Onimusha was once a popular franchise for Capcom, with the original game selling over 2 million units and earning some critical praise. Unfortunately for fans of Capcom's unique blend of samurai action and survival-horror elements though, Onimusha has been dormant since 2006 (not counting the 2012 browser-based game Onimusha Soul). That changes early next year.

In a surprise announcement, Capcom has revealed that the first game in the series, Onimusha: Warlords, is being ported to current-generation game consoles and Steam on January 15, 2019. Based on the footage seen in the trailer (embedded below), it appears as though this version of Onimusha: Warlords is more or less a straight port, but with some HD enhancements so that it looks better on modern hardware.

Anyone who wants to relive the original Onimusha on January 15 will be able to do so on PS4, Steam, Switch, or Xbox One. Capcom hasn't announced any specific upgrades or new features that may come in this version of the game, and it also hasn't revealed whether or not fans can expect any of Onimusha's sequels to be ported over as well.

Of course, this will lead to speculation that a brand new Onimusha game could be in the works. Indeed, Capcom renewed the trademark earlier this year, and that combined with this re-release of the original game does seem to indicate that the company has interest in the series.

Capcom itself has expressed interest in remaking and re-releasing as many of its games as possible, and so it makes sense for it to dig into its popular PS2-era titles. And if the re-release of Onimusha: Warlords sells well, it's not hard to see Capcom eventually porting over Onimusha 2: Samurai's Destiny, Onimusha 3: Demon Siege, Onimusha: Dawn of Dreams, and perhaps even the spinoff games Onimusha Tactics and Onimusha Blade Warriors.

We know that Capcom has been discussing an Onimusha revival, so if this re-release and the potential re-releases that follow sell well, perhaps it will become more likely. In the meantime, here's hoping that Capcom brings back some of its other long-dormant franchises, like Dino Crisis and Viewtiful Joe.

Onimusha: Warlords is out now for PC, PS2, and Xbox, and launches January 15, 2019 for PS4, Steam, Switch, and Xbox One.