Haze

Haze should have had it all. It was developed by the team behind TimeSplitters, backed by a large publisher in Ubisoft and one of the key exclusives for the PlayStation 3. Lo and behold, this epic single-player shooter was simply a mess of glitches, bland visuals, terrible writing, boring gameplay, dumb AI, and so on. It’s a shame too because the premise was genuinely interesting.

The Ninja Gaiden series has seen better days. Once, with Ninja Gaiden Black and Ninja Gaiden 2, the series was the crest of the action game wave, with its technical mastery over the genre far beyond anything any other pretender could hope to achieve. And yet, since Ninja Gaiden 2, the series has been in a downhill slide.

Ninja Gaiden 3 launched, and was, well, a really poorly received game; Yaiba: Ninja Gaiden Z was a sort of reimagining of the series, but it also ended up not sticking the landing, with its reception not being particularly great either.

What I am trying to say is, no one has cared for the last couple of games in the series. Which is why it makes complete sense for Koei Tecmo to try and bring one of them to current generation consoles. Wait, what?

That’s what they are doing, apparently. At least, if the trademark filing for the brand that Koei applied for in the US is any indication. That, or they just really don’t want to lose the trademark for it for some reason. Maybe this is what Team Ninja meant when they suggested the series might eventually return (hopefully not, though).

If you are even slightly curious about this, I recommend that you turn away and go and play Ninja Gaiden Black instead. You can actually play it on Xbox One now, thanks to the magic of backward compatibility.

Remember Spark Unlimited, the company which developed Lost Planet 3 and Yaiba: Ninja Gaiden Z, both which saw mediocre critical and commercial success? It was recently revealed via NeoGAF that the developer was auctioning office equipment, which prompted rumours of it shutting down.

Those rumours turned out to be true as former Spark Unlimited CTO John Butrovich stated to Polygon that, “It’s the end of Spark as a game developer.” All employees have been laid off and current projects have been cancelled. This included an unfinished free to play title, though current projects which still make money are now being handled by a trustee.

Spark Unlimited first came into its own with Call of Duty: Finest Hour which was the first console-based title in the franchise (based off of the PC version created by Infinity Ward) and served as the company’s highest rated game till date. The studio also created Turning Point: Fall of Liberty and Legendary for previous generation consoles.

Keiji Inafune is better known these days as the man who’s working to get Mighty No. 9, the spiritual successor to Mega Man, off the ground. However, he was also involved in the development of Yaiba: Ninja Gaiden Z, a spin-off to Team Ninja’s franchise that didn’t really pan out nearly as well.

In conversation with GRTV (via Gamereactor), Inafune talked – through his translator – about how he felt responsible for the game’s poor reviews. Not in the way you’d think though. “He [Inafune] is aware of the not so good reviews out there of the game. And he feels responsible for that.

“As far as the game content goes he’s really satisfied that he’s created a great game as an original great game. So if there was anything he should have changed is he should not have given it the name of Ninja Gaiden and release it as a completely original game.”

So yes, Inafune believes that Yaiba: Ninja Gaiden Z is a good game – just that it should have been an original release. Thoughts? Let us know below.

He would emerge from the shadows many years later in an Xbox darling reboot, where its insane difficulty remains infamous to this day. While his new 3D adventures departed from the demanding platforming of his original outings in favour of more combat heavy designs, the common thread running through the series was one of being unafraid to make a player work for their progression, going from Ninja Dog to a master. However, much like Yaiba, the new protagonist himself in this loosely connected spinoff is not Ryu, Yaiba: Ninja Gaiden Z is not a Ninja Gaiden game.

"Rudementery platforming elements that might as well have been quick time events with how contextual they are break up the pace between fighting, which itself borrows it’s parts from most of it’s contemporaries except the series it’s actually spun off of."

The only real connection in fact, lays in the plot. You play as Yaiba, whose backstory isn’t overly explained outside of collectable, optional text exposition. The opening sees Yaiba and Ryu Hayabusa locked in battle, in a scene reminiscent of the opening to the NES classic. Yaiba does not emerge from this engagement as the victor, and is seen dying. Fast forward a few weeks, and Yaiba has been reanimated by a malevolent benefactor, with shiny new cyborg enhancements. Yaiba is hardly the only one back from the grave however, as legions of undead stiffs in all shapes and sizes are now roaming the streets. Of more concern to both Yaiba and his guardian however, is the presence of Hayabusa in this mess, whom both have reasons to want gone.

The inclusion of Hayabusa at all is the main and sole connection to Ninja Gaiden as a series, and the idea that this could have just as easily been a new property pervades the game just enough to constantly be at the back of your mind. Rudimentary platforming elements that might as well have been quick time events with how contextual they are break up the pace between fighting, which itself borrows its parts from most of its contemporaries except the series it’s actually spun off of.

While engaging the frequent rooms of cannon fodder zombies, and prevalent larger foes, Yaiba has a dash to move around, and three buttons to control his sword for quick slashing, huge cyborg fist for heavy attacks, and a chain sickle for area of effect. Healing is done solely through executing enemies in a significantly less skill based take on Metal Gear Rising’s Zandatsu system, though while that game had items and other ways to heal up and was thus more forgiving on screw ups, Yaiba leaves no such room.

"There is a ton of fun to be had in the standard encounters with the hoards, but whenever the game asks a degree of precision it quickly descends into frustration and repeated attempts. "

Executions can most reliably be done on the goons, which are completely absent from many of the boss fights and larger enemy encounters, leaving players with no respite against the damage they will take from the hard to read baddies. There is a ton of fun to be had in the standard encounters with the hoards, but whenever the game asks a degree of precision it quickly descends into frustration and repeated attempts. Subtle strategy can be employed with a basic rock-paper-scissors element system at play, though this is typically more difficult to take advantage of than it’s worth and leaves itself mostly relegated to basic puzzle solving as a result.

Yaiba rather proudly touted it’s cel-shaded “living comic book” art style before release, and pulls it off admirably. While not exactly a technical marvel to accomplish, the fame rate stays consistent and the environments typically pop out in a fashion not often seen in games today. Overall, it’s very reminiscent of Borderlands, right down to enemy introduction cut-ins, yet it does so without coming off as a straight aping.

"Ninja Gaiden Z is hardly a master of it’s craft, but it isn’t trying to be Ninja Gaiden proper either. "

About as much can be said about the writing in the game. While going into much detail would spoil some of the best moments to be found, The humorous dialog of Yaiba and the colourful cast around him provide some genuinely funny moments and overall keep the tongue in cheek environment consistent, and is one of the things the game simply nails. You never get the idea that Yaiba is taking itself seriously between the perverse gore, humor and undead shenanigans, and when you can laugh with the game, events can be laugh out loud hilarious.

Much like the relationship between Yaiba and Hayabusa, Ninja Gaiden Z is hardly a master of its craft, but it isn’t trying to be Ninja Gaiden proper either. Expecting a Ninja Gaiden game will leave players disappointed, but taking it on it’s own merits reveals an acceptable opening act.

Yaiba could really become something great with more polish and disconnecting himself from the Ninja Gaiden line. As it is however, players willing to stomach the frustrations beneath the surface should have a good time, just don’t feel bad about shambling over to it when it hits the bargin bin.

This game was reviewed on the PlayStation  3.

Game Overview:

Yaiba Ninja Gaiden Z is the latest entry into the Ninja Gaiden series but instead of being a sequel it’s a spin off. Players will take the role of Yaiba, as he faces against the series’s mainstay Ryu Hayabusa. In their initial battle, Yaiba is almost killed by Ryu. Fortunately for Yaiba, he is resurrected by an organization as he once again pursues his revenge against Ryu.

Yaiba Ninja Gaiden Z is developed by Team Ninja along with Spark Unlimited and Comcept. It is published by Tecmo Koei. The game is now available for the PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and PC.

Check out the video walkthrough of Yaiba Ninja Gaiden Z below and let us know if you have any questions in the comments section below.

For video game guides, tips and wikis, check out our gaming portal here.

Yaiba: Ninja Gaiden Z, the newest installment in the long running action game series, and an attempted re-envisioning and re-imagining of it, launches today for the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, with a PC version launching on March 21.

Yaiba: Ninja Gaiden Z is a collaboration between comcept, the studio headed by legendary game designer Keiji Inafune, and Team Ninja, in collaboration with Spark Unlimited (who have previously worked with Capcom), the game, which uses a striking visual style, sees players take on the role of Yaiba, an elite ninja warrior and master in combat, and take on the legendary Ryu Hayabusa himself.

“Developed by the talented teams led by Team Ninja’s Yosuke Hayashi and comcept’s Keiji Inafune, Yaiba: Ninja Gaiden Z is an ambitious project, and we are excited to introduce this new type of ninja to Ninja Gaiden fans and newcomers alike,” said Amos Ip, SVP and General Manager of Tecmo Koei America. “When it comes to creating an exciting new property utilizing ninja and zombies as source material, there are no better experts than Team Ninja and Inafune-san.”

Stay tuned to GamingBolt for further coverage.

The video starts off with showing what seems to be some sort of a mini-boss battle, and after what is certainly an interactive QTE section, the video moves on to show some of the weapons the players will be using in the game. There’s nothing here that we’ve never seen before, but what they have shown looks pretty decent.

Yaiba: Ninja Gaiden Z will be steering away from the typical Ninja Gaiden setting and throwing its players into a zombie setting. Yaiba: Ninja Gaiden Z releases on March 18 for the Xbox 360, PS3, PC and all systems that support iOS. Stay tuned for more info.

We caught up with Executive Producer of Yaiba Ninja Gaiden Z, Yosuke Hayashi from Tecmo Koei Games to know more about the core gameplay mechanics, potential next-gen versions,  inspiration behind the change in the series’ direction and more.

Yaiba obviously seems to have a different feel to it, in a way, from the other Ninja Gaiden games. But in terms of gameplay, visual style, and actual new changes you might have made, just how different is it from the canonical Ninja Gaiden games we have seen so far? 

Yosuke Hayashi: YAIBA:NGZ is a brand new action game based within the NINJA GAIDEN universe so a direct comparison to any of the previous NG series doesn’t mean much from our view. 3 different parties working together, based on a new concept drawn up by Mr. Inafune is simply what YAIBA is about. Obviously one of the key principles we never neglected was in making sure this title would be of a standard that our great NINJA GAIDEN fans will be satisfied with.

"We see YAIBA:NGZ ‘s concept being somewhat different to the traditional NINJA GAIDEN series but as mentioned earlier on, we were careful in making sure the quality of the game play was to meet the satisfaction standard our dedicated fans will agree upon."

Ninja Gaiden 3 made some choices- in terms of design and otherwise- that were not really popular with the fans. Have you decided to do away with them completely or are you guys trying to improve upon those specific features to the best of your ability? 

Yosuke Hayashi: YAIBA:NGZ is an original action game based within a NINJA GAIDEN universe so there was no major changes when talking about our direction as to what we wanted to come up with. When talking about the concerns surrounding NINJA GAIDEN 3, we feel our stance was shown within NINJA GAIDEN 3: Razor’s Edge which our fans seems to agree upon looking at the numerous positive feedbacks we’ve received from them.

Again, we see YAIBA:NGZ ‘s concept being somewhat different to the traditional NINJA GAIDEN series but as mentioned earlier on, we were careful in making sure the quality of the game play was to meet the satisfaction standard our dedicated fans will agree upon. At the same time, we are hopeful that this new crazy action game will be accepted and enjoyed by many of the players out there as well.

The combat looks fast and frantic but the frame rate seems to drop down during the intense scenes. Are you guys aware of this issue and will it be fixed in the final release?

Yosuke Hayashi: Obviously a yes to both questions and the frame rates are stable for the final product.

What can you tell us about the bosses in the game?

Yosuke Hayashi: Yaiba is after Ryu Hayabusa in the storyline and they will exchange path as you play along. This does mean Ryu will be appearing as a boss at some stage which I hope everyone will look forward to. 

"The unique aspect of the weapon system is that you can use the zombies or even parts of them as your weapon. As you progress through the game, new and different zombies will appear meaning more weapon variations for the players to consider."

Will the game have different weapon and skill set? Furthermore what can you tell us about the upgrade system? 

Yosuke Hayashi: The unique aspect of the weapon system is that you can use the zombies or even parts of them as your weapon. As you progress through the game, new and different zombies will appear meaning more weapon variations for the players to consider. In another word, all the attacks are not limited to player’s reflects and abilities but strategic thinking does become a key as well. The upgrade system will allow you to unlock new combos and many of the basic actions and functions players will be familiar with and require for an action game.

Do you have any plans to release Yaiba on the next-gen platforms?  If not, what was the inspiration behind keeping it exclusive to previous generation consoles? 

Yosuke Hayashi: Simply put, the development targeted the 2 hardware in mention when the idea began to take shape. Thus, hoping the title will be backed by many of our current and potential fans, we would definitely like to look into making it available for both PS4 and XBOne as well in the long run.

Do you see Yaiba: Ninja Gaiden becoming a sub-series in the future? Furthermore, do you think we will see a new Ninja Gaiden featuring Ryu anytime soon? 

Yosuke Hayashi: Our intention has always been to establish Yaiba in becoming a well known gaming character thus we’ve never seen this title being a simple spin off in anyway or at anytime. With this in mind, we would definitely like to develop a sequel if such opportunity is to arise and hopefully look into ways of getting him to interact more with Hayabusa as well in future.

Look, I’m as skeptical as any about the upcoming Yaiba: Ninja Gaiden Z, the cyberpunk inspired take on the popular, long running action game series, especially given the recent installments in the series (such as the horrific Ninja Gaiden 3), but I mean, this one looks intriguing enough that I want to be cautiously optimistic.

The new developer diary that you see above talks about the range of new action moves that Team Ninja decided on for the upcoming game, and while again, your initial inclination might be to dismiss some of their more outlandish ideas, when you see how they seem to be working on it, you might be more willing to give the game a chance.

Especially considering that it does have not just Team Ninja working on it, but also Comcept, and… Spark Entertainment.

Okay, maybe we shouldn’t get all hyped just yet, but hey, who knows, this might be great.