Ninja Gaiden 2 came out a couple weeks ago, but the demo didn’t drop until recently. As part of a new series, all threevues of us spent some time with the demo, and here’s what we think.
Mark
I would like to commend Team Ninja on making a downloadable demo that even those people that don’t have their console hooked up to the internet can play. Actually, they don’t even have to turn it on, all they have to do is pick up their favorite controller, close their beady little eyes, and jam the X button as fast as they possibly can until their thumbs wear out, or they get bored with the tiresome, repetitive task, whichever comes first. Of course, they can also throw in some Left Trigger and/or Y buttons presses, but they will have the same effect as pushing them while playing the game for real: none.
The game, however, does look awesome, but you know what else looks awesome? Me…naked (ask anyone). I had high hopes for Ninja Gaiden 2, especially after Russ mentioned that it plays like God of War. There are some very loose, vague similarities, but this one seems like a much watered down, hack and slash with the same annoying Japanese story and characters that always come from the Far East. My favorite thing about it was in the options menu, where I was highly impressed with the number of languages available for subtitles. Korean, Russian, French, and like ten others, some of which I couldn’t even identify. So, kudos for that, crapdos for everything else.
Russ
I wish rental prices weren’t so obscenely expensive nowadays, or there were enough games (and time) available to warrant a Gamefly subscription - because this game would be a pretty sweet rental. I had a good time with the 30-minute demo, hacking and slashing and dismembering and beheading; for a second there, I felt some smatterings of God of War….
…but then I realized how bad the camera was, and how much I didn’t feel like I was in control of the character during the platforming segments. Prince of Persia set a standard for wall-climbing YEARS AGO and this game just feels like garbage, comparatively. Even last year’s TMNT was better. The button-mashing was quite fun, and I liked all the blood and violence, but the game definitely wouldn’t warrant a second playthrough or downright purchase. And I can’t write a review of this demo without noting the game’s ridiculously (awesome?) distracting boobie physics.
Tyler
Here it comes, Tyler is going to slag all over Ninja Gaiden just like he did with DMC4. Boo hoo. I guess my main problem with the abundance of Japanese action games is that they seems to always choose style over substance. Is beheading a wounded spider clan ninja and showering in his bloody neck fountain fun? Of course, it always is. But what else have you got Tecmo? Can I get some villains that don’t look like a hybrid of castaway enemies from Voltron and Metal Gear Solid? A couple of reviews I’ve read have said things like “NG2 has a cheesy story, bad cutsceenes and similar gameplay as the first one… But it’s real bloody and has a lot of action! So I like it”. WTF?
As for the actual demo, it’s okay. The character models in the cutscenes look really bad, the plot is tarded and the fighting… Just doesn’t sell the rest of the game for me. In closing, let’s not confuse cheap AI with layers of difficulty. The NG fanboys would say that i just can’t handle a game with an intricate fight mechanic.
PS - You know what would be better than a shity remake of the Ninja Gaiden series? A good remake of the Shinobi series.
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