Ninja Gaiden II - Faster Paced and Harder Than the First OneToday, to keep in sequence with my Ninja Gaiden review, I am going to review Ninja Gaiden II: The Dark Sword of Chaos. This is one of my favorite NES games and it's also one of the hardest NES games I have played. Others include Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, BattleToads, and others but that is for another review. Anyway, this game is great. Read along as I review each aspect of the game and maybe convince you to try it out!
Graphics-9- This game boasts some great graphics; they are even better than the graphics in the first one. The wonderfully detailed cutscenes are still there and I still think they look like "Fist of the North Star". Some enemies from the first one are still there in the second one, however there are also some new enemies to provide some variety and, of course, there are new bosses to fight. This game also pushes the capabilities of the NES by utilizing scrolling backgrounds AND animating backgrounds in the levels (I.E. When you are running on top of a train, the train is moving, you can see the wheels spinning and you can see layers of backgrounds flying past you.) The scrolling backgrounds provide a new sense of detail that the first one didn't have and it also gives a new sense of realism that the first one didn't give the player. The graphics are a step up from the first one overall, and this says something since the first one had great graphics to begin with. They are colorful, detailed, and every enemy is distinct from the others.
Sound-9- While not quite as awesome as the music in Ninja Gaiden 1, the music is still great in Ninja Gaiden 2. Some sounds from the first one even made it into the second, like the death music and the boss theme. I personally really like the music in the first level as well as the music from level 2-2. They are very well done and, even though I didn't like them so much at first, they have grown on me. Now, as far as sound effects go, they are virtually unchanged from the first one. They are slightly more detailed but it's not really something you would notice unless you paid special attention to the sound effects.
Addictiveness-10- This game is easily just as addictive as the first one! You have tons of enemies to kill, you run really fast, you can wall jump, throw stuff, and more! It's kinda like if you took the code for the game "Strider" for Genesis, changed it here and there to work on the NES and well as make it into a more unique game and then sold it. That's kinda what Ninja Gaiden II is like.
Story-5- The story isn't as good as Ninja Gaiden 1's story, and it's also slightly more cliché, but it's still an interesting one. Here are the basics to prevent spoilers. The story takes place very recently after the first one. It opens up to a character named Ashtar, who is basically the unseen kingpin from the first one, and he learns of the defeat of Jaquio, the bad guy from the first one. So, because Ashtar is on his own now, he takes matters into his own hands and decides that he wants to open the Gate of Darkness and take control of the earth. It's Ryu's job to prevent this. So now you must guide your hero through level-after-level and along the way you meet some new characters and get in touch with some characters from the first one. The cutscenes are obviously still there and they do their job just as well as they do in the first one.
Depth-8- This game is only a notch above the first one in depth, but that is perfectly fine. There are more enemies to kill, lots of levels, hard bosses, and an AWESOME new power up. Do you read or watch Naruto? Do you know what a shadow clone is? Well, Ninja Gaiden 2 did it first. You can collect a power up in this game that will create a clone of you that follows your every move with a slight bit of delay. This delay allows you to strategically place your shadow clones (More officially referred to as "split clones".) during boss fights and be able to get more hits on them in a shorter amount of time. If done correctly, this makes some bosses die in as little as 4 hits. I love this power up. It is an awesome addition to this awesome game and was very innovative at the time. Another awesome thing about these shadow clones was that they were completely immune to damage. As long as you stayed alive, they would accompany you through every level. You can have up to 2 of these monsters following you. Again, this was an awesome addition that I'm sure would at least crack a little smile on the face of a new player.
Difficulty-9- There is one main detail in this game that makes it harder than the first one. That one detail is stage hazards. As early as level 2-2, you are faced with winds that blow Ryu from left to right and it greatly affects his momentum depending on the direction he is running. It sounds cool, but it is actually very frustrating. Along with this, there are enemies waiting for you at every turn and I promise you that you will end up dying from and enemy bouncing you off of a ledge. Hey, I never said this game wasn't frustrating! Every other difficult aspect about this game was pretty much carried over from the first one. If you want more details about the difficulty, I recommend checking out my Ninja Gaiden 1 review via the link below.
Overall, I gave this game a 10. I try to make my reviews not sound biased and instead offer you with my real opinions on this game. The game is great fun, but it's also a hair-puller and a tear-jerker and possibly a controller-thrower (Or a keyboard/monitor puncher if you play here on vizzed. I have the actual game, luckily. ) I think you should try this game out, and I hope my review convinced you to try it! If this review didn't feel as detailed as my Ninja Gaiden 1 review it's simply because it is, at its core, the same game. Most of the things I said in the Ninja Gaiden 1 review would have just been repetitive if I also included it in this one. Also, if you haven't read my Ninja Gaiden review and you would like to, check the link below. Check it out if you are so inclined to. That's all for my review today. I hope you enjoyed reading it as much as I did making it. Peace out!
My Reviews of the Ninja Gaiden Series (Click one):
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Graphics
9 Sound
9 Addictive
10 Depth
8 Story
5 Difficulty
9
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