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Promotional Consideration: Real-life ninjas flippin' out
Promotional Consideration is a weekly feature about the Nintendo DS advertisements you usually flip past, change the channel on, or just tune out. Our featured item for this Easter Sunday, the North American commercial for Ninja Gaiden: Dragon Sword, already made the rounds earlier this week, but if, like us, you're a fan of stealth assassins, that's probably of little concern to you. Put on your cleanest black jumpsuit -- make sure to run a lint-roller on it first to pull off all that cat hair -- and sneak past the post break for the video. %Gallery-4937%
DS Daily: Hopes regarding a certain ninja
Personally, we can't wait for next week, as it sees the release of Ninja Gaiden Dragon Sword, the stylus-driven entry in Itagaki's ninjatastic franchise. We're really hoping that the game will help validate other entries in more established franchises on the handheld.Are you all as excited for this game as we are? Did you read some of the reviews and decide for or against the game? Are you as hopeful as we are that the handheld might start seeing some solid 3D action titles now?%Gallery-4937%
Ninja Gaiden: Dragon Sword struts its stuff
For what it reportedly lacks in longevity, Ninja Gaiden: Dragon Sword makes up for in sheer beauty. As you watch these five new videos, it's almost possible to hear the DS hardware straining under the demands of it all, begging for the pain to stop. Hardly surprising, for some of the graphical tricks on display here are genuinely excellent, with the fire effects in the Cavern of Flame (see: the first video after the break) a highlight.While most of this footage simply shows off different stages of the game, we should warn you that the fifth and final video could be considered a spoiler of sorts, as it reveals the return of a series veteran (who, it saddens us to say, has perhaps the tamest evil cackle we've ever heard).%Gallery-4937%
DS releases for the week of March 17th
This week, there are a lot of DS games headed out all around the globe, but it's particularly a great week for those of you who keep your eyes peeled for interesting Japanese releases. Not the import type? That's okay -- there's a lot of other games to consider, and some that aren't even quite games, per se. Diary Girl Fantasy Aquarium by DS GoPets: Vacation Island Lost in Blue 3 Sega Superstars Tennis
A barrage of Ninja Gaiden: Dragon Sword videos
What impresses us the most about Ninja Gaiden: Dragon Sword isn't necessarily that it looks so amazing, or that it is such a rare genre for the DS. We are just so damn fascinated by the idea that Team Ninja could take a fantastically different control scheme with just one analog input and one (functional) button, and map pretty much the entirety of the Xbox Ninja Gaiden moveset to it.With the stylus, the experience is completely different, but it's still undeniably Ninja Gaiden. And that is clever. Would you know from looking at these videos that the game was being controlled by dragging? Doesn't it look pretty much like any other modern action game in motion?
Metareview: Ninja Gaiden: Dragon Sword
Team Ninja's latest release is quite uncharacteristic: they've always been interested in pushing the capabilities of the hardware they work on, but this usually manifests as high-end graphics on high-end consoles. For the newest Ninja Gaiden game, they strayed from this tactic and made an original DS game instead. It still aims to innovate with the use of stylus controls for fast action.Did the experiment work? Is an action game on the DS possible? Is Dragon Sword a Ninja Dog or a Master Ninja? The reviews are very positive, though there is a near universal disappointment at the game's length and difficulty.Electronic Gaming Monthly -- 86% (A-): Shane Bettenhausen offers praise of the control scheme, basically: "Sure, these fluid controls feel awfully forgiving, but that's cool by me -- with little effort, you'll feel like an agile, ass-kicking superninja."IGN -- 86%: IGN's Craig Harris may not see the controls as a permanent replacement, but at least finds them fun: "Ninja Gaiden Dragon Sword kicks a whole lot of butt on the Nintendo DS. Visually, the game's a stunner, and the action is intense and almost non-stop. I don't think the game makes the ultimate case for touch-screen exclusive control in action games, and I certainly don't think stylus control is better than traditional control for the Ninja Gaiden design. But what Team Ninja created for the Nintendo DS definitely works in turning something traditional into something different and unique without forgetting about the fun, too."Nintendo Power -- 85%: Nintendo's official magazine echoes the length issue, but approves of the game itself: "At approximately five hours, Dragon Sword is a bit on the short side, but I have a tough time complaining when those five hours are so tight and extremely polished." [Excerpt found at Metacritic]%Gallery-4937%
Get pumped for Ninja Gaiden: Dragon Sword
Get ready -- Ninja Gaiden: Dragon Sword is finally set for release this month. We're still sad about that whole November debacle, but hey -- the wait is almost over, and for those of you who didn't (or couldn't) get your hands on the demo at a download station, it's now available in convenient video format embedded above. If you want the full experience, try scribbling over your monitor with your stylus while it plays, but don't blame us for any damage. Sure, model Momoko Tani is playing it instead of you, but exercise your imagination here. Do we have to do everything for you?See also: 2008's Biggest Blips -- Ninja Gaiden: Dragon Sword%Gallery-4937%
Ninja Gaiden 2 'demo' hits Xbox Live, just a video
Remember that blip on the Xbox Live this week that said a Ninja Gaiden 2 Demo was coming soon? The "demo" has now gone live, and we hate to break it to you, folks, but it turns out that demo really means "video of someone playing the demo." Yep, we're disappointed, too, and a bit angry at the misleading title -- by convention, demo in the gaming world tends to be interactive. (Unless, of course, the game really is just us watching someone else play the game.) Creator Tomonobu Itagaki did assure that a demo is coming "at some point." Ninja Gaiden 2 is out for blood June 3. Gallery: GDC08: Ninja Gaiden II
GDC08: Hands-on with Ninja Gaiden: Dragon Sword
Nintendo was also offering a playable demo of Ninja Gaiden: Dragon Sword at their GDC booth, which I totally flipped out and killed played for a few intense minutes. It wasn't too intense, because the game started me in a tutorial stage. It took me through the basic controls (slash enemies to attack, slash up to jump, push any button to block, tap to throw shuriken) and started very slowly meting out enemies on which I could practice. I tried to download the demo, but there was already a queue. I'm not even sure I was playing on a regular DS, or if Tecmo has created some kind of new dual-screened system that is appropriate for action games. It was just right. It certainly wasn't natural at first to play something like Ninja Gaiden with the stylus, but understanding set in very quickly. What felt at first like randomly stabbing at my screen quickly became strategic. It's actually significantly easier to target enemies directly (by drawing on them) than it is to juggle multiple enemies with a joystick.%Gallery-4937%
Ninja Gaiden II demo coming soon
While we're out gallivanting about in San Francisco during GDC, our 360s languish at home, alone. Thankfully, the dutiful fanboys at X3F are keeping tabs on the happenings on Xbox Live Marketplace. Their diligence has been rewarded too, as the GDC section of Xbox Live Marketplace has revealed that a Ninja Gaiden II demo should be hitting Live sometime in the near future. Given the very polished nature of what Tomonobu Itagaki had on display during Microsoft's keynote, we wouldn't be surprised if the GDC demo and the Xbox Live demo are one and the same. Good news if true, though it threatens to halt all productivity at Joystiq if it comes to pass before GDC is over.
GDC08: Microsoft's Keynote in pictures
It's one thing to read the news that positively poured forth from Microsoft's GDC08 keynote this year, but it's nothing without a few pictures to help flesh out the experience. It is with this in mind that Joystiq presents Microsoft's keynote in purely pictorial format, handily divvied into cohesive chunks for easier digestion (always chew your images, kids). Click the images in this post -- including the image of John Schappert's best Tony Soprano impression above -- for more. Enjoy.
Video: GDC08 Ninja Gaiden II video
This, as you may have guessed, is a video of the Ninja Gaiden II demonstration held at GDC during Microsoft's keynote presentation. We believe it's safe to say that the video is as capable of making eyes bleed as Ryu is of eviscerating demons. Our challenge to you, dear readers, is to come up with the catchiest name for the enemies that have chainsaws for hands. And ... go![Via Joystiq]
GDC08: Ninja Gaiden II demon-stration
We nearly missed the Gears of War 2 announcement at the end of Microsoft's GDC keynote because of this surprise Ninja Gaiden II demonstration. By the time it finished, we had completely lost consciousness due to an increasingly violent series of glee seizures -- or gleezures. If you plan on watching the direct-feed footage of Team Ninja's forthcoming kill-em-up, we'd advise you to sit well away from coworkers and small children should your delight suddenly begin manifesting in wild arm flailing and uncontrollable pelvic thrusts. Protip: We find that thinking about the awful June 2008 release date has an immediate calming effect. %Gallery-16541%
GDC08: Ninja Gaiden 2 to hit North America June 3, worldwide early June
digg_url = 'http://digg.com/gaming_news/Ninja_Gaiden_2_coming_to_North_America_June_3'; At Microsoft's GDC 2008 keynote address, Tomonobu Itagaki just announced that Ninja Gaiden 2 will be released in North America on June 3, with a worldwide release coming in early June.Itagaki showed off a brand new demo of the game running on "real hardware" at the keynote. The demo level featured battles with enormous winged creatures, a fight on a rickety bridge, and a very, very large sword.
GDC08: Ninja Gaiden II's Ninja Cinema and a June release
Wearing his classy leather jacket, Team Ninja's Tomonobu Itagaki just took Microsoft's keynote stage to do a quick (and very impressive) Ninja Gaiden II demo and revealed a brand new feature that'll be included when the game ships. The new feature is a video sharing service called "Ninja Cinema" that will allow players to record movie clips, save and then share them over Xbox Live with other gamers. The entire system is very similar to Halo 3's file sharing, but much more ... ninja'fied and bloody. It'll be like dismemberment porn. Oh and a little Team Ninja birdy also revealed that Ninja Gaiden II will storm retail this June. Summer can't come soon enough.
VC Monday Madness: Ninja Gaiden III and Phantasy Star II
Well, the Virtual Console releases have hit our inbox and we're pleased to see two fan-favorites hitting the download circuit. With one of the most beloved RPG franchises depositing an installment, as well as the third title in the Ninja Gaiden releasing, we're sure going to enjoy giving these a play later on.This week's Virtual Console releases are: Ninja Gaiden III: The Ancient Ship of Doom (NES, 1 player, 500 Wii Points) Phantasy Star II (Sega Genesis, 1 player, 800 Wii Points) As always, be sure to stop back later for our video wrap-up of this week's content.
Ninja Gaiden III, Phantasy Star II added to Virtual Console
With all eyes turned to San Francisco's Moscone Center this week, we half expected the Wii's Virtual Console to take a breather. What we got, as it turns out, is two extremely competent releases playing to two of our greatest loves, namely ninjas and, well, genetically engineered chicks with claws, giving those of us manning the Joystiq bunker something to fawn over while the team prepares to burn the midnight oil. Ninja Gaiden III: The Ancient Ship of Doom (NES, 1 player, 500 Wii Points): We'd be more inclined to watch daytime television if network soap operas took a page from Tecmo and filled their stories with ninjas, demons, and trans-dimensional clones. While Ryu Hayabusa's 8-bit escapades may be lacking the over-the-top gore found in the series' more contemporary offerings, we doubt even the upcoming Ninja Gaiden II will have a 'ship of doom.' Phantasy Star II (Sega Genesis, 1 player, 800 Wii Points): While Phantasy Star is better known now for its multiplayer shenanigans and a story thin enough to be named Top Model, the franchise's single player roots continue to be home to some of our most fondly-remembered role-playing from days when pixels were king. It's true that some could argue that Phantasy Star IV tops out its brothers as the series' best bet, but we'll always have a special place in our hearts for Phantasy Star II and Nei's cosmetically-challenged ears.
New Ninja Gaiden II footage, yum
We understand it's possible that you may be getting tired of us posting every scrap of Ninja Gaiden II info we can lay our grubby little hands on. Really, we do. Having said that, it doesn't mean we're about to stop. Oh no, we just wanted to make sure you knew that we understand. Now, on with even more Ninja Gaiden II footage. This time we have Ryu laying waste to the enemy hordes using both his dual katanas (sort of the ancient Japanese equivalent of dual core processing) and his sweet, sweet ninja claws. Check out the video after the break.
Direct-feed Ninja Gaiden screens are impossible to ignore
We're not generally in the habit of reposting screenshots that have already appeared elsewhere on the blog, but when Famitsu put up these direct-feed shots of Ninja Gaiden: Dragon Swords, they were just too damn purdy to ignore.They're a heck of a lot cleaner than those in last Friday's scans, and all eight are waiting for you after the break. Go Ninja, go!See also: 2008's Biggest Blips -- Ninja Gaiden: Dragon Swords %Gallery-4937%
Interview with Ninja Gaiden lead Tomonubu Itagaki
With Ninja Gaiden 2 being the next big action game on the horizon, its media is now flowing a little more freely. This interview with the series creator and Team Ninja lead Tomonobu Itagaki covers all the basics of the new entry in the series, and he even finds time to talk a bit about the games difficulty levels. Itagaki touches on everything from design objectives and bringing in new players, to the fact that the AI will be changing its behavior and patterns depending on its specific injuries. He also makes a slightly intriguing comment regarding environmental effects of the player's actions, then amends it by saying "in this case the enemies". Whether or not this means we will see more player interactivity with the environment will remain to be seen, but with were-wolves and an interesting Achievement strategy, this game just can't get here soon enough.
