Ninja Gaiden 2 What a Game...

[bbsin]

I know I'm late to the party but after taking a month long vacation, I've finally got a chance to play my copy of NG2.

I just passed the 3rd valor test in the aqua level. The game feels alot of NG/B/S (which is a good thing) and the combat and difficulty (warrior) is just right. So far it's been pretty simple and I haven't felt like I've been cheezed by the AI. The point that you can cut off limbs is a great new feature and the new life bar function makes the game much easier. The new finishers are really nice and flashy but I find good ole instant UTs alot more efficient..... The only problems that I'm having with the game so far is this.

- I find my self fighting off the camera the majority of the time, especially during battles in enclosed areas or up against long range + close range enemies.

- The graphics (technical aspects) are really underwhelming. Bland textures (bad mapping), bad enemy models, screen tearing. There are times when enemy limbs or bloodstains float 1 foot above non flat objects.

- Load times and drops. These doesn't make the game unplayable (except for those parts where you happen to fight in between one scene area and another) but it makes me wonder why they exist being that the graphics are subpar.

Regardless of the negatives, when I'm in the middle of a battle, the graphics become irrelevant and I just deal with the camera positioning as best as I can. I kinda wish TeamNinja could have made the game look and run better, but I can see that they spent most their time on the depth of the weapons and combat. With that being said, I'm glad that i bought it instead of renting because it's going to take more than 2 playthroughs to try all the weapons out in their entirety.