Ninja Gaiden is on VC...

[Warlock]

And it rocks. It's been forever since I've played this game and I forgot how good it is. Especially the cutscenes. Graphics aside (which are great for the NES), the dialog is actually *well translated*.. I couldn't believe they actually used the word "acquaintance"... clearly Temco actually spent money on translations, unlike pretty much every single other NES game out there.

Of course, why they insist on using the name "Spiritual Power" rather than Chakra (which it obviously is), who knows.

[4matsy]

Of course, why they insist on using the name "Spiritual Power" rather than Chakra (which it obviously is), who knows.
Probably didn't wanna piss of any religions that happen to use that term. "Spiritual Power", on the other hand, is nice and generic. :p

...so, how 'bout dem eagles? *snickers*

[Dark Knight]

Ugh, I hate those fucking birds, especially during the last stage(area 2, I believe. It's all green inside). Not only do you have to contend with a bottomless pit and soldiers, but you also have to manage to kill both a couple of eagles AND a knife thrower(or whatever the hell he throws) that's on the very small ledge you're trying to get to. This is basically where my game ends as I don't have the patience required to repeat the same stage 40 times.

[Warlock]

Yeah the eagles piss me off. I also hate those stupid ghosts that throw crosses at you (sometimes they stick them right on the ledge so it's nearly impossible to jump across without getting knocked off).

But at least you get unlimited continues and the checkpoints are fairly forgiving. This game would be too insane otherwise :P

[Glenn the Great]

Fun game, but it's a savestater if I ever played one. If you die at the last boss, you go back to the first stage of the last area. What's up with that?

[Dark Knight]

Yeah the eagles piss me off. I also hate those stupid ghosts that throw crosses at you (sometimes they stick them right on the ledge so it's nearly impossible to jump across without getting knocked off).

But at least you get unlimited continues and the checkpoints are fairly forgiving. This game would be too insane otherwise :P

YES! That's the guy I'm talking about. I never hated christ as much as I did at that point. =/

[ShadowTiger]

Ugh, I hate those fucking birds, especially during the last stage(area 2, I believe. It's all green inside). Not only do you have to contend with a bottomless pit and soldiers, but you also have to manage to kill both a couple of eagles AND a knife thrower(or whatever the hell he throws) that's on the very small ledge you're trying to get to. This is basically where my game ends as I don't have the patience required to repeat the same stage 40 times.

Yeah, well REAL ninjas had to contend with that every day of their crazy lives! Eagles clawing at their faces, ninjas throwing knives, ninjas throwing eagles to claw their faces, and eagles throwing ninjas at them with a knife. They weren't allowed to just hang from a ledge and climb back up either. That was against the code of the ninja.

..

It's a fun game, surely, I have no doubt. Just a little hectic. Reminds me a little of Conquest of the Crystal Palace.

[Cloral]

Fun game, but it's a savestater if I ever played one. If you die at the last boss, you go back to the first stage of the last area. What's up with that?

That's what pissed me off to the point that I never finished the game. Those 3 levels in area 6 were so hard that I didn't want to have to do them again just for 1 more shot at the boss. F'ing ridiculous.

[MottZilla]

Fun game, but it's a savestater if I ever played one. If you die at the last boss, you go back to the first stage of the last area. What's up with that?

It was back when they made games for real gamers. They don't give you the right to complete the game if you suck. I can beat Ninja Gaiden without dieing if I've played it at all recently, and still without having to continue even if I haven't played it in months. In conclusion, Ninja Gaiden 0\/\/NZ J00!

Honestly the game isn't very difficult. Try out Ninja Gaiden 3 if you want something that gets ridiculus. They thought the japanese version wasn't hard enough thus they essentially doubled the amount of damage you take in the US version.

[Warlock]

I think it's more a matter of memorizing where all the enemies are spawning. If you know that, it's easy to dodge/kill them. Except the eagles which just plain suck. The problem is they sometimes put them in stupid places, like at the end of the one level I'm on (3-2?) you get all the way to the end, only to have a cheetah run up from behind you as you jump down, knocking you into a pit. You basically have to know that cheetah is coming and dodge it or you will die every time. So in that way, it can be cheap.

But I do like it, I've enjoyed it a lot so far. Although I think the bosses rely a bit too much on you being able to successfully climb the walls (which is kind of hard if you don't know how to do it), otherwise you get hit by them when they run that way because your normal jump usually isn't high enough to get you to cling above where their head is.

[MottZilla]

The game requires skill and you can benifit from memorization but it's not required. Battletoads is a game that more of a memorize what's coming up so you don't die type of game. A few stages in that are without mercy at all. But Ninja Gaiden is solid and only requires skills.

[vegeta1215]

I played Ninja Gaiden when I was little but I don't remember getting very far. Battletoads was fun too, until you get to the hover vehicle race. Those freakin walls come so fast, you have to have really good reflexes to get past them. (memorizing them helps too). I may be able to beat it today, I don't know.

I'm thinking about checking out Ninja Gaiden on the VC, and maybe Kid Icarus too. I never played Kid Icarus, and I hear that is a great game (and challenging)

[Glenn the Great]

If you're going to play Ninja Gaiden, do it with savestates.

The last boss is a gauntlet of three bosses. The first is rather easy, the 2nd is ridiculously hard, and the final one isn't so bad, but it will try to kill you in a sudden cheap move when it gets low on health. Get hit with that, and you die instantly, and it's back to 6-1 for you. Dying at any of these means going to 6-1, and it is a hard and time consuming process to get back to the last fight.

I played this game religiously in my early teenage years, and only managed to beat it legitimately once after much sweat blood and tears.

[vegeta1215]

It's not the same as save states, but the Wii does "save" your game when you go back to the Wii menu. Which was a pleasant surprise to me.

btw, I'm typing this on Wii :)

[Nicholas Steel]

can't you change the direction you face in mid air? cant you face left and get knocked to the right thus saving you from being knocked into pits etc. ? or is this for TAS videos? IE: does this require frame by frame precision to pull off?

[MottZilla]

Once you jump, you cannot change the direction you face. You can move forwards or backwards but moving backwards is slow. If you are about to be hit near a pit you need to turn while on the ground to avoid being hit into a hole.

[Nicholas Steel]

ah k, thank you for that info ;)

[Warlock]

I played Ninja Gaiden when I was little but I don't remember getting very far. Battletoads was fun too, until you get to the hover vehicle race. Those freakin walls come so fast, you have to have really good reflexes to get past them. (memorizing them helps too). I may be able to beat it today, I don't know.

I'm thinking about checking out Ninja Gaiden on the VC, and maybe Kid Icarus too. I never played Kid Icarus, and I hear that is a great game (and challenging)

Yes, that's usually where I got pissed off at Battletoads :P

Anyways, yes, do get Kid Icarus. It's fun as hell. It's very hard, but you get unlimited continues (you just have to start at the beginning of the level which may be annoying). Wii's savestates make it much more bearable because you don't have to remember passwords :D But yeah, 1-1 through 1-3 are really a bitch, and then after that the game gets much more managable (1-4 is a freeform level similar to maybe a Zelda 2 dungeon, but there are shops where you can buy chalices for life, and most of worlds 2 is side-scrolling instead of top-scrolling which make it easier.. and by worlds 3 and 4 you are so decked out that it doesn't even matter). I think most people die endlessly on the first level and get pissed off, but it really does get easier as you get more powerups and such (which is weird, I swear this is one of the few games that gets easier as you progress instead of harder)

Edit: Speaking of which, I stumbled on this today:
http://www.vgmaps.com/forums/genmessage.php?topic=464

It was an April Fools joke (a poor one I might add, the majority of those sprites are obviously from SM All-Stars), but the coolest part is if you scroll down there are some fake "Kid Icarus DS" mockup shots someone made. They actually look insanely bad-ass. I wish Nintendo would make that game :(

http://www.kennethfejer.com/images/kid_icarus_ds.gif < wish it was real :(

[Tygore]

Given that Pit is confirmed for the next Smash Bros, I would be surprised if we didn't see a new Kid Icarus soon. Of course, the Ice Climbers only got their otherwise mediocre game rehashed everywhere (Animal Crossing, eCard game, actual direct GBA Port, AND Virtual Console), but there's still a good chance.

[Cloral]

Kid Icarus would be a good fit for the DS. As you can see in that mock up, the 2 screens would really help with the vertical levels.

As for Ninja Gaiden, I should point out that there is a difference between making a game that is challenging, and making a game that is frustrating. I understand that I shouldn't be able to finish every game I play. But when dying once against a boss sends you back to the beginning of the world it is on, that's just annoying and frustrating.

[MottZilla]

Kid Icarus would be a good fit for the DS. As you can see in that mock up, the 2 screens would really help with the vertical levels.

As for Ninja Gaiden, I should point out that there is a difference between making a game that is challenging, and making a game that is frustrating. I understand that I shouldn't be able to finish every game I play. But when dying once against a boss sends you back to the beginning of the world it is on, that's just annoying and frustrating.

You think that's bad? How would you like it if you died and were told you had to start again from the very start of the game? Some games of the old era actually did that.

Also, you do know WHY you start at the beginning of the level right? Because by being allowed to play the level again you can aqquire chi and the art of your choice to destroy the boss. While you may see playing through the whole level again as a bad thing, it is infact a very good thing. Defeating a boss with minimal chi and a crappy ninja art is alot more difficult than if you get a good suitable art and alot of chi.

I would love to see a quality 2D Kid Icarus remake or sequel. If they did it on the DS I'd just hope they don't use the stylus/touchscreen to ruin the game.

[Warlock]

I would love to see a quality 2D Kid Icarus remake or sequel. If they did it on the DS I'd just hope they don't use the stylus/touchscreen to ruin the game.

Ditto. I think they could use it in certain places, like for example that minigame where you have to pick the different pots. Plus they could add other minigames (i.e. change the monster room to something where you have to tap the screen to attack those specknoses or something). But basically, confine it to the minigame rooms, and maybe some other trivial tasks.

[MottZilla]

I agree with that, just crafy mini games but leave the spirit of the original game intact.