General Games Discussion

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Post by Harmonica Thu Dec 16, 2021 8:50 am

https://www.theverge.com/2021/12/15/22834567/stalker-2-nfts-metahuman-dmarket

https://steamcommunity.com/app/1643320/discussions/0/3202620277336976577/?ctp=1

Oh snap, another game ruined by greed? NFT's are forbidden in Steam which could mean the game is removed. This will hurt bad as it's one of my favorite franchises. pale

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Post by M99 Thu Dec 16, 2021 10:36 am

https://news.ubisoft.com/en-us/article/4adJLuhgYrPboHAPRfK7Oz/splinter-cell-remake-begins-development-at-ubisoft-toronto
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Post by Arquitecto Fri Dec 17, 2021 10:02 am

Being a huge fan of Splinter Cell that makes me happy and that it isnt a remaster but Ive been waiting for a new new Spilinter Cell since Double Agent as when they went the action mark and execute route I lost most of my interest even if its gameplay was good, but a Splinter Cell it was not.

And Michael Ironside needs to be brought back.
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Post by Lord Spencer Wed Dec 22, 2021 9:24 pm

#59

Game: Tomba! 2: The Evil Swine Return:-
Year: 1999, 2000.
Genre: Action Platformer Adventure.
Publisher: Whoopee Camp, Sony.
Developer: Whoopee Camp.


General Games Discussion - Page 10 Tomba-2-NTSC-PSX-FRONT

The first Tomba! was a genre-bending game that had a lot of great ideas in combining Action Platforming mechanics with Adventure game concepts to make an entirely unique game. It succeeded at that, but it also had its share of flaws, in mechanics, pace, and direction.

Thankfully, the concept didn't die with the first game, and the team had their chance to correct most of the first's flaws with a much better second game.

"Be careful when you go there though, there's an Evil Pig spell in that area"

The Evil Pigs are back to cursing the land. The caves of Mining town are filled with hot lava, the Kujara Ranch seems subjected to unnatural climate change, and all the clowns in Clown Town were turned into pigs. Maybe they would have gotten away with it, since this land is different than the one Tomba kicked them out of last game, but they made it personal by also kidnapping his childhood friend.

And so, our pink-haired hero ventures forth to capture the Evil Pigs, throwing them inside Evil Pig Bags, in the process both lifting the curse from the world and solving a lot of minor tasks in the way.

The story is as basic as the first game, and has the same comedy and charm, but is significantly expanded through the addition of voice acting and a sidekick character that acts as Tomba's voice. As expected from your typical PS1 game, the VA varies wildly in quality, and it ruins the game's otherwise funny dialogue through annoying voices and awkward acting. It's also not something you can easily ignore, as the story is focused on more in this sequel, which means more voiced dialogue and more annoying "acting".

Thankfully, the questionable VA doesn't kill the charm of the game, which still manages to carry through in both the dialogue and the funny motions and situation the game throws at you. One running gag is the crazy ways a path is revealed from one location to another, with some ludicrously designed Rube Goldberg machines.

Also, the fact that areas change after a curse is lifted, along with a lot of dialogue changes as your both progress the story and solve more quests, is a testament to how well-developed and dense the world of the game is.

"As you can see, this village has been cursed by the Evil Pigs"

Quests, or "events" as the game likes to call them, are what differentiates the game from other Action Platformers. These "events" are scattered throughout the game, with any being optional, and they range from fetch quests to collectethons, with some mini-games in between.

Other than the main events, which are required to progress through the game, you stumble upon the rest. Thankfully, unlike in the first game, items that are necessary to complete a quest are present even before uncovering it.

As a result of resolving these quests, you often unlock new power-ups, items, chest keys, and other goodies which aid you in your journey. This not only opens up more quests, but empowers you like any properly balanced Action-Adventure game should do.

If you look at the quality of these events, then you might be a bit disappointed. However, that shouldn't be the metric on which you judge. These events give weight and meaning to what Tomba does in the world, provide narrative opportunities for some comedy, and give the illusion of an open-ended experience.

Regarding the main events, like in the first game, there is no guidance on what to do next, but the signposting is much better this time around. As you go into each new location, you help resolve its immediate issues, unlocking the path to the next location as well as uncovering a new Evil Pig Bag. It's then up to you to find where the Evil Pig Gate is, which you can easily stumble upon by resisting the same areas in no time.

"If you don't know which Evil Pig kidnapped your friend, then you'll have to fight them all"

One of the biggest changes between Tomba! 2 and its predecessor is the full integrations of polygonal graphics, and consequently utilization of a true 3D space. The game still takes place in a 2D plane, but this plane is connected to other "planes" in various ways, and the game's camera rotates as you transfer from one place to the other. The camera also followed you in a quasi 2.5D perspective that aids your depth perception and view of the world.

These graphical changes have wide-reaching mechanical effects as well since jumps change perspective as you traverse, Tomba is more floaty than ever. In fact, as you progress through the game and unlock some power-up suits, you gain the ability to glide and become even floatier as a result.

While this comes at the consequence of slowing down the gameplay somewhat, it is necessary for gauging depth in a 3D space.

Thankfully, Tomba is not over-reliant on jumping on top of enemies and throwing them around as he was in the first game. Instead, he is given more offensive options that you unlock through the game. From your basic flail to a grappling hook (which unlocks some satisfying grappling gameplay), there are many ways to dispatch your enemies.

Unfortunately, the same flexibility in approach is not afforded by the bosses, who are all a combination of a micro obstacle course and a classic jump and throw into the bag routine. This repetitiveness wouldn't have been as bad if the game wasn't end-loaded with bosses, but the obstacles are at least drastically different between each boss.

"And remember, buckets are for water, baskets are for crabs. Don't get confused"

Naturally, the biggest impact of transitioning fully into polygons was the graphics of the game, which anyone familiar with PS1 graphics could imagine being a terrible decision. Luckily, despite some obvious (and literal) rough edges, Tomba! 2 doesn't suffer too much thanks to its forgiving and cartoony art direction.

Somehow, everything in the world fits the confines of the PS1, and the edges complement the angular focus of much of the game's world design. It also helps that most of the game's locations are rich with vibrant and bright colors.

In a way, the graphics just work, with the occasionally jank in design and animations only adding rather than subtracting from the game's charms.

Just as the graphics of the game got a major overhaul, so did the focus on music, which is much more apparent this time around. Simply put, this soundtrack is much better all around, and has some really good tracks.

One thing I liked is how the same areas receive a new soundtrack once the curse is lifted, and that's not only narratively rewarding, but is also an excuse for more good music. Ironically, despite lacking some of the non-cursed themes, my favorite songs are the cursed themes of "Coal Mining Town" and "Ranch Area".

In Conclusion:

The Tomba! have a certain cult-favorite reputation, with their unique genre-bending gameplay, game concepts, and art direction. On the strength of the games, this reputation is much deserved, especially when it comes to Toba! 2.

Despite some issues with graphical and mechanical jank, some of the same pacing issues as the first game, and a small penchant for repetition, this is still a massively charmingly unique game that is worth a try for any PS1 fan.

Final: 8/10

Pros:

  • Unique genre-defying game
  • The game's world and characters are charming in graphics and design
  • Music is much improved with some good tracks
  • Event system adds a fun feedback loop


Cons:

  • Several issues with hitboxes that cause unnecessary damage and stopping.
  • The voice acting is mostly bad.
  • Graphics and physics can get a bit janky


"Tips"
1-Circle through the world once, and then twice for the most efficient playthrough.
2-Early on, you can use charity wings to teleport from area to area.
3-Generally speaking, the squirrel suit is the best thing you should be wearing most of the time.
4-You can't immediately resolve all events you uncover.
5-Beating the fire Evil Pig will open a connection between all realms.
6-Make sure to finish the Charlie (monkey) events.


"Next Game"

That's it for the short-lived Tomba! series, which started with a good game and ended with a very good one that is perfectly deserving of its cult-favorite status.

The next games o the list are the two PS1 Tenchu games, with the second one getting #57 in the Retro Sanctuary Top 100 PS1 games list. In theory, these are two games I should like, but they may have aged terribly with time. Let's see how it goes.

Stay Tuned
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Post by Harmonica Fri Dec 24, 2021 1:29 pm

Harmonica wrote:https://www.theverge.com/2021/12/15/22834567/stalker-2-nfts-metahuman-dmarket

https://steamcommunity.com/app/1643320/discussions/0/3202620277336976577/?ctp=1

Oh snap, another game ruined by greed? NFT's are forbidden in Steam which could mean the game is removed. This will hurt bad as it's one of my favorite franchises. pale


:bow:
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Post by Lord Spencer Wed Dec 29, 2021 11:03 pm

#57(S)

Game: Tenchu: Stealth Assassins:-
Year: 1998.
Genre: 3D Stealth Action.
Publisher: Sony, Activision.
Developer: Acquire.


General Games Discussion - Page 10 Tenchu-Stealth-Assassins-NTSC-PSX-FRONT


The advent of the PS1 and 3D gaming lead to new ambitious and creative developers entering the field, and as they crowded each other in an established market, it was clear that successful games from non-established franchises needed something creative and interesting to differentiate them.

Enter Tenchu, which probably is the first successful implementation of Stealth Action gameplay in a 3D space. From its stealth-centric gameplay, the Sengoku era Ninja setting sprung through. It succeeded and cemented Acquire as a full-fledged developer to this day.

Yet, as can be seen from Metal Gear Solid just six months later, the many technical difficulties that Tenchu couldn't solve drag it considerably down, and it exists more as an interesting relic today than the cutting edge masterpiece that it may have been at its release.

"Lord Gohda expect much of you, the enemy will be skillful and relentless. You must be prepared physically and spiritually"

As one of two ninjas under the employ of Lord Gohda in the tumultuous Sengoku Era of Japan (16th century), you are tasked with various underhanded espionage and assassination missions to keep the peace. These missions range from assassinating a corrupt minister to sneaking a message through enemy lines, and the story in each mission usually resolves in one cliched one-liner or another.

There is no real depth behind the story of Rikimaru and Ayame beyond their established character tropes, and the introduction of a semi-demonic ninja foe doesn't improve things much. Not that it needs much improving if we are honest.

Basically, the story and the setting serve to make convincing missions for your characters to go through, and the variety between looking for a character to kill and a simple stealthy traversal of a dangerous location is welcome.

Some may even appreciate the abrupt introduction and ending of interesting-looking characters, as that might remind them of the speed at which characters are thrust into the limelight just to die as in an Akira Kurosawa Samurai movie.

"Your greed sickens me. I hope your death is a lesson to others"

With 3D gaming at its infancy, the reality of its limitations came against the ambitions of Tenchu in two ways. First, a ninja must traverse with speed and take advantage of heights and rooftops. Second, a stealth game requires careful preparation and observation to plan your route of assault. Both aspects of Tenchu's gameplay were impacted by the complications of running the game with a stable framerate at an acceptable resolution.

As a result, the player character's movement was necessarily slowed down, and the draw distance was significantly limited (with a nighttime setting used as a convenient excuse). Naturally, these limitations could severely hinder the game.

To solve the first issue, the developers made an extremely useful grappling hook that could zip you from place to place at high speeds. At that moment, the camera goes into first-person view, and it looks like your character simply teleports to the new location. This trick goes a long way to give you an unparalleled sense of motion, but your character still moves slowly in the main third-person view, and has a pitiful jump that could barely bridge the gap between two nearby rooftops.

Unfortunately, the solution to the second issue isn't nearly as comprehensive or effective. Since the draw distance is pitiful, you are more likely to stumble into their path and be drawn into a fight than notice them and hide. As a solution, the developers gave you an energy meter that senses the proximity of enemies and their state of alertness. However, this meter switches frequently between nearby enemies and doesn't take verticality into consideration, and as such is not a replacement for direct visual referencing.

This, coupled with a directionless map (where your objective's location is never spelled out) leads to a trial-and-error approach where you attempt to figure everything through your mistakes. Apparently, the game was actually built with that in mind, as you are ranked at the end by how stealthily you achieve each mission. Yet, I doubt anyone could achieve true mastery the first time since they are bound to stumble into enemies while looking for their hidden objective.

"Die you misguided soul"

The main attraction of playing Tenchu is in playing as an actual Ninja would, with stealth and deliberation instead of over-the-top action. This in fact was the reason Sony hesitated to publish the game themselves in the West, because they thought the Western audiences wouldn't like playing as a stealthy Ninja.

Of course, they were wrong, and the success of this game and others like it proved that Japanese perception of Western gaming tastes was severely faulty.

In Tenchu, you begin by preparing for the mission at hand by carrying a few helpful items. Shurikens can be used for ranged attacks and as a distraction, poison riceballs are a huge boon against guards, and smoke bombs can help you escape unharmed. Once in a mission, you are aided by whatever items you picked up and your trusty grappling hook.

Thankfully, missions come in different varieties, from assassinations to escapes. In some missions, you are forced to engage in a cut-throat boss battle or two, and that would expose the limited combat system if it was more frequent, but works just right with this frequency. It showcases battles as vicious and deadly struggles, and that works with the Kurosawa influence.

Since each location is unique and somewhat memorable, it helps in replaying the levels to get better and better scores, and the variety of tools you can use may help you achieve better results. So, while your preparation the first time is hampered by the game's engine, you can always prepare for better runs through the same level.

"In the name of Azuma Ninja clan, I fully accept your challenge"

Being an early 3D game with an attempt at "realistic" designs, Tenchu obviously suffers more than its peers regarding how its graphics aged, especially when you also consider the limited draw distance it had to work with.

Yet, through those limitations, the characters worked well if you didn't focus on their low-resolution faces, and the environments were expertly crafted. Rose petals and snowflakes adorned the castle walls, and you could imagine a much more beautiful world behind those blocky graphics.

It's not a pretty game, and its graphics have not aged gracefully, but the expertise behind them still manages to salvage some visual splendor.

Something that didn't need any sort of salvaging is the excellent soundtrack of the game, composed by Noriyuki Asakura of Rurouni Kenshin fame, it's both a unique and utterly sublime score. Each and every track oozes personality from top to bottom, with movement stealthily shifting before going into unexpected melodic attacks.

Seriously, from the opening track, "Addua" with its African lyrics, you realize you are in for some amazing sounds. This is soon confirmed with each and every track in the game, with "Execute the Corrupt Minister" and "Cure the Princess" being personal favorites.

Unfortunately, the same level of care wasn't afforded to the voice acting, which inexplicably jumps from Western accents for main characters to Asian accents for villains at the drop of a hat.

In Conclusion:

There is no doubt in my mind that Tenchu was a great game in its time. It was a unique and revolutionary step forward for 3D gaming and its own genre, and it worked really well considering the limitations of the time. Yet, due to its pioneering nature, the advances made to its formula are more apparent and render it less fun as a result.

Yet, we can still appreciate it for its historical importance, and for an honestly sublime soundtrack.

Final: 7/10

Pros:

  • Unique genre-defying game
  • Sublime soundtrack
  • Really good core concept


Cons:

  • Short draw distance hampers the game's graphics and gameplay
  • A lot of trial-and-error gameplay elements since you don't know where are your objectives
  • Graphics are a little muddy, and the camera controls are lacking


"Tips"
1-Use your grappling hook well.
2-Shurikens are the best way to deal with dogs.
3-Poison rice balls can be used both to incapacitate enemies and lure them into places.
4-Sneaking also means running to guard and slashing them from the back.
5-It also means jumping and slashing from above.
6-For multiple walkthroughs, try and remember where the guards and objectives are. The included map (select button) is mostly useless.


"Next Game"

I have always been a fan of the Tenchu games despite being a causal observer and never finishing any of them. As such, I expected to like the first game in the series even if I expected it didn't age practically gracefully. However, I had no idea it had such a unique and great soundtrack.

Now, I am hoping that the second game in the series resolved some of the issues of the first as wells as hoping for some other excellent soundtrack.

Stay Tuned
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Post by Harmonica Wed Jan 12, 2022 4:01 pm

https://wccftech.com/stalker-2-heart-of-chernobyl-delayed-december/

Lolz
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Post by Harmonica Thu Jan 13, 2022 9:38 pm

Gaming industry slowly dying, luckily Skyrim is a game you can play forever. It always feels fresh because of the absolute best modding scene providing great mods every day.
General Games Discussion - Page 10 WgmnWlZ
General Games Discussion - Page 10 OETxpyW
General Games Discussion - Page 10 LJPmz1v
General Games Discussion - Page 10 1vKbl6y
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Post by Harmonica Tue Jan 18, 2022 3:33 pm

https://news.microsoft.com/features/microsoft-to-acquire-activision-blizzard-to-bring-the-joy-and-community-of-gaming-to-everyone-across-every-device/

Diablo 2: Resurrection and Diablo 3 in Steam? hmm bounce
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Post by LeVersacci Tue Jan 18, 2022 3:36 pm

Mental. 70B acquisition. Doubt they’ll turn wow subscription to gamepass.
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Post by danyjr Tue Jan 18, 2022 4:32 pm

Not sure if this is good for the consumers or not, nevertheless Microsoft have got their act together.

First Bethesda and now Activision-Blizzard. If only they could buy Epic now...
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Post by LeVersacci Tue Jan 18, 2022 4:39 pm

It’s clear MS wants to be the netflix of gaming with their gamepass once cloud gaming is one day playable for millions.

I might check GP at some point since I only use my gaming PC for classic wow/diablo.

Hopefully this means more fps from Sony with cod leaving the console in the future.
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Post by rincon Tue Jan 18, 2022 4:55 pm

danyjr wrote:Not sure if this is good for the consumers or not, nevertheless Microsoft have got their act together.

First Bethesda and now Activision-Blizzard. If only they could buy Epic now...

Bad for the consumer imo. This, like the Bethesda deal, will move huge existing studios and franchises to console-exclusivity.

Ideally Microsoft would invest that money in creating new studios, or acquiring and growing smaller ones to make top content on their platforms, instead of buying huge game in billionaire deals.
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Post by Arquitecto Tue Jan 18, 2022 5:11 pm

Tail-end of Abby's saga in Last of Us 2 as I definitely enjoy playing with Ellie far more as it puzzles me to play the character who did what she did to an important character.

Definitely didn't see the fuss of all the SJW stuff as if anything they handled the Lev gender talk very discreetly, for example.

Brilliant game as expected though I do hope the story picks up soon.
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Post by Harmonica Thu Jan 20, 2022 2:28 pm

https://wccftech.com/total-war-warhammer-3-pc-specs-are-out-120-gb-of-space-required/

Release 17.2, hopefully not just skin milk, but they did something to the awful engine.
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Post by Lord Spencer Sat Jan 22, 2022 3:54 pm

#57

Game: Tenchu2: Birth of the Stealth Assassins:-
Year: 2000.
Genre: 3D Stealth Action.
Publisher: Acquire, Activision.
Developer: Acquire.


General Games Discussion - Page 10 Tenchu_2_birth_of_the_stealth_assassins_frontcover_large_7EzBDBGUyIoHnwC

The PS1 era saw the birth of many new franchises in gaming and a common trend between many of them is how the first game introduced core concepts and ideas that the sequel then improved upon and elevated to new rights. In many ways, Tenchu 2 looks like it follows that trend. With improved mechanics, improved mission structure, and a more focus on narrative than the original.

Yet, the game also inexplicably takes as many steps back as forward. It has a less varied mission structure, and its PS1 visuals are not saved by the good design and art direction of the first game. Most criminally, there is no soundtrack in the game's levels unlike the excellent soundscape of the original.

As such, Tenchu 2 end up in exactly the same position as its predecessor, but with entirely different weaknesses and strengths.

"A world ruled Ninja. We will no longer be forced to hide in the night like thieves. We will decide how we live and how we die"

As the subtitle of the game suggests, Birth of the Stealth Assassin, this story is actually a prequel to the first game that details the history of the Azuma Ninja and Lord Gohda whom they serve. Like with the first game, you can pick between one of the two protagonists. The stoic Ninja Rikimaru, or the feisty Kunoichi Ayame. Once you complete the game with both of them, you unlock the story of Tatsumaru, the third young member of the Azuma ninjas.

From a narrative point of view, the story follows many classic revenge story tropes with honor and duty in the background, and it clearly lays the ground for how the characters develop into the versions we are more familiar with the first game. The story might hinge on some overused cliches, but that's to be expected in that era of writing.

In the middle of a civil war in the Gohda lands, the Azuma Ninjas find themselves trapped in trying to protect their lord while a shadowy organization, the Burning Dawn, tries to create a country for Ninjas to rule and be free in (after apparently killing or subjecting all non-Ninja). Even though the end goal of the Burning Dawn is ridiculous, and the outfit of their leader an extremely impractical distraction, the story is at least engaging in a funny way.

What's not engaging however is the entirety of Ayame's voice acting performance, which completely kills any dramatic impetus in her scenes, and is not bad enough to be funny. It just comes out as really weak and a clear outlier when the rest of the voice cast oscillates between professionally competent to somewhat decent.

In a way, it fits her now weirdly cartoonish face.

"Unforgivable crimes must be punished. The traitor must die"

Being an Action Stealth game featuring Ninjas, Tenchu 2 is a deliberate game about exploring your surroundings and planning your attacks from the shadows. That is communicated in the beggening of each level, where you prepare by bringing in a few useful items (which I rararely ever needed to use), and the few objectives you are handed.

Nearly each level tasks you to reach a certain point, and the nice feature in the second game is how the map fills as you explore the level, which helps against getting lost. While most levels do not fail you if you get caught, you are graded based on your stealth performance at the end of each mission.

Playing the game and trying to get a high score is the proper way to go, which means you need to be careful as you advance and pay close attention to your Ninja sense. Since the game has only slightly better draw distance than the first (which it justifies by using the weather as an excuse), then that sense radar is your best tool in aproximating the location of your enemies.

Its worth noting that Tenchu 2 doesn't have the same veitcality as the first game, which explains the weaker utility of your trusty grappling hook. Instead, levels are larger, and some have cavernous rooms and underwater passages.

Generally, despite some similarities in level design and the repetition of playing some levels with two characters, the game is really fun if you try and avoid all enemies and be a master Ninja.

"If he had dishonored himself, only death at the hand of an Azuma Ninja will purify him. You must be prepared to kill him"

If you played the first Tenchu then the first thing you will notice with the sequel is how much faster and more fluid the character movmenets are. In addition to more fluid general movements, there are also steps you can take while crawling, longer jumps, evasive maneuvers, and even the introduction of swimming.

This makes the game's central mechanic of sneaking behind enemies and killing them much more fun, and even improves the first game's wonky combat. Yet, the mission design is actually a downgrade, with little variety and most missions requiring you to reach one area in the level's labrynthian map.

Almost always, at the end of each level, there is boss to fight. Combat is better in this game, but it still suffers from some camera issues. Initially, playingwith Ayame, I thought combat was extremely hard. However, it turns out Ayame just suffers from reach issues and Rikimaru is therefore a much stronger fighter.

So, while the game feels better to play, it doesn't look like the level and mission design were given the same attention. As a result, most missions are somewhat samey. Ironically, there is a included mission-editor in the game, and players could actually craft more interesting missions with it if they wanted.

"The wine of victory is sweeter when you don't have to share it"

With the experience of the first game out of the way, the team at Acquire must have felt confident that they could make a bigger and more visually impressive world. At first glance, it seemed that they were able to do just the thing by looking at their impressive CGI videos, and then by looking at the bigger size of their levels.

However, just like with the smudged face of Ayame, you feel like there is a weakness in artistic design that leaves the game world feel less barren and impressive than its predecessor. At least, it varies in quality from one type of level to another, that they rarely seem to have the consistent vision that the first game enjoyed.

Still, the game's graphics are not exactly downgraded. The same courtesy cannot be said of the game's soundtrack, which is criminally non-existent. Tenchu's soundtrack was a unique fusion of sounds that made each level extremely memorable by sound alone. Surprisingly, the secondgame makes the daft decision of not replacing the soundtrack exclusively with atmospheric sounds and noises.

That in itself could be forgiven if there were areas where an excellent soundtrack could shine besides the singe boss battle track, but it is just atmospheric sounds all over. When you remember the excellent soundtrack of the first game, you gasp at the stupidity in play here.

In a way, that's much worse that the inconsistent voice acting in the game, which fits the early character of the game an is at least half competent with the notable exception of Ayame's terrible performance.

In Conclusion:

Tenchu 2 takes a major step forward with its gameplay mechanics and focus on story. Its narratively more tight while being more pleasant to play, even if the level structure is a bit repetitive. At least the core mechanics are fun to control.

If it added that aspect on top of the first game with the slightest of graphical upgrades, then it would have been an obviously superior sequel. Yet, it also decided to take some step backs in its art design with some notable graphical downgrades in textures and some character faces as a result. Most damaging was the decision not follow the first game's excellent soundtrack and instead opt for a purely atmospheric score.

For these reason, Tenchu 2 fails at being an obviously better sequel and instead works as weird kind of side step, the kind that nearly thrust you into the vision of an enemy.

Final: 7/10

Pros:

  • Unique genre-defining game
  • Fluid movement and mechanics
  • A decent focus on story and narrative


Cons:

  • Short draw distance hampers the game's graphics and gameplay
  • Extremely unfortunate lack of a soudntrack
  • Graphics are a little muddy, and the camera controls are lacking


"Tips"
1-Use your grappling hook well.
2-If you are planning to only play it once, use Rikimaru.
3-Guarding is really useful in boss fights, and so is paying attention to distances.
4-Sneaking also means running to guard and slashing them from the back.
5-It also means jumping and slashing from above.
6-Press select to open the map, which fills as you explore the level.
7-Use water to your advantage, as you can hide under it and quickly sneak up enemies.
8-You can also swim really fast and launch yourself from the water for a difficult to execute slashing attack.



"Next Game"

If it just had a decent soundtrack, then Tenchu 2 could have been comfortably better than the first, but they just had to ruin that. I did have fun with the game, but it could have been a better experience otherwise.

The next game in the list at #52 is space combat simulator, called Colony Wars: Vengeance, which is supposed to be one of the best of its kind. I am not very sure about the genre, and as such I am not confident I am actually going to end up reviewing this game or not.

Stay Tuned
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Post by Firenze Sat Jan 22, 2022 4:59 pm

I loved Tenchu 2 as a kid. Boat lvl stands out for me.

Elden Ring soon! there are like 4 games I plan to play next month ffs.

Dying Light 2. Lost Ark (PC MMO) Horizon and Elden.
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Post by rincon Mon Jan 24, 2022 1:35 pm

Firenze wrote:I loved Tenchu 2 as a kid. Boat lvl stands out for me.

Elden Ring soon! there are like 4 games I plan to play next month ffs.

Dying Light 2. Lost Ark (PC MMO) Horizon and Elden.

I need to get less busy asap. The moment I get Horizon it will consume my time.
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Post by Great Leader Sprucenuce Tue Jan 25, 2022 2:17 pm

Saw the IGN preview for Horizon, movement and animations in general look a lot smoother and they weren't exactly bad before.
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Post by rincon Fri Jan 28, 2022 9:43 am

Saw one of the last trailers, then part of the IGN preview and stopped it, no need to see more and get spoiled. The game looks amazing. HZD was already gorgeous and played beautifully, now HFW looks incredible and seems to play even better, the world seems more developed too, from a gameplay perspective (better towns and NPCs).

My only concern is that maybe the best thing from HZD was the suspense regarding the story and the world. That was very well resolved in the first one. Hopefully the came up with something as interesting for HFW.
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Post by Warrior Mon Jan 31, 2022 4:35 pm

How i get disconnected from PSN and now i cannot log in since they ask me for codes 2 step verification... but you have to be logged in to get the said codes Laughing

I never ask for any of this and it grinds my gears. It's annoying when they improve security it's always to annoy us and dowloand shit apps, ask our email, ask our phone number. You would think connecting to playstation network is a big fucking deal.
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Post by Great Leader Sprucenuce Mon Jan 31, 2022 6:06 pm



This gen is gonna be more about who buys who than actual games
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Post by LeVersacci Mon Jan 31, 2022 11:00 pm

Surprised at that. Weren't Bungie prefering all independent and shit after moving away from Blizzard?

Anyway. Excited that Sony is focusing more on MP games while keep releasing SP games. Something PS4 sorely lacked.

Lots of MP games coming out to PS5 which is needed with how shit BF & Cod has been for years.
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Post by Harmonica Fri Feb 04, 2022 1:46 pm

Less than month to ELEX 2. banana
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Post by Myesyats Fri Feb 04, 2022 10:34 pm

Harmonica wrote:Less than month to ELEX 2. banana

Nothing beats Gothic 2
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Post by danyjr Fri Feb 04, 2022 10:35 pm

Y'all old with your games FFS. Fortnite or nothing bruvs.
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