Shinobi is back

[Gaz]

The first trailer for Shinobi 3DS is out.

It leaves me with mixed feelings. Parts of the gameplay looked like a throwback to the classic games but it also looked a bit bland. Still looks like it could potentially be a pretty fun game though. I'm curious to see how it turns out although my hopes aren't exactly very high.

[Cuckooguy]

I started playing Shinobi (PS2) about a week ago. Shit's hard, I'm currently on Super mode trying to get all the Oboro Clan Coins. The difficulty kind of reminds me of when I was a toddler playing impossibly hard games but I managed to beat them anyway. Under normal circumstances (meaning having to complete it 100% for a reason), I would've never gotten past Normal mode Stage 3-A. I dislike the camera and the targeting system most of the time and sometimes the bosses are cheap (and a couple are designed excessively so, dammit Moth woman), but I kind of like how there's a sense of urgency in trying to kill as many in a row as possible. I additionally dislike the repetitive level layouts.

[gr4yJ4Y]

The new Shinobi reminds me of when I first saw videos for Sonic Rush. It's not the prettiest thing. Hopefully it plays well though. I don't have a huge amount of faith in "Griptonite" to make an above-average game...

I'm still happy to see them bring him back though.

[Radrappy]

The new Shinobi reminds me of when I first saw videos for Sonic Rush. It's not the prettiest thing. Hopefully it plays well though. I don't have a huge amount of faith in "Griptonite" to make an above-average game...

I'm still happy to see them bring him back though.

haha so true! When I first saw videos/images for sonic rush I was really struck by how ugly it was/is. Pretty astounding.

[Crowbar]

I wonder when people are gonna twig that you can put 3D videos on Youtube now and start taking advantage of it for 3Ds promotional material.

Hell, I actually have a 3D monitor right now so I could even watch them if they did!

[G.Silver]

It really looked like they're using Shinobi 3 as a basis for it, which is a really good thing for people who put Shinobi 3 in their ten games lists. :) I remember when Legions came out, and it felt as if someone had read a rough description of 3's moveset and tried to recreate it without actually playing it (or knowing what a good game was, for that matter). I wonder why they've gone with the straight downward kick over the angled one?

I hope this trailer is not reflective of the soundtrack. I'm not asking for vintage Yuzo (not that I'd turn it down), but if you can't get your groove on while playing Shinobi, I'm not sure what the point is.

[G.Silver]

Not a lot of coverage for THE MOST IMPORTANT GAME this E3. >:(

Here's footage caught from a camera, it briefly shows pre-game help screens and hints of cut scenes that the player must have skipped. You can hear the music (kind of) and it is not a huge disappointment to me. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ExWqeAuQ ... r_embedded

This looks like the same footage (it is the same demo) but with an IGN interviewer and a PR goon talking a bit about it. I get the impression the IGN guy is not very familiar with the older games. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qldKzCG6Iwo

Here's a more pleasant conversation between someone at E3 and someone demonstrating the game, but it starts in the middle and cuts out before it ends. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3onW_nbCpZU

Some things I gleaned:

The levels are intended to be very diverse, though they wouldn't comment on any other levels (only confirming that the surfing is back, but we already knew that from the first trailer). Levels like the horseback ride and surfing are meant to be simple interludes between 2D stages, and they are all one-of-a-kind (just like Shinobi 3's) stages that don't repeat. Bosses will be spread thin, with as many as five or six stages between.

Apparently Joe Musashi's father starts out in 13th century Japan. None of the interviewers had the sense to ask about how that's possible when Joe's games all take place in modern times.

The character's speed and strength are effected by chaining hits without getting hit, in addition to score bonuses, you become slightly faster and more powerful. In general, the game looks faster than Revenge but slower than 3. It doesn't appear that you can run (boo) but at least the character is a little faster in general, though his movement on the ceiling is really slow, in the first video you can see the player jump across a rope rather than waste his time climbing, hopefully they speed that up. Swords and shurikens are assigned to different buttons, as in Shinobi Legions.

New moves include a slide attack, a slam attack from the air, enhanced sword "combos," and the ability to guard, even in the air. They're calling it a parry but it looks like a simple "block" as far as I can tell.

Some guys at Gryptonite really like Shinobi! Apparently they put together a short demo and brought it to Sega's attention, and they allowed them to go forward with it. That's a good indicator, I think. Gryptonite is more known for being a go-to company for licensed crap, but as a smaller, portable-centric company it must be the sort of place where a person can get away with a pet project like a throwback sequel to an old classic. I think it's in good hands, or at least as good a set of hands as were likely to get hold of it.

[Majestic Joey]

Shinobi 3 is one of the best action platform game because of the fact that you could run and wall jump while only really needing 4 single strike attacks. I just hope they don't make this game have too many needless combo moves and special attacks.

Although none of this matters really because I honestly don't see myself ever buying a 3ds. Anybody that has a 3ds, is it good?

[G.Silver]

Another new trailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dfpgTX1vESA

This trailer shows more levels that don't look like feudal Japan, like the hanger for the airplane seen in the first trailer, and a lab complete with what appear to be Shinobi 3's signature jumping brains--this time they're even dragging limp spinal columns behind them! Gross!

[Protodude]

The backgrounds look a bit drab, but other than that it looks enjoyable. I've only really played Shinobi III and the PS2 one, both of which I really liked, but I'll keep my eye out for this one.

[G.Silver]

Another new trailer was released recently, but the real goods are in the new Japanese trailer, which shows a lot more moves, a lot more cool scenes, and has a narrator who is almost as excited about this game as I am. There's cars exploding as Jiro runs over them, presumably chased by something large and horrible, tons of moves (actually demonstrating that the jump kick has a rebound, ala Shinobi 3), a waterfall sequence very reminiscent of the waterfall from Revenge of Shinobi, and the narrator actually addresses the difficulty, basically saying "one false step and you die." Sounds like Shinobi alright!

Also, the explanation for the timeline discrepancies I noticed earlier is that there is time travel for some reason.

[G.Silver]

So the game is not a disappointment! It's a good, very precise (the slidepad may not be the ideal input--you can change it to the D-Pad though), very challenging game that feels pretty Shinobi-like. The counter system really IS the game though, and I was a little skeptical about that going in, that it either probably wasn't all that important, or that it was going to be completely overpowered, because with correct timing you can block almost anything from any position. There are a lot of places where you can get by without it, but it's clear that you're meant to use it, and that's ok because it's fun to use! The counter interrupts any attack, but the key is "with correct timing," because figuring out each enemy is really essential, it's not easy, and at first it feels like it's enough to just counter enough of the attacks to crawl past a long string of enemies with just a little health remaining. Of course, that won't do, you're gonna die, but when you get back you'll be stronger and replaying a section you just went through is much easier and faster, and more fun and with more confidence. It is like it should be! If you play the game on Easy there is also minimal backtracking. I'm playing on Normal, but on Easy you always restart from the last checkpoint, while Normal will restart you at the beginning of the stage after a game over.

Each level is made up of a lot of segments, but the overall length of each stage is not actually that monstrous, which is something I was really concerned about. When you get through without dying, it's really not that long, and the environments do change up frequently to keep things interesting. It doesn't feel stretched out, it doesn't feel like there aren't enough bosses, etc. It feels just about right.

I read somewhere that the music was by the same composer as Metal Gear Solid, and whether or not I remember that correctly, it is completely and utterly without funk, groove, or anything to make it even slightly memorable. That kind of sets the tone for how it is completely not like Revenge or Shinobi 3 in terms of presentation. The monochromatic themes of the levels aren't bad looking by any means, and there's a lot of cool details and they really are pretty diverse, and even the first level with its distinctive red color gets broken up by caves, waterfalls, and snow(!), but it's still a far cry from Shinobi 3. They made a decision and stuck with it, but in doing so they limited themselves. Maybe it works better for 3D, but the backgrounds just aren't as cool. There are some low points to it too, where I almost wonder if they didn't go this way for budgeting reasons. The second level opens up on a highway where you ride on and attack big jeeps that all look exactly the same. The highway in Revenge with its TWO different cars suddenly seems wildly extravagant by comparison. Being from a company known for budget titles and movie tie-ins, it's easy to think that the game, for as good as it is, was made on a really tight budget.

It's hard for me to not dwell on stuff like that, because that stuff is really interesting--why and how little things like that are really different, but I don't want that to overshadow my overall impression which is that I'm really pleased with the game so far.

[G.Silver]

So it seems, thanks to the 3DS game-time monitor, that I have now played Shinobi for over 38 hours, and I didn't even realize it. That's a pretty good indicator!

Since my initial impressions the game ratcheted up the awesome and I forgot to tell anyone. Level five is where the game gets hard, and I really started having to work to get past the various challenges. Since I was playing on Normal, I had to restart the whole stage after my five lives were up, and that has a lot to do with why the experience was so good for me (if that sounds like a drag, as I mentioned before, beginner has infinite lives). Working my way through that stage bit by bit and mastering each segment as I went over it more and more often, I really got to know the level, and that's where the charm comes in. At first they seem huge, enormous things, but when you step back and breeze through them like a master, it's surprising how short they are. It's not the same as in the old games (where they really were very short!), it's just astounding to see all that difficult terrain melt away in moments when you play like an expert. I'll niggle one thing or another, but really, the game really is exactly what I want it to be!

So, the spoilers version: Stage 5 is where the game really took off for me and opened my eyes to how good it looked. You're inside this aircraft carrier, working your way past enemies and pits and falling platforms, and in the background are incredibly articulate turbines and engines chugging away. In one room, there are no enemies, it's just a little space to move through, with some kind of ship parts in the background, and light pours in in small beams via holes in the ship. The game is actually full of calm little scenes like that, but it wasn't until I really got pushed by the game's intense difficulty that I noticed the contrast, and how beautiful and calm they were. Next thing I know, I'm on an elevator dodging the exhaust flames of a launching airplane while under attack on all sides by some tough enemies. The stage is probably over at this point, but it turns out it isn't--the airplane launches and I fight enemies while on its back. The pilots chatter while enemy ships explode all around, and the Afterburner theme plays in the background. I end up on a floating fortress not at all unlike the final stage in Shinobi 3 (references to Revenge are on board as well), destroying anti-aircraft guns and encountering no less than three bosses. When I die along the way, I'm astonished that I have to go through all that again, but when I do, I'm also astonished by how quick it all is, I transition through each area to the next in seemingly no time at all. I knew there were still more levels in the game but I was already satisfied--that level was just that good!

In the next level, you fight a shark.

I'm real fussy about games and I'm always complaining (privately, these days, if you thought maybe I'd toned it down lately) about how nothing comes out any more that really hits my buttons, and here it is. This game is why I play games!