nostalgic homage to the NES era, featuring well-crafted pixel art and vibrant colors that evoke a retro aesthetic. While many players appreciate the authentic 8-bit style and detailed cutscenes, some critiques highlight issues with color clashes and a lack of polish in certain areas. Overall, the visuals are generally well-received, though opinions vary on their execution compared to other indie platformers.
- “Great pixel art graphics, great chiptune music, great cinematics; the presentation is just phenomenal.”
- “The artists did an amazing job with the visuals: the graphics aren't stylized to look like 8-bit — they are 8-bit, and great at that.”
- “Oniken's reproduction of a retro style goes far beyond its pixelated visuals or its rockin' chiptune soundtrack.”
- “Yes, it reeks of that NES era nostalgia, but honestly there are tons of better looking SNES-aping indie platformers out there which grab the feel better and don't try to hurt your eyes like Oniken does. Seriously, whoever thought of using clashing colors in a fast-paced platformer needs to get sent to a graphic design class for beginners, pronto.”
- “The graphics are reminiscent of the NES era, but there is just something slightly off at times. The snow on the snow level looks terrible, but generally the graphics are cool looking.”
- “Ok, 5 minutes into this game and it gave me a headache. I'm not trying to be cute here; I mean my head is splitting, and the causes of which are the graphics and the music. Seriously, don't buy it unless you know what you are getting into.”
gameplay
210 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
28%
63%
9%
The gameplay is a nostalgic homage to classic NES platformers, featuring simple mechanics and a punishing difficulty that encourages trial-and-error learning. While many players appreciate the tight controls, vibrant pixel art, and catchy soundtrack, others find the repetitive nature and steep difficulty frustrating and tedious. Overall, the game offers a solid retro experience, but its lack of unique mechanics and potential for cheap deaths may not appeal to everyone.
- “The gameplay is very satisfying, and anyone who enjoys action-platformers will have a blast playing it.”
- “Tight gameplay, nice chiptune-y soundtrack, great sprite work, cool cutscenes like Ninja Gaiden on the NES... what's not to love?”
- “From the great music, challenging and difficult gameplay, along with wonderfully crafted and aesthetically pleasing 8-bit graphics, Oniken is well worth all the money it is going for, especially for those hardcore 8-bit challenge hounds like me.”
- “Making the core mechanic of a game purposefully hard to extend playability, to me at least, is not a very viable option as it can cause the gameplay to feel frustrating and tedious.”
- “The art style is good and the music is catchy, but unfortunately the gameplay is poor, and the gameplay means everything.”
- “Lots of repetition, cheap deaths, tedious gameplay - unfun.”
music
186 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
55%
39%
6%
The music in the game has received mixed reviews, with many praising its catchy, retro chiptune style that evokes nostalgia for the NES era. While some players find the soundtrack to be lively and fitting, others criticize it as generic or forgettable, suggesting that it doesn't always match the game's high-quality graphics and gameplay. Overall, the music is seen as a strong aspect of the game, contributing positively to the overall experience, despite some dissenting opinions.
- “The music is lively and catchy, adding well to the gameplay.”
- “Great pixel art graphics, great chiptune music, great cinematics; the presentation is just phenomenal.”
- “Oniken's reproduction of a retro style goes far beyond its pixelated visuals or its rockin' chiptune soundtrack.”
- “Also, the music is pants except for 2-3 tunes.”
- “The music is painfully generic and terrible.”
- “Graphically, the game has succeeded nobly in what it set out to do, though sadly the audio doesn't quite match up; the sound effects are fine, but the music is quite drab (some of it's alright, but most is really almost surprisingly bad) and sounds a bit more like something that tries to emulate this kind of sound rather than something from the system itself.”
story
176 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
23%
75%
2%
The story of Oniken is a nostalgic homage to 1980s action films, featuring a lone hero battling against a robot army in a world filled with cheesy sci-fi elements and vibrant visuals. While the narrative is straightforward and somewhat cliché, it is delivered through engaging cutscenes that enhance the retro experience, making it enjoyable despite its simplicity. Players appreciate the fun twists and the overall atmosphere, though some find the story lacks depth and innovation, serving primarily as a backdrop for the challenging gameplay.
- “Oniken is the story of Radd Tuthemaxx, the coolest dude ever and the only man with a sword who can lead a three-man strike team to defeat the world-spanning killer robot army led by the 80s anime bad guys.”
- “The story is classic 80's action: a lone one-man army must battle his way through ninjas, robots, and mutants in order to save the world.”
- “The story is quite cheesy and fun in a goofy sci-fi anime way, but it is written much better compared to Ninja Gaiden's cut-scenes.”
- “The real hell begins at the 5th mission, and if you look at the game completion statistics, it becomes clear that reasonable players dropped this mediocre clone of 'Ninja Gaiden' a long time ago.”
- “It's not perfect.. aside from the music, the story's pretty pathetic (though so fitting for the time period it's forgivable) and there's just no depth or innovation here at all.”
- “When I beat a mission in Oniken, I thought 'ugh, I’m glad that’s finally over' and not 'that was a fun and worthwhile way to spend my time.'”
replayability
22 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
45%
41%
14%
The game offers a mix of replayability through features like boss rush modes, hardcore challenges, and speedrun achievements, appealing particularly to players who enjoy completing achievements and improving their skills. However, some reviewers note that its linear design limits replay value, with only a few hidden items and challenges to explore. Overall, while the game is short, its engaging difficulty and clever level design contribute to a satisfying replay experience for those seeking additional challenges.
- “The boss rush, hardcore mode, and speedrun achievements are well thought out and fun to do, enhancing replayability.”
- “Awesome graphics, great gameplay, and good replayability if you are into achievements or speedruns.”
- “The only real major flaw I can find with the game is that it's pretty short, but it more than makes up for it with its amazing replayability.”
- “Replayability - 2/5 - the game is extremely linear and doesn't offer any deviation from the main path.”
- “There isn't that much replayability for the game; there are a few hidden items, one per level, and there are achievements for beating a level without dying.”
- “Achievements, a boss rush, and hardcore mode add some replay value and challenge to an already difficult game.”
grinding
20 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Reviews highlight that the grinding aspect of the game is often frustrating and tedious, with high difficulty levels and cheap deaths leading to repetitive gameplay. Players express that the need to restart entire stages after losing all lives detracts from the overall flow and enjoyment, making the experience cumbersome. While some may appreciate the challenge reminiscent of old-school games, many recommend approaching it with caution or waiting for a sale.
- “Making the core mechanic of a game purposefully hard to extend playability, to me at least, is not a very viable option as it can cause the gameplay to feel frustrating and tedious.”
- “Worse yet, losing all lives results in starting the entire stage over, meaning even if you can ace the earlier parts of a stage, repeating them just to get practice on the later parts becomes very tedious, reminding me of some of the worst aspects of games like Ninja Gaiden.”
- “Lots of repetition, cheap deaths, tedious gameplay - unfun.”
stability
16 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The stability of the game has received mixed reviews, with some users experiencing frequent frame drops and freezes that detract from the overall experience. While a few players noted that certain hardware improvements have reduced glitches compared to older systems, others pointed out that many issues seem to stem from poor design choices rather than genuine difficulty. Overall, the game is described as having a buggy launcher and keyboard controls, with a recommendation for using a controller for a better experience.
- “I get a frame drop or a 'freeze' from time to time, but the game freezes with it so it just doesn't affect you, it affects everyone. MSI game launcher made Curse of the Moon 1 and 2 playable, so I'll see if it fixes it.”
- “Half the fun of the NES classics comes with twice the glitches!”
- “The few points I would mark against the game are its short length and its buggy launcher.”
atmosphere
8 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
50%
The game's atmosphere is highly praised for its effective color scheme, which enhances both the visual appeal and the intensity of the action. Reviewers note a successful blend of story, music, and aesthetic elements that create an engaging experience, often comparing it favorably to both retro and modern AAA titles. Overall, the atmosphere significantly contributes to the game's excitement and enjoyment.
- “The color scheme is extremely effective in both setting the atmosphere of levels and making the hectic action look clean and presentable.”
- “There's a nice mixture of action, atmosphere, excitement that combines with the gameplay which is done better than many games both retro and, heck, many 'AAA' games.”
- “Oniken is a short, side-scrolling action platformer in the vein of Contra that nails the aesthetic, music, atmosphere, gameplay...and most importantly, the cutscenes.”
humor
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor in the game is described as reminiscent of classic video games, with a nostalgic charm that adds to its appeal. Players find the intentionally poor cutscene framerates amusing, particularly the exaggerated delay in text display, which contributes to the overall comedic experience. Overall, the game successfully blends challenging gameplay with a lighthearted, humorous tone.
- “Good old style game, it's really funny and it feels like a video game from the old era.”
- “- Cutscene framerates are hilariously bad. I don't know if this is intentional or a glitch, but when text pops up on the screen, it takes a solid 5 seconds per word. No NES game would behave like this.”
- “Would be funny if you could catch those and throw them back :p Anyway, Oniken is a great tribute to old NES era side scrollers. It is challenging, has cool boss fights, and it is not that long, only 6+1 levels. It also has some extra modes, like boss rush and 'hardcore mode' if you were not satisfied with the difficulty.”
emotional
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players express frustration with the game's mechanics, particularly the hitbox and jump responsiveness, which contribute to a sense of emotional distress during gameplay. The unpredictability of character movement often leads to unexpected deaths, amplifying feelings of helplessness and disappointment. Overall, the emotional impact stems from the disconnect between player intent and in-game execution.
- “Your hitbox feels enormous every time you want it to feel small; several enemy attacks demand you dodge them with good timing, movement, and/or a proper leap. Your jump always feels just lacking enough for the physical damage to be second to the emotional.”
optimization
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
50%
The game is well-optimized, allowing its beautiful graphics to run smoothly on a wide range of machines.
- “Optimized, your beautiful graphics run very well on almost all machines.”

45%Critics’ scoreBased on 3 critic reviews

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2h Median play time

2h Average play time

2-2h Spent by most gamers

*Based on 4 analyzed playthroughs

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Oniken: Unstoppable Edition (Switch) Review

Oniken: Unstoppable Edition Review

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