If you're like me, then you like Dan Birlew and the BradyGAMES Signature Series guides. These guides are very in-depth and after the Devil May Cry guide got this off to a great start, the Onimusha 2 guide keeps it going. I'll give you tons of reason why this is the best Strategy Guide (in my opinion) then any other Onimusha guide out there.First of all, like any guide (or hopefully any guide), there is the walkthrough. This walkthrough is very in-depth with ultra detailed maps that pin-point every item! The walkthough is precise and quite possibly one of the most in-depth organized walkthrough from BradyGAMES to date. The author does a great job explaining the strategies, and talks about the better approach for Offensive and defensive battle tatics against bosses.
The game basics section is for me especially. If you don't feel you get enough explanation on attacks etc. from the instruction booklet (like me) then the game basics section does a great job on explaining just how to get critical hits, when is best to attack and when its best to just haul you butt out of there.
There is also a list included for trading items. The only gripe I have with this list (and the guide) is that this trading list isn't in alphabetical order, meaning you'll be reading up and down the list just to find if the item is worth trading to another. But they do explain how to trade and tell you what you'll get too!
The alliances to form are listed in the back of the book in a flowchart. This shows you just what path to take! But it also explains just how you should form alliances as well. They tell you what the benefits are as well.
The secrets and sidequests and telling you how to use each character (combos and everything are explained). The side quest are brillantly outlined and easy to use. They tell you who gets what too. The secrets also explain a lot about the different difficulty levels and the Man in Black mini game.
Lastly, the guide completely covers the Oni mini game with a tear out wall scroll to go along with it. This is a great guide and if you're going to get Onimusha 2 then you should definitely get this book!
On the Positive side:
+Great Maps!
+Great Strategies!
+Crystal Clear screens with helpful captions
+Hey! Its Signature series
+Tricks of Trade revealed
+Side Quests explained
+Both mini-games explained
+Game Basics actually help you learn the game better then the manual.
+Interview with Keiji Inafune!
But on the downside
-The trading items list is out of order
-Some boss strategies are a little too focused on defense
