Ninja Gaiden II

Ninja Gaiden II - (Xbox 360)
Developer: Team Ninja
Format: Xbox 360
Genre: Action

Harder to conquer than Everest - but twice as rewarding

The original Ninja Gaiden was hard - as in rock solid, titanium, bang on the bonce and not feel a thing, hard. A room full of seasoned gamers took it in turns to get past level one. We seem to remember it took quite a while. But we persevered because the game looked and played great - kick ass combat, cleverly designed levels and enemies plus jaw dropping beauty. Ninja Gaiden had it all - in spades, including an infuriatingly difficulty level.

So now the sequel strolls into town - have developers Tecmo learnt from the original's shortcomings? Not really, if anything they've been amplified even further! An impossibly large number of enemies inflicting high damage, combined with a less than helpful camera make this game serve up a difficulty curve on a par with climbing Everest; blindfolded.

But - and it's a big but; if you're an experienced button basher who can demonstrate a level of skill with a controller then the rewards are there for the taking. A whole new host of weapons including the devastating Falcon's Talons - bladed gauntlets that turn our hero into a Freddie Kreuger in a ninja suit await the faithful. We also can't forget the awesome feeling of wielding the new Eclipse Staff - a dual bladed weapon that quite literally whips up a whirlwind of destruction.

The blood drenched carnage as you fight your way through hordes of soldiers, robots, demons, ghouls and werewolves is brutal enough to warrant an 18 certificate. It's als a great example of the new ground being broken by high end state of the art graphics. If you like your eye candy dripping in blood and guts then step this way - but just remember you need the patience of a saint and the hand eye co-ordination of a Jedi - with or without Freddie's bladed fingernails.

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