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Itagaki: Ninja Gaiden PS3 is 'no good'

Published on 22nd May 2008 by Joe Martin

Itagaki has slammed Ninja Gaiden Sigma as an inferior game which failed to replicate the success of previous titles.

The Ninja Gaiden series is, if we're honest, a series of games that we could never really get into. Mainly that was to do with the fact that the games were so hard that they sent us home to our mothers, weeping. The games are clearly very well made though and retain popularity in America and Japan.

Except 'popular' is a loose term it seems, as even the Ninja Gaiden I and II designer Tomonobu Itagaki has revealed that he himself wasn't actually a very big fan of some of the games - notably the PlayStation 3 remake Ninja Gaiden Sigma.

"It was no good," said Itagaki in an interview with CVG.

"All you need to do is play Ninja Gaiden II and then try and play Sigma afterwards and you'll see why. Despite the fact that it's on a 'next-generation' console there's no evolution whatsoever."

Itagaki was then quick to distance himself from the PlayStation 3 remake, saying that the game wasn't designed by him at all but by "on of my subordinates who basically tried to copy the success of Ninja Gaiden."

Wow. You know a game must have been pretty poor when the designer is going to turn round and admit that it is rubbish - or do you?

Have you played Ninja Gaiden Sigma? We tried but couldn't get past the first boss, so if you fared any better then let us know in the forums.

12 Comments

Discuss in the forums Reply

Hugo 22nd May 2008, 12:06

I, too, was unable to make it past the first boss for several months.

cjoyce1980 22nd May 2008, 12:14

i finished the first on the original xbox, but it took me well over 6months. great game and story tho

Paradigm Shifter 22nd May 2008, 12:24

I actually quite liked NG Sigma; admittedly I've not played the original, but it was a quite fun game. First time I encountered the first boss, I got creamed, but second time around I managed to get past it. Then I didn't play it for a couple of weeks, and when I went back to it I was getting totally pounded by even the least little grunt. :)

The Chugnut 22nd May 2008, 12:26

I managed to complete the original XBOX version (eventually). It's a highly over-rated game - maybe series - but I didn't bother after that.
Shiney-shiney-huge-titty-shitty-camera-angled-cheesy-plotted-spoodge.

hix 22nd May 2008, 12:28

Judging from the gameplay videos of NG2 that I've seen, I dont think NG2 is significantly an evolution of the original. Hell, if you wanna talk graphics, Sigma was a first-gen PS3 game that ran at 60fps@1080p compared to NG2's 60fps@720p and the graphics ain't that big of a leap.

ImInTheZoneBaby 22nd May 2008, 13:27

I've played all three version of the game. Ninja Gaiden, Ninja Gaiden Black and Ninja Gaiden Sigma. (yeah, im an NG nut). But anyway, I thought Sigma was totally BRILLIANT. I mean, it was pretty much the EXACT same game, but with extra levels (you could play as the female character sometimes) and lovely 1080p and enhanced graphics. Actually, im playing the game RIGHT NOW. I want to complete it on the Very Hard difficulty before I switch to Ninja Gaiden 2 early next month. (im on chapter 9 out of 19 atm). Personally, I dont believe Sigma to be a faliure at all. Its fricken brilliant. o_o
The only thing I wish Ninja Gaiden Sigma had more of is COSTUMES.

Vash-HT 22nd May 2008, 15:22

I don't know what this guy is expecting, a remake isn't going to be totally different than the original game. He sounds like a cocky ahole, "one of my subordinates tried to copy my success", what a joke. NG wasn't that great imo, and this guy has a terrible obsession with unrealistic huge breasts.

Bionic-Blob 22nd May 2008, 15:36

<3 ninja gaiden. took me months to finish the first one (well not really first, that was on nes/snes i believe) on xbox, and i just bought ninja gaiden black on x360 marketplace 2 days ago xD

sandys 22nd May 2008, 15:56

what a muppet (Itagaki) he hyped the game to the moon rubbishing other devs of similar titles to sigma in the process and now listen to him It was a remake of a game.

I guess NGS2 must have really evolved, the 2 probably gives that a way, hope its more than bigger breasts and a few new combos

matrix-cat 22nd May 2008, 19:39

Of course there was no evolution; it was a port. It wasn't even Ninja Gaiden remade for the PS3, it was just a port with improved graphics and a couple of extras. It was never supposed to be a new game.

themax 22nd May 2008, 21:18

I stopped caring about Itakagi a while ago. Ninja Gaiden is a good game, but nothing the guy says ever makes sense. He was critical of Heavenly Sword's button timing for some scenes, yet made no mention of God of War (hello, the first level alone against the Collossus of Rhodes probably has you timing your button presses more than heavenly sword's entire play through) for such criticism. I'de swear the guy was being paid an obscene amount of money by MS for his particularly zealous stance on the PS3.

[USRF]Obiwan 23rd May 2008, 08:30

at least he is being honest...