Ninja Gaiden 3
Encyclopedia
Ninja Gaiden 3 is an upcoming action-adventure
video game developed by Team Ninja and published by Tecmo Koei
. It is the sequel to Ninja Gaiden II and will be released in early 2012. It will be the first title in the series not to be directed by franchise mainstay, Tomonobu Itagaki
. In his place will be the designer of the Sigma series, Yosuke Hayashi.
The game will explore Ryu's
more human side as he descends into a hellish realm. It will deal with the sword of the Archfiend from Ninja Gaiden II
In the E3 2011 gameplay demo, it is revealed that Ryu gets a request from the Japanese Self-Defense Force, the Ministry of External Affairs. He is sent to London where he fights unidentified terrorists. A mysterious hooded opponent appears at the end of the trailer, telling Ryu to "open [his] eyes".
. A teaser poster depicting a blood ridden Ryu pulling on his mask was released thereafter. Hayashi provided Famitsu with a description.
Yosuke Hayashi later gave more details about the picture to IGN:
The development team removed the ability to dismember limbs because of a belief that "people do not want to see that anymore". In a Gamescom 2011 interview IGN was told that "Ninja Gaiden III is all about killing human beings. Team Ninja wants you to experience the feeling of your sword entering a person's body, hitting bone, and slicing through the torso"
Initially no platforms were announced, and it was suspected by fans to be an Xbox 360
exclusive. Later, however, it was announced that the game would be released on the PlayStation 3, Wii U and the Xbox 360 with a release date of Q1 2012. At E3 2011 it was revealed that the game will feature competitive and cooperative multiplayer modes with one or both modes supporting up to 8 players. According to Hayashi, the game's difficulty will not be toned down for casual gamers.
The game's story is written by Masato Kato, who wrote the plotline and designed graphics for the original Ninja Gaiden series on the NES. Kato mentioned that characters from the NES series are to appear.
Some changes include the slide maneuver, which replaces the Reverse Wind Technique from the previous games. Ryu will use it to get through small passages as well as to attack enemies. The Ultimate Technique concept has slightly changed in the form of Ryu's cursed right arm known as the Grip of the Murder. When he kills a specific number of enemies his arm will glow red. Then, the player can charge up for an ultimate attack that is fueled by absorbing nearby fallen bodies instead of essence. Unlike past games, the HUD will appear only when Ryu is engaged in battle, then fade out later. The Muramasa store is no longer present; Ryu's weapons will be upgraded over time, and items are now only found in chests and in certain enemy corpses. The Dragon Statues that allowed Ryu to save and heal will be replaced by a scripted Falcon
who swoops down to Ryu's hand and saves at specific points in the level.
The ninpo concept has been revamped. Instead of slots, it is featured by a green bar where Ryu will have to kill enemies to fill it. Once it's full, Ryu can now cast a ninpo and after the animation, his health will be restored. One new ninpo has Ryu transforming into a fire dragon. Both the PlayStation 3
and Wii U version of Ninja Gaiden 3 will have optional control schemes. The Wii U version may be played touchscreen controls similar to that of Dragon Sword
. This is to take advantage of its unique controller. The PlayStation 3 version will have Move compatibility. This is to give players "a new visceral edge when battling and slicing through their enemy's flesh and bone."
Action-adventure game
An action-adventure game is a video game that combines elements of the adventure game genre with various action game elements. It is perhaps the broadest and most diverse genre in gaming, and can include many games which might better be categorized under narrow genres...
video game developed by Team Ninja and published by Tecmo Koei
Tecmo Koei
Tecmo Koei Holdings Co., Ltd. , is a holding company created in 2009 by the merger of Japanese video game developers and publishers Koei and Tecmo....
. It is the sequel to Ninja Gaiden II and will be released in early 2012. It will be the first title in the series not to be directed by franchise mainstay, Tomonobu Itagaki
Tomonobu Itagaki
is a Japanese video game designer who created the Dead or Alive fighting game and beach sport simulation series and also revived the Ninja Gaiden franchise in 2004...
. In his place will be the designer of the Sigma series, Yosuke Hayashi.
The game will explore Ryu's
Ryu Hayabusa
is the protagonist of the Ninja Gaiden video game series as well as a player character in the Dead or Alive series, both published by Tecmo. According to the game canon, Ryu Hayabusa is a ninja and the leader of the that has spiritual, physical and magical ties to ancient dragons...
more human side as he descends into a hellish realm. It will deal with the sword of the Archfiend from Ninja Gaiden II
Plot
Ninja Gaiden 3 will yet again feature Ryu Hayabusa as the main character. Although his black leather outfit from the previous two installments will make another appearance, Ryu has been seen with a new metallic black suit in recent screenshots. It has a few visible differences as well. His toes are now covered with metal, presumably used for his new Kunai Climb. Furthermore, Ryu's right arm was cursed in Ninja Gaiden II. This will play an integral role in the game's story, and due to this, he no longer wears his right gauntlet.In the E3 2011 gameplay demo, it is revealed that Ryu gets a request from the Japanese Self-Defense Force, the Ministry of External Affairs. He is sent to London where he fights unidentified terrorists. A mysterious hooded opponent appears at the end of the trailer, telling Ryu to "open [his] eyes".
Development
The game was announced at a closed-door event in TGS 2010Tokyo Game Show
The , commonly known as TGS, is a video game expo / convention held annually in the Makuhari Messe, in Chiba, Japan. It is presented by the Computer Entertainment Supplier's Association and the Nikkei Business Publications, Inc...
. A teaser poster depicting a blood ridden Ryu pulling on his mask was released thereafter. Hayashi provided Famitsu with a description.
“He seems to be doing something with right hand. Also, there’s something not normal about this hand. It’s covered in blood, but there’s something unnatural regarding the blood.”
Yosuke Hayashi later gave more details about the picture to IGN:
"Ryu is unmasking himself, and it's a way of attracting people to his world. We are trying to have people enter the real Ryu Hayabusa. The amount of blood doesn't revolve around the idea of killing people, either; it could also be Ryu's blood. We're focusing not only on cutting people but also Ryu himself."
The development team removed the ability to dismember limbs because of a belief that "people do not want to see that anymore". In a Gamescom 2011 interview IGN was told that "Ninja Gaiden III is all about killing human beings. Team Ninja wants you to experience the feeling of your sword entering a person's body, hitting bone, and slicing through the torso"
Initially no platforms were announced, and it was suspected by fans to be an Xbox 360
Xbox 360
The Xbox 360 is the second video game console produced by Microsoft and the successor to the Xbox. The Xbox 360 competes with Sony's PlayStation 3 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation of video game consoles...
exclusive. Later, however, it was announced that the game would be released on the PlayStation 3, Wii U and the Xbox 360 with a release date of Q1 2012. At E3 2011 it was revealed that the game will feature competitive and cooperative multiplayer modes with one or both modes supporting up to 8 players. According to Hayashi, the game's difficulty will not be toned down for casual gamers.
The game's story is written by Masato Kato, who wrote the plotline and designed graphics for the original Ninja Gaiden series on the NES. Kato mentioned that characters from the NES series are to appear.
Gameplay
The game will feature a few new mechanics and changes. The new Kunai Climb involves Ryu climbing onto certain walls with the use of his kunai, which he can use to attack enemies from above. In other situations the player will have to be stealthy, as Ryu can now sneak up on an enemy and kill him with a single strike. Enemies speak while fighting, saying phrases like "Get around him!" and "Send backup!". Enemies do not die quickly, and they will suffer and scream in pain when injured. They are no longer decapitated or dismembered, instead they will just bleed and weaken.Some changes include the slide maneuver, which replaces the Reverse Wind Technique from the previous games. Ryu will use it to get through small passages as well as to attack enemies. The Ultimate Technique concept has slightly changed in the form of Ryu's cursed right arm known as the Grip of the Murder. When he kills a specific number of enemies his arm will glow red. Then, the player can charge up for an ultimate attack that is fueled by absorbing nearby fallen bodies instead of essence. Unlike past games, the HUD will appear only when Ryu is engaged in battle, then fade out later. The Muramasa store is no longer present; Ryu's weapons will be upgraded over time, and items are now only found in chests and in certain enemy corpses. The Dragon Statues that allowed Ryu to save and heal will be replaced by a scripted Falcon
Falcon
A falcon is any species of raptor in the genus Falco. The genus contains 37 species, widely distributed throughout Europe, Asia, and North America....
who swoops down to Ryu's hand and saves at specific points in the level.
The ninpo concept has been revamped. Instead of slots, it is featured by a green bar where Ryu will have to kill enemies to fill it. Once it's full, Ryu can now cast a ninpo and after the animation, his health will be restored. One new ninpo has Ryu transforming into a fire dragon. Both the PlayStation 3
PlayStation 3
The is the third home video game console produced by Sony Computer Entertainment and the successor to the PlayStation 2 as part of the PlayStation series. The PlayStation 3 competes with Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation of video game consoles...
and Wii U version of Ninja Gaiden 3 will have optional control schemes. The Wii U version may be played touchscreen controls similar to that of Dragon Sword
Ninja Gaiden Dragon Sword
Ninja Gaiden Dragon Sword has received generally positive reviews. On the review aggregator Game Rankings, the game received an average score of 85% based on 14 reviews. On Metacritic, the game received an average score of 84 out of 100, based on 17 reviews...
. This is to take advantage of its unique controller. The PlayStation 3 version will have Move compatibility. This is to give players "a new visceral edge when battling and slicing through their enemy's flesh and bone."