Windstar
[13] Hero
So, despite the negative reactions to the PS3 and Xbox 360 versions of this game, I decided to pick up the Wii U version of Ninja Gaiden 3. Overall the game looks and plays pretty well on the Wii U gamepad. Aside from some slowdown (think NG2's (in)famous slowdown), its pretty fun. The story so far isn't anything to write home about, but the narrative and the voice acting is pretty good. At the very least none of the characters terribly off-putting compared to Irene and Rachel of the earlier games. Every character looks believable and feels apart of the world, despite some really outlandish feats and stunts. Little surprised to find out that the game only has 8 days and 2 Ayane days which means only 10 stages, at least they're lengthy. And despite the lack of stages, the game has a Chapter Challenge mode which lets players pick up Momiji or Kasumi and run through all ten stages. I suspect that once I complete the game, I'll be able to run through the mode with Ryu and Ayane as well.
As for the game play, the game pretty much plays a lot like Ninja Gaiden 2 over the original. You can instantly kill dismembered targets like in NG2. Essences are gone, but there's a new mode called Bloody Rage that builds up as you kill targets, this basically allows for instant charging of Ultimate Techniques to clear out enemies. Normal charging of Ultimate Techniques feels like it takes a little longer in this game than it did in NG2.
Keep in mind that the last Ninja Gaiden I played was the original 360 version of NG2 - I have not played the Sigma version of the game (though perhaps I should?), so I'm unaware of any modifications that may have made into NG3. Still, one new element in this game is the ability to see and predict certain enemy grapples that you couldn't do in prior games. Successfully evading the attack and performing a strong attack immediately triggers a new instant-kill technique called Steel on Bone, where you'll instantly kill the target and can (up to 4 it seems) chain additional SOBs on nearby enemies. Its pretty satisfying, though a little mashy. And it seems some enemies can stop a chain. Though, being able to instantly kill some of the tougher fiends in the Steel on Bone technique, makes them a lot more bearable.
There's a few collectables to be found in the game. Namely Gold Scarabs and Crystal Skulls. In NG3, scarabs unlock health upgrades (you'll actually have to unlock it first, then spend the karma to upgrade it). Skulls basically put your character into an arena and have you slug it out with several waves of enemies before duking out with a boss from the prior games (Genshin, from NG2 happens to be one of them. And he's just as cheap as ever). Completing these yield extra karma to power up your character. If you miss these collectables in the story mode, you can go in and find them in Chapter Challenge and they'll carry over to your Story mode save file. Aside from unlocking health upgrades for Ryu, scarabs also unlock weapons. Or at least, the Lunar Staff at 10 scarabs, and the Void Ninpo at 20 scarabs. Not sure what unlocks next as I haven't hit 30 scarabs yet (50 in all).
The other weapons appear to unlock through the course of the game. First item is the Tiger Claws, then the Eclipse Scythe. Up to where I am, I just unlocked the Blade of the Archfiend (Genshin's sword) so now I can dual-wield katanas. Though its been a while, I haven't spotted any new moves yet, except for a throw on the dual-katanas, which may or may not be new.
All the other techniques from the earlier games are still here, Cicada Surge, Flying Swallow, etc. Flying Swallow seems a lot weaker in this game that prior games. Though may be some issues with targeting too. Rolls and dodges feel a bit more vulnerable here unless you get the proper timings (normal 'naked' rolling doesn't seem to have invincibility anymore). There's a number of context-sensitive moves in the game that probably could be looked at as QTEs, although they don't really feel like them. There's a new climbing move where you scale the walls with a pair of kunai and just click the left and right Z buttons in a rhythm. And certain sequences allow you to stealth by gently tilting the stick, getting near a target allows for a Ghost Kill. There's also a few throws that you can escape by shaking the stick and pressing a button. All in all, nothing that feels like a true QTE.
As for the characters, they all control really well and they all feel pretty distinctive. Momiji's particularly strong at dealing with crowds while Ayane's pretty speedy and has a few techniques (notably her Ninpo) that break off pressure. Kasumi feels like she's best at dealing with single targets, she's got one her DOA throws available to her by pressing ZL+A that tosses the enemy into the air for a combo or an obliteration technique. She also appears to have 2 different UTs. One is a shuriken, long-range UT and the other is the traditional UT. I'll have to play with her shuriken one a bit more. Seems to have two levels to it and it might have a similar instant-charge mechanic during Bloody Rages. As for Ryu, he fights pretty much like you would expect him to based on the weapons you're using. The claws still feel really strong, but the Lunar Staff (at level 2), feels a bit weaker. Eclipse Scythe still has its great sweeping strikes, and using the dual-katanas initially felt pretty weak. Took forever to bring down some enemies with them. Seems to have a new UT, though where Ryu sends out long-range blue-colored shockwaves. The Dragon Sword, or rather Jinran-Maru still has the best balanced attack. You can still do Izuna Drops with it too (though it seems a little harder to get it from the 6XYYX). None of the extra characters (Momiji, Kasumi, Ayane) get any new weapons or ninpo beyond what they already have. And with the exception of Ayane, they are full upgradeable right from the get go (though they all have their own pool of karma).
As for the game play, the game pretty much plays a lot like Ninja Gaiden 2 over the original. You can instantly kill dismembered targets like in NG2. Essences are gone, but there's a new mode called Bloody Rage that builds up as you kill targets, this basically allows for instant charging of Ultimate Techniques to clear out enemies. Normal charging of Ultimate Techniques feels like it takes a little longer in this game than it did in NG2.
Keep in mind that the last Ninja Gaiden I played was the original 360 version of NG2 - I have not played the Sigma version of the game (though perhaps I should?), so I'm unaware of any modifications that may have made into NG3. Still, one new element in this game is the ability to see and predict certain enemy grapples that you couldn't do in prior games. Successfully evading the attack and performing a strong attack immediately triggers a new instant-kill technique called Steel on Bone, where you'll instantly kill the target and can (up to 4 it seems) chain additional SOBs on nearby enemies. Its pretty satisfying, though a little mashy. And it seems some enemies can stop a chain. Though, being able to instantly kill some of the tougher fiends in the Steel on Bone technique, makes them a lot more bearable.
There's a few collectables to be found in the game. Namely Gold Scarabs and Crystal Skulls. In NG3, scarabs unlock health upgrades (you'll actually have to unlock it first, then spend the karma to upgrade it). Skulls basically put your character into an arena and have you slug it out with several waves of enemies before duking out with a boss from the prior games (Genshin, from NG2 happens to be one of them. And he's just as cheap as ever). Completing these yield extra karma to power up your character. If you miss these collectables in the story mode, you can go in and find them in Chapter Challenge and they'll carry over to your Story mode save file. Aside from unlocking health upgrades for Ryu, scarabs also unlock weapons. Or at least, the Lunar Staff at 10 scarabs, and the Void Ninpo at 20 scarabs. Not sure what unlocks next as I haven't hit 30 scarabs yet (50 in all).
The other weapons appear to unlock through the course of the game. First item is the Tiger Claws, then the Eclipse Scythe. Up to where I am, I just unlocked the Blade of the Archfiend (Genshin's sword) so now I can dual-wield katanas. Though its been a while, I haven't spotted any new moves yet, except for a throw on the dual-katanas, which may or may not be new.
All the other techniques from the earlier games are still here, Cicada Surge, Flying Swallow, etc. Flying Swallow seems a lot weaker in this game that prior games. Though may be some issues with targeting too. Rolls and dodges feel a bit more vulnerable here unless you get the proper timings (normal 'naked' rolling doesn't seem to have invincibility anymore). There's a number of context-sensitive moves in the game that probably could be looked at as QTEs, although they don't really feel like them. There's a new climbing move where you scale the walls with a pair of kunai and just click the left and right Z buttons in a rhythm. And certain sequences allow you to stealth by gently tilting the stick, getting near a target allows for a Ghost Kill. There's also a few throws that you can escape by shaking the stick and pressing a button. All in all, nothing that feels like a true QTE.
As for the characters, they all control really well and they all feel pretty distinctive. Momiji's particularly strong at dealing with crowds while Ayane's pretty speedy and has a few techniques (notably her Ninpo) that break off pressure. Kasumi feels like she's best at dealing with single targets, she's got one her DOA throws available to her by pressing ZL+A that tosses the enemy into the air for a combo or an obliteration technique. She also appears to have 2 different UTs. One is a shuriken, long-range UT and the other is the traditional UT. I'll have to play with her shuriken one a bit more. Seems to have two levels to it and it might have a similar instant-charge mechanic during Bloody Rages. As for Ryu, he fights pretty much like you would expect him to based on the weapons you're using. The claws still feel really strong, but the Lunar Staff (at level 2), feels a bit weaker. Eclipse Scythe still has its great sweeping strikes, and using the dual-katanas initially felt pretty weak. Took forever to bring down some enemies with them. Seems to have a new UT, though where Ryu sends out long-range blue-colored shockwaves. The Dragon Sword, or rather Jinran-Maru still has the best balanced attack. You can still do Izuna Drops with it too (though it seems a little harder to get it from the 6XYYX). None of the extra characters (Momiji, Kasumi, Ayane) get any new weapons or ninpo beyond what they already have. And with the exception of Ayane, they are full upgradeable right from the get go (though they all have their own pool of karma).
