Gaming Forums => General Gaming => Topic started by: KDR_11k on March 17, 2009, 04:53:58 AM
Title: Osu! Tatakae! Ninja Blade
Post by: KDR_11k on March 17, 2009, 04:53:58 AM
Well, the Ninja Blade demo was finally released to the second class citizens of XBL, I guess that's one argument for getting a PS3 instead (no idea if NB is on the PS3 too but since most games are I'll just assume so).
First impression was "HD graphics". The colors look washed out, people seem unnatural, like the lighter wanted it to look like a graphic novel (come to think of it, The 300 used that style...) or maybe a mech simulation. Not really unusual though, I guess they call that "gritty" as in "someone used a very gritty sand paper to remove all common sense from the graphics designer's head."
Second impression was quick time events. The demo starts with a series of QTEs before you even get to walk. At first I thought it was just a way of telling you which button does what but then I failed the Y button command a whole lot of times until I noticed the circle closing in on the button icon and... Yes, the game actually shows the button before you're supposed to press it and grades you on the timing of the actual press. Fortunately when you fail a QTE input (which happened a LOT for me) you get thrown back at most 3-4 inputs but still... After a series of QTEs, you get a short sequence of beating infected people things with your swords (introducing you to the anti-armor blade that's slow as hell but destroys enemy armor after a few strikes), then some more QTEs, then you have to run away from a sandworm from Dune. In that section the game actually shows similarity to Mirror's Edge, you can activate "Ninja Vision" to highlight walls you can run along and poles you can swing on (though you could probably just use your own eyes because it's not hard to see that the wall next to the gaping hole is fairly flat). Dying here actually shows you a "you have died, continue from last checkpoint?" screen instead of the usual short rewind and "hit A to try again" you get for failing a QTE. Then you slide down a building, I guess you can chop some stuff there but it doesn't seem necessary but it reminded me of the bonus stages of some ninja game I saw TASed once. Then MORE QTEs. A boss fight where during the first stage every boss hit sequence (Zelda-style puzzle boss) ends with a QTE, then the first stage ends with a QTE, then the second stage ends with a really lengthy series of QTEs to actually finish the boss off.
Notice how much I said QTE? If I hadn't wasted so much time on the second form of the boss I would have spent HALF THE PLAY TIME on QTEs. Graded QTEs (Good/Great/Perfect). The demo didn't interpret your grades though, nothing, just a "you earned 3000 points for killing the boss" screen and then the title again. I guess the full version will grade you on your QTE performance and maybe how many extra things you stab in scenes like the wall sliding. There's even finishing moves in regular combat but I didn't trigger even one and there wasn't enough regular combat to really become familiar with it. Not sure I consider that a real loss though, the regular combat felt pretty uninteresting, just chop stuff until it falls over though maybe that's just because it was a demo. The boss fight that took most of the gametime was actually pretty fun and I guess the jump and run sequences would also be pretty cool if they didn't make your first contact with one the equivalent of an autoscroller because I'm pretty sure people hated those back in the 2d days already. The demo was a Treasure-esque mishmash of gameplay styles (come to think of it the wall sliding was a bit shmuppy...), I wonder if that's just from all the compression or if it'll look like that in the end. Also I think they really should have made wireswinging a gameplay element (hey, that's what ninja sight is for, let the player shoot the wire when he feels it's needed or let him use the force when he's unsure and highlight the best grapple points then!) rather than something you see in QTEs. It was so fucking awesome in Ninja Cop that it really deserves a chance here. Then again maybe if I want to attach long threads to large buildings and swing around on them I should buy a Spiderman game instead.
So final verdict, seems cool when it doesn't try to be Ouendan. Or Elite Beat Agents if you're not familiar with the Japanese name.
This is the game for Yahtzee, I tell you. One week after the review the "Press X to not die" killer will strike throughout Australia. Or the From Software HQ in Japan, I guess.
Title: Re: Osu! Tatakae! Ninja Blade
Post by: Enner on March 28, 2009, 07:11:28 PM
Upon viewing trailers and video for this game, I was assaulted by quick time events. Every scene change, every cutscene, every everything seems to be decided by a quick time event. Ugh. God damn God of War (and to a lesser extent RE4 and Shenmue, I guess).
From what I heard, this game is made by some ex-Team Ninja (Ninja Gaiden) guys who jumped to From Software. That certainly explains the feeling of deja vu. Well, PS3 owners needn't worry since they are getting Ninja Gaiden Sigma 2.
