Rise of the Rōnin is Butter Spread Too Thin | Review

Rise of the Rōnin is Butter Spread Too Thin | Review. Team Ninja are my favorite developer. I know over the years they have received a lot of criticism, especially of the Dead or Alive Series, for their signature mixture of brutal battling and beautiful ... women. The Ninja Gaiden Series, even among casual game journalists, is still beloved and respected. However, since the departure of Itagaki in 2008 (right after the release of the true masterpiece Ninja Gaiden 2 on the Xbox 360), it seems like the team has struggled with re-establishing their signature brand of game design and seem to be moving in a new creative direction since the release of the excellent Dark Souls-influenced Nioh in 2017.
The issue with this new creative direction, however, as Ronin clearly illustrates, is that following along and being the secondary Pepsi to Fromsoft's Coca-Cola was a novel and interesting idea seven years ago. Since that time however, and especially since the release of the Parry Focused Sekiro in 2019, copying the current Fromsoft formula of Parry + Stamina + Stagger is far from being original or interesting -- especially because this has essentially become the action game standard. Even Armored Core 6, a supposed mech game, utilizes this formula to some degree. With other new developers, like the creators of The Lies of P, copying Fromsoft isn't surprising, but in the case of Team Ninja, who were once on the cutting edge of combat design only a few years ago and who made some genuinely cool innovations with the Ki-Pulse system of the Nioh franchise, the Rise of the Ronin feels like creative burnout. When discussing their vision for the game, the thing that stands out the most is Team Ninja discussing expected sales figures and it certainly comes across when playing Ronin that the move to this expanded open-world setting is much more of a commercial choice rather than a creative one.
The open-world aspect of the game's design is certainly underdeveloped, even casual reviewers have pointed this out, but what is even more of an issue with Ronin's world/level design is that for a combat focused game, all the time spent wandering around and doing fetch quests devastates the gameplay density and all of the open ended space allows for players to effortlessly siphon away enemies from groups and slowly pick them off one by one. Bayonetta and Devil May Cry have locked in combat areas for a reason Team Ninja.
Right now Rise of the Ronin is a PS5 exclusive and goes for the absurd price of $70. And being a Sony Published game, it seems unlikely they will be releasing it on Steam (PC) anytime soon (Sony wants another Bloodborne I think). But hopefully in the near future it will drop on sale because buying it full price seems steep.
Very cool thumbnail created by the master, himself ‪@boghogSTG‬
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00:00 Chapter 1: Team Ninja Are Lost
09:19 Chapter 2: Open-World Dilutes Combat
16:54 Chapter 3: Stagger and Parry Burnout
29:03 Chapter 4: Style is AGGRESSIVELY Bland
33:05 Final Thoughts
#teamninja, #riseoftheronin, #sekiro

[@magicjohnson3121]

The greatest trick the devil ever pulled was convincing us that non-linear level design is better than linear level design

[@mdd4296]

I could barely call most non linear level "design". It's more like spreading butter as the video said.

[@guymontag5084]

It's because people started to buy games based on game length rather than quality. Metal Gear Solid 1 is only about 8-10 hours long if you pad it out, same for MGS2 and MGS3. Meanwhile MGSV got the same review scores despite having a far worse story, worse level design, more busy work, worse dialogue, worse attention to detail, etc. because it's 100 hours long.

[@tbc1880]

Open world games are still linear they just have a painfully long and obtuse line.

[@LukeEganLyrics]

​@@guymontag5084 Exactly. It's as if game developers have forgotten that games can be... replayed! And the best games make you want to replay them again and again.

[@MrDirkles]

Eugene Jarvis said that non linear games only exist because the developers don't know how to make a fun game.

[@tokyobassist]

Three things: 1. Regarding auteurs, the only big one really left is Suda 51 imo. People are hung up on the jank of his games though. 2. Itagaki would've eventually sunk Team Ninja based on what happened after he left and did on his own. 3. Team Ninja not being known for their graphics being a heavily regurgitated comment from many people makes me died inside. Ninja Gaiden and DOA2 on Dreamcast were way ahead of their time. They just lost their touch since NG3.

[@billyboleson2830]

Unless your into indie games

[@dacrusathang9732]

The lack of hitstun on attacking enemies during their attacks is probably the worst problem in these action game. Being forced to play lame or get 2 hit killed by a villager with a broken sword that randomly have super armor on his light attacks.

[@TheElectricUnderground]

I agree. I think if they just removed that aspect of the enemy design, the game's combat would feel much more flexible and fundamental. Because if you can't interrupt the enemy attacks, that means you can't dictate the pace of the combat, even on basic enemies. Instead, low tier mooks have the ability to make to stand a wait, which makes the game feel very tedious over time, especially on repeated encounters of village clearing the same enemies over and over.

[@mathewhosier9739]

Sounds like you just suck at the game, learn how to parry, RotR is their easiest game, git gud

[@TWBThrillersWithBananas]

You just suck at the game

[@orangemegaslide]

​@@TheElectricUndergroundthat's simply not true though. You can for example interrupt attacks with the revolver and the shurikens, both of which also cause hit stuns to continue or begin pressure. You can lock enemies down in this game, I do it, and there's already plenty of clips and Japanese streams on youtube here of players doing it consistently.

[@sultanhayabusa2779]

@@orangemegaslide oh nice, I totally forgot that the handgun & Shuriken do guarantee hitstun right? If so, then yeah you probably can interrupt enemy attacks. I'll have to test this for myself.

[@GA-KO.]

It strikes me that Rise of the Ronin could've have been served well with a world design that is like Way of the Samurai's where the world isn't open, but rather a collection of interconnected areas that you travel between. You could have characters appear and special events occur at certain times of the day

[@TheSamuraiGoomba]

Man, I wish we could get another way of the samurai. That choose-your-own-adventure-book kind of design is really interesting, and unlike a modern open-world game, it's all curated content and the game tends to be fairly short on a first playthrough.

[@TheElectricUnderground]

Yes and on top of that the connecting sections are filled with dangerous enemies that you have to survive and battle through without additional resources, that would give so much more tension and meaning to the open world design. So going from 1 town to the next would be a gauntlet, rather than a boring stroll.

[@philo2677]

Yeah but unfortunately then you would have to actually design something

[@SolidSnake240]

A Yakuza style sandbox would've been perfect imo

[@vspectra]

Ronin’s combat has way more depth and variety than Sekiro. The only comparison you can make is that you can parry here too, and Sekiro isn’t even the first game to implement a parry system. It's a bit of a surface level comparison. You also don't have to rely on parry and can utilize block and dodge for majority of the game similar to Ninja Gaiden 1. This game has more in common with Way of the Samurai than Sekiro. The open world has been a blast since it revolves around a bond system with the npcs who surprisingly have been pretty well written, and it’s been insane actually discovering over 20 different combat styles all unique with their own move sets which makes the combat encounters never getting old in my 60+ hours of playing. Game's been highly addicting

[@edboy2113]

💯. It took me some time to find my groove but honestly I've been enjoying the hell out of it. It gets real addicting once you start learning all the different styles

[@BboySquidfoot]

Way of the samurai was the SHIT!!!!

[@Isaac-is4li]

To me, (the OG) Dark Souls was more of an adventure game in the style of Ocarina of Time than it was an action game. The combat system was fine, just as it was in Ocarina of Time, but it was never really what made it special. What made it special was more so the atmosphere, the exploration, and in general the narratological (as opposed to ludological) side of the game. I've always found it bizarre that all the Dark Souls imitators have only ever really taken the combat system from it. I also find it bizarre that Team Ninja seem to only be able to make soulslikes nowadays.

[@markhavick7115]

They definitely have aesthetically based souls-likes, I mean Mortal Sell, Lies of P and Blasphemous to name a few.

[@jurtheorc8117]

@@markhavick7115 I would want to add Clash: Artifacts of Chaos to that list, even though that is not an outright Soulslike but instead has elements of a Souls game. But very, very strongly fits on a list of aestethically striking games.

[@bytetapestry]

​@@markhavick7115 It's not about aesthetics, it's about adventure. I haven't played Mortal Sell, but Lies of P and Blasphemous definitely do not replicate the exploration/experimentation-focused structure of DaS1/DeS. Even in copying what they perceive to be the combat mechanics, they miss the point. Features like parries, backstabs, dodge s, etc. were optional, specialized situational tricks for you to discover (or not) in those early From games, whereas imitators turned that into a worn-out staple. The old Fromsoft style really was to replicate the experience of dealing with an IRL dungeon master through intentionally opaque mechanics being applied to consistently novel level design. I find games like The Witness and Outer Wilds to be closer to the spirit of those games than any of the "Soulslike" trendchasers.

[@vspectra]

Ronin isn't even soulslike at all. People like to give all the credit to Souls games for a modern Ocarina of Time design, but Team Ninja actually utilized that design first in a modern era gaming with Ninja Gaiden 1, that did difficult but satisfying combat in an hub world with intricately interconnected level design.

[@TheElectricUnderground]

Yes I agree completely. I call Dark Souls grown up zelda, and I mean that as a compliment ha. Because it basically takes the zelda formula and updates it to be much more intense and fleshed out. That being said, a lot of these action rpg elements don't lend themselves well to a pure action style game, which Team Ninja clearly want to make on some level, but seem afraid to for some reason (probably sales after NG3 struggled so much).

[@mrpissed]

Is it just me or have Japanese game developers become almost as trend-chasing (some would say "analytics-driven") as western studios? I always admired it when Japanese studios just did their thing, even when it only had a small (but reliable) audience) niche audience.

[@retroman3252]

There was always trend chasing. But in the past they put best foot forward with a key gimmic.

[@mdd4296]

Most developers have to chase trends due to the reality of this market. The difference was in the 80 to early 2000s the japanese were trend setters: survival horror, spectacle action were staple of the ps2/OG xbox. Mid 2000 and onward, not anymore. It was western devs, then korean, chinese... They set one recent trend with soul like and that's that.

[@jackiechun6540]

alot of them are chasing the wrong trends now and its going to end very badly for them

[@manzanito3652]

They were always trendchasers. The difference is that the trends they usually chase didn't badly clash with the stuff they actully know and like making. In this case, going from linear action games to suddenly and open world game, it is very obvious they were chasing a trend they barely have experience making.

[@BknMoonStudios]

Blame ballooning budgets, cutthroat investors and market saturation for that one, chief. It's not that game devs (all around the world) don't want to be creative and push boundaries, but when a single flop can cause hundreds of employees to be fired, they become very averse to taking risks. It's also why indie games have flourished, since they can afford to take those risks, with the trade-off being much lower production values.

[@schvyler]

So glad I found this channel. It’s considerate game criticism without being too clinical or overly objective. It’s coming from someone who just loves games. Also, I’m more Team Ninja/Ninja Gaiden than FromSoft/Souls. Ninja Gaiden and Sekiro are my favorite games. I am this channel. This channel is me.

[@magicjohnson3121]

He’s quite critical of Sekiro

[@schvyler]

@@magicjohnson3121 I got that vibe from the video. I love it though. Could not and cannot get into the other Souls games.

[@westonstaufenberg7278]

@@schvyler sekiro shouldve been a boss rush, the rest is fluff. you could make the same case for Dark Souls/ER aswell. reason being, you can run past all the enemies, you're almost never forced to fight them apart from grinding.

[@schvyler]

@@westonstaufenberg7278 Yeah, after you beat the game, you can speed run to bosses since you know where they are (which is why they added a boss gauntlet in an update). But nearly all enemies in Sekiro can easily kill you without breaking a sweat (katana monkey can suck it). If you’re playing for the first time, those experiences are crucial - avoiding them means not mastering mechanics and enemy types. Calling it fluff misses that there are non-boss battles that teach you how to play.

[@westonstaufenberg7278]

@@schvyler I have 500 hrs in Sekiro, i know how it is. Yes most enemies can kill you no problem, but you can completely avoid them. On NG+ and after you have all abilities unlocked, theres not point in engaging them, it becomes boss rush/ w pointless traversal in between. Another problem w/ Sekiro, is that the tools and combat arts are very useful and make the combat more nuanced but they make them cost too much and you cant use too many of them. 9 times of out 10, i sticked to shurikens, the Umbrella and dragon flash, and some of the free moves.

[@Daikuro1]

This is yet another AAA game where everything about it resembles a "simulator" rather than an intentional, artistically-driven challenge. When everything is reduced to modular, easily interchangeable objects placed in an open world, the whole game just becomes a repeated and predictable series of code-driven simulation. So often in recent AAA games I get this vibe where I just feel like I'm "sitting in a 3D engine, orbiting game objects around each other" rather than getting lost an immersive game experience. FromSoft is the major exception to this and all comes down to that studio's amazing level and environment design. FromSoft's games constantly deliver deliberate, crafted experiences to the player. I recently decided to give Ikaruga a shot after hearing about it for many years and, man, do I wish I had played this game earlier. Every single second of that game is a direct conversation between player and developer. It wouldn't be a legendary and iconic sh'mup if it was an open world where you flew around randomly encountering bots and blowing them up for generic quest objectives. The game's systems are actually quite simple and straightforward,. It's the intense, painstakingly designed levels that makes the entire experience unforgettable. The best action games are no different. I feel like this is another symptom of the pressure AAA studios feel to ensure their games feel "long and fulfilling for a single playthrough", rather than tightly designed and a joy to replay again and again.

[@eivisch]

I love FROM’s games but really would wish others developers would stop trying to “replicate” them.

[@TheElectricUnderground]

agreed. Fromsoft make their style of combat for a reason and it def fits what they are going for with their style of action rpg design, but these elements like stagger, parry, and stamina, shouldn't be just automatically plugged into other forms of combat design. Devs need to go back to action oriented fundamentals rather than action rpg fundamentals.

[@mathewhosier9739]

Team ninja games are technically "soulslikes" but they have developed their own style, their games are nothing like fromsoftwares, the combat is much more fast paced, fluid and smooth, team ninja have developed the niohlike

[@mathewhosier9739]

Developers follow popular trends, always have and always will, lots of ppl buy these soulslikes, its definitely one of the most popular genres now, if you don't like them then don't play them, it's pretty simple, there are plenty of games out there, not every game is for everyone and shouldn't be

[@SolidSnake240]

​@@mathewhosier9739Ninja Gaiden isn't even remotely a souls like lol

[@Fishster]

Then we wouldn’t. have greats like the Surge games or Lies of P . I’m ok with it.

[@assymptoad4989]

Tbf Hideki Kamiya broke away from Capcom to make Platinum in the first place.

[@TheElectricUnderground]

That's true! But he also took Capcom staff with him, don't forget that. It's not like Kamiya left Capcom and built Platinum with a brand new set of staff, which would probably have been impossible back then, he wasn't a household name or anything.

[@DJRxx24]

@@TheElectricUnderground Also, From Software didn't really blow up until Hidetaka Miyazaki took over and created Demon's Souls and then Dark Souls, which were almost entirely his vision and has completely changed video games at this point. And Dark Souls 2 while not created by Hidetaka Miyazaki is still quality IMO but you can really feel the influence of him missing, while others might say it's just really bad. There's something interesting to look into there I think because the way the game plays is very good still, if not just better in a few aspects. It's mostly level design, atmosphere/lore stuff that people dislike most, things Miyazaki would probably obsess over and make sure were perfect.

[@mikemoss6110]

I have never watched your channel. This being the first video I've seen from you, I am hella impressed. I'll be looking at your other videos and look forward to your steller blade review.

[@MikeyJ1572]

The aesthetics of your thumbnails and everything you design or have designed for your channel and brand is always so fresh

[@TheElectricUnderground]

I'm really happy to hear that! Yes, I want my channel to be distinct not only in terms of what I say, but also aesthetics -- because I do think aesthetics do help communicate a distinctive feel as well, as I pointed out in the Ronin review ha. In terms of thumbnails too, I have to massively credit @boghogstg as the man making the awesome style come together, he's a genius of thumbnail design.

[@cheese1678989]

Your perspective on gaming is honestly so refreshing

[@slipstream7324]

i dispise combat systems when the enemies' attacks do big damage and your attacks do chip feels like i am wielding a whiffle bat

[@slipstream7324]

also.. the candles in the crouch tunnels. The f? How hasn't that place burned down?

[@mathewhosier9739]

Or maybe you just suck, learn to parry and git gud

[@slipstream7324]

@@mathewhosier9739 you're a profane creature.. disgusting thing *decided that was a bit harsh. i know it's just an npc response. i wonder if it can think.. please defend the concept of you doing nearly no damage unless you parry, especially against many enemies at once

[@TheElectricUnderground]

Yeah i agree. I think we are seeing this more now because a lot of combat games I guess feel that every enemy needs to be a little boss battle, rather than seeing the value in having a lot of weaker enemies that you group together and combo. We are seeing a war on hitstun ha.

[@slipstream7324]

@@mathewhosier9739 you're an npc consumer

[@BobBobbinsson]

The algorithm did me good today, just started watching and this review is spot on in the most well stated way

[@AshleysBallistics]

When these big Japanese game directors leave the soul of the projects tend to never recover. Sure, the talent of game creation is there but it's akin to the soul leaving the body. Look at Final Fantasy after Sakaguchi left. Look at everything post RE5 after Mikami left & look at Team Ninja atter Itagaki left. Is FF12 Good considering it's crazy development? Sure. Are the RE games after 5 good? Debatable. Are Tean Ninja a stand out company now that the rizz is gone? Nah. One director can't create a project by themselves but they certainly can add soul & syle & that is something this game lacks. 😐

[@retroman3252]

While Mark is right, there is usually talent in the lower ranks without a face. A good lead/manager paves the way for you to deliver the kickass goods. From my own practical experience.

[@TheElectricUnderground]

Yes I agree completely, and I hope I communicated this in my opening section of the review. I really wanted to point out that it's a misconception that itagaki can just bounce out from team ninja and create games at that same level, because of how critical the programmers and hands on staff are in terms of not only execution of the mechanics, but also the balancing of them. It's actually the programmers, typically, that balance the moves and give the game its actual feel in many ways. They are really under-appreciated in game design discussion. That being said though, the lead visionaries like Itagaki are also key for being that person willing to push the team to take risks and then get blamed if things go wrong ha. So that's a key role too. The conclusion being, as simple as it sounds, both parties are better off together than apart. Itagaki needs Team Ninja and Team Ninja needs Itagaki. :-)

[@mathewhosier9739]

Team ninjas action RPGs have more "soul" than 90% of the industry

[@baziworld]

i wasn't a fan of doa back in 2000s when Itagaki was making these games, but i am pretty sure, if Itagaki was still with team ninja, Tekken didn't have such easy time as "The Only 3d Fighting game" , he surely came up with some idea about making a comeback or something, i only say things i heard and feels like, ...i think , he really cared about his game, about the characters he entered in his fighting games, their connection to his other games like NG, (no shit, he clearly said "Kasumi is team ninja's heroine and his fav character"), i heard, he had some plans for a strucking story mode for doa 5 (when fighting games didn't have story mode at all)...i don't know what would happened if Itagaki would had remained...but i am pretty sure, at worst case scenario, doa and ninja gaiden would have still breating, and giving challenge to tekken and fromsoftware ,at least a little , or maybe so much..

[@jateenkasan6351]

When the cost of making a AAA action adventure game is becoming really expensive and can take several years to complete,you really can’t afford to be bold and niche and cater for the 1% hardcore playerbase. In order to make money you have to make your game palatable for the majority of players in order to sell copies. Therefore you see the trends: open worlds, parrying , rpg elements, exploration. You should really consider this in your Videos. Its not because developers don’t know about game design, gameplay density etc , they have to make compromises in order to chase more sales

[@don2nd650]

That makes sense honestly. It sucks that developers can’t take more risk now a days

[@TheElectricUnderground]

I do consider this actually, but it is the role of the critic to critique flawed design trends and ideas, rather than excuse them. If i adopted this mentality of bland design is okay because bold design is risky, why even bother reviewing games at that point? There are going to be a thousand issues and economic forces that can be used to excuse poor design in a board room or in a stock report, but in terms of the artistic content, it is the primary duty of the developer to do a good job and the duty of the critic to evaluate the outcome. Anything less and it's just being a cheerleader or marketer.

[@jateenkasan6351]

@@TheElectricUnderground so the point I’m trying to make is Team Ninja now is not Team Ninja from 2008 when gaming was a bit nuanced and niche. Now its all mainstream. Lets be honest Ronin was always not going to appeal to old school ninja gaiden fans. But people still cling on to hope because of the team ninja logo. This game was not worth a review really thats how bland and boring it is. Yet the players all clamoured for this and scoffed at Wanted Dead.

[@billyboleson2830]

@@jateenkasan6351 gaming stopped being “niche” the moment GTA3 and Halo came out and arguably prior to that too

[@MadoLeoss]

​@@jateenkasan6351 "This game was not worth a review " I disagree strongly. This review alone made the game existing worth it. Some piece of art are important not just because of their own merits, but also by how people review them. Context is almost as important as the content itself. This review has done a tremendous job at explaining the context. This is one of the best review you can expect to see. There's a already a sea of bland game review that will only review the game itself without explaining context.

[@LedZeppelin88S]

Something sad I'm noticing with these japanese companies is when they start to cater to "modern audiences" they transform into something different. I call them now global companies because they feel like a weird mix between japanese gameplay (at best) and western style (the focus of hyperrealism and bland style that can't offend anyone). It's sad because I started to stop being interested in a lot these companies and more and more started to follow this trend. Anyways great review. Followed!

[@TheElectricUnderground]

Thank you very much Led and yeah Team Ninja are definitely aiming for a more international audience. In one way, I don't think that has to be a bad thing in some ways, since old school team ninja like Ninja Gaiden was a big crossover hit on the Xbox, the most western console of all time ha. But sadly, because of the shifting taste among the western gaming audience in terms of sexy content has become so sensitive, it means that catering to a western audience means taking a blowtorch to any content that is slightly provocative sexually ha. I do think we can see this trend hopefully ending in the near future, but we'll see!

[@mathewhosier9739]

Team ninja have never catered to a "modern audience", they are clearly niche games developed for a small hard-core audience, fromsoftware makes western style games as well but you don't judge them the same way, there is nothing about team ninjas games that "doesn't offend anyone", they clearly don't care about that, the problem with you westerners is you think the whole world is just like your f*card up society, team ninja are the complete opposite of most western developers

[@JustFun-ho6qy]

It's not the taste of the Western audience. It's a handful of people on Twitter.

[@pedrobautista203]

Love your takes on Gameplay Density as a concept and love that you are reviewing for the Gameplay nuts like you and I. Hope you keep up the modern action game reviews. I'll try to beat some schmups and eventually 1CC the one I like.

[@UshiMushi]

Man, finally started playing Ninja Gaiden 3 since I put it off for so long. I just love how much they throw at you right off the bat and just keeps that momentum. Really wish Team Ninja would go back to that 8( Wonder if they'll ever make a forth and if they do if it will do the series justice.

[@riffmason]

Great video once again, it really is no contest when it comes to who is the best on youtube in really exploring the art form of great game design.

[@mrpissed]

It's crazy how you are the only real game reviewer on KZbin.

[@blumiu2426]

Really??

[@proggz39]

Dude’s just throwing mad shade on everyone for no reason

[@TheAnimatedGamer]

He's definitely very honest but he is NOT the only real game reviewer if you're just looking a surface level popular game critics

[@eljusticiero322]

He's giving his opinion nothing wrong with that

[@dragons_red]

Why, because you agree with him? Don't mistake that for good and honest.

[@jackiechun6540]

aggressively plain's a nice way to describe the character design in alot of these games now

[@mathewhosier9739]

Some of us care more about Gameplay and things that actually matter than graphics, that's the problem with you western gamers, your so obsessed with graphics that your blinded by it and don't realize what actually makes a game good

[@TheElectricUnderground]

Yes I'm fond of that word choice ha. Because it's not just plain because of lack of artistic talent, it's plainness as an artistic statement.

[@jackiechun6540]

@@mathewhosier9739 was just taking a dig at the intentional uglification western devs do to character designs now, and saying that western gamers like me care about graphics more than gameplay on a channel that focuses alot on 2D shmups and beatemups is quite silly

[@Smoofyful]

I appreciate how straight forward you are. Too many would not go to the point of the issue in fear of being called names. It's not just that a design can be sexy but on an objective, technical construction and appreciation of a design is also something to strive for. As someone who finds growth in effort and the appreciation of beauty in all things it's important to have good design. That's a thing the agents of the politburo could never understand. Oh and yeah, games are fucking expensive, another reason to have things that are appealing. Nobody wants to pay 70+ bucks for something that plays like ass and looks like it too.

[@soratheorangejuicemascot5809]

I just replayed your video again and what do you mean by full time job?

[@Mingodough]

Mark is the type of dude to eat butter by itself

[@Tetsaga]

I prefer to spread mayo on top of lightly melted sticks 😋

[@Mingodough]

@@Tetsaga under the mayo?🤨

[@ManulTransmission]

I love eating butter by itself.

[@TheElectricUnderground]

Ha the most effective way to get to the calories.

[@lanceelopezz223]

What a guy. :”)

[@balbarard4041]

extremely underrated game design analysis! i love your channel!

[@ashcan6]

You won my subscription...I, too , love Team Ninja of the past. Ninja Gaiden 2 (vanilla version), is in my top 5 games of all time, and dead or alive 5 is my absolute favorite fighter. I have been saying for years that Fromsoft games were literally just extensions of Ninja Gaiden games. I've been waiting for someone else to note the departure of Itagaki from the company, and have been so shocked to hear so many creators say how bad Team Ninja games look. When it released, Ninja Gaiden looked better than anything else on the o.g. Xbox. Lest we forget...

[@retroman3252]

Mark your right about the overlap in sexyness and style. An old way of describing beauty is: Integrity- good health. Proportionality- your nose isn't where ur ass is, etc. Radiance- the little extra that makes you stand out. This is suuuper important bcuz we have to decipher what our eyes are seeing and connectinons. Note that in this era we have reused/refurbished assets, packed scheduels and ...things outside development.

[@TheElectricUnderground]

Yes I love this way of explaining the situation because so many people mix up what is a true aesthetic principal with like larger real world implications. Of course you can read all that stuff into art and design if you want to, but everyone is going to have different tolerance levels for provocative art and it seems like devs are just aiming for the lowest standard of provocation possible -- none at all ha.

[@bushikao]

i consider this more an analysis than a review, im not rly one who enjoys the action genre all that much, but i love it when content creators seamingly know their stuff and share insights on game design practices instead of just regurgitating the story..fun watch good job

[@EatPieYes]

You're actually giving a bit too much credit to Team Ninja in a sense, when you don't consider the early development of the 3D character action genre, especially by not taking early 2000s Capcom in consideration. I'd say Team Ninja have never been innovators; they've always refined or retooled already made concepts. This goes for DOA compared to Virtua Fighter, Ninja Gaiden to Devil May Cry and Nioh to Dark Souls. Otherwise your critique is as well articulated and interesting as usual, and the points you argue for are valid.

[@OtakuTeaTime22]

I liked sekiro and actually really liked jade empire, back in the day. I'll still probably get this game. Just not now. Not for $70, no way.

[@TheElectricUnderground]

I think sekiro is really successful at what it set out to do, I'm more annoyed by every other game copying it that the game itself ha. As for jade empire, that game broke my heart. It mostly was just how much of a slog it was pace wise and how easy it was to completely break the combat ha. Ronin is def better than Jade empire, but a lot of it's structure reminds me of it ha.

[@LukeEganLyrics]

I'm still hanging out for an action game that will make me feel as pumped as Ninja Gaiden 2 did. Who will be the next Itagaki?

[@soratheorangejuicemascot5809]

I hope Abyss X Zero is good. I am having a hard time on finding a good action game that are new.

[@TheAnimatedGamer]

​@soratheorangejuicemascot5809 I don't think that game going for something character action like. Looks more like megaman legends/dark souls

[@soratheorangejuicemascot5809]

​@@TheAnimatedGamerawww Dark Souls!?? Its always that.

[@Aripuni1]

Itagaki make unwanted dead, check it out

[@NothingAtAll2461]

SIFU is the only game that's come close to how I felt playing NG2.

[@bobba515]

It really saddens me that it seems every action game that comes out these days are just soulslike. Stellar Blade seemed like finally it would be more akin to DMC but nope! Its also a soulslike. I just want more games with their own unique battle system.

[@hare75]

Armored core 6 was the only unique fast pace action game this modern era

[@dj_koen1265]

And ac fans hated it

[@Dragon-jo6wf]

One of the only few game review channels that says exactly what ive been thinking for years. It's a shame the jumping doesn't have much use here, and this is yet another game with an over-centralizing parry. why bother with nuances of the rest of the combat, once you get the timings down. Been there done that. Still waiting for team ninja to make something great like with the ninja gaiden series, instead of these filler titles that don't appeal to veterans. You can feel this has the framework to be an amazing title but it doesn't hit home.

[@imurderragdolls]

It makes me wonder if you played it if you think it overcentralized parrying. This game has some of the tightest parry windows I've ever seen in a game. It encourages you to parry at the end of combos and red attacks only. You can parry everything if you're a god of course, but it's not practical. That's why you have your dodges and guard. Hell, you could probably beat this game without parrying and just dodging and blocking.

[@Dragon-jo6wf]

@@imurderragdolls it being tight doesnt take away from the point. Insert x game with x tight parry windows, means you can just learn the timing. Its a fundamental concept. You dont need to play the game to understand this.

[@TheElectricUnderground]

That's a great summary Dragon. Yes why is the jump so under-developed in these games ha. I guess the devs are scared if the jump is too good then they'd have to make the enemy ai be able to respond to jumping, which starts to enter proper action game territory ha. I'm sitting and waiting for team ninja to break out of their shell and go all in on action as well. I know they have the talent, they just need the vision. Yes and filler is such a great way to describe Ronin. It's a game on a spreadsheet. The most excitement about the game from team ninja are them talking about sales projects: automaton-media.com/en/news/rise-of-the-ronin-aims-high-with-5-million-plus-sales-target/

[@imurderragdolls]

@@Dragon-jo6wf Then why argue for something you haven’t even played lol. Dumbass take.

[@Dragon-jo6wf]

@@TheElectricUnderground them not programming around your characters full movement pisses me off to no end, it's lazy game design. Even if the combat was rock solid that's a whole diemension that is not utilized. I wonder if theres a way to get in contact with this studio so i don't have to cry about it in someones comment section.

[@Zaarock]

Stranger of Paradise is the closest Team Ninja game to a Nioh 3, I'd imagine most fans of their older games enjoy it more than this and Wo Long. Plus it isn't really aimed at mainstream with the less serious and gameplay focused setting. I think it kind of flopped in japan because of the characters being more western appeal (which unironically end up being pretty fun)

[@Barnewallian]

You hit so many nails in the head with this video! It's one of the best dev teams in the world and I love them too. In terms of identity though, they appear to be a little bit lost at the moment. I believe they are kind of preparing themselves and testing the market for Ninja Gaiden IV. And the way I see it, the NG Black formula is the way to go. An adventure, not an rpg, in a consistent interconnected world with rewarding exploration, almost constant white knuckle combat, interesting characters and those boss fights that made you feel like a superhero when you beat them. That would sell a lot, score high in reviews and put them back where they belong. Fingers crossed.

[@philo2677]

The sexy thing is 100% an over-correction, the point people were trying to make with being against sexual objectification was the general lack of women characters existing for any other purpose and the possible effect of that on our collective psyche. Failing to understand the nuance in the difference between sexiness and objectification and instead interpreting it as "westerners hate sex appeal" has led to this style or lack thereof to avoid controversy. Cool sexy characters who are interesting and have multiple sides like Bayonetta and 2B were popular even among some of the crowd who opposed objectification despite getting some controversy but overall I think they were well received. Even westerners have failed to understand this distinction somewhat and have cut back on it and now you see the Korean pop culture market flooding the void by spamming sexiness in Kpop videos and porn manhuas and video games like with their MMOs and now with Stellar Blade. Nature abhors a vaccum.

[@TheElectricUnderground]

What a great comment philo. Yes over-correction is the perfect word. The lack of nuance around the conversation of sexually attractive characters is why this discussions keeps going in circles over and over for all these years ha.

[@Entreped]

It's not really "over-correction." The problem is actually two-fold. The first problem is that most of these western video game companies are hiring by ticking boxes instead of hiring based on merit. The best people for the job are no longer the ones getting the job. Hiring based on skin color and gender is supposed to be illegal but no one wants to challenge it so here we are. In fact this is going on in nearly every facet of western society, not just video games. Careful what airliner you decide to fly with. The second problem is that gaming companies are being black mailed, bullied, and fear mongered by activist consulting groups. These activists, using the aforementioned tactics, take the games these companies are working on and make them "socially acceptable." This can range anywhere from changing a characters gender/sex appeal (always from a man to a woman, and always hot to ugly) to rewriting the entire narrative. That's right, they have the power to take the story someone else wrote and completely change it for ideological purposes. All of this is being done in the name of "Diversity, Inclusion, and Equity" but that couldn't be further from the truth. These activists hate games and the gamers that play them. They are a bunch of racists and sexists that have been brainwashed into believing they aren't. Some of them, including the CEO of Sweet Baby Inc. (one of the consulting groups), are on record saying you can't be racist to white people. These reasons are primarily why video gaming, along with the west, is going down the drain. Creativity has been sacrificed on the alter of ideology and it's not going away any time soon.

[@JustFun-ho6qy]

Bayonetta, Lara Croft and especially 2B all got the Stellar Blade treatment by the press back in the day as well. It wasn't quite as violent a reaction because the hobby was only just becoming popular, lucrative and culturally relevant enough for all the failed political journalists and activists to take notice. Neither the press nor the developers hated the customers so openly and thoroughly back then either.

[@sebastiantirado3675]

Did you try using weapons besides the katana? I feel like the heavier weapons would be able to stagger more reliably

[@RandomGamingDouchebag]

I recently tried out the Stellar Blade demo and am very curious on your thoughts once the full game drops. If this review is anything to go by, I can only imagine how mixed your thoughts are going to be on the combat but maybe I'm the crazy one and you'll love it, we'll see. I think the major conversation people are going to have about the game is strictly going to be the character designs, which is baffling when a game like Nier Automata came out with baffling success and praise with a character whose ass is practically in frame for a majority of the play time. I feel people pick and choose when to have this conversation because it's only okay when certain games do it, almost feels like developer bias at times. Although I'd be lying if I said the characters in Stellar Blade don't feel more sexualized with the tight clothes and jiggle physics 😅. At worst, I personally felt it was an enjoyable demo that made me think of those PS2 era games like Red Ninja, Nightshade, and especially Bloodrayne with the really sexualized characters in an otherwise servicable but not too memorable game. I'd be more inclined the check it out but the story and gameplay didn't really draw enough attention for me to consider dropping the expected $80 which, yes, is fucking insane!! Also Mark, I'm curious on your thoughts on the old Yakuza games and that sort of format of action game where the open map design is condensed enough where it's not overwhelming but with plenty to do with varied combat scenarios in those "locked room" combat situations. I'm not sure if you've ever brought up that series in the past outside of your previously mentioning how you could play Spikeout in Infinite Wealth. Great video, although I think I'll stick with the Nioh games for the time being.

[@ILoveAsuka]

can u do a team ninja tier list (just for fun!)

[@Psych0boost]

Really thoughtful critique. I’ve never even heard of Jade Empire before watching this since I didn’t have any Xbox systems. Is it worth checking out?

[@globalistgamer6418]

It's a very mid and formulaic BioWare game that is only for the most hardcore enjoyers of their formula. The Chinese setting is an interesting idea, but feels handled in a very superficial and inauthentic way (feels more based on kung-fu movies than Journey to the West, The Water Margin, etc), and everything else is what you might expect like very mediocre pre-Mass Effect 2 action combat, absurdly black and white 'moral choices', story hinging on an easily predictable plot twist rather than character depth, etc. At least it's pretty short for the genre (

[@TranslatingTheName]

One of the things I loved about SIFU. It implemented it's own systems and refined them for better gameplay. The combat in that game was amazing.

[@jameson7276]

I laughed so hard when I saw you were fighting Matthew Perry in a Team Ninja game.

[@MasterEggroll]

Did you like Ghost? Trying to decide which one to get and play right now

[@rickthaslickgamer]

Loving your videos bro.

[@akairibbon4658]

$80 hell nah. I will play old games forever if it comes to that

[@TheElectricUnderground]

yeah what the hell is happening with game prices? 70 was already pushing it, especially since there is so much too play and choose from. Supply and demand my friend, it's really that simple. I do not think the demand for new games is high enough to pay 80 bucks a release.

[@IronBrotherhood4]

Im praying for a new DOA, we need it more than ever boys

[@dontbothertoreply9755]

With current politics, I Doubt it, Even DOA 5 And 6 cut the appeal and standarized a Lot of forms already, they were touched by DEI sooner, people Say that NPC's in FF VII rebirth are ugly when it has been like that since XV maybe XIII, Ninja Gaiden 3 was censored and rushed by Xbox and it flopped, that's why reviewers just say Black or Sigma time and time again, while honestly Razor's Edge has a stronger more fluid combat.

[@wc999]

you're 100% correct with the opening ive never had the same respect for them after the original xbox ninja gaidens those games were on another level... strangers was the only recent title i tried and really only because of the multiplayer and how cool the mc was

[@ryanbhadain5867]

How can you say that when it comes to games focusing on combat open world design is not a good fit when we have ghost of tsushima ?

[@rodneyabrett]

You know, I never really thought about it, but you bring up a great point about jailing the player. You can easily kite enemies in Elden Ring's open world or force them into their de-aggro state by running backwards far enough and it's sort of a get-out-of-jail-free card(easily abused in Sekiro especially where every enemy has a 5 second memory). The best combat moments in those games happen in tighter spaces where you're forced to manage the situation, no matter how the big the odds are stacked against you. I've never played a souls game as an archer or spell caster because those games aren't fun unless you're up close and personal with the old sword and board. Only time I think it works is when the game is specifically designed to be played that way like Remnant From the Ashes.

[@ploluap]

nice review thank you, good luck going full time !

[@billywitchdoctordotcom3659]

I love the immersion of open world games but the combat in them is usually too easy or not good, and the loot progression is usually minimal at best. The main things I look for in games are an interesting and immersive world, good challenging combat, and a bunch of good loot and gear options preferably with meaningful stats. Rise of the Ronin has managed to be super immersive with good and challenging combat and a bunch of loot. I can't disagree with your points, but i really wish we had more games like RotR and of course Elden Ring.

[@magicjohnson3121]

The modern bland gamer here

[@jamberrycloud]

I would be interested in a retrospective on Wanted: Dead one year later, analyzed against other "recent" action games, including the likes of Stellar Blade and even Valkyrie Elysium (since also Soleil)..

[@ManulTransmission]

"FromSoft is like the Coca Cola and Team Ninja is like their Pepsi Cola" LOL! As someone from Atlanta, I agree with this.

[@mathewhosier9739]

Well good thing, cause Pepsi is way better than Coke

[@TheElectricUnderground]

Yeah I'm a definitely a Coca-Cola boy, Pepsi only wishes it was half as good.

[@ManulTransmission]

​@@mathewhosier9739 if you remember Pepsi's ad campaign in the 90s, they tried to say their beverage was "pretty much" just like Coke. Not better than Coke, but pretty much the same. Lol. And there's a reason why there's a running joke about people asking the waiter for a Coca Cola and being asked in return if Pepsi is okay.

[@hare75]

Let's have a deal, pepsi is better than cola but dark souls 2 is better than ​any team ninja games@@mathewhosier9739

[@jepettoNFT]

Thank you very much for this in-depth review. i'm conflicted about this game, usually i buy all of the Team-Ninja games (of this genre), but i haven't bought this one, but your review made me want to give it a try despite all of its flaws you mentioned, so i think i'll wait for a lower price to give it a try. Also at 30:38- i didn't buy DOA 6 because of the egregious pricing policy on the previous episode, it didn't even crossed my mind to buy this one because of it. This has nothing to do with the gameplay nor chara designs (and i don't think i'm the only person in this case).

[@orangemegaslide]

Handling multiple enemies at once is also fundamentally stronger here than it was in Nioh 1 and 2 - slightly behind FF Origin(which handles it best out of their recent catalogue). The real "issue" is that it's tools tied behind longer open world progression. Hit stuns follow a string of hit check/confirms, as opposed to a constant. Similar to strings in DoA, Tekken, and VF. As an example the counterspark attack, advancing attack, and charge attacks provide larger hit stun of frame advantage on hit, to strike again(i.e. with martial skills) uninterrupted - to check for advantage again. Basically the game wants you to pay closer attention to the defensive state of enemies and build frame advantages. You can strike the enemy and get frame advantage and then walk around to their back, and get free reign creating whiffs of red attacks instead of it being a parryfest. Enemy strings have gaps in them that you can side walk and evade around, similar to how you would do it in DoA/VF/Tekken. There are multiple different types of dashes and dodges, unfortunately again some of them come later through new stances. You'll be able to walk circles around all enemy types and create constant whiffs. So often times, countersparking an enemy is less rewarding than make them whiff air as you side step them. Perhaps the biggest issue you have is the slower progression pace to get the tools you need. The game you want is in here, though - later you can also play the game as a mission based game instead of through open world.

[@battousaix4263]

He hasn't mentioned FF Origin at all in his channel has he? I feel like that game is treated like a meme because of the story's presentation but the gameplay in that for me is a few steps behind Nioh 2 to be specific (I like Nioh 2 more than 1), and miles ahead of Wo Long. Its been a hot topic on this channel too, but I'd like to see his thoughts on the soul shield mechanic and how he feels abt it compared to other parry mechanics in other games

[@orangemegaslide]

@@battousaix4263 I don't think he's mentioned FF Origin at all, but who knows. And I agree with you, Origin is treated like a meme and totally misunderstood as a game on gameplay terms and story, there's just something up with Team Ninja's western marketing and it reminds me of mid 2000s Sega with how VF was handled in the west here. They don't seem to put their best foot forward, and people are left in the dark on what exactly the design goals of their games even are. People can't even describe their games without naming some other game from another company, which just invites preconceived notions. When you're learning a new language you aren't trying to translate it to your native language in your head, you are instead taking the new words, concepts, grammar and understanding the meaning and message that's being conveyed with them. Like I mean, counterspark for example should've made that clear. It has functions as a parry but it's not just a parry, it's an attack, too, some of them have high guard breaking capabilities, and it provides a larger hit stun than basic square. Even oxtail blade jumping counterspark is a minor flying swallow. It's not called parry for a reason. And we as players end up having to just put faith in it and continue to play TN games pas the "finish line", because Team Ninja's bag doesn't surface until you're on the road to trying to reach mastery, have all of the tools and time sets in. Even Ninja Gaiden 2 back when it came out was misunderstood, as it doesn't play the same way that black/sigma does. Lastly, yeah I think FF origin is also one of their best, along with Nioh 2 and NG1/2/RE. Ronin is the in the mix, but it's too early to tell, and the open world might be in a lot of people's way unfortunately and I definitely understand that.

[@bobitogre]

​@@orangemegaslideYea I'll definitely have to look into trying out Ronin for myself before I make any assumptions. But 100 percent agree with you that FF Origin is up there with their most fun games. I am curious, did you like Wo Long?

[@orangemegaslide]

​@@bobitogre I thought Wo Long was a decent enough game in general, but I think it's probably one of Team Ninja's weakest action games they've ever made. I'd put it at their low tier, but their low tier is already a cut above so many others, anyway. The gameplay itself felt too unstable. As many of the action game fundamentals were locked behind boss drops(none in the skill trees, the juice with s and whatnot) or chance martial arts until 5*. No omnidirectional guard, the jumping 'windpath'/leapfrog was unstable, etc. Enemies wildly falling out of juggles, failing to be knocked over if there was the slightest incline, etc. I'm not a stranger to the game, I've done a level 1 naked playthrough and such. So I was constantly questioning my own precision, as you get heavily punished if you playing under those conditions, but I wanted to try and hone my game. I'll revisit it again some day with fresh eyes though. Sometimes you legit just have to play other things and recontextualize some things and have a renewed perspective. I just ain't ready to appreciate the game all that much at the moment, I go back and forth.

[@planetxaudio1699]

@@orangemegaslide Wo Long feels like it had to rush out to meet Koei Tecmo higher ups financial expectations for 2023. I especially feel this after playing Rise of the Ronin. The Fighting styles, enemy camps, enemy elites, enemy morale all feel like stuff Wo long wanted to do but didn't have time to.

[@Strephen]

Such a great review not just covering this games faults but touching on why so many of these games now, like FromSoft stuff, are saturated with boring mechanics like obsession with parries and incredibly annoying super armor / lack of meaningful hitstun.

[@SPTX.]

Surely DoA6 selling poorly has nothing to do with selling the game in chunks of season passes DLC that each cost as much as the base game.

[@rockguitarshred]

These raw reviews are great!

[@jankmedia1985]

I really like Ronin and have 40+ hours so far but I hear what you're saying. I'm also not an expert with Team Ninja combat. Ronin is definitely catered towards those who may not have played TN games in the past. That being said, Ronin made me realize that I've been sleeping on TN for far too long and I have every intention of going back and playing their games I missed out on. It doesn't feel like a Souls title to me at all though, it's just a typical open world game with an interesting setting and really fun combat with a ton of options.

[@MMosque]

Happy to see this reviewed. I knew you wouldn't love it , but I like to see your thorough takes on these more mainstream games. I love Nioh so much, and its so frustrating that post-Itagaki Team Ninja, as extremely talented as they are, are catering to trends and not their own skill set. I'm all for a new IP, but really if they could just put out a lean action game, I feel even the reviewers would like it more than this, it surely would kill Sifu in gameplay. Even Nioh hasn't fully capitalized on its best attributes yet for me. If Nioh 3 got rid of the loot and simplified the RPG systems... I guess I want Ninja Gaiden 4.

[@kile1885]

now I'm waiting for the electric underground review of ninja blade

[@StrnGuy]

Also, regarding Stellar Blade… it looks like a Soulslike, it feels like a Soulslike… but it might actually be a character action game?? Really interested to hear you break that down. There is really… not much that it does which doesn’t exist in character action. I’m sure you’ll hate the Sekiro parry, but I wonder how you’ll feel about literally everything else, and whether you feel like it’s useful, fun, or possible to ignore the parry. Might be kind of a wolf in sheeps clothing.

[@residentidiot5998]

Ironically, JRPGs figured out how to combine an open world and handcrafted levels before they were even popular.

[@residentidiot5998]

Credit to most CRPGs for doing the same thing too, despite them not really having action combat, usually.

[@Amra..]

Dungeons suck in 90% of JRPGs so I can't agree they've figured it out

[@soratheorangejuicemascot5809]

@@Amra.. dont forget random encounters that are just a pushover.

[@akairibbon4658]

eh, really? open worlds mostly all suck

[@TheElectricUnderground]

yeah I think a lot of these older concepts of open world design need to be reincorporated in some ways. Like imagine in rise of ronin if the open world was just filled with swarming enemies like how rpgs have random encounters in the open world sections. That actually does create a sense of tension when in the open world, like in pokemon red when your in that final cave and your trying to make it to the elite four. So if ronin's open world was littered with aggressive dangerous enemies that you have to battle through, the would make the open world a more proper gameplay element rather than a loading screen.

[@hakunamatata7056]

What is your opinion about Dragon's Dogma 2 ?

[@user-hr4bo1zj1q]

As a long of time fan that has over 2000 hours, soloed the game entire to include BBI as every Vocation. DD2 is hot garbage. It's a Dragons Dogma skin applied to Monster Hunter world. Enemies and player animations have een slowed in way down. The skill list of vocations is a quarter of what it was in the original. Combat is sluggish. The save system is utterly broken...I really don't know how to explain this since it seems to save at random which can land the player in a position where they have to reset to their last inn save which could have been hours ago due to the games design not any fault of the player. It's an insult to fans. There a lot more to me tion like the armor system getting completely whacked and that Grigori and other enemies are literally copy and pasted as if they were Remaking the first game but decided to throw a number II on it at the last minute, this is confirmed by the lack of a number II on the title screen. STAY FAR away lest the dragon steal your heart.

[@Hajimeme7]

​@@user-hr4bo1zj1qmodern gaming in a nutshell even the greatest fall at some point

[@jankmedia1985]

Just FYI, turn on auto-loot if you're still playing. I noticed that a crafting item had R1 appear in your footage. Ain't nobody got time for that, lol.

[@FangsofYima]

30:31 well if that doesn't just sum up modern games style in general. The open world commentary was good, I was feeling such ruminations myself playing Dragons Dogma 2 and really missing that more condensed linear dungeon crawl that was in Dark Arisen expansion to the first game. I love open world exploration and finding things in the map, but that's a one time event and you can't get that sense of discovery on a second playthrough. So going back just for the gameplay bits and it becomes a slog. Thats why despite normally getting at least 3 playthroughs of other fromsoft games I got like halfway through a second play of Elden Ring and had to drop it, its just too much filler in between.

[@Ocean5ix]

Funny you say that about Kojima because starting with Peace Walker then going into Metal Gear Solid V and then finally culminating in Death Stranding, his team makes some of the best mechanically put together games out there.

[@CursedShinobiClown]

Honestly I like mgs3s gameplay more then 5s

[@Galaxy40k]

While I agree with your critiques of how the open world messes with the combat design, I do think that it really adds to the "fantasy" of being this traveling samurai cleaning up Japan. Clearing out outposts has an obvious, visible, permanent impact on the world, and I think that the highly compact nature of the map (at least the early parts, where I'm at now) mean that I'm only SECONDS away from the next map marker to clear off. It's easy to sink into this rhythm and get an almost "Power Washer Simulator" groove, haha But again, I do completely agree that it comes at the cost of tightness in the combat encounters. I'm glad Rise of Ronin exists, but I hope that this isn't the template for all Team Ninja games going forward.

[@Arunnejiro]

On one hand, I never thought about how open world design in and of itself is the issue with cheese strats, I think that combat being broken up isn't a bad thing. For me it allows me to appreciate the combat more when it does happen.

[@MrDflego]

Borderlands 3 was like that too, you can always back off and snipe away as you move through the level but once you hit the main boss it locks you in.

[@GrizzlyGriffin]

The interesting thing comparing Ninja Gaiden's provocate character design with stellar blades is that NG feels like it fits with the game whilst stellar blades looks cringe and so out of place with the rest of the game. Ryu's design still is iconic, and whilst i find Rachel's a little gratuitous, it matches a general asthetic (black leather armor, some exposed areas, emblishments on the clothes etc.) Even with ayane's gear aswell. Stellar blade just looks so derivivative of some anime aesthetic character design that so many games seem to add that i find grinds against the art style of the rest fo the game.

[@chasepalumbo2929]

Amazing review!!

[@kirbyofthestars2269]

Don't think I missed that hot screen transition at 24:38, Mark. 👌

[@user-hr4bo1zj1q]

Just to be clear I really like you work. You have turned me on to some great games, and I find myself in agreement with you far more than the opposite. That said, I find your comparison to MGS V to be a very poor example. I bring this up because it's the second time you've made a comment that (the first one being your FF16 review) that I found to be wholly incorrect. MGS V is centered around a player driven experience. It gives players an infinite number of options to experiment with, mix and match. Are your going the stealth route, are you minimizing by your presence? Or are you going in with force by bombardment, smoke, helicopter in fil or extraction, etc. MGS V take th approach where even a side mission can feel like it's own full blown game in itself. That said you've inspired me to make my own video on the game to prove my point. Like I said before I lole your work, but it's clear that your approach to MGS V is the problem not the game itself. That said it sounds like you need to play the FOB missions, which are excellent challenges for those craving a more linear design. Edit: the philosophy of the open world in MGS V is to allow the player to build familiarity with the level design and mechanics. It is then that one realizes how genius the level design is in MGS V and how there is nothing to date that even compares.

[@theconsolekiller7113]

Interesting take on the evolution or de-evolution of team ninja over the years. I had bad feelings about Team Ninja going open world, as I doubted theyd provide meaningful filler between the main encounters. Also like you said, the ability to chip away, snipe at enemies kills that tight combat of more linear combat focused games that are successful. Wo Long was a real revival for Team Ninja, for me, since the OG NG games. I felt like diluting that style with a more open version wouldnt be great. Loved Nioh, AT FIRST. Got about 1/2 way through it and stopped because it just felt too recycled, repetitive for me by that point. I HATED the inventory system and having to manage that more than playing the fucking game. It was a mix of factors that caused me to stop playing. Great to see Team Ninja come back strong with Wo Long, but this one does look questionable.

[@mazuiface]

Great review and breakdown of the game design of Rise. Also "Zelda for adults" is exactly how I described Dark Souls and even Demons Souls when they first released.

[@washaa]

Saying that directors aren't involved in the minutiae of mechanical design in these games seems like a stretch. What did you base that on?

[@magicjohnson3121]

On their games sucking when they leave the company

[@fitz7462]

I'm playing through Rise of Ronin now and I can definitely say I enjoyed Wo Long more. I'm on the second region and I feel like there's not much going on accompanied with the lack of notable bosses. It's just village after village and open world collectathon shenanigans. I'd prefer Nioh/Wo Long mission based stages over this tbh.

[@arisumego]

are you gonna review dragon’s dogma 2? somewhere in all that open world bloat is a really good action game imo (much like the first one)

[@Steve-Fiction]

Great review, this really was the right channel to review this game ;) Very cool that you were managed to put a review out this soon after the game's release. I definitely agree about the point of needing some more sex appeal in the game. I'm under the impression that Koei Tecmo actually sees the value in this, so maybe this is somewhat Sony's fault.

[@Zx-qo1gl]

I don't understand your complaint about travel time since the glider, horse and numerous fast travel points make getting around very quick and easy. You showed footage of yourself running on foot as an example which of course is slow. Why aren't you riding your horse?

[@Zx-qo1gl]

Also what kinda control scheme are you using? The default controls have sprint tied to holding the dodge button. Seems like you made that awkward control scheme yourself. Overall I agree with the review it's just some complaints are disengenious.

[@Zx-qo1gl]

@burstyourbubble3500 It's for the sake of convenience. Even if the game had crazy fun movement there would still be fast travel.

[@Zx-qo1gl]

@burstyourbubble3500 If you want to travel the whole way go for it I guess. Fast travel doesn't mean you just can't travel normally anymore. Death Stranding is a game completely based around interesting movement mechanics and it still has fast travel

[@facuuaf]

If you need to offer fast travel because traversing the game is boring and a chore, then your design is kinda iffy

[@Thomazbr]

@@facuuaf Mario Odyssey is entirely about movement in a 3d space and theres fast travel in it.

[@Dojonpachi]

It was interesting that the review didn't touch on the level-up curve, and just how much the inclusion of an overall player level breaks the combat system. It's absurd how fast you become OP if you focus on completing side quests, and it upends everything else. Even as someone who was willing to slog through the open-world to get to the combat, when I did get into those more interesting "jailed" battles or boss fights I often had very little impetus to give it 100%. I played on Hard, and in the early game the difficulty felt good, landing somewhere around where Lie of P did, in that it was challenging enough to make me sweat a bit here and there, but if I focused I would succeed. Yet, I soon found that even being 4-5 levels above the recommended level for the Quest meant I could lazily soak up tons of damage, get in the occasional good parry/counter, and succeed on my first try in battles that were clearly supposed to be much more challenging.

[@moriarty2666]

this open world trend finally needs to end.

[@stolensentience]

Bars

[@somegrumpyalien]

great video what do you think about urban reign?

[@MrTreespace]

you are so dang right about team ninja just... getting fuckin boring and lame. i dont think ive enjoyed one since nioh 2 and even then it feels like theyve been struggling ever since NG2.. yeugh sad and lame indeed.

[@lite0wl]

Cool review, always down to hear you talk action games. I kind of liked Nioh but this game put me off from the start. Just seems like a worse Nioh with a bunch of stuff other teams do much better crammed in for filler. I'm interested to see you talk about Stellar Blade. I think the demo is pretty solid but the game also seems to have a lot of things you tend to dislike.

[@baziworld]

i wasn't a fan of doa back in 2000s when Itagaki was making these games, but i am pretty sure, if Itagaki was still with team ninja, Tekken didn't have such easy time as "The Only 3d Fighting game" , he surely came up with some idea about making a comeback or something, i only say things i heard and feels like, ...i think , he really cared about his game, about the characters he entered in his fighting games, their connection to his other games like NG, (no shit, he clearly said "Kasumi is team ninja's heroine and his fav character"), i heard, he had some plans for a strucking story mode for doa 5 (when fighting games didn't have story mode at all)...i don't know what would happened if Itagaki would had remained...but i am pretty sure, at worst case scenario, doa and ninja gaiden would have still breating, and giving challenge to tekken and fromsoftware ,at least a little , or maybe so much

[@-TriP-]

I beat NG2 on Master Ninja difficulty so when I played Dark Souls for the first time I didn't get what all the fuss was about

[@billyboleson2830]

I mean if you played NG2 MN most games are gonna seem easy after that point

[@-TriP-]

@@billyboleson2830 lol indeed, it took over 100 hours, still has incredible gameplay

[@MrYTPfan123]

That's because souls is not a difficult game but it was approachable while being slightly challenging which was a breath of fresh air in the year it came out. Funny thing is it was never about the difficulty, the souls games to me are a successful attempt at a 3D metroidvania. I never got why action game fans seethe so much around the souls series aside from maybe that no one is making new classic style action games, while the souls genre is thriving. To me that isn't a problem because I like them, but I can see why action game fans complain about it.

[@hare75]

​@@MrYTPfan123souls games are overall better than any action games like DMC, bayonetta or ninja gaiden tbh, only thing they did better than souls games is the combat but yeah that's all about it

[@MrYTPfan123]

@@hare75 That's why I like Nioh a lot

[@kamadoma715]

I haven't heard of Rise of Ronin until it was about to get released, and I was surprised to hear that it was a Team Ninja game. It does indeed lack that Team Ninja feel to it. I mean look at Fatal Frame: Mask of the Lunar Eclipse and Maiden of Black Water. One look at the female characters, and you immediately know Koei Tecmo was behind it. It's sad because AAA devs try to incorporate the same overused mechanics that appeal to everyone instead of innovating, which they should be doing considering that they have the money to do it. I remember playing Tenchu: Kurenai (aka Fatal Shadows in NA) and that game has better hit stuns than I've seen from Rise of the Ronin in this video. The only way I cheesed the boss fights was because of the Ninjutsu Block skill, which is basically a parry mechanic lol.

[@slimynaut]

I miss NG, and its great girls, so much

[@scottmichaelhedge5055]

I totally feel you on the tragic absence of that classic Team Ninja aesthetic in their recent projects. Dead or Alive 2 and 3 were absolute visual triumphs back then--seeing 3 for the first time in person at a game store made me want an Xbox just to play that one game. The character designs were cheesy and overtly sexual sure, but, like you say, there was a certain classiness to it that made them catch your attention.

[@jimsface]

I’m not sure. It’s entirely possible that TN is trying to follow industry trends and perhaps that is to RoR’s detriment. It could also be that this is the game the individual people and teams at TN’s studio genuinely wanted to make. I find the game fun af despite some things not landing well, and I don’t think that demands some kind of correction of how TN makes games or the direction of their products.

[@Sondi]

9:00 I got brief Way of the Samurai 4 vibes during the midgame of this game.

[@ArcadeHell]

I've never played a Team Ninja game, but I had my eye on Rise of Ronin. It has looked very bland from the get-go, but I was hopeful it would improve before release or reviews would say the game is a good time. I wanted to pick it up if it looked very good or had a ton of interesting zeitgeist around it, but it doesn't have either! I think I'd be better off playing Ninja Gaiden Σ or Nioh to see how much I like Team Ninja. I'm very glad to hear you may cover Stellar Blade. I played a couple hours of the demo and I am impressed! For a newbie to the genre of action games I think it's pretty fun! The combat is interesting enough for me, the game has some promise, and I like the whole aesthetic. It's a tad bland in some ways, but not terrible imo, so I am fighting off my cynicism for now. 🙂

[@TheSuperbhs]

That right arm doing a lot of work in this review.

[@rodman1848]

Excellent work. I like the line about sexiness in games it reminds me of that quote about where nudity crosses from art to porn: "I know it when I see it."

[@duncanself5111]

Its a shame people who review Rise of the Ronin cant do so without comparing it to a list of other games and not on its own merits

[@MadoLeoss]

Some piece of art are important not just because of their own merits, but also by how people review and compare them. Context is almost as important as the content itself. This review has done a tremendous job at explaining the context by comparing it with other games. This is one of the best review you can expect to see. There's a already a sea of bland game review that will only review the game itself without explaining context.