Recent reviews by md2501

Grateful to team ninja and Phil Spencer for keeping the game alive in this year. This is an outstanding action game, and if you like sekiro or devil may cry, you will also like this game.

That said, I can't help but list out several points and a number of flaws addressing which would improve the game in significant ways.

Make no mistake, this is very much a remix of the Sigma 2 version, rather than the return to the original 360 release. The enemy counts and spawns are extremely similar to Sigma 2. At times encounters will feel fulfilling but more often than not the enemy numbers are severely lacking. Sigma 2 was willing to cut the underbaked content of vanilla 2 - but then I have to wonder: why does 2 black likes to throw dogs at me? Surely everybody would rather fight the Rasetsu.

Moving on to the blood, which makes a welcome return in the 2 black version. I could gloat over the technical wonder that is blood in the original xbox360 version of the game, especially when it runs today without slowdowns at decent resolution. Suffice it to say, the 2 black implementation is acceptable. For sharp weapons that is, but not for the blunt weapons. When you pop limbs with Tonfas and Lunar in the original ng2, you summon rains of blood, in 2 black hardly anything happens. I feel like a kid who missed Christmas every time I OT enemies in this game with these weapons.

This was also a missed opportunity to rebalance the game. Getting one shot by grabs on Master Ninja is anti-fun. Some of the weapons in the game would really benefit from decimating a large crowd. There is no reason not to include both encounters againt a large crowd with less hp each, and fights against few enemies and more hp allowing to practice longer combos on them. This approach was already implemented in the latest Samurai Jack game by Soleil. It's worth it, because landing the scythe UT on a large number of enemies at once is in line with the best moments this game has to offer.

Looking forward to the Tials/Mission mode that is currently missing.

Not sure if everybody would be willing to pay full price for a remake, but for me this is a very easy purchase to make. If you happen to be a new player, make sure to check out a guide on gameplay mechanics to make it less frustrating and more fun.

ABA is amazing in Strive. Very fun to play and noob friendly since you can just S 6HS danzai kick danzai provided you activate her jealous rage.

The OST is a hit or miss for me since I'm not too keen on Queen, but half the tracks still hit all the right spots. That said Keep in Gates gets way more response out of me compared to Symphony.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QyM3zU-_SNU

Great to see online in Strive in good shape all this time after release. Experience may vary depending on the region and the floor, but I seem to be finding matches with relative ease in Quick match.

I can still recommend this game in 2024.

P.S.: I have no idea why setting up a private lobby with a friend is such a pain in the bottom in this game though.

Solid street fighter game despite the surprisingly underwhelming roster on launch.

I have to give it to Capcom, their version of rollback works fine compared to what Namco has implemented in Tekken.

Look, it's simple. When you have ♥♥♥♥ connection, delay based netcode will slow down the game introducing lag. Rollback never slows down the game, you'll just have teleporting all over the place. It's easy to tell between the two and whatever solution Namco has cooked up for the updated netcode is simply not rollback.

What's more, it looks like defensive options are even weaker in t8 compared to 7. I don't think that the aggressive approach is good for tekken.

This game tries to combine nioh and sekiro, and the end result is way worse than both.

Just like nioh, Wo Long includes various weapons, but it ditches unique move sets from nioh and each weapon only includes one basic combo and a couple of special moves that use the stamina bar. Weapons feel boring compared to nioh.

Wo Long emphasizes parries just like sekiro, but the enemy variety and behaviour are lacking to pull it off as well as sekiro did.

Not sure what the purpose is for the morale system, all it does is restrict the player. You have to find all the flags on the mission to make sure you can use more powerful skills and also make the boss manageable.

Adding insult to injury, Wo Long removes the dismemberment of the enemies that was present in Nioh 2 and made the combat feel impactful.

If you are a KT fan, just stick to Nioh 2, it's a much better game.

If you have a gaming wheel, this game is essential.

Don't expect metroidvania, it's not. It's a great castlevania style action game designed around replayable levels that include multiple routes and coop.Castlevania coupled with Contra and some Megaman.

Update: the issue was resolved by disconnecting a fanatec wheel.

The game bsod's my PC every time I try to launch it. Tried verifying the files integrity, reinstalling to a different drive, reinstalling battle eye, nothing helps.

One of the best racing games I've played.

It's not often that I play sim racers, but this one got a tight grip on me. Driving physics are fun, struggling to maintain grip on the road is exhilarating. For me personally, nature is way more pleasing to look at compared to tracks built on asphalt and concrete.

A word of advice to new players: the game works just fine on a pad, keyboard is not as good due to the lack of analog inputs. DON"T use automatic transmission. You will get used to manual in no time, and it gives you way more control in corners.

This is actually a new ninja gaiden game in disguise. I never watched the Samurai Jack cartoon, I'm here for the combat and the game delivers.

If you played 3d ninja gaiden games you will feel right at home. Powerful blocking options, counter attacks, helm splitter - it's all here. There are new options as well. You can now use guard rush (run>block) that allows you for easier initiation and moving with guard up, and there is a lock on option which is useful in some situations. Combat feels very fluid just as you'd expect from a ninja gaiden game.

You won't create a rain of blood like you would if you played Ninja Gaiden 2, but even with the cartoon like presentation combat has very nice feedback to it. Your slices will cut up enemies into pieces once they run out of hp, and when you pop a super you will send the whole room flying. Strings are beautifully animated, I can do the helm splitter XXY combo with lunar all day.

Overall I'm very pleasantly surprised by this game. Strongly recommended to anyone looking for a good action game.