Best Things To Do First In Rise of the Ronin

Highlights

• Customizable characters and starting class options set the tone for Rise of the Ronin’s tutorial experience.
• Utilize stealth tactics with Earthenware Balls to save the Honmoku village and earn a horse for easier navigation.
• Explore starting areas thoroughly, unlock combat styles, and gain allies like Ryoma and Gonzo for strategic advantages.

As most games do, Rise of the Ronin begins with a tutorial. Well, technically, it begins with a character editor for both of the Blade Twins and then players can choose a starting Class like Beginner or Killer. Following that, the tutorial will go through a few missions with the Blade Twins before the game properly starts.

Rise of the Ronin is another big open-world undertaking for 2024, and some players may be paralyzed on where they should begin. That’s one of the biggest problems of open-world games without much direction; fortunately, these tips should help get things started on the right note.

1 Save The Honmoku Village

Get A Stealthy Drop And A Horse

Rise of the Ronin‘s tutorial takes about an hour but eventually, the world will open up akin to The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. Players should follow the road from the starting area to an arch wherein a merchant will be waiting. He will give players Earthenware Balls and warn them that the village, Honmoku, is under attack by bandits.

Players can use these Earthenware Balls to turn Rise of the Ronin into a stealth game by luring enemies away from each other. Once the village is free, players will be rewarded with a horse, which will make getting around a lot easier. Also, players can use this horse to autopilot around the world map, which is easier if there are roads to the given map marker.

On a horse-related note, players shouldn’t worry about buying horses as they are a waste of money.

2 Explore The First Area Before Yokohama

Get To Know Your Character

Before taking on the story mission that involves going to Yokohama, the biggest city in the game, players will find themselves in the starting zone consisting of three areas. This includes the aforementioned Honmoku district along with Yamate and Ishikawa. Players should do everything in these areas, or as much as they can, saving Ishikawa for last.

It’s a good way to get comfortable with the game’s mechanics and gameplay loop. Other villages need rescuing, fugitives that need killing, big treasure chests, and more. This will also ensure that players get a good set of gear on their backs since Rise of the Ronin is a looter RPG wherein numbers mean a lot. Also, players can find cats which is just an adorable way to kill time.

3 The Bridge To Yokohama

Gain Your First Ally

“The Bridge to Yokohama” is a story mission that tasks players with finding their Blade Twin. Once at the gate, they will learn they need a pass. In the neighboring village, there will be rumors about a gate pass in the mountains, which is where players will meet a fellow samurai, Ryoma Sakamoto, who needs a gate pass as well.

With Ryoma, players can go through the mission “Curtain Falls, Curtain Rises” and get those gate passes. The boss of this mission, Gonzo, should be spared for later reasons. This is also how players will unlock their glider in Rise of the Ronin.

4 Redeeming Gonzo

Gain A Neutral Ally

After “Curtain Falls, Curtain Rises,” players should go through a few more story missions after going into Yokohama. Keep an eye out for the mission “The Bad Bunch” to appear in an adjacent district to Yokohama. In this mission, a shading-looking guy will ask players to find a thief who got away. This thief is none other than Gonzo who seems to be up to his old ways.

However, he was framed, and players can go back and teach the real bad guys a lesson with Gonzo. Afterward, players can gain Gonzo as an ally, which is great because he is a neutral party. There are Anti-Shogunate and Shogunate allies and, depending on missions, only certain allies can participate as dictated by allegiances. That’s why having Gonzo around is great because he skirts the line as a great thief character.

5 Complete Story Missions In Yokohama

There Is A Big Surprise Waiting

Following “The Bad Bunch,” players should stick around and mop up Yokohama’s various districts. They should at least stick around until “The Plot to Assassinate Harris” mission pops up, which is when a big story beat should happen. It will lead to some good allies, and it will also open up a variety of quests.

Going through Yokohama missions is also how players can unlock their hideout, the Longhouse, which is how they can get into Rise of the Ronin’s multiplayer mode. Certain missions can be launched in the Longhouse for co-op scenarios and details can be tweaked. Be sure to stick around Ryoma for his missions until the Longhouse unlocks.

6 Helping Igashichi

The Man Likes A Good Book

Another early characters that players can meet in Yokohama is Igashichi Iizuka. He is an inventor kind of like how Leonardo DaVinci was portrayed in Assassin’s Creed 2. Once players go through a mission or two with Igashichi, players will unlock his shop.

Players can use money to unlock various upgrades for gear like the glider, or they can make new inventions. This includes the Fire Pipe, which is a flamethrower, and the Detector, which will highlight enemies close by similar to gadgets in the Metal Gear franchise. Igashichi likes Foreign Books, which are hidden in the world, and finding them will lead to even more inventions.