[360, PS3] Ninja Gaiden 2

[RobertR1]

Played this last night. I've played throught NG2 on the 360 and I still have the NG2 demo on the 360 so doing a back to back was rather easy.

The PS3 certainly benefits form the resolution bump. The IQ is cleaner.

However the lack of blood and gore is clearly noticeable. The missing limbs, pools of blood and just brutal executions are all often done in close up to really highlight the brutality of NG2. You can say it's over the top but clearly the design was intended to highlight such. Replacing that with the purple haze just doesn't cut it. The satisfaction from the brutality in combat just doesn't have the same punch and from that perspective makes the game less engaging.

It was pointed out on gaf that there are less enemies also. Couple that with the lack of gore and optimization over time, I can see where the resolution bump came from.

The co-op feature was cool and I'm sure it'd be fun with another person. Just dont' count on the CPU for it though.

For someone who has never played NG2, I'm sure it'll be fun but if you've played it already, you might find yourself missing the brutality, unless you were looking for a kinder version.

 

[Silent_Buddha]

Less enemies? So will it be less of a challenge also?

Regards,
SB

 

[RobertR1]

Less enemies? So will it be less of a challenge also?

Regards,
SB

To be fair, I don't think many would mind an easier NG, esp at higher difficulties. To put it correctly, a fair game vs a cheap game which NG2 can often be at higher difficulties. From what others have stated the enemies seem to have some more HP to make up for it and the balance could be better. Still don't expect to beat it on Mentor or Master Ninja unless you deeply understand the combat.



Here's a chart detailing enemy count: http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showpost.php?p=17635322&postcount=4021

 

[djskribbles]

Less enemies? So will it be less of a challenge also?

Regards,
SB

People on GAF said that the enemies appear to take more damage though.

As for the violence, I probably would have preferred more gore, but meh, this is more inline with previous NG games.

 

[patsu]

I think there are more changes than mere enemy count, toned down gore and resolution bump:
http://forum.beyond3d.com/showpost.php?p=1333469&postcount=267

What people played was just a demo.

3 playable characters (http://blog.eu.playstation.com/2009/...aiden-sigma-2/) [Are there 3 or 4 characters ? I see Hayabusa, Ayane, Momiji and Rachel]

Higher resolution

Lesser blood (This one from memory)

Online co-op (http://www.1up.com/do/newsStory?cId=3175176)

Updated environment, new boss battles, different enemies, finishing blow, new AI strategy (http://platinum.cheatcc.com/ps3/rev/...a2preview.html)

Prologue comic (shown in the final trailer above)

... and what's with that secret hinted by the producer in the last video ?

 

[djskribbles]

They tweaked the cameras as well, which a lot of people complained about.

There's also a new weapon(s) isn't there?

 

[patsu]

Just noticed they put up a blog entry and video to go through (most of ?) the features:
http://blog.eu.playstation.com/2009...-walkthrough-with-team-ninjas-yosuke-hayashi/

 

[Rockster]

Not just the blood but the body part remnants are also gone. Are they trying to get this game out in Germany or something?

 

[obonicus]

Again, NG2 was Cero Z in Japan, which is about equivalent to AO. Retailers won't display it. This is Cero D, which is more like MA.

 

[nightshade]

Played the demo & wow this is one long demo.

The IQ certainly looks MUCH sharper & better, I dont mind the purple haze [I like it infact xD]

 

[djskribbles]

Was gonna wait until the NA demo but I couldn't wait anymore.
Team Ninja sure knows how to make a good beefy demo. Loved it.

2-3 brief moments of slowdown that were noticeable, but other than that, the framerate is good. I did notice some tearing in some moments that seemed to be pretty random, just like in NGS. I probably would've preferred replacing the purple with blood, but whatever... didn't bother me at all. Quite a visual improvement over the first NGS.

 

[PowerK]

Is slowdown that bad? I wish I had PS3 to check this out. But from what I've seen in Korean PS3 forums, lots of people complain due to slowdowns.

 

[djskribbles]

No, it's not bad at all. 99% of the time (for me anyway) the game ran at or near 60fps. There were only a few rare moments where you could tell the framerate dipped into the 40's for a split second.

 

[Nesh]

Tried it last night. The game is set to be upscaled from 720p native to 1080p as a default. I dont know why

I dont have the 360 version with me so I cant compare directly right now but here are some differences I have noticed apart from a clearer image:

Lighting effects. I believe this time they are more colorful and in the cut scenes it seemed to me that they affected the model surfaces from more angles. For example the old man's face if I remember well on the 360 version during the cut scene was mostly dull brownish which is his actual skin color. This time around his skin color was more vibrant with the lighting effects of the room being affecting it more.

Bump maps: There are areas where I think the bump maps are more pronounced. Probably on some of the enemies as well


The gore is reduced in the demo but I also suspect that the missing decapitations are limited to the demo. Some finishing moves clearly show Ryu cutting off the heads of the enemies just like the 360 version, and the blue haze oozes from the head but the head is still there. This looks awkward. Something similar was also done for the demo of the original as well I think. Limbs and other portions of bodies disappear but you will see the enemies missing hands and legs. One enemy in particular was cut in half but his upper portion of the body disappeared. The lower was still lying on the ground.

I kind of wondered why Ryu at one point he cleaned his sword from the blood like his did in the 360 when there was no blood at all on his sword in this one.

 

[assurdum]

http://up3.viploader.net/pic/src/viploader1165099.jpg
-no AA
http://up3.viploader.net/pic/src/viploader1165100.jpg
-2xMSAA

variable AA?

2xMSAA but sometime strangely is deactivated. I have the suspect is more a sort of bug of the demo indeed a dynamic AA, because not work only occasionally & without a technical reason imho.

 

[nightshade]

There are noticeable framedrops when using ninpo specifically speaking, Ayane's Ninpo.
Also I think the double team ninpo looks stupid as it never shows you hitting your enemies lol.

I kind of wondered why Ryu at one point he cleaned his sword from the blood like his did in the 360 when there was no blood at all on his sword in this one.

I saw Blood on all weapons [most visible on Falcon Talons]

 

[Nesh]

There are noticeable framedrops when using ninpo specifically speaking, Ayane's Ninpo.
Also I think the double team ninpo looks stupid as it never shows you hitting your enemies lol.


I saw Blood on all weapons [most visible on Falcon Talons]

You are correct. Checked the demo again and I noticed that there is indeed blood.

 

[NRP]

Somewhat OT:
Anyone know what Itagaki is up to these days? Is he still making games?

 

[idsn6]

Tokyo Vikings.

 

[big4ared]

2xMSAA but sometime strangely is deactivated. I have the suspect is more a sort of bug of the demo indeed a dynamic AA, because not work only occasionally & without a technical reason imho.

Weird. In the non-MSAA version, there is a purple particle on the left side of the screen. Maybe they turn off MSAA if there are any particles visible?