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Taking another stab at Ninja Gaiden

R

Roland Hood

Member
Gave up last year when I couldn't get past the level at the bridge with the Samurai on the horse. The guy with the teleporting guards who shoot fireballs.

I almost had him beat, took the guards out finally and had him to a sliver of life and shooting arrows at him when he swept me up like a bleating calf and swung me around taking all my life away.

10 more attempts and I haven't come close to that again.

I guess finishing God of War on easy didn't prepare me for the horrors of NG.
 
Find a rhythem that works for you. I liked to roll out of the way when he charged, hit the special attack and swing my sword at him as he went by. Take a little to get it right, but you'll get him.

The bad news is, the game doesn't get any easier. ;)
 
Weaksauce... :D

That was one of the hardest parts of the game actually.

I beat him by first staying by the the door at the end of the bridge and killing off all the guards.

Just use that move where you run up the wall and come slashing down on whatever is below you...many, many times :lol
 
It does get a bit easier, the second boss is probably one of the hardest in the game (Mainly because of the camera, which is unfortunate), get past him and you'll breeze through a few levels before it starts getting tough again.
 
MightyHedgehog said:
The second boss is easy once you get down using the ultimate attacks on him and dodging his charges and his minions' projectile attacks.
Click to expand...

Ultimate attack?

And I have problems dodging due to the camera.

You are a ninja dog.
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Why is it all the cool games are inaccessible to the weaksauce gamer?

The bad news is, the game doesn't get any easier. ;)
Click to expand...

Aw shit.
 
That's one of the hardest bosses, mainly because you haven't gotten down the combat engine at that point and it's just unforgiving.

The typical technique is to kill the disappearing guys, and use the orbs they drop to do a special attack on the boss. Rinse and repeat. Keep trying, that part isn't really too representative of the challenge of the game.
 
pssssh i hate not finishing a game but there are just games that get you get so frustrated. I have been playing Otogi 1 and am stuck on the same level for 2 months now, i am on stage 2 :D
 
Use that attack where you jump, then hit Up + Y over & over. That clears out almost everything in Ninja Gaiden on the normal difficulty level.
 
Roland Hood said:
Ultimate attack?
Click to expand...

The power attacks that the first boss teaches you about once you have beaten him..if you talked to him afterward, anyway. When fallen enemies drop orbs, you charge by holding down one of the attack buttons (Y, I think) and any nearby orbs will be sucked toward you...at that point you release and the attack will home in on the nearest opponent. Two yellows will max your attack, but one blue (health) one will do the same, IIRC. You do massive damage to those around you and the enemy you're locked onto and you're also invulnerable for the duration of the attack.
 
Thank you for all the advices. I'm going to try this Ultimate Attack thing :D

I will also try U + Y, running up the wall and any other cheap ass tactics I can find to beat this sucker :)
 
i got so pissed off that that game (the second doku faggoty boss fight) that i took it out of my xbox and broke it in half and ripped the case apart. it is now on my shelf, like a trophy.
 
fartblast said:
i got so pissed off that that game (the second doku faggoty boss fight) that i took it out of my xbox and broke it in half and ripped the case apart. it is now on my shelf, like a trophy.
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:lol :lol :lol
 
The game isn't so hard once you learn how the enemies behave and how to string multiple moves together without getting hit. More importantly, learn how to evade enemies on the fly without even thinking. I thought the hardest enemies were those spider ninjas, and of course those bone guys in the tomb. Once you figure out what works for you, the game is very fun. You'll actually want to get into fights so you can show the baddies who's boss. Just keep at it. Very rewarding, satisfying game.

:)
 
vangace said:
pssssh i hate not finishing a game but there are just games that get you get so frustrated. I have been playing Otogi 1 and am stuck on the same level for 2 months now, i am on stage 2 :D
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WTF? Otogi is a super easy game. Actually there are a couple of tough levels like the water ones, but the second stage... I thought it was pretty straightforward.
 
Worst part of Ninja Gaiden for me was when you fight that bitch in the chapel. Took me forever to get past her, but once I did, I seemed to fly through much of the rest of the game.

For generic, run of the bill bad guys, of the non-boss type, those Spider Ninja's are a pain in the ass though. :)
 
I'm replaying Ninja Gaiden again too, and I am stuck on the same Samurai-Horse boss. It doesn't help that I am going into the fight with half HP and no elixirs.... I had no trouble with this boss the first time, but now I am getting owned. I think I might just start my game over and save all my elixirs.

After that level though, the game gets much easier since you learn the counter-attack and the sword upgrade gives you the Flying Swallow move (up + y).
 
I'm always baffled when people say they got stuck at stage 2 becuase of its boss battle. Stage 2 was one of the only levels in that game where I beat the boss without dying once, I found the stage 3 guy much harder, and honestly the enemy I had the most trouble with was the 2 worms in the catacomb stage. It took my 2 weeks to get through that stage, then only 1 more week to finish the game after that.


To the Junior member named fartblast - You fucking suck. Stuck at the second doku fight ? you could get that far in the game but couldnt' beat him ? That was about the only other boss I finished without dying at. The demon on horseback, the tentacle blob thing and the second doku... actually come to think of it the second alma was easy as well. I didnt' find the first alma too bad , only died 3 times but I think I beat it by sheer luck.
 
don't give up on it. It's not *that* hard and it's such an awesome game, despite its difficulty.

Just get tips from the 'net when you get stuck. IGN has some good walkthroughs as well.

Ninja Gaiden is one of the best games of all time, imo. Old School + New School elements.
 
Pachinko said:
I'm always baffled when people say they got stuck at stage 2 becuase of its boss battle. Stage 2 was one of the only levels in that game where I beat the boss without dying once, I found the stage 3 guy much harder, and honestly the enemy I had the most trouble with was the 2 worms in the catacomb stage. It took my 2 weeks to get through that stage, then only 1 more week to finish the game after that.


To the Junior member named fartblast - You fucking suck. Stuck at the second doku fight ? you could get that far in the game but couldnt' beat him ? That was about the only other boss I finished without dying at. The demon on horseback, the tentacle blob thing and the second doku... actually come to think of it the second alma was easy as well. I didnt' find the first alma too bad , only died 3 times but I think I beat it by sheer luck.
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i'm STILL stuck on those 2 damn worms :(
 
I've been playing this game on and off for the past few months. I can only take small doses of this game since it constantly kicks my ass and I just get fed up. I'm at the
giant stone boss dude, the one you face after falling into that field of flowers
. Thankfully I'm near the end of the game.
 
DopeyFish said:
i'm STILL stuck on those 2 damn worms :(
Click to expand...

Yes, those 2 worms gave me a lot of trouble. Once you get it, it's not as bad.

Here's the way to go with them, it's all about good reflexes... very old school:
1. Don't stand in the center for too long, nor stand still. They can rush and try to bite you and this takes a lot of health.
2. Equip the windmill shuriken and whenever not slashing at them, always attack with it. It does very little damage, but in the end, it adds up.
3. Only one will do the sweeping attack. When this happens, time it so that you jump + Y and attack them as they stumble into the ground.
4. Watch the pattern the mouth makes when it's about to send a ring of fire. Again, this is a a matter of timing it, as you see the animation start, just jump to the side to evade the attack.

There's not much else you can do, besides that. It's a long fight, but if you have good reflexes, and can get into a 'zone' :p, you can definitely beat them.
 
You can jump through the ring of fire with the worms. Which is good becaause you can throw out a shuriken attack at the same time then. Also, use all the magic you can. The fire magic does a lot of damage to them. And arrows do a lot of damage as well.
 
I swore I posted in this exact same thread last month :b

anyway...in regards to the second boss, kill one of the magicians and absorb his soul then release it as a charged attack against the boss...a few of these will easily kill him (I didn't even get hit once on a recent playthrough...though after getting killed a few times due to the camera)

IJoel said:
Yes, those 2 worms gave me a lot of trouble. Once you get it, it's not as bad.

Here's the way to go with them, it's all about good reflexes... very old school:
1. Don't stand in the center for too long, nor stand still. They can rush and try to bite you and this takes a lot of health.
2. Equip the windmill shuriken and whenever not slashing at them, always attack with it. It does very little damage, but in the end, it adds up.
3. Only one will do the sweeping attack. When this happens, time it so that you jump + Y and attack them as they stumble into the ground.
4. Watch the pattern the mouth makes when it's about to send a ring of fire. Again, this is a a matter of timing it, as you see the animation start, just jump to the side to evade the attack.

There's not much else you can do, besides that. It's a long fight, but if you have good reflexes, and can get into a 'zone' :p, you can definitely beat them.
Click to expand...

I can't say I agree with this advice at all =\ By this point you should hopefully have the
UNLABORED FLAWLESSNESS (you did max out your wooden sword, right?). If not then just use the DABILAHRO :b

All you need to do is constantly block.
Whenever a worm is about to shoot a projectile ball at you simply dodge to the left or right.
When you see one tighten it's mouth in it's cave, it is about to perform it's 30+% health draining "throw" on you...so you should roll to the side and immediately jump into the air (so that you perform a rolling jump) and then perform an air attack with the sword to keep you airborn for a bit longer. As long as you can avoid these throws, anything else that the boss can do to you should be easy to avoid.

Stay out of the water at all times and keep an eye out for the electric charged water attack...during this attack the worm is open to attack but only briefly...you must be quick to hit him and if you don't think you can make it in time then by all means DO NOT ATTEMPT TO.

When you see one become limp, it is about to do a sweeping attack. Jump into the air and perform a mid-air "Y" button attack to take off a considerable amount of health.
As long as you remember to defend 90% of the time, roll and or jump out of the way of each attack, and only attack during openings you should easily beat the boss is without coming close to death.

Ninja Gaiden, as a whole, is a game that is difficult almost entirely because people fail to realize the uses of the game's defensive abilities.














Except that damn second boss.

Defense is extremely important there too but that camera will be your biggest enemy...luckily the game only gets easier from there. :b

Edit: also...magic is for pussies
 
The game may not get any easier after stage 2, but you as a player do get better. You get more accustomed to the fast paced combat, plus you can upgrade your dragon sword and other various weapons you find to make yourself more powerful. Starting in stage 3 you can upgrade your Dragon Sword to level 2 and that is where the fun begins! :D
 
Oh the game most definately gets much easier after chapter 2. The first 2 chapters are hard because where a tutorial of some sort should have been they placed you into combat with very few options.

The main reason the first boss is hard is due to his abilities that deal massive damage and your pitiful damage in comparison.

The main reasons the second boss is hard are the magicians and the game's camera system. As soon as the player comes to grips with the camera that ceases to be a major problem. Once the player realizes that the magicians aren't to be killed to stop them from attacking or just to kill them, but instead to use their soul in a crippling attack against the boss, the fight should prove much easier.

By the time the second boss is defeated, the game's difficulty takes a nose dive. The third level and boss are naturally easy in comparison to the first two levels and the game afterward offers you many more options which allow for greater freedom of play.

general hints: abuse the block/roll techniques. don't rush. don't be afriad to buy health


edit: Ramirez, exploding shurikens

edit2: http://ga-forum.com/showthread.php?t=41075
 
Once you get a little further into the game, you'll also have opportunities to easily farm up a bunch of green orbs; get really stuck and you can often spend a while killing (with your ultimate, for the bonus) groups of infinitely respawning bats, for example, and buy a bunch of elixirs to get you over whatever hump is in your way. Between that and the sort of "trial by fire" aspect of the game early on, I felt like it probably got a little easier after the first couple of levels. Farming orbs so you can chug elixirs to kill a boss is obviously less satisfying than actually winning with skillz, but it becomes an option, and it's more fun than giving up in frustration.
 
Just use some FAQS from Gamefaqs and do not give up. Create multiple saves, staggered so you can go back if you are not preapred later. ABUSE the infinite money in the city level near the club to make things a bit easier.

It's worth it.
 
No, I think he really means exploding arrows.
I used the Strong Bow and the various anti-tank arrows on the two worms, and it turned out well.
 
if you think the horse riding samurai boss is hard, wait until you meet alma (the first time)...and then the skeleton archers. i think the skeleton archers while climbing out of that pit was the most frustrated i've ever been at any game.
 
Yeah, Alma was the bitch in the chapel I was talking about earlier too. She was tough the first time through. The worms were a pain at first, but then I got a rhythem down with them and used the exploding arrows as well. Not bad at all. The huge boss that you face after falling into the field of flowers was a piece of cake. I don't think I died once against him.

It is true that the game gets harder as you go along, but as someone else said, you as a player do get a lot better too, so that helps a lot. On top of that, the upgraded dragon sword helps too. NG is a great game, and very rewarding when you start to get the flow of it. When you do beat it, you really feel like you accomplished something, very old school in that respect
 
I believe on my first play through this game I stopped somewhere after the 3rd boss. nothing up to that point seemed unreasonably hard. where the 1st three bosses all seem to make you pay is in their grab attacks so rolling is very important. I think on my first go round I never made it past the part where you talk to Almas sister on that roof top.

on my second try I was determined to keep playing and I was flying through the game once I got past the 2nd boss. I was using more techniques than I had previously and I really started to get the hang of the camera. I think Im pretty far along but right now Ive stopped playing and Im at that boss creature that looks like a big bird skeleton. I already fought the other big skeleton creature in the spiral walkway area. I just havent gotten back to trying to finish the game.

I think I beat Alma the first time I faced her and then got owned sometime after that and didnt save so i had to fight her again......and again and again. the two worms did suck and so did the tanks. so did the helicopter. damn I only want to fight against something with legs that stays on the ground.
 
GAH! My link is broken! Oh well, I’m sure some of you have seen them before the "Shinobier Ninja Gaiden Boss Videos".

Ahhh yes. The skeletons in the pit. That REALLY ticked me off because that was my favorite level in the game, and then it ended so cheaply with that. HOWEVER: Incendiary Shurikens work GREAT on them.
 
I beat him the second time and i didn't know how to use ninja magic at all. Now I'm at that stupid 3x dinosaur plant boss thing. Ugh.....4 bosses???? Ugh.....
 
I did it. I beat the Samurai boss. Took out the guards with some nifty blocking-rolling-stabbing as suggested, then did a couple wall runs and diving stabs at the horse to take his health down then finished him with some arrows when he wasn't looking.

Only had a sliver of life ta boot.
 
:lol Ninja Gaiden was great because of the difficulty and the camera system suited it perfectly.

That second boss is nothing, you need to figure out his attack pattern and keep killing the goons to fill up your health and magic.
 
SnowWolf said:
You are a ninja dog.
Click to expand...
:lol

Yeah, I gotta wonder what the hell is up with gamers nowadays that they can't even make it past the 2nd boss. Sure, the game's tough, but come on. You want real shoot-yourself-in-the-head hard? Try finishing the original NES Ninja Gaiden.
 
Just made it those eels in the aqueduct. First one kind of frustrated me until I found out the shurikens pecked away at his life bar. Now I have to face two...
 
Roland Hood said:
Just made it those eels in the aqueduct. First one kind of frustrated me until I found out the shurikens pecked away at his life bar. Now I have to face two...
Click to expand...


Took you almost six months to get there...
 
It's funny, I remember the fat zappy bastard on the zeppelin as being really frustrating, but I don't remember either Alma fight as being especially godawful hard, but I suspect I may have simply been accustomed to the kick-you-in-the-teeth-harder-and-harder nature of the game by then. Wish my Xbox still worked. 42 days to go. Sigh.
 
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