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Metareview -- Ninja Gaiden II (Xbox 360)
Though you won't be able to get your hands on Ninja Gaiden II until next week, the reviews for Tomonobu Itagaki's latest ninjastic action game couldn't be contained so easily. They leapt out of their embargoes, sliced a path straight onto the internet, and didn't stop until they reached you here, at this metareview. Oh, but these reviews won't stick around long; they're stopping just long enough for you to quickly peruse some excerpts before tossing a smoke bomb on the ground, leaping onto a nearby rooftop, and silently disappearing. GameDaily (90/100) is willing to overlook some of the bad for the heftier good, writing: "Ninja Gaiden II isn't perfect, but it's an incredible attempt. Lame English dialogue, a somewhat limp story and awkward camera angles aren't nearly enough to derail the splendid gameplay and eye-popping visuals." IGN (87/100) enjoyed NGII, but was left wanting something more than what's been previously offered in the series: "Even with a technical hiccup here or there, Ninja Gaiden II is a sight to behold and a great deal of fun to master. And yet, the game doesn't feel as special as Ninja Gaiden did. Let's face it, Ninja Gaiden Black left us a bit spoiled as far as the complete package goes. In terms of straight action and stylish, deep gameplay, Ninja Gaiden II succeeds on nearly every front. What it lacks is the fat -- that extra something on the meat to give it flavor." Eurogamer (70/100) was more upset by the technical shortcomings pointed out in most of the game's reviews, and was particularly disappointed with the game's at-times frustrating difficulty: "It's beautiful, cinematic and full of fantastically detailed enemies, gorgeous animations and incredibly fast, exciting combat. But while it's good, it's not quite great. It's marred by technical problems and Team Ninja's previously perfect balancing act just isn't in evidence in major sections." %Gallery-7335%
Ninja Gaiden II is gold, spattered with red
Microsoft and Tecmo today announced that the whirlwind of blood and errant body parts known as Ninja Gaiden II has gone gold. In other words, the game is completely and totally finished and only awaits pressing and packaging before copies are whisked to retailers everywhere on June 3. The press release also announces that the remaining promotional Ask a Ninja episodes will arrive on Xbox Live Marketplace on May 27, June 3 and June 10, so keep an eye out for those. Finally, a documentary entitled The Way of the Warrior: Ninja Gaiden II, which will air on Cablevision IO Digital on May 30. The documentary will also be made available on XBLM starting June 10. The documentary focuses on "the history of the ninja and how it impacted the game" and purports to feature "members of Team Ninja, historical areas of Japan, real life ninjas and exclusive looks at behind-the-scenes footage."Strangely absent in the press release is any mention of the playable demo that's supposed to drop sometime this month.
Itagaki says Ninja Gaiden Sigma was 'no good'
Itagaki can be such a meanie. Ninja Gaiden Sigma, a PS3 enhanced port of the original Xbox Ninja Gaiden, met critical acclaim when it launched on Sony's console. It wasn't a brand new game, but it certainly was an excellent one. Not so, says Ninja Gaiden creator Tomonobu Itagaki. In a CVG interview, he flatly says that the game was "no good." He added: "Despite the fact that it's on a 'next-generation' console there's no evolution whatsoever. That was made not by me, but one of my sub-ordinates who basically tried to copy the success of Ninja Gaiden."Ouch. Imitation doesn't equate to flattery, does it? Sigma's director, Yosuke Hayashi, went on record many times about the power of the PS3, and promised more titles for Sony's system. Hayashi noted that "I have heard much criticism of the PS3, but I am confident that Ninja Gaiden Sigma will demonstrate how powerful the PS3 really is." However, will Hayashi ever get a chance to work on PS3 again?This "subordinate" is getting backhandedly slapped, with the notion of a PS3 port of 360-exclusive Ninja Gaiden II being thrown out of the window. It would "be a loss of face for everyone involved," noted Itagaki.[Via Joystiq]
Itagaki: Ninja Gaiden Sigma is 'no good'
We thought Ninja Gaiden Sigma was pretty good. You know, nothing revolutionary, but at least worth a spin for PS3 owners, especially those who hadn't played through Ninja Gaiden. But we've just received word (via CVG) from Ninja Gaiden I and II developer Tomonobu Itagaki that we're wrong, wrong, totally wrong.When asked about the game, Itagaki said simply, "It was no good." Apparently not into the whole brevity thing, CVG continued the line of questioning, prompting Itagaki to add, "Despite the fact that it's on a 'next-generation' console there's no evolution whatsoever. That was made not by me, but one of my sub-ordinates who basically tried to copy the success of Ninja Gaiden." You think that's pretty rough, right? Well get this: That guy was sitting next to him. And he was making Itagaki a fancy birthday cake. No, that stuff isn't true. But it's still fairly icy.Oh, and he dropped a preemptive burn, saying that a PS3 port of Ninja Gaiden II "would be a loss of face for everyone involved." ... So, yeah. Remind us not to cut him off in traffic.
New DS demos are the old DS demos
When we turned on our Wii earlier to check and see if the recent habit of providing us with new DS demos every week would continue, we stumbled upon something very odd. You see, this week's new DS demos are, in fact, the first set of DS demos that released alongside the Nintendo Channel. Just now, they don't have an expiration date attached to them.For those of you with a bad memory (or no desire to click links), the list of demos available has been placed past the break.
Ask a Ninja promotes Ninja Gaiden II
If you're not familiar with the Ask a Ninja podcast, you really should be. As the title implies, the premise is fairly simple: ask the ninja a question, and the ninja answers it. It is the delivery of the answers that makes the podcast so great though. In a genius bit of marketing, someone at Microsoft decided to team up with Ask a Ninja to produces some special episodes of the podcast sponsored by Ninja Gaiden II. The first two episodes are available now on Xbox Live Marketplace, so feel free to download them at your convenience. For even greater convenience, you can watch them right now, as we've taken the liberty of embedding them in this post (how we did this shall remain secret, though we will admit that Ninpo was involved). Find the second episode after the break.
Get your own Dragon Sword on the cheap
Those who've been sitting on the fence, not content with a favorable review to force them to partake in Ninja Gaiden: Dragon Sword in all its sword-slicing glory, now might be the time to come down from there and see what Ryu Hayabusa's latest adventure is all about. Popular retail website Newegg.com is offering the Tecmo title for $22.99 (+ $2.99 for 3 business day shipping).The regular price for the game, as many of you might know, is $34.99, so this is a pretty good deal. Add on top of it the fact that the game is great and we can see little reason why you shouldn't have stopped reading this and instead be in the checkout section at Newegg right now, entering in your credit card information. For those of you without credit cards, just tie some money to a pigeon and send it their way. Regardless of how you pay, you really should own this game.%Gallery-4937%[Via CAG]
Xbox 360 Spring Showcase impressions roundup
Our friends at Xbox 360 Fanboy are having a ball at the Xbox 360 Spring Showcase, sending word of their hands-on experiences with the console's upcoming lineup. (Update: Now with more Human.) Check out their impressions below: Impressions: Ninja Gaiden IIIt's unapologetically hardcore, and we wouldn't have it any other way. Impressions: Banjo-Kazooie: Nuts & BoltsThere is good reason that Rare did not decide to title the game Banjo Threeie. It's something new. Impressions: Penny Arcade AdventuresOn the Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness. Turns out the game is a meld of Japanese RPG and old-school adventure.
Joystiq talks to Itagaki about Ninja Gaiden II
Sitting down with Team Ninja head (and snappy dresser) Tomonobu Itagaki, Joystiq (along with some people who aren't from Joystiq) got to dig up some info regarding Ninja Gaiden II. For example, gamers looking for something a little easier than the first game are in luck. While the Ninja Dog mode found in Ninja Gaiden Black essentially went out of its way to make fun of lesser players for choosing an easier difficulty, Ninja Gaiden II's Path of the Acolyte mode will do no such thing. Not that we had to worry about that. No, that fact is much more important for certain Joystiq bloggers (who shall remain nameless). Head over to Joystiq for the full interview.
Itagaki on Ninja Gaiden II dismemberment, difficulty and DLC
After spending about 30 minutes with a final build (awaiting certification) of Ninja Gaiden II at the Xbox 360 Spring Showcase, we had a chance to sit down with designer Tomonobu Itakagi, along with a handful of other game journalists. Staring out at us through dark shades, as an assistant translated his responses, the Team Ninja front man spoke on the "Deadly Ds," as we like to call them: dismemberment, difficulty (as in, tweaking the design philosophy to make us feel less like wusses for playing on easy) and Down-Loadable Costumes. Actually, there was another "D" addressed here too -- the one that ends with "-rinking on the job," or rather, the lack thereof. Yes, this was a new, sobered Itagaki, folks. Hard to believe given the swirl of emotions surrounding the realization that this could be his last *gasp* Ninja Gaiden.Joystiq: We noticed the name of the casual mode in Ninja Gaiden II is "Path of the Acolyte" and not "Ninja Dog." Are you trying to remove the stigma of playing on the easy setting?
Loads of new Ninja Gaiden II images
click to enlarge Good lord. So many Ninja Gaiden II images. Adding more the already huge pile of Spring Showcase media, we bring you 40 new images of Ninja Gaiden II. We've got character renders. We've got concept art. We've got new screenshots. Hell, we even have special screenshots with no blood (good thinking on that one Microsoft). Please, dive into the gallery below. Just dive right in. Caress each image lovingly with your eyes. Your eyes work very hard, and they deserve the treat.%Gallery-22757%
New Ninja Gaiden II screens are bloody, marvelous
click to enlarge Marking the return of one of gaming's most agile assassins, Ninja Gaiden II seems poised to satisfy our increasingly alarming desire for a good, old-fashioned lopping of limbs. It's true that series protagonist and demon antagonist, Ryu Hayabusa, isn't the most subtle of ninjas -- his technique is about as stealthy as a piano rolling down a flight of stairs -- but he gets the job done. On a related note, Microsoft has announced that the game will be receiving its first batch of gamerpics (100 MS points per pack) and themes (150 MS points per pack) today. Perhaps we'll be able to collect all the severed in-game arms and legs and use them as payment? Ninja Gaiden II is out in the US on June 3rd.%Gallery-7335%
Ninja Gaiden II to get three costume packs in July
Ninja Gaiden II hasn't even been released yet and we're already bored of Ryu Hayabusa's costumes. Why? Our attention spans are just that sho-- oh crap, look, it's a ladybug! ... What were we saying? Oh, right, ninjas. As we're already deep in the clutches of boredom you can imagine our relief to hear that three new costume packs for the game would be released this July for 200 points (that's $2.50) a piece. You can see a full-sized version one of the offerings right here.The strangest part? You actually have to jump through some hoops to be able to buy the first one, seen above. According to the Gamerscore Blog, the armor "will be exclusively available in selected countries to 39,000 gamers on launch day as part of pre-sale or launch promotions," whatever that means. We'd love to sit here and be incensed about the whole thing, but we've got a ladybug to track down. Seriously, it was right here.
Ninja Gaiden 2 video madness continues
It's hard to know what exactly we did to deserve this fine month of May. First we get the Iron Man movie. A new Indiana Jones comes out later this month. Then there's all this Ninja Gaiden II coverage (not to mention the demo coming out sometime this month). GameTrailers has just unleashed a veritable flood of Ninja Gaiden II videos. Seriously, there are six of them. Seasoned Ninja Gaiden players will likely feel the urge to yell at whomever is behind the control though (he never jumps!!!11!!). Still, it's new footage and we're not about to complain. To be fair, we've actually featured one of the videos already, but we're throwing it in again anyway because the GameTrailers player is much, much better than GameSpy's. Check 'em all out after the break.
Ninja Gaiden 2: Ryu has daddy issues
We didn't think hardcore ninja types had daddy issues but this latest clip of Ninja Gaiden 2 tells us otherwise. It showcases the ultra-ninja Genshin versus the father of Ninja Gaiden star Ryu Hayabusa. In the clip Ryu's father Joe Hayabusa (seriously, his name is Joe) faces off against the ultimate bad-dude before Ryu walks in and screams out for his father's safety, and probably because he never played catch with him as a kid.After the jump you can check out another cutscene that features the werewolf boss, Volf (seriously who names these characters?). Surprisingly Volf reminds us of Kelsey Grammar's portrayal of Beast in X-Men 3. Well-spoken werewolves FTW![Thanks, Christan H.]
Eurogamer plays Ninja Gaiden II, we seethe
Eurogamer recently got their (lucky, lucky) hands on a preview build of (Game of the Year 2008) Ninja Gaiden II and the word is good. According to Eurogamer, complaints leveled at the original (bad camera, wonky save system, respawning enemies) have largely been addressed. Oh, and we should probably mention that the game is reportedly beautiful, with Eurogamer praising it for its "incredibly sharp textures, vivid and atmospheric backdrops, and frenetic, pinball-like action that barely flinches no matter what chaos is unfolding on the screen." Perhaps most importantly for many gamers out there (not us, of course), the game now sports a much more forgiving difficulty curve as well as more selectable difficulty levels available from the start. For the love of all that is good, the wait is killing us. That demo had better get here soon. Hit the "read" link to check out Eurogamer's full preview in the meantime.
About the best shoes without laces ever
Click image to enlarge As you can see, these fine kicks feature none other than Ninja Gaiden: Dragon Sword protagonist, Ryu Hayabusa. They were made by a Joystiq reader's much, much better half (sorry, if she can make stuff like this, she totally beats you) and absolutely embarrass any other shoes in the pair's immediate vicinity.We're not kidding here. We're fully prepared to go ahead and award the creator with a medal, trophy or whatever they want. Just give us as much advance notice as possible. We want to make sure it's something especially shiny.[Via Joystiq]
Ninja Gaiden sneakers: we want 'em
Click to enlargenate Alas, we cannot have them. No, these were made by the (no doubt very loving) girlfriend of one lucky Ninja Gaiden fan. The shoes are hand painted and feature Ninja Gaiden's star ninja Ryu in front of a rising sun background. They are, as the kids say, "teh awesomez." While you won't be getting your hands on this particular pair, take heart, for creator Kirstentjie says that she's considering selling them locally and "hopefully internationally one day." Oh, let's hope that one day is very, very soon (and that Microsoft and Tecmo's lawyers don't mind).[Via Joystiq]
Ryu Hayabusa kicks: Ninja Gaiden steals two soles
Click to enlarge Okay, this one's going to write itself, folks. Our tipster, Roger, writes: "My girlfriend recently took a white pair of those vans-style slip-on shoes, and painted good ol' Ryu Hayabusa on them for me against a red rising sun background." He goes on to describe the end result as "OMGWTFBBQAWESOME," which, given the above deviantART image, seems like a comment laced with truth. Warning: Do not read the last sentence. YOU WILL REGRET IT.And because you know this post is a shoe-in for stinking footwear puns, you'd best keep a straight face, stop sneakering and galosh over it before the jokes start achille-n you.
Pirate Gaiden: Dragon Sword
It can be dangerous to buy DS or Game Boy Advance games online, because you might end up with something like the above. And while it might be worth a few dollars' worth of lulz, generally when you pay for a game, you want the actual game. And, ideally, the actual box.NeoGAFfer Darunia bought a copy of Ninja Gaiden: Dragon Sword online from a Dutch retailer, and got ... not quite Ninja Gaiden: Dragon Sword. What he received is clearly a pirate copy, which, in addition to having unintentionally hilarious boxart (it's a quote from a 1p Start post pasted over the back of the Super Mario 64 DS box) and a buggy cartridge that can't save. Oh, and a decent NeoGAF thread.
