Oniken

Lore & Background

Oniken is set in a post-apocalyptic future where humanity has been nearly destroyed by global war. Survivors are oppressed by a cybernetic armada called the Oniken, and a small resistance led by General Zhukov is overwhelmed by the robotic forces. The player controls Zaku, a legendary ninja mercenary with an unknown past, who is recruited by Zhukov to join the resistance. The game follows a classic slasher gameplay formula similar to Strider, Ninja Gaiden, and Shatterhand, with the objective of reaching the end of each level and defeating the boss. There are six levels in total, plus an extra mission featuring an additional character in a Contra-style gameplay mode unlocked after completing the main game.

Reader's Guide

Oniken was developed by the duo Danilo Dias (JoyMasher) and Pedro Paiva (then Arcaica, now Menos PlayStation) as a tribute to their favorite 8-bit era games, including Ninja Gaiden, Contra, Kabuki Quantum Fighter, Shadow of the Ninja, and Vice: Project Doom. Zaku's character design was heavily inspired by Kenshiro from Fist of the North Star. Shortly after its initial release, Oniken was included in the July Jubilee bundle on Indie Royale, a Desura indie bundle service. It received a score of 7/10 from Destructoid and an 8.0/10 from Multiplayer.it. The game's acceptance on Steam Greenlight in August 2012 helped it reach a wider audience, and its later release on Nintendo Switch as Oniken: Unstoppable Edition extended its availability to a new platform.

Did You Know?

• Oniken was developed by a duo of friends, Danilo Dias and Pedro Paiva.
• Zaku's character design was inspired by Kenshiro from Fist of the North Star.
• The game includes an extra mission with a Contra-style gameplay mode after beating the main game.