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Retailer lists Ninja Gaiden 3 special edition with bloody sword Move accessory [update: it's real, kind of]
One week before the release of Ninja Gaiden 3, a previously unseen special edition has popped up on the website of Canadian retailer Video Games Plus. The set inclues a PS3 copy of the game and a special "Dragon Sword" accessory for PlayStation Move that mimics the appearance of Ryu Hayabusa's sword. Or, to put it another way, is a tiny bloody foam sword.We haven't seen this edition for sale anywhere else, so it's potentially either a Canadian exclusive or something that didn't actually make it to production. It's different from the known collector's edition, anyway. We're asking Tecmo Koei now. We just want to know if we and other mature adults will be able to play this M-rated game with a toy sword.Update: Tecmo tells us the sword is a real item, "okayed" by Tecmo but not 100% official. The bundle, from what we understand, is not an official Tecmo thing. We've asked for more info about its availability.
Dead or Alive 5 falls into the 'alive' category this September
If you want to punch dudes from Virtua Fighter, but not ... in ... Virtua Fighter, you'll have your chance this September. Tecmo Koei confirmed to Joystiq that Dead or Alive 5 will launch worldwide in September.That marks just about one year since the first unveiling of the fighter at a pre-Tokyo Game Show event. Tecmo promised an emphasis on what it called "fighting entertainment," with an emphasis on more interactive stages.
Ninja Gaiden 3 to require online pass [Update: Confirmed!]
To become a ninja, one must learn -- the deadly arts of war, for example. Or how to wear those weird socks. Stuff like that.You can't be any geek off the street, and so Tecmo-Koei has decided to lock the online multiplayer of Ninja Gaiden 3 behind an online pass. So says a listing on Gamefly warning potential renters of Ninja Gaiden 3, anyway. Update: It's confirmed! Ninja Gaiden 3 will have an online pass, a Tecmo Koei representative has confirmed with Joystiq.We've sent our silent inquisitors to Tecmo Koei to secure confirmation on the matter. We'll let you know what we hear back. [Thanks, Josh!]
Virtua Fighter's Akira playable in Dead or Alive 5
Fighting crossovers are all the rage these days, it seems. In a very unexpected announcement, Sega and Tecmo have revealed that one of Virtua Fighter's most iconic characters, Akira Yuki, will be playable in Dead or Alive 5.The crossing of Dead or Alive and Virtua Fighter would once have been considered anathema, laughable even. The good people at Sega and Tecmo seem to be aware of this, and have thus released a trailer along with the announcement (complete with stun palm of doom). Behold it above and believe.Now, if someone could just whip up another Fighters Megamix, we'd be all set.
New Pokemon Plus Nobunaga's Ambition trailer rewrites history
We don't remember Oda Nobunaga's blood-soaked conquest of Japan being quite so cute and fluffy, or having so much to do with scantily clad ninja women and so little to do with murder, but what do we know? It's not like we double majored in History and Applied Pokeology. Oh wait, we totally did.
Five straight minutes of Ryu Hayabusa messing dudes up in Ninja Gaiden 3, right here
Starting your morning with a murderous ninja (is there any other kind?) feels so right, especially when a giant flame dragon is involved. The five minutes of gameplay from Ninja Gaiden 3 seen above deliver on all of that and so, so much more. Bonus: We've dropped an extra Ninja Gaiden Sigma Plus trailer just below.
Itagaki's depression-fueled Armageddon/Aerosmith bender
Did you think it was weird that Dead or Alive games often featured totally out-of-place Aerosmith songs? We always did, but that music choice was fully, definitively justified by Tomonobu Itagaki in a speech at DICE 2012.Itagaki explained that the first PS2 release of Dead or Alive 2 (which only came out in Japan; the one at the US PS2 launch, DOA2 Hardcore, was a remake) was unfinished, and sent to manufacturing under false pretenses. A manager approached him and asked to borrow a copy of the in-progress game to play it. "Instead," he said, "it was taken into a factory for production on that day without me knowing it." The team only had two and a half months to work on it. "To be sure, the company made a huge profit."The game had relatively low-quality, jagged graphics and a lack of extra content. Itagaki became depressed about the unfinished game. "I thought I would quit making games," he said. "Some of the staff, including me, were so depressed by this fact." In this state, he stayed home for "three or four months," drinking and repeatedly watching ... Armageddon, singing along to the sappy "I Don't Want to Miss a Thing" with his daughter, which he admitted was a "stupid life." "If I close my eyes now and recall Armageddon, tears still come out," he said.So the secret to the Aerosmith songs in those DOA games is that Itagaki seriously, unironically loves Aerosmith. The real surprise is that Bruce Willis never made it into any of the games.
Ninja Gaiden 3 dev diary reasserts seriousness of ninja game development
Worried that the now Itagaki-less Team Ninja isn't still super, super serious about making a Ninja Gaiden game? The latest dev diary for Ninja Gaiden 3 should more than suffice at changing your mind.
Pokemon Plus Nobunaga's Ambition could have been Dynasty Warriors: Pokemon
The newest Pokemon title will combine Nintendo's popular catch-em-all creatures with the Japanese historical setting of Nobunaga's Ambition, but it turns out that wasn't the first choice of historical periods. Originally, according to the latest Famitsu, the spinoff was going to combine Pokemon with the very popular Tecmo Koei Dynasty Warriors series and its historical setting, which is instead based on the Three Kingdoms period in Chinese history.Nintendo felt the Dynasty Warriors series was a little too violent to be matched up with its cute little creatures, however, and so Tecmo Koei pitched the series known more for strategy than action, which Nintendo eventually agreed with. Famitsu also says that though both companies are working on the game, Tecmo Koei is heading up day-to-day development during production.
Stare at Pokemon Plus Nobunaga's Ambition for two minutes
So ... Pokemon Plus Nobunaga's Ambition is still happening. That's pretty weird.
Fatal Frame spinoff Spirit Camera: The Cursed Memoir chills 3DS in April
Nintendo of America skipped out on the Wii's Fatal Frame 4, but its 3DS sort-of sequel will be haunting our shores. This morning, Nintendo announced a North American release of Spirit Camera: The Cursed Memoir, dated for the super spooky Friday, April 13. In Spirit Camera, co-developed by Nintendo and Tecmo, players will use the 3DS as a virtual camera with which to help "Maya," a girl trapped in a creepy house. The game includes a 16-page "AR Book," which uses augmented reality to display movies and other special effects at certain points in the story. "In other moments," the announcement reads, "characters will emerge from the pages into the player's world via augmented reality in the form of evil spirits that attack from all directions." That's pretty scary for a paper insert!%Gallery-144890%
Here's the Ninja Gaiden 3 collector's edition (with bonus screenshots)
There probably isn't a person alive who hasn't, at some point in their life, enjoyed the sight of a ninja flipping out and killing a bunch of dudes. It's universal, like how everyone enjoys warm blankets or shooting firearms. There's a special kind of person, however, that also has an affinity for extreme, debilitating punishment, which is why Ninja Gaiden 3 exists. NG3's collector's edition, which we first caught wind of last December, includes the game, an art book, a soundtrack, a figure set of Ryu Hayabusa and an eventual murder victim, as well as a download voucher for a four-character demo of Dead of Alive 5. Non-collector's edition pre-orders placed at Gamestop and Amazon will include a code for a two-character demo of DOA5, with Gamestop's demo including Hayabusa and Hitomi, and Amazon's featuring Ayane and Hayate (the four-character version includes both Amazon and GameStop's characters). The collector's edition will be available exclusively at Gamestop, indicating that Tecmo Koei truly understands the unique relationship it has with its players.%Gallery-144412%
Ninja Gaiden 3 multiplayer footage kills so many ninjas
Here's a video montage of Ninja Gaiden 3's multiplayer mode. As someone who's played it, I can say this video sums up my experience pretty well. I stabbed dudes; dudes stabbed me; occasionally I stabbed myself. Sometimes honor is more important than breathing.
Ninja Gaiden Sigma Plus added to North America's Vita launch lineup
When the PlayStation Vita launches in North America on February 22, it'll be accompanied by a familiar face, obscured by a familiar facemask. Ninja Gaiden Sigma Plus, the Vita revamp of the PS3 revamp of the Xbox reboot of the NES/arcade series, will be available at launch. This version adds the simplified "Hero Mode," and promises additional difficulty settings for hardcore players beyond Normal and Hard. There are also some new Vita-specific control options: players will be able to target enemies for projectiles using the gyro sensor, and launch Ninpo magic with the rear touch pad. The Mission Mode has been expanded with new "Ninja Trials," forcing specific conditions like exclusive use of projectiles.%Gallery-143077%
Ninja Gaiden 3 arrives on March 20, pre-order or get collector's edition for DOA5 demo
Tecmo Koei is ensuring that we'll all be laden with giant, heavy video game boxes on March 20, making us perfect targets for ninja assassins. Hmm. That's the newly announced North American release date for Ninja Gaiden 3. It's also the date on which the Collector's Edition will become available, only at GameStop and EB. The "truly deluxe package" includes an art book, soundtrack CD, and "Duel of the Masked" figure. Most importantly, you'll get a four-character Dead or Alive 5 demo. Even if, for whatever reason, you decide you don't need that figurine or the rest of the Collector's Edition, pre-ordering any version of the game at GameStop or Amazon will get you a two-character DOA5 demo. If you choose GameStop, you have access to Ryu Hayabusa and Hitomi, while Amazon grants you Ayane and Hayate.
Becoming a ninja in Ninja Gaiden 3
The idea of multiplayer in Ninja Gaiden 3 is not something I was all too excited about. I'm a big fan of the Ninja Gaiden series, but multiplayer? It just didn't seem like a good idea. Imagine my surprise, then, when I actually had fun sampling Ninja Gaiden 3's additional mode. %Gallery-141286%
Beautiful brawling in Dead or Alive 5
I've always been a fan of the Dead or Alive series. To this day, the story of my colleague Ludwig's visit to The States back in 2007 and how we played DOA 4 for hours straight at our boss' house (much to his chagrin) is one of the fondest memories of my life. It's been too long since I've had my fix, so you can be sure I'm looking forward to Dead or Alive 5. At a recent event in San Francisco, Team Ninja brought out the first playable build of DOA 5. For fans concerned after Tomonobu Itagaki's departure from Tecmo, and based on the time I've spent with the game, it's a non-issue. Well, mostly. %Gallery-141350%
Dead or Alive 5 screens aren't afraid to bust a gut or two
There's nothing quite like watching a teenage girl gut punch a hardcore-looking ninja lady. And Team Ninja clearly knows that, showcasing as much in the latest volley of screens from Dead or Alive 5.
Here's what Ninja Gaiden 3's multiplayer looks like
We know, we know -- the gallery below isn't quite a trailer showing off Ninja Gaiden 3's new multiplayer mode, but it is the first we've seen of the four vs four competitive slicer. Head past the break -- carefully -- to take a peek.
Ninja Gaiden 3 leaps to retail in March 2012
We've got good news and we've got bad news, folks. Let's start with the good: Ninja Gaiden 3 will arrive on Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 next March, with a Wii U version to follow at some point after that. Team Ninja head Yosuke Hayashi told as much to a crowd of journalists in San Francisco this afternoon, according to our reporter on the ground. Now, friends, the bad news: despite a new easy mode, and the notorious absence of a known masochist at the helm, we're still quite confident that Ninja Gaiden 3 is gonna be super duper hard. Like, way hard. Maybe you haven't played the other two? 'Cause they're both pretty hard games, guys.
