Ninja Gaiden II Hands-On Impressions

Everything we've seen so far of Ninja Gaiden II for the Xbox 360--Tecmo's sequel to the extremely well-received Xbox reimagining of its action franchise--has been pointing to a Spinal Tap-like jacking up to 11 of everything that made the first game great. Our recent hands-on time with the game has only strengthened that impression--Ninja Gaiden II at first pass is more action-packed, more difficult, and more stylish than its predecessor, and it looks set to be the blood-soaked sequel dedicated fans of the original have been fervently hoping for.

Just like the Xbox original, Ninja Gaiden II is tough from the get-go, but series veterans should have no trouble getting into the action straight away, as apart from some minimal changes, the game's controls closely mimic the original's controls. Ryu still has a basic attack and a special attack, with various combos possible from different button-bashing patterns. Shurikens and other projectile weapons are assigned to the B button, while A handles jumps (and yes, Ryu can still run along walls and perform various wall-jumping maneuvers). Block--an essential part of any Ninja Gaiden strategy--is mapped to the left trigger button, but unlike in the original game, holding down block while pressing a direction on the left stick does not result in a roll. This time around, Ryu performs a quick dash, which really serves the same purpose as the roll since both let Ryu quickly evade an attacker. Once again, Ryu is mainly invincible when evading, but well-timed enemy strikes can still make contact.

Perhaps the biggest addition to the series is the new auto-healing function, which at first glance could be taken for a blatant attempt at making the game more accessible (read, easier) for newer players. Auto-healing is another term for what's more commonly known as a regenerating health bar. Every time Ryu clears an area of enemies, a majority of his lost health will automatically be regenerated. It's not all clear sailing, however, as each time Ryu takes damage, a small portion of his health bar becomes unrecoverable. The more he gets hit, the larger that section becomes, and it can be recovered only through the use of healing items or blue essence from downed enemies.

This new auto-healing function certainly makes a difference, particularly when playing at the easier of the game's two initially selectable difficulty levels (Path of the Acolyte). Not that it's a walkover--complete newcomers to the series will still find the game's difficulty overwhelming at the start, but auto-healing does make it more manageable. Series veterans will no doubt want to start on the more challenging Path of the Warrior difficulty, where the free hit of health at the end of each minor skirmish can make all the difference. Enemies are certainly more aggressive and canny than they were in the previous game, with the extra grunt of the current-generation Xbox 360 allowing more enemies to be thrown onscreen against Ryu at any one time. And not only are there more bad guys, but most of them also feature some hefty attacks that can easily take down a superninja like Ryu. Even the lowest-level Black Spider Clan ninjas that you will encounter in the first level feature an extremely damaging suicide move, which sees them grab you before self-destructing in a chunky meat explosion. In Ninja Gaiden II, it pays to be fast, accurate, and deadly, making sure everything onscreen is well and truly dead before moving on.

Thankfully, it seems you'll get plenty of choice in regard to how you want to deal that bloody mayhem, with a wide variety of weapons planned for the final game. In the first three levels alone, you'll gain access to three new weapons. Ryu will once again start his quest with the Dragon Sword but will soon find the Lunar Staff and the Fiends' Bane Bow. There's also a brand-new weapon, the Falcon's Talons, which can be found in the game's second level. This weapon is essentially a boot-and-glove set that packs some serious steel (think Wolverine) and that Ryu uses for some close-range slicing and dicing. All weapons will once again be upgradable and will also feature their own ultimate techniques. Just like in the previous game, ultimates are triggered by holding down the special attack button and charging up. Letting go of the button will unleash a flashy, unstoppable combo that will make easy work of lower-level enemies, although finding the opportunity and space to charge up an ultimate requires some pretty precise timing. Changing weapons is easier in Ninja Gaiden II, with the D pad serving as a quick-select method for melee and projectile weapons (as well as some items).

While Ninja Gaiden II is jacking up the game's difficulty to 11 compared to the original, it seems to be going for 12 when it comes to that other series trademark, violence. Be in no doubt--Ninja Gaiden II is a very violent game. Each enemy usually loses a limb before finally going down, with copious amounts of blood spraying across the screen (the Dragon Sword itself remains bloody until Ryu flicks it clean on occasion). Ryu now also sports some pretty graphic finishing moves, which can be deployed by simply pressing the special attack button when you're close to any enemy who has already lost an arm or leg. For example, Ryu can impale opponents to the ground with the Dragon Sword before decapitating them; kick them to their knees before slicing their heads off from behind; and jump into the air and land with a blow that basically splits an enemy in two.

The game is already looking quite impressive, when it comes to Ryu's flashy moves and the game's varied environments. Ninja Gaiden II's first level--titled Sky City Tokyo--takes place in what seems like a normal Japanese village filled with wooden houses, winding pathways, and neat gardens, except it's all dozens of stories above the ground surrounded by the glittering neon of high-rise buildings. The game's opening cinematic takes place in series veteran Muramasa's shop, where a woman named Sonia (wearing leather hot pants and sporting twin pistols) is asking for the whereabouts of Ryu Hayabusa. It's not long before the evil soldiers of the Black Spider Clan burst in and kidnap Sonia. Ryu, of course, jumps in to try to save the day, but Sonia is dragged away by a particularly fearsome Black Spider Clan soldier, who leaves his minions to dispose of the lone ninja. After fighting his way to the top of an imposing-looking building, Ryu squares off against the game's first boss--a large demon with spiderlike appendages. After defeating the first boss, Ryu saves Sonia, who turns out to be a CIA agent trying to stop the Fiends from taking the demon statue hidden in Hayabusa Village. Ryu then races to Hayabusa--the game's second level--where he meets up with his father, Joe Hayabusa, who has been busy fighting off the evil Genshin to prevent them from grabbing the demon statue. Ninja Gaiden II's third level takes place in a ruined and near-abandoned New York City, where some of the new enemies Ryu will encounter include ninja dogs that carry short swords in their mouths, and large, purple-horned demons who are at least double the size of normal humans.

Ninja Gaiden II will also allow you to show off your cool moves to the world with its new Ninja Cinema feature. As the name implies, Ninja Cinema will allow you to record your gameplay and upload it via Xbox Live for the online community to see. In our preview build, however, the only options available for Ninja Cinema was a straight playback of our recorded exploits, so we're hoping to see more in the final build.

Ninja Gaiden II is due to hit the Xbox 360 in June this year. Keep checking GameSpot for more updates between now and the game's release.