Ninja Gaiden Series

[Dr. Ensatsu-ken]

Just as I expected multiplayer looks way too chaotic and it feels like people attack without rhyme or reason. Its just way too chaotic, and the frame-rate is inconsistent in some videos. Also there are no elements of strategy that I can really see in how the multiplayer is executed. At the very least they could have included different weapon pick-ups using weapons from previous NG games for some variety.

Or, better yet, they should not have created multiplayer at all. Why?

1. Because NO Ninja Gaiden fan I know (you know, the people who actually buy these games) ever indicated that they wanted any form of multiplayer except for maybe co-op which a few people did want.

2. Because it gives them an excuse to do a half-assed single player mode that's also half as long (probably even shorter) than previous NG games, and even less than half as in-depth with how limited its gameplay mechanics are.

3. Because IT'S A FUCKING NINJA GAIDEN GAME!

Who the fuck thinks of team deathmatch when they think of Ninja Gaiden? This isn't Halo or Team Fortress 2, its Ninja FUCKING Gaiden.

Hell, even the developers and Ninja Theory have enough brains not to try and add in some gimmicky multiplayer for DmC, despite all of the other stuff that they may or may not being doing wrong with it.

What's with this common mentality among developers that now every game must have some form of competitive multiplayer, whether it even fits the specific game genre or not, in order to sell well?

Is just having a lot of good single-player content not good enough to sell a game anymore, even if it has more content than most gimmicky multiplayer in other games?

[talonmalon333]

2. Because it gives them an excuse to do a half-assed single player mode that's also half as long (probably even shorter) than previous NG games, and even less than half as in-depth with how limited its gameplay mechanics are.

This, unfortunately, has become far too common with modern games.

[Dr. Ensatsu-ken]

So....I think the alternate weapons that we've had in previous games that should have been featured in this game have been confirmed as DLC now (well, maybe not confirmed, but the most recent OXM article on NG had a representative state that it was highly probably to see other weapons featured as DLC sometime down the road). So, yeah, every weapon that isn't a sword must now be payed for separately. I believe that Team Ninja has officially sold out on its fan base.

Also, the game may only take 4 hours to beat.

Anyways, I really want to try and go back to playing NGB sometime since its been a while since I've last played it. It kind of saddens me how forgotten this game is these days. Sure it got its recognition when it came out, but its kind of underrated these days, IMO.

[Spark Of Spirit]

I hope that rumored 3DS Ninja Gaiden game is a 2D sidescroller. It's been way too long.

[Dr. Ensatsu-ken]

Yeah. Team Ninja has pretty much fucked up any potential that 3D NG had to go anywhere beyond NGB, so I'd at least like it if Tecmo could see fit to revitalize the classic 2D side-scrolling NG series that they've somehow managed to ignore for nearly 2 decades now. The funny thing is that there are tons of people with nostalgic love for the classic games who would buy a game like this on day 1 (I'd be one of them if I had the money for a 3DS), and yet Tecmo still makes it clear that they don't give a shit about the classics. Its no wonder why they almost went under after Itagaki left the company. Its clearly run by brainless morons who don't even know what the fuck audiences of their games actually want. It doesn't help that their only talented team of developers is now being run by one of the most unimaginative and boring minds in modern gaming, as far as I'm concerned.

For the record, I'm pretty sure that the upcoming NG3 will either kill the series or at the very least cause it to go through another long drought of having no games in relation to it coming out until someone once again revitalizes it years later. Hopefully it actually goes to someone talented by then.

[Spark Of Spirit]

It's weird because Ninja Gaiden on the NES was pretty big back in the day. Tecmo and Nintendo have a great relationship, NG3 is coming to Wii-U (I expect ports of the first two games eventually, too), and they even helped make a Metroid game.

The obvious thing to try and do is appeal to that base that buys the most Nintendo consoles (older gamers who grew up in the 8-bit era) by appealing directly to them with a Ninja Gaiden 4 type of deal. You advertise it, and I'm sure people would rush out in droves for it like they did for Mega Man 9 and Sonic Generations.

At this point, it's all I really want from Tecmo.

[Dr. Ensatsu-ken]

Yeah, people have openly been asking Tecmo to do this for years, and it would especially be fitting to happen next year since that would be Ninja Gaiden's 25th anniversary. The sad thing is that I can guarantee you that it will never happen. Tecmo has clearly forgotten about the series that once made it great (and I count the 3D NG games as a separate entity from the classics, to be honest), and the sad thing is that people have literally been begging them to do this for years (I know people on other boards who have e-mailed Tecmo reps in the past numerous times suggesting that they pull an MM9 with NG). I'd do it myself if I actually thought that Tecmo would listen, but like I said, they clearly don't give a shit. The funny thing is that it would probably sell better than any other game that they are currently releasing, with the exception of maybe DOA5 since that series still has its fan base even after all of these years.

[Spark Of Spirit]

Dead Or Alive 5 seems to show something I've suspected all along:



They know.

No excuses now, Tecmo.

[Dr. Ensatsu-ken]

Well, for that matter, even DOA2, NGB, and NGS2 has that same NES throw-back costume. They've always known about the classic games. But unfortunately that's the closest we'll ever get to seeing them in the modern age of gaming. Tecmo has made it clear that they have absolutely no intentions of reviving the classic style of NG gameplay. I mean, don't get me wrong, I love the first 2 games from the new series, but now Hayashi is dragging that to complete shit, and aside from homages like in previous TN games and most recently DOA5, I don't think we'll ever get to see a classic-style NG game again. Well, for that matter I don't even think we'll be seeing a 3D NG game ever again after NG3 comes out, as I'm 99% certain that it'll officially kill the series. Its very telling when almost every actual fan of the NG series (whether its the classics or the new games) thinks it looks like utter garbage.

[Dr. Ensatsu-ken]

So....I don't think that anyone on this board is going to really pick up a Play Station Vita, but in case you do I would suggest giving Ninja Gaiden Sigma Plus a look. That's at least one game that can't be screwed and is pretty much guaranteed to be good. Well, I'd argue that it might be a nuisance to play a game like that on a handheld, but then again I think it would work out fine. Just don't play the game on Hero mode which TN is implementing into the game. The game is not meant to be played with an auto-guard feature for newbies. It wasn't designed for that, and it would probably just end up forcing your character to get guard-locked too many times since enemies are pretty aggressive in that game.

That said since I doubt anyone here will even consider picking up a Vita anytime soon, I doubt what I said matters much. In fact I'd recommend just getting the actual game on a console instead, but sadly me and Foggle are the only 2 people on this site who are even interested in 3D NG games.

As always, I'd always recommend Ninja Gaiden Dragon Sword as a great handheld NG game, but I've already given up hope on anyone caring about that game since I'm pretty convinced that I'm the only person on the planet who even gives a shit about that game (honestly, even most NG fans snub the game just because its on a handheld....which IMO is incredibly stupid).

[Spark Of Spirit]

I keep forgetting about Dragon Sword, though I probably should pick it up when I see it since its so cheap.

But really, all I want from this series now is a proper 2D game to send it off, because at this rate it's probably done.

[talonmalon333]

sadly me and Foggle are the only 2 people on this site who are even interested in 3D NG games.

Not necessarily true.

[Dr. Ensatsu-ken]

Well, the way I see it, KoeiTecmo isn't too well financially, right now (even in Japan). Maybe if they end up going out of business another company can buy the NG IP off of them and actually listen to the thousands of fan mail begging for a new 2D NG game. That's basically the best hope we have by this point.

As far as Dragon Sword goes, its still the first game I'll be picking up when I finally buy myself a Nintendo DS.

[Foggle]

Apparently Ninja Gaiden has a problem counting to 3. 2 great games on the NES, then a third one that would have been awesome if it weren't so horribly broken. Now we have 2 great games on modern consoles, soon to be followed up by a third one that completely misses the point and will probably kill the series once again.

If I ever get a Vita, which probably won't be until 2015 at the very earliest, I will definitely get the Ninja Gaiden port. One of my absolute favorite games, as you know. I must thank you for introducing it to me.

I do intend to buy Dragon Sword some day... I just keep forgetting that it exists. I will definitely get it eventually.

[Dr. Ensatsu-ken]

Yeah, and I was SO sure that we may end up finally seeing a Ninja Gaiden 4 in some form. Apparently the series will never make it to that number, though.

As for Dragon Sword, you're not alone. About 90% of the NG fan base forgets that it exists, whether they are fans of the classics or even the new games.