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The Oni, or Ao Oni, is the titular main antagonist of the Ao Oni series.


WARNING: This page may contain spoilers or solutions to puzzles. Read further at your own risk!

Appearance[]

The Oni is a 11 ft. 7 inch tall, blue/violet creature with a large head. Its face is nearly identical to that of a human, except for its large downwards-projecting nose and two enormous eyes, one bigger than the other. The body seems to have no hands, except for a certain cut-scene in which hands do appear up close.

Its body lacks, for the most part, any defining features. The Oni usually has the same bemused expression on its face. The back of the Oni's head is black, suggesting either dim lighting, or possibly even hair. It has long tusks, and surprisingly, it seems to be able to open its mouth unusually wide - almost half the size of its head, as seen at the very end of the first game.

In the 2014 movie adaptation, the Oni is given a radical makeover to appear even more monstrous and scary. It now has visible sharp teeth rather than tusks, as well as a more darkish blue skin tone with visible veins and a rougher-looking appearance. The Oni also possesses cat-like eyes that have seemingly have regular vision, rather than the infrared vision it has in the games. In the film, the Oni has a noticeably smaller and thinner left arm and a bulkier right arm. As well as having clawed hands, it also possesses ape-like feet with claws.

For Ao Oni ver. 2.0, the Oni was given a slight redesign and was given a more purplish tone and smoother skin.

History[]

The Oni is an enigmatic, mysterious creature that lives in the abandoned mansion on the outskirts of a town in Japan. Not much is known about the Oni, but it lives with many creatures that resemble it, and may have once been a human resident of the mansion. It is known to feed upon people that enter. In Version 6.23, it was shown that after the Oni kills, the victim becomes an Oni themselves. It seems to act like a virus - when the "virus" interacts with a sentient creature, it can turn them within moments into a horrific monstrosity, as with the pregnant cat in the original game.

In the Ao Oni novels, Honoka and her older sister were hiding from Saya, their maid. Honoka’s sister suggested that they should go in the basement, and though Honoka disagreed at first, she relented and they went inside. There they saw a statue of their God, a tree deity that resembles Bat Oni, and then a box full of parasites. Depending on whether it was Fragments or Forever, Honoka’s sister either accidentally dropped a watering can, soaking the box with water, or accidentally dropped the box itself into a puddle in the basement. The water activated the parasites, and when they touched the girls' skin, the parasites were absorbed into both of their bodies, infecting them. Honoka and her older sister then poisoned the water tank in their school with the parasites, causing Mari, who ended up drinking from the infected fountain water, to turn into an Oni herself. In Mutation, Hiroshi reads a book where Honoka’s father writes about his search for a cure for Honoka’s sister, who became The Alpha Oni after infection. He locked her up, and while in captivity she would scream that she despised humans. He created 4 clones in an attempt to cure her.

In the Manga, Naoki accidentally attracted it by doing Messiah’s ritual and stabbing a doll in the chest inside a pentacle. This caused him to get caught by Hiroshi, and the curse backfired on Naoki instead of Takuro.

In the Jr. novels, a star from 20 years ago fell into earth which was the Oni. Kuro believed it was a gift from the gods, causing him to collect them, and soon, he obtained the power to turn into an Oni whenever he wanted.

Chases[]

One of the main elements of the game is the chase sequences. At certain times, the Oni will appear and head for Hiroshi, following him from room to room. The Oni moves only slightly slower than Hiroshi, making him somewhat easy to outrun. After a set amount of time, the Oni will cease chasing and disappear, only to randomly reappear in an entirely different and unpredictable location in the mansion. In Version 1.1, it takes the longest to outrun him.

Oni chasing hiroshi

The Oni chasing Hiroshi in the mansion (Version 6.23).

Certain chase sequences are scripted chases, meaning they are part of the story, and will inevitably happen during every playthrough of the game. An example of this is when the Oni appears in the library after Hiroshi picks up the key on the table. All other chase sequences are random chases, meaning they are unpredictable and happen in a different order during every playthrough of the game. There are a large number of open doors and closets in the mansion that the Oni has the ability to enter, and the player must constantly be aware of these.

In Version 6.23, most chases last somewhere between eight and ten seconds. To outrun the Oni, you must evade him until the timer runs out, and then leave the room. It should be noted that at times, the Oni is also able to get the jump on its victims and move at a speed that will result in the player automatically getting a game over. This is only demonstrated across all versions when Hiroshi attempts to pick up the key to the basement without closing the jail cell door. However, a unique example is present in Version 3.0 if the player selects the option to escape alone, which will trigger the Oni and result in a game over.

Ao Oni (2014 film)[]

Anna and Shun follow Takuro, Takeshi, and Mika to an abandoned jailhouse on the outskirts of town, where they run into Hiroshi. Takuro is the first to enter the jailhouse, as he is there to place a wooden crate in the basement, and states that no one can follow except Mika, who joins him.

Regardless, Hiroshi decides to enter anyway, and is followed by the others. Once inside ,everyone gets a mysterious phone call. After they answer, all they hear is the tune that plays when the Oni chases the player in the games. Everyone dismisses it and proceed to walk around the building, but shortly after, Anna discovers that the entrance is now locked, suggesting that the Oni has begun stalking them.

Whilst exploring with Shun, Takeshi goes into a sudden panic and runs throughout the jailhouse until he decides to hide in a closet, cowering in fear. Hiroshi inspects a broken plate on the ground. He notices a slimy substance covering a shard of the plate as he picks it up.

After descending into the basement, Mika notices a crack in the nearby wall and goes to investigate it. As she looks through, she notices her own reflection. A few seconds later, she realises that she's actually looking into a giant eye, as the lid opens and closes. Startled, Mika runs off in terror and runs into Hiroshi. The two find Takeshi hiding in the closet, but he refuses to move.

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The Oni mocking Shun.

Still in the closet, Takeshi hears Takuro calling out to him. so the relieved Takeshi opens the closet door, only to be violently grasped by the face by a monstrous-looking hand. Takeshi's screams alert everyone except for Takuro, and they all go to investigate. They all then witness Takeshi get thrown through a door, and though he begs for help, he is dragged back into the room and eaten alive. The others manage to break into the room and find Takeshi's remains strewn across the floor.

Mika returns to Takuro and secretly steals the entrance keys from him. She then makes her way to the entrance door to unlock it, but finds out that the door still won't open. Mika hears a door opening behind her, and so she attempts to hide as the Oni slowly comes through. Hiroshi is seen banging on a door calling out to Mika, but she doesn't answer. As Hiroshi gives up, Mika notices the Oni staring right at her before it quickly attacks and kills her. Later on, Shun and Anna are seen further exploring the jailhouse and investigating different rooms until they come across a room with a piano.

Shun begins hearing Mika calling out to him from behind a nearby door, but her voice begins getting deeper, and something on the other side of the door begins busting a hole through it. Shun and Anna watch as the Oni looks through the hole in the door it had created, before mocking Mika's cries for help once more before knocking the door down with its belly and fully revealing itself. The Oni then begins chasing after Anna and Shun, but they manage to outrun it and join up with Hiroshi after discovering Mika's remains.

Together they solve the piano puzzle, and decide to go and find Takuro. As they head down into the basement, Hiroshi is suddenly knocked out by Takuro. It is here that they learn that Takuro had killed Shun earlier on and had placed his body inside the wooden crate he's been transporting, revealing that her memories of Shun in the mansion had been a figment of Anna's imagination all along. Anna and Takuro speak with one another, and as Takuro seemingly prepares to attack Anna, he is slaughtered by the Oni, which then begins chasing Anna. As this is happening, she helps the critically injured Hiroshi to walk.

Hiroshi decides that he is slowing Anna down and tells her to go on without him. Anna struggles to do so, but the Oni begins gaining on them. The Oni runs Hiroshi over and continues chasing down Anna, who enters a bedroom and closes the door behind her. As the Oni bangs on the door and imitates Hiroshi's voice. Anna begins having flashbacks of talking with Shun, and she eventually opens the door to reveal a bright light. Shun is then seen extending his hand to Anna within the light, telling her to come. Anna takes his hand.

Anna realises that she is back at the lake, talking to Shun from the beginning of the movie, and the two speak before holding hands, indicating that the Oni never existed and everything was normal.

Ao Oni ver. 2.0 (2015 film)[]

During the film's beginning, a couple are seen entering an empty jailhouse and they begin looking around. The boyfriend is then pulled down a hall by an unseen presence, alerting the girlfriend. As she looks down the hall, something is thrown at her. She then watches as the Oni slowly appears out of the darkness, and it catches and eats her.

After entering the supposedly desolate jailhouse, Takuro, Mika, and Takeshi begin exploring the building as Takeshi documents their visit. Takeshi suddenly becomes frightened, and runs off to hide in a closet, which prompts Takuro and Mika to go searching for him. Takuro enters a bedroom and begins searching the closets. He then opens one and finds the Oni, which appears to be sleeping and somehow fits inside the closet. The monster wakes up and sees Takuro, who is then joined by an equally shocked Mika. Takuro then flees, leaving Mika to attempt to follow him.

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The Oni looming over Takeshi.

Takuro successfully gets away, but Mika notices the Oni following her down the stairwell. Mika makes it to the bottom, but she then falls over. The creature continues stumbling down the stairs and spots Mika. As the Oni gets closer, Mika closes her eyes and pulls out a screwdriver she recently found in a sink before stabbing the monster, which splatters a blue liquid onto her face. Mika opens her eyes but is met with the unaffected Oni staring her in the eyes before it grins and murders her off-screen.

Hiroshi comes to the same stairwell and witnesses the Oni eating Mika, but it turns around and spots him. Hiroshi flees, and successfully outruns the creature, while also becoming injured in the process.

Later on, Takuro makes his way back to the same bedroom where he first saw the Oni and runs into a shirtless, seemingly unstable Takeshi, who has rubbed a blue liquid all over himself. The two have a conversation before Takuro leaves. Takeshi begins laughing maniacally before going back to hiding in a closet.

The Oni enters the bedroom and begins searching for Takeshi, who sits quietly in the closet. A ghostly figure then appears next to him, which causes Takeshi to panic and rush out of the closet and into the Oni's line of sight. The monster looms over the petrified Takeshi and proceeds to close its mouth around Takeshi's head before clamping its teeth into his neck, killing him.

As the others make their way into the underground areas of the jailhouse, both Hiroshi and Takuro are chased down a tunnel-like area by the Oni, and they manage to lock themselves behind a cell. The Oni grasps the bars of the cell and begins to violently shake it before ominously stopping and leaving the area, allowing Hiroshi and Takuro to exit the cell and proceed.

After solving the jailhouse's final puzzle, Takuro and an injured Hiroshi head for the exit, but Hiroshi feels that he cannot go on due to his injuries. The two come to a hallway, and the Oni murders Hiroshi before setting its sights on Takuro, who stares it down. Takuro proceeds to run towards the Oni, which in turn begins running towards Takuro. However, Takuro manages to slide underneath the monster and begins opening the doors to the exit. The Oni turns around as Takuro slowly opens the doors, revealing a bright light. The Oni roars in what seems like anger, and the light seemingly causes it to disappear, resetting everything back to the way it was.

After the film's end credits, Takeshi is seen standing outside the jailhouse being confronted by the same ghostly figure from earlier. Takeshi then looks up and sees a gigantic Oni looming over the jailhouse. The looming monster then leans down as Takeshi screams, and seemingly eats him.

Ao Oni: The Animation (2017 film)[]

To be included…

Etymology[]

Oni (?) are a kind of yōkai from Japanese folklore, variously translated as demons, devils, ogres, or trolls. They are popular characters in Japanese art, literature, and theatre. Depictions of the Oni vary widely, but they usually are shown as hideous, gigantic ogre-like creatures with sharp claws, wild hair, and two horns of various lengths growing from their heads. They are humanoid for the most part, but occasionally, they are shown with unnatural features such as odd numbers of eyes or extra fingers and toes.

Their skin may be any number of colors, but red and blue are particularly common. They are often depicted wearing tiger-skin loincloths and carrying iron clubs, called kanabō (金棒?). This image leads to the expression "oni with an iron club" (oni-ni-kanabō (鬼に金棒?)), that is, to be invincible or undefeatable.

It can also be used in the sense of "strong beyond strong," or having one's natural quality enhanced or supplemented by the use of some tool.[1] Via the same character used in a Chinese context however, the kanji 鬼 may also translate to a ghost.

Gallery[]

Trivia[]

  • At the end of the Ao Oni Ver. 2.0 trailer, a giant "Godzilla" sized Oni is seen leaning over the jailhouse and growling at the camera. It is unknown if this is the same enlarged Oni, or a totally different creature set to appear in the sequel.
  • In the game, the Oni has infrared vision. However, in the 2014 movie adaptation, it is assumed that the Oni's vision is that of a human's.
  • The Oni's voice is briefly heard in one of the versions, but as an unidentified whispering sound. In the movie, the Oni speaks in full Japanese and can also mimic the voices of others to fool its victims.
  • The Oni's relationship with the other Oni creatures that appear is unknown, who may be either failed cloning experiments or relatives.
  • The Oni can inject a virus that would turn anyone into Oni by touch. Hiroshi's friends are examples.
    • Oddly, Takeshi turned into an Oni despite the fact that he committed suicide.
  • The Oni's intelligence is dubious.
    • Some of the ways in which it jumpscares Hiroshi are quite clever (jumping out from the closet, waiting for Hiroshi to come close to his hiding spot, etc), but it seems incapable of actually finding Hiroshi in a closet unless it actually sees him get in.
  • It is still unknown if the Oni is the owner of the mansion, or if the owner of the mansion was killed by the Oni.
  • According to an interview with noprops for the Ao Oni Official Guidebook, the Oni's head is actually a painting/illustration made by noprops.
  • The graphic of the Oni's hands when it is shaking the bars of the jail cell is actually a stock image.
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