LCSnoogs Ninja Gaiden 2 Black Review

Ninja Gaiden was my introduction into the genre now known as character action. Character action then became my favorite genre, so Ninja Gaiden is foundational to my love of video games. This series is what I use to compare other action games to in order to determine what they are doing right and wrong. It captures everything an action game needs to be great: 1. Feels amazing to play 2. Has depth and variety that's fun to engage with 3. It's really cool These are what matter to me. There's been talk of this being built from Sigma 2 which I've never played. I notice how there are fewer enemies to fight compared to when I last played the original Ninja Gaiden 2 a few years ago. It doesn't effect my enjoyment because I never idolized the difficulty of Ninja Gaiden. These games just need to be difficult enough to require players to dig into the depth and variety it has to offer. It makes learning the game rewarding. They don't need to be hard. It's because Ninja Gaiden nails the three qualities I'm looking for in an action game that I keep playing in spite of the high difficulty. I always felt Ninja Gaiden 2 was easier than 1 anyways, and that never made me love it less. Since I've never played Sigma 2, I was surprised and delighted by the extra levels starring Momiji, Rachel, and Ayane. This was cool and proves to me the Sigma hate was bullshit. You got all of this and complained. I saw people whining that these levels weren't skippable. We are not the same. I am disappointed I can't play as them for the entire game like in Ninja Gaiden 3: Razor's Edge though. This is a better-looking, better-running version of one of the greatest games of all time. This is a very exciting time to be a Ninja Gaiden fan. To jump in on the Ninja Gaiden vs. Souls-likes conversation. Souls-likes are definitely not the same thing, but it did bother me how they are credited for high difficulty as if super hard games didn't exist before. I don't care much for the genre outside of what Team Ninja themselves made. I feel Team Ninja's Souls-likes hit the three qualities I mentioned earlier to make a great action game while also nailing the customization and character-building I love in RPGs. From Software's Bloodborne and Sekiro don't. Those are the only two I've played from them, and I don't plan on playing any more. I think there's some cool things about them such as strange and grotesque enemy designs, but they don't feel as good to play and there are some mechanics I don't think are good in those games such as the gun parry. They also lack the depth Team Ninja brings to the table. From Software seems to find a couple of ideas and stick to them. Their games feel basic to me and end up getting tired and boring.