Capcom's upcoming title, Onimusha: Way of the Sword, features a new Dynamic Dismemberment System that necessitated the involvement of RE Engine engineers to create. According to Hiroshi Yugen, animation team lead for the game, the feature, which allows Miyamoto Musashi to precisely cut through enemies, was not originally part of the RE Engine.
The RE Engine, also known as Reach for the Moon Engine, has powered numerous Capcom titles since its debut with Resident Evil 7: Biohazard. Its recent uses include Street Fighter 6, Exoprimal, Dragon's Dogma 2, Kunitsu-Gami: Path of the Goddess, and Monster Hunter Wilds, among others.
Yugen explained that while the RE Engine posed no limitations for Way of the Sword's development, the dismemberment system was a new addition. "[This dismemberment] is not something that’s existed in any other title before, and it’s something that, on a technical level, needed to be added to the RE Engine [by Capcom’s engineers]," Yugen stated. He further elaborated on the technical challenges, noting the difficulty in combining the dynamic dismemberment with enemy death animations, aiming for a balance between exaggerated samurai drama deaths and visceral gore.
Early attempts at implementing dismemberment resulted in frozen enemies, lacking the desired fluidity. Yugen was adamant about ensuring enemies remained animated during dismemberment. The team ultimately succeeded in integrating the feature, which allows for satisfyingly graphic results when enemies' stamina is depleted and finishing moves like Break Issen are employed.
Players can experience this system firsthand in the currently available demo for Onimusha: Way of the Sword. The development team consulted with Capcom's programmers to introduce and refine this complex system, ensuring it enhances the game's swordplay.