Now it reminds me of Chantelise... The game uses sprites for Lise that her attacks' hitbox gets ambiguous! To note, Chantelise is similar to your game here, 2D sprites for 3D environment and gameplay.
Oh yeah, and your weapons will actually be 3D models- you'll get to see your reach. I've already known since 2006 that you can't make the weapon sprite a part of your character in a 3D environment or you can't see how far or where you're actually hitting. The camera view is pulled much further back and intended for top-down vs. whatever that game you referenced.