Official Ninja Gaiden II Thread.

[AdmiralViscen]

 

[MCD]

 

[Himu]

These bosses are absolutely adorable.  I just beat the armadillo and almost felt bad about it cuz of his stubby little feet.  I also liked the way the skull boss fell down on his butt.

[Himu]

Wow the battle with Volf is crazy... I loved the environment, the arena with the thousands of werewolves.  What a badass Volf was

yeah he was totally badass

[Himu]

OTs are an awesome addition to the combat system. I don't see how anyone can disagree.

Because the game gives you a freaking win button...NG2 in general is a much shallower game and it all stems from limb hacking and energy re-gen. 

Disagree. You're fighting 2x-3x as many enemies at once. OTs are necessary for clearing them out, and it brings up the pace considerably.

It does serve that purpose. The game is closer to NG: DS where you fight tons of guys and kill them like nothing.  And when you can't, ninpo does it for you (and unlike NG1, there are parts where you pretty much have to use it.)  I'm just not into that kind of pacing, I guess. 

Huh? It's strategy. You fight 2-3 x more enemies so you have to clear them out. OT is easily the best way. Despite the best way to kill some way enemies is via OT that doesn't make the game any easier. You're full of bullshit pills. The werewolves in particular, when you first meet them...are fucking tough. But when you realize the best way to tackle them is via OT, they're STILL tough.

[Don Flamenco]

OTs are an awesome addition to the combat system. I don't see how anyone can disagree.

Because the game gives you a freaking win button...NG2 in general is a much shallower game and it all stems from limb hacking and energy re-gen. 

Disagree. You're fighting 2x-3x as many enemies at once. OTs are necessary for clearing them out, and it brings up the pace considerably.

It does serve that purpose. The game is closer to NG: DS where you fight tons of guys and kill them like nothing.  And when you can't, ninpo does it for you (and unlike NG1, there are parts where you pretty much have to use it.)  I'm just not into that kind of pacing, I guess. 

Huh? It's strategy. You fight 2-3 x more enemies so you have to clear them out. OT is easily the best way. Despite the best way to kill some way enemies is via OT that doesn't make the game any easier. You're full of bullshit pills. The werewolves in particular, when you first meet them...are fucking tough. But when you realize the best way to tackle them is via OT, they're STILL tough.

doesn't make the game easier?  are you on crack?    if you took away OTs, the game would be significantly harder. also, the best way to tackle anything is an OT...unless you count ninpo, I guess.  None of the enemies are hard if you find a combo that takes off their limbs in one shot (there seem to be particular combos that have higher chances of taking off limbs for each enemy.)  Then it's just a matter of dashing and blocking while administering OTs. 

It's not a big deal.  Itagaki said he wanted to make the game more accessible and OT accomplishes that.

[AdmiralViscen]

Of course the game would be harder, since there are so many more enemies 

[Himu]

it doesn't make the game any easier at all. i died far more in NG2 than in NG1.

[Don Flamenco]

it doesn't make the game any easier at all. i died far more in NG2 than in NG1.

yeah, we aren't going to settle this.  unless you really want to get into the nature of those deaths and everything else technical about NG1 and 2.  If you didn't have OTs, you'd be dying even more, simple as that.

I'm not saying removing OTs would make the game any better.  My issues with the game are deeper than that...OTs are just symptomatic of those issues.  We can leave it there.

[MCD]

hint: auto aim.

personally i beat him by shooting arrows manually at his face then a piercing void straight through his belly.

[MCD]

yeah but still faster than doing it manually.

and you can kill those things he sent at you for UT absorbing.

[Himu]

first form is harder

[Himu]

actually, the second one is.

just use charged shots on him in first form in his head. Evade the blood he spits at you, when he spits the ghost faces at you bring out the lunar staff and spam Y attacks to kill the. Evade his mighty punches and shoot when you have an opening. Pretty straight forward.

Second battle is a lot better, but not exactly hard either.

[Himu]

Oh hell no.

Fuck this boss.

Probably my biggest pet peeve in all of gaming is bosses who force you to just dodge their attacks for minutes at a time before you get a chance to do some damage. That is exactly what the 2nd Archfiend form is.

No. When he gets up to the edge of the cave go and attack him but watch out for his grip.

[Himu]

edge of the cliff, rather

[Himu]

yeah i was dodging his attacks for like 6 minutes cause i was like FUCK I'M NOT GOING UP THERE

and then i did and it was over

[CHOW CHOW]

Just finished Chapter 10 and am completely blown away. What an incredible level... seriously, that was a fucking masterpiece of a level. I'm stunned... everything about it was awesome. The gfx were insane... it was one of the sickest looking levels ever, both in technical and artistic terms. I also liked the enemies... the blood demons, lots of those fun to kill skeleton zombies with the chainsaws, and lots of ninjas. Goddamn were there lots of ninjas... I'm sure you know what I'm talkin about here -- that epic stair battle, more like a war not a battle. Framerate dropped to like 10-15 fps the whole time but damn was it fun.

Bottom line: It's been a long, long, lonnnng time since a game has kept me up till 4:00 in the morning. What a masterpiece... greatest action game of all-time.

[Himu]

Just finished Chapter 10 and am completely blown away. What an incredible level... seriously, that was a fucking masterpiece of a level. I'm stunned... everything about it was awesome. The gfx were insane... it was one of the sickest looking levels ever, both in technical and artistic terms. I also liked the enemies... the blood demons, lots of those fun to kill skeleton zombies with the chainsaws, and lots of ninjas. Goddamn were there lots of ninjas... I'm sure you know what I'm talkin about here -- that epic stair battle, more like a war not a battle. Framerate dropped to like 10-15 fps the whole time but damn was it fun.

Bottom line: It's been a long, long, lonnnng time since a game has kept me up till 4:00 in the morning. What a masterpiece... greatest action game of all-time.

just wait for chapter 11 and 13 and 14 holy shit

[Himu]

Okay, now that I've had some time to reflect on it, I think the game is better in some ways than the original, but worse in some others.

The weapon variety is a lot better, and the overall action gameplay is better for the most part. Ryu's moveset and maneuverability seem better overall. The claws and scythe are more fun to use than any weapons from the first game.

I feel like the original was a bit more precise. This game seems too chaotic at times. Also, the fact that enemies use unblockable grabs a lot more often and also don't give you any stun frames a lot of the time leads to you occasionally taking damage that seems completely unavoidable.

The level selection and design in the first game is better, IMO. By the end, I felt like I had completed a more epic journey than the one I completed in the sequel. There weren't many levels in NG2 that compare to the last few levels of the original.

Also, the original had better bosses, hands-down. They were tough, but not cheap. These guys were pretty cheap a lot of the time.

Overall, they're pretty comparable in quality, with the first one being maybe a little bit better.

my thougths:


pros: fast paced action that require split second timing, no back tracking, every level is self contained and harkens to the old days which is a refreshing change since every game thinks that being seamless and realistic is important now. The big overworld-ish thing from the first NG is gone, and I think the game is better for it. Excellent level design, insane difficulty that forces the player to get better. There's an achievement for 100 deaths, and I got it, awesome. Enemy ai is such a step up from other 3d action titles. The game is non conformist in almost every regarding when compared to the modern gaming: it is difficult and requires talent, finesse. The action in the game does not emphasize offense, but defense and getting openings. The game is light on story, it doesn't take itself seriously. Enemies don't just sit there waiting to be combo'd, they want you to die a cruel death, they will throw you when you block, they will throw explodable kunai's at you so you turn into hamburger meat, they will do attacks that take half of your lifebar, they will do everything at their disposal to kill you. So basically, the game has some of, if not the deepest combat in a 3d action title. On top of this the game is hilarious. Lines such as "RED ALERT. RED ALERT. WE HAVE A CLASS A NINJA THREAT. I REPEAT, WE HAVE A CLASS A NINJA THREAT." and ninja named JOE Hayabusa make this the cheesiest game since God Hand.

Cons: weird boss fight decisions, camera issues are wtf at times. You have to basically babysit the camera. Horrible load times. The graphics. It's like Team Ninja didn't even try. NG2 looks like the original Xbox game. Areas sometimes lack shadows, reflections, or detail. Also, in chapter 12 when you fight in the Underworld the entire level is covered in bloom lighting. I hate bloom lighting. To make matters worse, the game enhances the bloom to the point where enemies and their attacks are hard to stand out and sorta fit in the background. It's pretty ridiculous considering NG is a type of game all about enemy positioning, defense, and avoiding their attacks. On the bright side, because of the lack of great graphics, the game truly feels next gen in other areas, particularly the enemy count number on screen which just wasn't possible with the original Xbox. This changes gameplay dramatically.

Score: B+

[Himu]

i'm not sure if i like it more than ng1 or not. I think they both compliment each other.

[CHOW CHOW]

Cons: Horrible load times.

Horrible load times? What? They were fine... talk about exaggeration

The graphics. It's like Team Ninja didn't even try. NG2 looks like the original Xbox game.

WTF? Are you blind?

[Beezy]

NG2 looks like the original Xbox game.

Smh, no it doesn't. When was the last time that you played Ninja Gaiden?

[CHOW CHOW]

Chapter 12 was mind-blowing... I'm stunned at how insane this level played and looked.

[WrikaWrek]

So, Chapter 4 boss in the bridge.

Fuck this game. Paying 70e for a game that likes to make me look bad, fuck this shit.

[CHOW CHOW]

The big silver gorilla?  he's not hard... you have to use reverse wind a lot (LT + left stick) to move around the area, and then simply fire fully charged arrows at his head.  Don't worry, you'll get better at the game.  Early on I was dying like 10 times at every boss (around where you are now) but now I only die like once or twice at these bosses, sometimes none.  This is one of the few games where it actually improves your skills as you continue playing, it's very satisfying.  Don't give up

here's a good walkthrough that also has video clips of the bosses

http://www.mahalo.com/Ninja_Gaiden_2_Walkthrough

[WrikaWrek]

What's an ultimate technique?

Gotta learn how to do that, sounds awesome.

[CHOW CHOW]

hold triangle and let go
i'm sure you've done it plenty of time, just didn't know the name

[demi]

he means hold Y... guess he still hasnt fully forgotten his sony ways

[CHOW CHOW]

but remember, using the dodge move is probably the most critical move to learn...
it's very easy, just keep pressing LT + left stick in whatever direction you want to go...you can with a jump too,
eventually you'll be using it all the time.  Heck, I use it when im just going from place to place as it's quicker than running

check out some of the top rank ninja cinema videos on the in-game leaderboards as well

[CHOW CHOW]

he means hold Y... guess he still hasnt fully forgotten his sony ways

damn thats the second time ive done that in the last couple days

[WrikaWrek]

Yeah i've done it before. Multiple fast attacks. Cool. He gets a beating in that video, but looking at it, i think i can do it.

[Jansen]

fuck backtracking right up the ass. the stage approach NGII took was absolutely the right way to go and it is a much better and diverse game than NG because of it.

the combat also takes a nice steamy dump on the first games as well.

NGII is superior to NG. it's the fucking truth. you should be able to come to this conclusion on your own, but since some of you can't, remember that itagaki said that it is so.

and no, NGII doesn't look like an xbox game. maybe you should go back and play NG(B) on your xbox again. that said, it isn't a particularly great looking game either (mostly due to the poor lighting imo).

edit: and you should appreciate getting your arse kicked. the feeling you get once you triumph over a hard situation or boss fight is awesome.

[WrikaWrek]

edit: and you should appreciate getting your arse kicked. the feeling you get once you triumph over a hard situation or boss fight is awesome.

True. But, it's only normal for me to get pissed until.

I'm at Alexei now, the butterfly dude.

[drew]

NG1 felt more epic to me.

The last hour of NGB is the definition of epic.  Everything from the last Alma cutscene to the credits is awesome:  portal after portal, gravity flipping in the fiend realm, the room with the eyes.

The CG cutscenes were epic too: 

[youtube=425,350]JIe3R_w4vyo[/youtube]

NG2 is more like Power Rangers.

[Himu]

i don't see why ng2 isn't considered epic. you fight like boss after boss and the gauntlet in level 13 was fucking amazing

[Himu]

Cons: Horrible load times.

Horrible load times? What? They were fine... talk about exaggeration

No it's not. When you die, you have to go through that slow ass game over screen, then you say yes i want to continue. then the damn chapter screen loads and fuck just hurry up, I said continue, why would I want to read the chapter summary?

[Himu]

And then there's the fact that you see the NOW LOADING sign even in the middle of a fucking menu, and the fact that EVEN if you pause,  you can't pause right away if it's in the middle of an animation and it's beyond distinguished mentally-challenged.

the lack of polish really kills NG2's final score.

[Narag]

i don't see why ng2 isn't considered epic. you fight like boss after boss and the gauntlet in level 13 was fucking amazing

Its a shame the bosses outside of Genshin and the last guys weren't.

[Himu]

I like fighting Elizabet even though she's easy

[Narag]

All the Greater Fiends were. 
Maybe they're awesome bosses on Mentor or Master Ninja though.

[WrikaWrek]

Just finished Chapter 5. Man, this game is intense.

I wasted a lot of nimpo and items on the Dragon thing though, i feel like i shouldn't have wasted those items. Oh well.

[Himu]

All the Greater Fiends were. 
Maybe they're awesome bosses on Mentor or Master Ninja though.

The second Zedonius fight in the middle of the lava was one of the worst boss fights ever. I had to get lucky and manage to keep him on the ground long enough to kill him. The first few times, he just took off into the air, and then I wasn't fighting him; I was fighting the lava, the camera and his stupid minions.

yeah that fight was horrible

[Jansen]

All the Greater Fiends were. 
Maybe they're awesome bosses on Mentor or Master Ninja though.

none of your many deaths came for boss fights? i'll agree that the greater fiends weren't all that hard but a lot of your general encounters were, and since that is what the majority of the game consists of, that is what matters most.

i didn't think zedonius was hard the second go around, but fighting volf  again was a bitch.

i was sincerely hoping to never see those bastards with spears again and then they show up in a boss fight.

[Narag]

I think I died like 60 times on the water dragon in chapter 5.    I learned the easy way later. 

I just expected the greater fiends to be a highpoint and instead they were the low. Even the 2nd Volf fight was easy given one could ignore the centaurs for the most part.

[Himu]

The bastards with spears weren't so bad. I UT'd my scythe and got rid of them easily, and went straight for volf.

[drew]

There's a second Volf fight?   

I fucking love him, he is Power Rangers.

[youtube=425,350]PyWnp3Sfbus[/youtube]

Cuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuum, we will fight in the sacred battleground of the Coliseuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuum

[demi]

I only fought him on Acolyte (doing Warrior now) but in the second fight he brings these annoying fucking centaurs with him

[CHOW CHOW]

All the Greater Fiends were. 
Maybe they're awesome bosses on Mentor or Master Ninja though.

The second Zedonius fight in the middle of the lava was one of the worst boss fights ever. I had to get lucky and manage to keep him on the ground long enough to kill him. The first few times, he just took off into the air, and then I wasn't fighting him; I was fighting the lava, the camera and his stupid minions.

That fight was cake.  In fact, I haven't had a problem with any of the bosses since like Chapter 4 or 5.  Maybe it's because I've simply gotten much better at the game, I dunno, but now I never die more than once or twice at any of the bosses and am always loaded with healing items.  The scythe is simply a monster of a weap.  Just keep pressing triangle and you'll kill anything.  Jumping + triangle where he does that double attack in the air works great as well.  I'm finding the whining about the bosses in this game, both in here and especially in that GAF thread, unwarranted.  I'm not even good at videogames and these bosses are going down easy. 

Two armadillos boss fight? Got em on my second try. All I did was concentrate on one and then taking out the other was really easy.  Methods used were reverse winding when they rolled (you can completely dodge their rolls doing this) and then combo'ing them with the scythe.  A single strike to their heads does huge damage, but hitting those adorable little legs does the trick as well.  As for them exploding afterwards?  The first one I had a Talisman of Rebirth on and when the second one was about to die I was like how am I gonna survive this atom bomb that's about to be dropped?  Then it came to me, just use Inferno ninpo when he's about to explode and you're invincible through the blast.

Worm boss early in the game? Just shoot him in the head with charged up arrows and either Inferno ninpo to block the flying fish or Lunar Staff strong attack.  All the bitching I heard in the GAF thread about this boss was ridiculous.  What a bunch of whiny, pale, pasty, skinny little ninja dogs those guys are.

Genshin? The first Genshin was harder than the others, but not that difficult.  The second and third Genshin fights are very easy thanks to the range and power of the scythe.

Volf? Not even worth mentioning in terms of difficulty, both fights.

The underground rolly polly?  All I did was use the Phoenix ninpo to stun him and then attacked with Falcon's Claws.  He died after about four passes.

The two flying, golden dragons?  Like Volf, not worth mentioning.  Charged arrows took them both out in a few minutes.

Elizibet and whatever other bosses I'm forgetting were all easy as well. 

Btw, I'm playing on Warrior diff not Acolyte.

[CHOW CHOW]

That fight was cake.  In fact, I haven't had a problem with any of the bosses since like Chapter 4 or 5.  Maybe it's because I've simply gotten much better at the game, I dunno, but now I never die more than once or twice at any of the bosses and am always loaded with healing items.

Btw, I'm playing on Warrior diff not Acolyte.

Yeah. . . well. . .

I'll tear you up in Soul Calibur. Book it.

No doubt you could.  Like I said, I'm not good at gaming in general... always getting under 1:1 ratio in multi-player shooters, always getting stomped in fighters, dreadful at puzzle games and shmups, etc.  NG2 seems to be an anomaly.

[MCD]

kbear, armadillo are weak to explosive shuriken, auto aim to the head and they will be dead in no time.

and the golden dragons can be taken out with a single piercing void ninpo.

[Himu]

i played on warrior

most of the bosses weren't that bad. just a few stumped me for a bit

[Himu]

kbear, armadillo are weak to explosive shuriken, auto aim to the head and they will be dead in no time.

and the golden dragons can be taken out with a single piercing void ninpo.

exaggeration. Not a SINGLE piercing void. More like 2.

[MCD]

...

the thought that count himu.

[Himu]

[Junpei the Tracer!]

I've played the first 5 stages on Warrior and it is considerably more challenging,mainly because of the number of enemies you now face. On Acolyte,you have fight around 4-5 enemies in the beginning stages but on Warrior you fight 6-7 at once. They're more aggressive and some attacks are a little different like the purple demons you encounter in Stage 3,now shoot 3 fire balls rather than one. It certainly makes you play better and it certainly makes you spam Izuna Drop a whole lot more.

[CHOW CHOW]

Took me 3 hours to beat the Archfiend on Warrior diff.  I'm completely and utterly spent. Itagaki just owned my soul. To say that I'm mentally exhausted would be an understatement... my brain is mush... it's pudding. One of the reasons it took so long was because all I had was a single fucking herb, no other healing items, so I had to be almost flawless. The first form of the Archfiend probably took an hour and a half and was extremely difficult. The full ground swipe attack he did on his last jump up the thing was really tough. You just have to be so precise and perfect with your dodging. I managed to take him out eventually. I'm sure I could probably do it much quicker a second time around because I've memorized all of his attacks and how to dodge them. The second form of the Archfiend was insanely difficult. I mean you have to be just perfectly precise with your dodges and jumps or you take massive damage. And to those thinking that you can just go up to his hand and combo'ing away and take him out easy, that's not the case in Warrior diff. In this difficulty, he uses his throw attack that takes half of your bar a lot more often, so you can't just stand there and do that jump + XXYYY trick with the scythe, you've actually gotta reverse wind out of the way of his throw animation which is incredibly difficult due to the split second timing required. The ground smashes of his were probably the hardest thing. Sometimes I'd dodge and take no damage, sometimes I'd take damage -- it was inconsistent, which made dodging them all that more difficult. Eventually I managed to take his ass down with the scythe, dying about 50 times in the process. My final score is 19585574, although I didn't upload the score for the first chapter because my 360 wasn't connected at the time, I'm not sure what happened. I dunno if they add it when you log back online or what, but I don't think so.

[MCD]

your final thoughts kbear? score?

[CHOW CHOW]

9.5+, definitely.  Best action game of all-time, best and most satisfying combat system of all-time as well.

[MCD]

can't reply in your FG thread, my account is nuked it seems.

anyway, i just wanted to say this: i always loved reading your impressions, detailed and full of "life", thanks kbear.

[Narag]

That's how I did do it on Warrior. I was using the DS so I was probably out of attack frames faster but yeah, as long as you watched his attacks and evaded he went down fast like that.  Second ground smash had a delay after the first that threw me off initially too.