• Hey, guest user. Hope you're enjoying NeoGAF! Have you considered registering for an account? Come join us and add your take to the daily discourse.

Ninja Gaiden 2+ |OT| The Feel of Ninja Gaiden 2

OmegaZero

Member
Changing the camera speed has no affect on performance. If people are seeing improvements it's only because they want to.

I haven't been able to figure out what's causing the slowdown though and funnily enough the stairs section was nowhere near as bad as it was in NG2 and actually performs really well. If the game can be patched to improve the slowdown this will easily be the best games available for Vita, and after seeing just how good the game can look I'm really looking forward to seeing what they've done with DoA.

Do we know if DoA is 60fps? Was the 3DS game 60fps?

The stairs don't even throw half as much ninja as NG2 did, so it's no surprise imo.
DOA5+ is supposedly 60fps, and DoA Dimensions was 60fps with 3D off and 30fps with 3D on.
 
Went ahead and bought this because I'm desperate for some Ninja Gaiden action and I'm really enjoying it despite the framerate issues. Looks pretty nice for the most part despite some of the poor screens I saw, even if not quite as consistent as Sigma Plus. Has a lot more enemies on the screen at the time though and the character models look really great for the most part. The boss battles in particular stand out as looking great, seem to have lost the least from the console version. Still just blown away I'm playing this on a handheld which might give a bit of bias, I remember Mario Land on the gameboy :D

Thing that bothers me more than the framerate issues are the resolution drops which are really noticeable and seemingly random, only for a second or two usually. The actual framerate drops also seem somewhat random, I've gone through groups of 6 or 7 enemies with no drops but had major hitches when fighting three. Is quite odd and I'm really hoping for a patch because if so this will be the best game on the Vita in my opinion. Until then, still enjoying it with some major reservations.

Also: The cutscenes look really nice, seem less compressed than Sigma Plus (which wasn't awful, but it could be noticeable)

Edit: Wish you could turn off the bow icon, I knew where to touch after a minute.
 
I spent the weekend playing this some more and I'm liking story mode fine, its just the optional modes (Ninja Race and Tag Team) that I'm having noticable frame rate issues.

Story mode mainly seems playable though. I've only had a couple of instances where I've had the frame rate drop drastically (like the big bone mountain area in Volf's level) but otherwise its been ok.

Speaking of Ninja race though, what's the best way to tackle the mode? run quickly from checkpoint to checkpoint and only fight when you have to, or beat up all the enemies to get the time bonuses they drop?

Also, after trying some of the Master Ninja Tag challenges I'm wondering how they are possible with no co-op - the AI really is moronic and makes no effort to block attacks, making the larger brawls even harder than they already are. Couple that with not joining in to execute the powerful ninpo attacks (which are dead useful for getting health back) and its going to make getting that Platinum trophy very difficult!
 

DR2K

Banned
Changing the camera speed has no affect on performance. If people are seeing improvements it's only because they want to.

I haven't been able to figure out what's causing the slowdown though and funnily enough the stairs section was nowhere near as bad as it was in NG2 and actually performs really well. If the game can be patched to improve the slowdown this will easily be the best games available for Vita, and after seeing just how good the game can look I'm really looking forward to seeing what they've done with DoA.

Do we know if DoA is 60fps? Was the 3DS game 60fps?

No, changing the camera to fastest really does improve the frame rate as does turning gore off. Both me and a friend tested it out. Done in mentor mode.
 

Apocryphon

Member
No, changing the camera to fastest really does improve the frame rate as does turning gore off. Both me and a friend tested it out. Done in mentor mode.

I don't buy it and there's no reason for it.

I'm half way through my second play through - much of my first was with gore on and the camera speed on normal but I adjusted the camera speed to max around chapter 13 or 14 and saw no difference. I've switched gore off for my second playthrough and have been alternating between minimum and maximum camera speeds for the past couple of hours. Gore definitely makes a difference, but I can't see any difference when switching between camera speeds.

It doesn't even make sense that it would change anything. They removed gore from Sigma 2 to address the framerate issues in the original game, why would it be any different here?
 

Gamespawn

Member
Can't wait to play this. Is it true they cut out the multiplayer? If so, doesn't hurt the game too bad. DOA5+ comes out on the 19th right?
 

DR2K

Banned
I don't buy it and there's no reason for it.

I'm half way through my second play through - much of my first was with gore on and the camera speed on normal but I adjusted the camera speed to max around chapter 13 or 14 and saw no difference. I've switched gore off for my second playthrough and have been alternating between minimum and maximum camera speeds for the past couple of hours. Gore definitely makes a difference, but I can't see any difference when switching between camera speeds.

It doesn't even make sense that it would change anything. They removed gore from Sigma 2 to address the framerate issues in the original game, why would it be any different here?

Can't tell you, but my version runs like a turd with camera on normal settings. I know massive input delay and lag when I see it and it was dimished by just changing the camera speed.

Edit:Gone
 

OmegaZero

Member
So reviews are coming in, and unsurprisingly they're not rating the game too high.
I'll update the OP with a few choice quotes in a bit.
 

Lyte Edge

All I got for the Vernal Equinox was this stupid tag
It's a pretty mediocre port. Still having a blast with it.

Yeah pretty much. I wouldn't have bought it if I knew how it would end up running, at least not at full price, but I'm still enjoying it.
 

Apocryphon

Member
Can't tell you, but my version runs like a turd with camera on normal settings. I know massive input delay and lag when I see it and it was dimished by just changing the camera speed.

Edit:Gone

But it isn't input delay or lag. It's the exact problem that plagued the 360 game - when the framerate drops the game continues rendering every single frame resulting in what's effectively slow motion. The problem was remedied in Sigma 2 by removing gore. I don't see anything different at work here.

I'm not sure why the game is getting bad reviews either, I mean it has issues sure, but its still one of the best games on the platform. Having the two Ninja Gaiden titles, MGS3 and Strangers Wrath in my pocket is fantastic.
 

Revan

Member
IGN Review is up: http://ca.ign.com/articles/2013/03/05/ninja-gaiden-sigma-2-plus-review

Edit: Quote from the review (and has been echoed many times here)

Still, there are some folks who just love Ninja Gaiden 2, but sadly, even they'll have a few axes to grind with Sigma 2 Plus. The first, and most obvious is the framerate, which clocks in at 30 frames per second, half of the original's 60. This might be expected given that the Vita lacks the raw firepower of the PS3, but the bigger issue is that it can't keep that framerate locked in. When things get hectic (as being a ninja often does) it dips further, occasionally flirting with unplayability. At times, anti-aliasing seems to turn off completely to keep performance from tanking, resulting in short bouts of extreme jaggies on every edge. Given how stable and sharp the original Sigma Plus was on Vita, I expected a lot more from this port.

Edit 2: Beat the first 2 Ninja Races to unlock Ryu's Dynasty Warriors costume.
 
Picked this up. Why not? I never beat NG2.

I like it a lot. The framerate is pretty stable. Nothing game breaking or anything. It's a great port.

What chapter do I get to play as the other characters?
 

Revan

Member
What chapter do I get to play as the other characters?

Chapters 5,8 and 11 (Momiji, Rachel and Ayane respectively).

You can only use the girls on their chapters only - and chapter challenge doesn't allow different characters either.

They are also playable in the Ninja Races and Tag Missions.
 

Ken

Member
Any tips for getting Master Ninja on the chapter challenges like cheesiest weapon/ninpo to use? I want that Momiji DW costume.
 

Revan

Member
Any tips for getting Master Ninja on the chapter challenges like cheesiest weapon/ninpo to use? I want that Momiji DW costume.

360 UT with the Lunar makes short work of most of the game.

Forward Triangle with the BotA does as well and usually destroys most bosses on the lower chapter levels with ease.
 

kuroshiki

Member
Hmm. this is funny. Sometimes I can use ultimate attack even without charging. Why is that? It seems completely random.
 

Revan

Member
So reviews say framerate takes hit and anti aliasing is disabled in those situations. Is that the case?

I've beaten the game three times - Acolyte, Warrior and Mentor. There was a slowdown in a couple of places but not as bad as the reviews made it out to be. Master Ninja might be different.

The Tag Missions, however, on Mentor and higher, really take a hit and it's really noticeable. The other thing with the Tag Missions is that they were designed on NGS2 for the PS3 to be played with a human partner - getting a plat (if you are into that sort of thing) is virtually impossible sadly because your AI partner is terrible (regardless if you can switch between the two).

AA does disappear after a UT only for a second or so. The game does correct itself but the first time it happens it's pretty jarring. You'll get used to it in no time.

Small trade offs for one of the best combat games this gen (in my personal top 3) on a handheld. The reviews I've read compared to the game I've played are completely different. YMMV of course but if you can find this at a decent price there really isn't many reasons not to pick this up imho.
 

OmegaZero

Member
Updated the OP with some reviews.

Echoing Revan's earlier post, I want to note that the main performance issues occur mainly in the Tag Mission mode, which I'm never going to complete anyway. :b

I still have yet to beat a Ninja Race course (I spend most of my time fooling around in the story mode), but from what I've played it seems to be something that I'll be replaying almost as much as Chapter Challenge.
It's pretty fun building up a huge combo and destroying enemies. It almost makes me wonder what a "Heaven or Hell" mode for NG would be like (for those not in the know, Heaven or Hell is a difficulty mode in the DMC series that gives all characters and enemies 1HP, allowing anything to be killed in a single attack).

Also Tag Missions are pretty fun on lower difficulties, if only because the switch mechanic makes for some interesting combination attacks.
 
I've played through the main game on Mentor w/ the blood and camera tweaks and it runs at a solid 30 FPS most of the time. Tag mode is still bad.

I'd only recommend it to hardcore NG fans, who have prob. already bought it by now if they wanted it.
 

Kraftwerk

Member
what camera tweaks are you talking about?

And in the same vein; any other adjustments you guys know of/recommend that would make my playthrough more pleasurable?
 

OmegaZero

Member
what camera tweaks are you talking about?

And in the same vein; any other adjustments you guys know of/recommend that would make my playthrough more pleasurable?

Supposedly, setting the Third Person Camera settings to Fast affects the slowdown issues.

Any word on people beating the Ultimate ninja tag missions?

lol
Not that I'm aware of. Even some of the NG vets who Platinumed Σ2 are claiming that it's next to impossible (at least on GameFAQs).

Also, beat a Ninja Race (Course 1) awhile ago.
Izuna-dropping Genshin takes away over half of his health if you have a high combo.

EDIT: Beat a Tag Mission on Turbo, but didn't unlock the DOA2 costume. Weird.
EDIT2: Ah, read back and found that you need to beat 10. Thanks Revan!
 

Revan

Member
No problem - it is possible (I read on GameFAQs) that it's 30 total missions (mix of Normal and Turbo) to get the DoA costume (I had done 20 missions prior to unlocking Turbo and doing 10 of those).

2 Ninja Races gets you Ryu's Dynasty Warriors costume.

All the other costume unlocks seem to be the same as NGS2 (minus the pre-orders of course).

EDIT: For the Races, the BoTA seems to be the weapon that disposes of eveyone the fastest.

OT's get the 7 second green essence orbs - don't waste your time with ID's and only UT if you have the time to do so (some OT animations can eat 4+ seconds).

EDIT #2 - The DW costume is based on the first 2 Ninja Races being cleared - it won't happen if you don't have at least 1 and 2 beaten.
 

OmegaZero

Member
Hey guys, so apparently the new Vita firmware update "fixes some lag issues in games Ninja Gaiden Sigma Plus 2 and New Little Kings Story", at least according to Wololo's blog.
Can anyone confirm this?

No problem - it is possible (I read on GameFAQs) that it's 30 total missions (mix of Normal and Turbo) to get the DoA costume (I had done 20 missions prior to unlocking Turbo and doing 10 of those).

2 Ninja Races gets you Ryu's Dynasty Warriors costume.

All the other costume unlocks seem to be the same as NGS2 (minus the pre-orders of course).

EDIT: For the Races, the BoTA seems to be the weapon that disposes of eveyone the fastest.

OT's get the 7 second green essence orbs - don't waste your time with ID's and only UT if you have the time to do so (some OT animations can eat 4+ seconds).

Ah, I unlocked Ryu's classic outfit after beating 10 missions so 30 missions sound about right. I currently use the Lunar for races, but I guess BoTA would work better overall. I'll give it a shot later tonight.
 
I'm playing through on normal now (will try that firmware update tonight - apparantly it's almost perfect now according to someone on gamefaqs... i hope so!

While it's mostly steady, seems with 5 or 6 enemies it gets pretty slow. That and the resolution switches... are more disappointing (coming from NGS+) than actually affecting my fun with it though. It still plays well and is nice to have on a handheld. The original games are so cheap now if you really wanted to experience it better, those are well within reach.

I think Vita could do it better or they could have made better concessions like dropping polys from the backgrounds (particularly chapter 1), but then some closed in rooms still have the slowdown, so i don't know! The resolution switch coming out of a menu seems incredibly odd, like what should be taxing about that? If it didn't look so average i'd say they might have intended to have some visual transition or something.. but surely not like this. During UT's it's apparent but less noticeable, though i wouldn't have been opposed to ditching the motion blur effect to keep the resolution up. I've taken some screenshots when the resolution is highest, and it looks great and unfortunately shows how good it could have been if it were consistent!
 

Revan

Member
Tested the 2.06 firmware this morning on Sky City Tokyo on Warrior.

There is still noticeable slowdown when you get to the Cherry Blossom Tree, the fight before the Buddha statue and the fight in the area with the floating essence.

The slowdown isn't as bad but it is comparable.

The one thing that I did see changed was the AA right after a UT - it fixes itself much faster then before (you can see it trying to correct itself during the UT if you watch close enough).

I'm going to test Submit or Die (Chapter 10) later on today as it was the worst (for me anyway) slowdown in the entire game.

The FPS runs slightly more stable as well when you are slide-jumping all over the place as well.
 
Yeah i concur, i noticed less bouts of slowdown on replaying the first level but the worst areas before patch (those you mention) were still quite affected. I wonder what on earth about this patch is responsible for the minor improvements though! Seems very odd.
 

OmegaZero

Member
So yeah, Chapter 6 on Warrior.

I exit a building later in the chapter and see this rapidly flickering series of grey shapes:
niJjoCG.jpg

1tsuH5u.jpg

IbdxAlN.jpg

If I rotate the camera, the rendering glitch shifts, and goes away at certain angles:

Then my Vita encounters an error and takes me to a black screen with text stating that it'll power down.

Now, whenever I exit the building, it either takes me to that screen or spazzes out like the above images until it does..

Dat Ninja Dog polish. :/
 
It's pretty obvious the game was outsourced. Team Ninja isn't big enough to have juggled NGS2+, NG3:RE (all three ports) and DOA5+ simultaneously while still gearing up for whatever next-gen stuff they're planning.

DOA5+ got a couple tads more attention, I suspect.
 

OmegaZero

Member
ninja dog pls

Oh mah gaaaaawd.
I didn't get that at first.

It's pretty obvious the game was outsourced. Team Ninja isn't big enough to have juggled NGS2+, NG3:RE (all three ports) and DOA5+ simultaneously while still gearing up for whatever next-gen stuff they're planning.

DOA5+ got a couple tads more attention, I suspect.

That's what I'm suspecting too. I'll take a look at the credits later and see what I can find.

EDIT: Alright, so I reloaded from the Chapter 5 clear save and played through the level again. No glitches this time.
Sweet.
 

OmegaZero

Member
Just found a hilarious clipping glitch in Chapter 6 that seems to be repeatable.
Apparently the Triangle, Triangle (floating on the surface of water) attack of the Kusari-Gama can be used to go through certain barriers, allowing you to explore a large portion of the "city" that was previously unreachable.
Will post screens and ect in a bit.

EDIT: Screenies!

pFGD8ra.jpg

So you use the Kusari-Gama's attack to go through this wall.
6Qdiej3.jpg

Allowing you to reach the boundary of the water physics...
FKyXkjC.jpg

...check out the area where the opening cutscene took place...
fw2YDX2.jpg

...check it out more thoroughly...
JtBA7ae.jpg

...maybe TOO thoroughly.
uuKpEsX.jpg

How about checking out the inside of the colosseum?
86Q84iv.jpg

Eh, rather empty.
ItVTuom.jpg

Ryu discovers the abilty to float!
tXq33Ns.jpg

...slowly backwards against walls.
DJqzWhI.jpg

Speaking of floating...
wInwxZf.jpg

Naruto walks on water, Ryu walks on air.

I'll be testing this glitch out in other water-filled areas, so stay tuned!

EDIT2: Oh gawd, it works in Chapter 7. Pics incoming.
 
Just done with Chapter 11 (normal, gore on, 2.06) ... enjoying my time, which is a testament to how good original game is because in other circumstances the framerate would make me stop playing. Chapter 11 climb up the cogs to the boss, they should be utterly embarrassed at releasing it with that kind of slowdown!

Some screenshots when from when it's displaying nicely:


And this one just because despite slowdown this was one of the coolest sections of the game :)
 

highrider

Banned
Just got this. It plays so much better than the first on vita. The bow alone is worth it. I see the performance issues, but they aren't bad at all imo. But then, I cut the vita some slack on a game like this. Ninja race is fun.
 

OmegaZero

Member
So, anyone still playing this game? :(

Here's the results of me exploring the glitch in Chapter 7 that I forgot to upload:

PpM6ZHV.jpg

aFSfTaf.jpg

oOHB77R.jpg

lol I'm inside the temple that has the chest in front of it

Still experimenting with places I can use the glitch.
 

Lyte Edge

All I got for the Vernal Equinox was this stupid tag
Haven't touched this game in a few weeks. Got Senran Kagura and NG2S+ went back in the case.

Will pick it up again later.
 

Revan

Member
I've hit that point where I've done all I'm prepared to do - grinding for trophies is kinda useless (given the plat is next to impossible to get) - the game becomes unplayable on Master Ninja (in my experience at least) and the tag missions starting on Mentor and higher suffer from some of the worst slowdowns in recent memory.

I've gotten all the costumes and beaten it three times now (acolyte, warrior and mentor) and have the last ninja race left (tips anyone? I'm having a bitch of a time getting from markers 2 to 4 with a decent amount of time to do the staircase)....if a patch comes to address the framerate slowdown (wishful thinking) I might go back to this but for now Chap Challenge is really all I'm doing and at that I think I've touched it once in the last week, which is a shame as it is my fav NG game (1 is better overall and RE is mired due to inconsistent levels, shit boss fights and Ryu's reaction time sucks badly - but NGS2 hits that sweet spot for me with enemy variety and amazing visceral combat) on my now go to system, the Vita.

EDIT: more wishful thinking but man I would love to see Kasumi patched into the game and made playable on all levels - she was literally the best part of NG3:RE.
 

OmegaZero

Member
I'm still playing it, didn't finish it yet, unlocked DOA costume few days ago by playing some turbo tag missions.

Ninja broootheeer! ;_;

I've hit that point where I've done all I'm prepared to do - grinding for trophies is kinda useless (given the plat is next to impossible to get) - the game becomes unplayable on Master Ninja (in my experience at least) and the tag missions starting on Mentor and higher suffer from some of the worst slowdowns in recent memory.

I've gotten all the costumes and beaten it three times now (acolyte, warrior and mentor) and have the last ninja race left (tips anyone? I'm having a bitch of a time getting from markers 2 to 4 with a decent amount of time to do the staircase)....if a patch comes to address the framerate slowdown (wishful thinking) I might go back to this but for now Chap Challenge is really all I'm doing and at that I think I've touched it once in the last week, which is a shame as it is my fav NG game (1 is better overall and RE is mired due to inconsistent levels, shit boss fights and Ryu's reaction time sucks badly - but NGS2 hits that sweet spot for me with enemy variety and amazing visceral combat) on my now go to system, the Vita.

EDIT: more wishful thinking but man I would love to see Kasumi patched into the game and made playable on all levels - she was literally the best part of NG3:RE.

Yeah, I know that feel. I'm still attempting to see if there's something I'm missing that makes the Plat possible. Even if I give up, I can still see myself playing this at least once a week just to have fun slaughtering ninja and bosses.

Kasumi would be amazing, but I guess they're saving that for NG3:RE+.

Haven't touched this game in a few weeks. Got Senran Kagura and NG2S+ went back in the case.

Will pick it up again later.

How is Senran Kagura btw? Does it have a place where you can practice combos/attacks? It looked sort of like a deeper
much more perverted
Dynasty Warriors game to me, but everyone I know that has it seems to be having fun with it.
 
Top Bottom