The first 10 minutes: Ninja Gaiden 2
2008-05-26 10:00:00 by BlimBlim
It's with great pleasure that I've received the review code of Ninja Gaiden 2 last Friday and that I've spent some quality time (but not enough) with the game this week-end. You'll find nothing less than 4 720p 60 fps videos of the first level of the game inside, and while waiting for them to download you'll even be able to read my impressions!
Ninja Gaiden 2 can only be described as a direct sequel of the first Ninja Gaiden, implying a lot of good things, but also a few bad ones.
Let's start with what's not so good, and the camera. As you may know the camera here is more or less the same as in Black. Meaning it's better than the one in the first Ninja Gaiden, but still can get in the way quite often. During close quarters fights like in the stairs of the second level, it was sometimes difficult to see anything of the action. The good old right trigger is still here, but I had hoped for more.
Another bad point, the game isn't perfectly smooth. Most of the time it runs at a perfect 60 fps and all is good, but during heavy action scenes I've seen some tearing and even some major slowdowns happens. It's rare thankfully, but still disappointing. Also disappointing, and we've become used to this coming from Team Ninja, the shadowing and lighting is still very basic and doesn't seem to be that much different from the Xbox games.
But still, the gameplay itself is as good if not even better than before. The new life bar system that will replenish itself (but not fully) when a fight ends both adds and remove tension from the game. On one side we don't have to worry as much as before about health bonus, but on the other each fight now becomes a bit more challenging than before, and death can occur very quickly!
Despite its flaws, I've enjoyed my time playing Ninja Gaiden 2 a lot, and I can't wait to get back home tonight for more!
The first 10 minutes: Part 1
The first 10 minutes: Part 2
The first 10 minutes: Part 3
The first 10 minutes: Part 4
Since 891 Days
2008-05-27 05:24:53
Gamedaily Review-
http://www.gamedaily.com/games/ninja-gaiden-ii/xbo...
http://www.computerandvideogames.com/article.php?i...
http://www.shacknews.com/featuredarticle.x?id=878
That being said, this is unquestionably a Ninja Gaiden for the rest of us. Thanks to a relaxed health regeneration system, I happily defeated most of the game's levels and bosses--on the easiest mode of four, mind you--without even coming close to a frustrated toss of my controller. Occasionally I'd get stuck on a boss for a few minutes, sometimes to the point of rampant ninja cursing, but I was rarely red-faced to the point quitting...
And I still don't care. You can criticize the best action movies for their bad camera work and tepid storylines, but those elements ultimately take little away from the experience. The same is true with Ninja Gaiden II. In the end, the pure fun of the carnage far outweighs any fleeting camera issues, level design shortcomings, or boss frustrations.
People bitching about the camera should read the link above, but a quote from the article:
This review even stated the framerate/loading problems are in the review copy. Final build shouldn't have it.
---
Wii60!
"We've said that Gears of War was graphically the best game have ever been made, well it looks like Pong compared to Crysis and some of the DX10 titles."
-Gary Whitta (Venting on the NG podcast after Coming back from the Games for Windows)
Since 190 Days
2008-05-27 10:06:18
wow thanks for the high quality vids Blim. im so pumped after watching those. im buying a 360 for NG2 this weekend. so excited.
Missed the
hay
Since 1045 Days
2008-05-27 10:36:56
Sure we expected better camera for NG2, but from all the videos I have seen it is like the previous NG, but maybe even better, but still I am so damn used to the fact I press the camera adjust button so many times this is not an issue for me.
Too difficault?
You knew what you were getting yourself into...and I can promise you that they probably played it on Normal and said it was hard :P
You can easily see how much of a rookie these gamesites are compared to what Tecmo uploads.
But then watch youtube to see how professional NG plays this game.
Team Ninja has a motto for Ninja Gaiden games...
Easy to play, hard to master
something like that, and it is true.
Anyone can just start running around and button mash the attacks to kill enemies.
But it takes a true master to actually being able to act like a ninja and not take so many hits, and do various attacks, and use all the attacks in a specific time.
To counter attac, grab, dodge and then do a sudden death blow...etc. it is hard to master.
I am glad since NG came out on Xbox, I have played ever since then and I have not stopped playing the game, beated Master Ninja so getting used to NG2 is easy as breathing, however need to learn the new combos to master those ones.
I now and then put on NG Sigma, but now I have stopped that because NG2 is so damn close.
One thing that I hated in NG Sigma is the fact that the game loads when you want to steop to a specific location in a level, and if that is atleast reduced in the FINAL retail build then I am happy.
---
*Ninja Gaiden 2 - Metal Gear Solid 4*
*A New Form of Change*
Since 305 Days
2008-05-27 12:22:13
Nice videos. Really looking forward to this.
Too bad I’m from Germany and the USK refused to classify it. Because of this Microsoft won’t officially release it in Germany and we won’t get the DLC. A matter of time before the BPJM steps in and sets the game on the index.
I really hope the EU will intervene some day and force the member states to adopt the PEGI system…
I’ll import an version from Austria.
By the way I used the German servers for download. I got 174 KB/s which is my max. download speed, very nice.
---
Sarah Kerrigan the Queen of Blades: You see, at this point, I'm pretty much the Queen Bitch of the Universe. And not all of your little soldiers or space ships will stand in my way again. (StarCraft: BroodWar)
Since 1166 Days
2008-05-27 14:13:37
GREAT THX!
Since 934 Days
2008-05-27 14:46:25
wow this is one of this biggest forum conversations in a while. The games going to be outstanding, most of the reviews are around 9/10 that I have seen. I wonder why people are focusing on the small amount of mediocre ones, every game gets them. Anyways this game looks like fire.(No Ninja Dogs allowed)lol
Since 1537 Days
2008-05-27 14:52:58
I still don't see a really In-Depth Review.
TXB are delaying their review... I hope it explains more stuff and take its time to talk A LOT about all the stuff the game packs in ( Types of Fiends, Cinema Mode, Attract, etc) ...
Since 769 Days
2008-05-27 15:12:21
in all fairness T.X. said Team Ninja said there were issues with the review build that were fixed in the retail version....this thread should have waited a few days to be made
Since 1164 Days
2008-05-27 16:01:35 In reply to CrimzonTearz (2008-05-27 15:12:21)
---
"If we can hit that bull's-eye, the rest of the dominoes will fall like a house of cards...Checkmate." - Zapp Brannigan
Since 933 Days
2008-05-27 22:59:14 In reply to Ronsauce (2008-05-27 16:01:35)
Yep, that's something I'll never understand, what's the point in getting a f*** review one week prior to release if the review version is buggy ???
---
Ober Fanboy de Gears of War 2. Le premier qui critique les textures ou le framerate, je sors mon M107 !
Avatar copyright gaf
Since 769 Days
2008-05-28 03:24:14 In reply to Ronsauce (2008-05-27 16:01:35)
Since 891 Days
2008-05-28 03:33:33 In reply to CrimzonTearz (2008-05-28 03:24:14)
---
Wii60!
"We've said that Gears of War was graphically the best game have ever been made, well it looks like Pong compared to Crysis and some of the DX10 titles."
-Gary Whitta (Venting on the NG podcast after Coming back from the Games for Windows)
Since 1164 Days
2008-05-28 03:38:44 In reply to CrimzonTearz (2008-05-28 03:24:14)
Seriously, you're kind of being ridiculous.
---
"If we can hit that bull's-eye, the rest of the dominoes will fall like a house of cards...Checkmate." - Zapp Brannigan
Since 891 Days
2008-05-28 04:38:47
Game Informer: Ninja Gaiden II Review
Ninja Gaiden’s action is an exaggerated dance of twirling steel and falling body parts. The amount of blood that sprays from your victims’ bodies is ludicrous. Its female characters are as stereotypically well formed as its monsters are deformed. And the game’s atmosphere is an almost incongruous mix of Japanese spirituality and sci-fi technology. So obviously, Game Informer love it. 8.75/10
---
Wii60!
"We've said that Gears of War was graphically the best game have ever been made, well it looks like Pong compared to Crysis and some of the DX10 titles."
-Gary Whitta (Venting on the NG podcast after Coming back from the Games for Windows)
Since 891 Days
2008-05-28 05:08:43
famitsu score is 9/8/8/9
---
Wii60!
"We've said that Gears of War was graphically the best game have ever been made, well it looks like Pong compared to Crysis and some of the DX10 titles."
-Gary Whitta (Venting on the NG podcast after Coming back from the Games for Windows)
Since 891 Days
2008-05-29 07:13:14
http://www.gamespot.com/users/Kevin-V/show_blog_en...
Xbox 360 spins DVDR media slower than replicated media, so it's not representative of how final media will perform. Also, please keep in mind that this build distributed early to you guys for review purposes is not final retail code (emphasis added -- KV). While the build contains many final gameplay features, story elements, and graphical capabilities, it's a press evaluation build so it is not as fully optimized as a retail product. Generally, load time is one feature that improves between review builds and final product. While there typically is not a major noticeable difference between review builds and retail product, it can vary, so please keep this in mind while working on your review.
---
Wii60!
"We've said that Gears of War was graphically the best game have ever been made, well it looks like Pong compared to Crysis and some of the DX10 titles."
-Gary Whitta (Venting on the NG podcast after Coming back from the Games for Windows)