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Ninja Gaiden Sigma 2 gets Japanese release date
Ninja Gaiden Sigma 2 is set to hit stores on October 1 in Japan. Once an Xbox 360 exclusive, Ninja Gaiden's PS3 return combines the 2008 Xbox 360 sequel with new features, including online co-op, two new playable characters and planned fixes to a laundry list of issues found in the original game. Ninja Gaiden Sigma 2 is priced at ¥7,800 ($80 US). According to Kotaku, pre-order bonuses for the game include a "starter guide book" and download code for the original Ryu Hayabusa character costume. Better get a good stain remover, getting blood out of a Gi is hellacious.%Gallery-66915%
Ninja Gaiden Sigma 2 box art revealed, Only For PlayStation
Click to see the PS3 box in high resolution. My, my how things have changed. The former Xbox 360-exclusive Ninja Gaiden 2 is now the PS3-exclusive Ninja Gaiden Sigma 2. Is this the first game that's been able to wear the "Only On" stickers for both the PS3 and 360? Perhaps. While Sigma 2 may be an enhanced port of the original Ninja Gaiden 2, it features a number of new features that are, as the box says, "only on PlayStation."Most exciting of the new features are the new playable characters: Ninja Gaiden's Rachel, Dead or Alive's Ayane, and Ninja Gaiden Dragon Sword's Momiji. The PS3 version will also feature a new online co-op mode not found in the original that lets you and a friend take on ten different stages. Finally, the game is touting "variable AI," which allows "the gameplay [to differ] each time you appear in a level as enemies engage in a variety of different actions as they assess the situation." Whatever that means.%Gallery-66915%
Tecmo assaulting E3 with ninjas, zombies ... basketball?
Dear Koei, Things are great, and so far infection-free here at E3. Sure, we miss your quirky style, who wouldn't? Still, we're keeping ourselves busy readying games for the show, including Ninja Gaiden Sigma 2, which ships for the PlayStation 3 this fall. Other games we've got at our booth this year include Family Fun Football on the Wii, action game Undead Knights for the PSP, and -- oh -- did you know we were making a basketball game? It's true! We've got several downloadable titles this year, including a "contemporary retro" arcade-style basketball game called NBA Unrivaled and an action puzzler named Puzzlegeddon, both we hope to hit XBLA and PSN later this year. Team Ninja's PS3-exclusive "art nouveau" shooter, Quantum, and the musical 2D platformer Fret Nice will also be on hand, though neither are expected to ship until sometime next year. All in all, we've got a lot of games to show off -- plus without any Dynasty Warriors games blocking our view we've got a clear shot those Ninja Gaiden models. Oo la la! Wishing you were here, Tecmo
Ninja Gaiden Sigma 2 trailer is wet and wild
Tecmo once again proves that sex sells through its latest trailer for Ninja Gaiden Sigma 2. Rachel, the buxom, barely clothed hammer-wielding warrior returns in this trailer, putting evil demons in their place during a rain storm. It's like a Sports Illustrated swimsuit shoot without the beaches and heavy breathing. Okay, maybe some heavy breathing.
Team Ninja 'bored' of hyper violence, wants Gaiden to evolve
Team Ninja wants Ninja Gaiden Sigma 2 to be "sleek and sexy," rather than focused on ultra violence, a major selling point for the original Xbox 360 sequel. Speaking with CVG, Sigma 2 producer and director Yosuke Hayashi said the team working on the upcoming PlayStation 3 revamp wants to shy away from retreading the waters of the Xbox version because the team is "kind of egoistic" and gets "bored with the same continuous concept."That doesn't mean Hayashi wants to turn Sigma 2 into Flower, but that the team would rather pursue a different direction for the franchise and "start evolving this game." As long as the first piece of the evolutionary Ninja Gaiden puzzle is a working camera, we're all in.
Team Ninja's new lead wants to explore new IPs
If we said Team Ninja's path since Ninja Gaiden 2 has been increasingly onerous, the industry would toss us the coveted Understatement of the Year award. Speaking with Gamasutra, new Team Ninja lead, Yosuke Hayashi, said the pressure is on for his team to prove themselves following the exit of long-time leader, Tomonobu Itagaki. Hayashi realizes Team Ninja is "most well-known" for the Ninja Gaiden and Dead or Alive franchises and knows fans have certain "expectations" but the team would like to move onto new properties. The new Team Ninja lead says it's one of Team Ninja's "goals and missions" in a post-Itagaki regime -- which begins with the release of Ninja Gaiden Sigma 2, a move we know Itagaki would not approve of. According to the article, Team Ninja is already in the process of developing a new IP. During a quick word exchange with Joystiq at GDC, Hayashi delicately sidestepped questions regarding the former Team Ninja boss. Yeah! He totally was gracious and respectful toward someone who talked mess about his previous work. This guy is nothing like Tomonobu!
GDC09: Tecmo talks Ninja Gaiden Sigma 2 DLC, exclusivity, 'loss of face'
At Tecmo's totally super secret game unveiling (yeah, it was Ninja Gaiden Sigma 2) at the soon-to-be-no-more PlayStation Store in San Francisco, Joystiq got the opportunity to ask Team Ninja's fresh new face, Yosuke Hayashi (who, with his buttoned-down appearance, can be thought of as the Richie Cunningham to Itagaki's Fonzie) some hard-hitting questions. First up, the 800-lb ninja in the room: Is Ninja Gaiden Sigma 2 "a loss of face for everyone involved," as Itagaki said it would be? Hayashi-san carefully sidestepped directly addressing Itagaki's inflammatory remark, instead focusing on the game's development origins. As if to defuse Itagaki's pre-release remark, Hayashi explained though a translator, "Development began only after we read and heard about fan feedback ... after Ninja Gaiden 2 came out last summer." To add some street cred, he explained that the game's development team was "comprised of the Ninja Gaiden 2 team as well as the [original Ninja Gaiden] Sigma team."As for DLC, we broached the topic two ways. First, will the PS3 release have any? Hiyashi said they were "very serious about coming up with new content to be available as DLC" and that he hopes to share "more details soon." And second, can current owners of Ninja Gaiden 2 on Xbox 360 expect to find any of the new enhancements – notably the "refined camera" and new multiplayer co-op functionality – available as DLC in the future? Hiyashi didn't need the translation for this one. Sorry, early adopters, but Tecmo's "ultimate" Ninja Gaiden experience is "only on PlayStation."%Gallery-48452%
Ninja Gaiden Sigma 2 adds multiple playable characters, online co-op
When Famitsu sent word of Ninja Gaiden Sigma 2's existence, we thought it would be a simple port of the Xbox 360 sequel with a few additional bells and whistles. Team Ninja slashed (see what we did there?) those thoughts and have revealed that Sigma 2 will include a large chunk of content, including two new playable characters and online cooperative play. Team Ninja fans will immediately recognize the two playable additions noted in a Gamespot preview: Dead or Alive's purple-haired ninja, Ayane, and Ninja Gaiden Dragon Sword's female warrior, Momiji. Each character's tale will be woven into the existing Ninja Gaiden 2 story and branch off at certain points. That's all well and good but the freshly announced online co-op is what has our interest piqued. Unfortunately, the co-op skips the main campaign and offers 30 challenge areas that are playable on four difficulty settings (presumably, Ninja Dog to ZOMGWTHBBQ!). Still, it's a surprising (and welcome) addition to what could have ostensibly been considered a simple re-release. And for those who prefer the simpler additions, Tecmo says they're in there too. New enemies, weapons, and tweaks to the camera and gameplay are all included. Ninja Gaiden Sigma 2 is set to land on the PlayStation 3 this fall -- the trailer is embedded after the break.%Gallery-48452%
Ninja Gaiden Sigma 2 coming this fall, new info March 25
We knew it was coming -- Tecmo has just made official Ninja Gaiden Sigma 2 (though our photochopped "logo" is admitedly far from legit). According to a release issued by the publisher, the game is set to hit North America and Japan this fall, with a European debut to follow. More details on the spruced-up PS3 version of Team Ninja's befitting ninja action game are coming next Wednesday, March 24. Joystiq will be on-hand at the Sigma sequel's Game Developers Conference unveiling, being held at the Metreon's soon-to-be-closed PlayStation Store in San Francisco, CA.
Famitsu reveals Ninja Gaiden Sigma 2 for PS3
Though Ryu Hayabusa and his reckless vendetta against all manner of attached limbs might be contrary to the more ... subtle approaches employed by a traditional ninja, we don't recall anybody complaining too vehemently while they were jumping off a wall and decapitating a hundred demonic spider things. According to a recent issue of Japanese mag Famitsu, PlayStation 3 owners are set to get another taste of Team Ninja's action franchise, in the form of Ninja Gaiden Sigma 2.Much like the original Sigma reworked the Xbox's Ninja Gaiden (to former Team Ninja designer Tomonobu Itagaki's chagrin), Ninja Gaiden Sigma 2 appears to be a modified version of the Xbox 360's Ninja Gaiden 2. Images depict several familiar environments and characters, along with some new shots of Dead or Alive's Ayane, who may be a playable character. Expect more details to be formally announced over the next week, including confirmation on whether this is "a loss of face for everyone involved." We certainly expect monster faces to get the worst of it.[Thanks, Robert]
