Latest news with #Shinobi:ArtofVengeance
Daily Mirror
a day ago
- Entertainment
- Daily Mirror
Shinobi Art of Vengeance confidently retools a 2D platforming Sega classic
Shinobi: Art of Vengeance is on track to be one of the biggest smaller scale surprises of the year, getting Sega's classic franchise revival project off to a strong start. Art of Vengeance is successfully reinventing the Shinobi series for a new generation, complimenting its gorgeous hand-drawn art style with tight combat and platforming. As soon as I heard that Lizardcube – one of the studios responsible for the mind-bogglingly excellent Streets of Rage 4 – was behind Sega 's upcoming Shinobi reboot, I knew we were in safe hands. Cut to trailers and gameplay slices demonstrating the same beautiful hand-drawn art style shared between both games that I expected. What I didn't expect, however, was that Shinobi: Art of Vengeance would turn out to be one of the tightest-handling 2D action-platformers since at least Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown last year – no small feat! In several ways, Lizardcube's new take feels like a far cry from the classic Sega Mega Drive game I remember. While in others, more flexible combat mixes with snappier platforming and bombastic special attacks to render Art of Vengeance easily the most ambitious Shinobi instalment ever. My 45-minute demo of Shinobi: Art of Vengeance dropped me in right at the start of the game, with me donning the guise of protagonist Joe Musashi, who shortly after returning to his village has found it under attack by outside military forces. Believe me when I say that absolutely no knowledge of prior Shinobi adventures is needed to enjoy Art of Vengeance. It's a statement I feel confident making since the stakes for Musashi's titular thirst for revenge are appropriately set almost immediately, as I rush through to save students at the local ninja school by learning how to roll, dodge, and air dash alongside traditional light and heavy attacks. What initially impressed me most was how quick and natural it felt to battle reams of baddies. What with solid and slick beat-em-up chops already under its belt, Lizardcube has done just as good of a job making pulling off combos in Shinobi: Art of Vengeance equally as impactful. Rolling into the air and landing a punch from above simply flows a lot smoother in a way that past Shinobi games could only ever dream of, and this was evidenced nearly right away in the opening stage of Oboro Village. I was pleased to see the franchise's trademark Kunai weapon also return, and it worked well to help me maintain my combo whenever rolling wasn't possible by letting me damage enemies located across the screen. What became clear the deeper I delved into Shinobi: Art of Vengeance, in addition to its gorgeous, comic book inspired art style of course, was how much of a Metroidvania it's turned out to be structurally. The two levels I got to play through as part of my demo were linear in the sense that they had a start, middle, and end, true, but both were absolutely littered with secret areas (often containing precious Oboro relics) that are made purposefully awkward to get to. It makes mastering Musashi's core platforming skills a must, since relics are the only way to unlock and purchase new movement and combat abilities from the travelling vendor. READ MORE: PlayStation State of Play June 2025 start time and how to watch the 40 minutes of major reveals Mark of the ninja All these extra powerful attacks and manoeuvres I was able to put to the test in the second stage of the preview, Lantern Festival, which I played in Arcade Mode free of any usual story disruptions. Easily my favourite was what's called the Shinobi execution, where after hitting an enemy's health down low enough a symbol appears above there head, indicating that they can be taken out Shinobi style instantly. These types of execution can be chained across the screen from foe to foe, too, meaning if you hit enough people's health low enough, Musashi will dart across the screen slashing endlessly to take rivals down in one fell swoop. For a 2D action-platformer it feels wildly spectacular and cinematic. Complimenting your move set further are what's called Ninpo, which as far as I can tell serve as elemental special attacks tied to a rechargeable meter. The first introduced centres on fire and is a good way to deal a great deal of damage in a short distance out front. The second based on water, meanwhile, I couldn't quite work out, but temporarily surrounding Musashi in a bubble seems to indicate a type of protective effect. Regardless, the takeaway here should be that Shinobi: Art of Vengeance is no slouch in the combat or traversal department, since there are multiple ways to roleplay as ninja master. Just like a ninja master, I was pleased to learn how the platforming side of this action-platformer can still often be quite the challenge – particularly when trying to navigate optional areas. There's nothing especially difficult about hitting switches to reveal new pathways, of course, but getting there sometimes takes a lot of precision when it comes to timing wall jumps, wall slides, and air dashes. The latter is a manoeuvre that can be boosted and sustained in specific instances where there is a green energy source in the air, and I'm not ashamed to admit how tough I found it to get out of one of these tricky scenarios. Were I not against the clock for the preview I'm sure I would have found the exit solution. For now, though, just know that Shinobi: Art of Vengeance's best secrets are well tucked away and require a bit of platforming skill to reach. I came away from my Shinobi: Art of Vengeance demo impressed by just how much Lizardcube's take is less iteration and more evolution. Similar to its work on Streets of Rage 4, the studio has taken the core of what made the original games great and build upon this solid foundation for an all-new generation using an expressive art style, flexible combat, and some supremely tight platforming. Better yet? Between new unlockable moves and the score-centric Arcade Mode, there's so much about Art of Vengeance I wasn't able to glean in just 45 minutes of playtime. If this truly is the first of Sega's new wave of reinvented classic franchises, it's certainly off to a strong start. Shinobi: Art of Vengeanceis set to launch on PlayStation, Xbox, PC and Nintendo consoles this August 29, 2025.
Yahoo
13-02-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Everything We Saw At Today's Big PlayStation State Of Play
Today, February 12, 2025, Sony held its first State of Play showcase of 2025. There weren't any massive surprises, but there were a ton of really neat-looking games that just might snag your attention. In particular, there was a good chunk of third-person melee action, typically featuring swords slashing up some monstrosity. Enough preamble, let's get into everything we saw at today's State of Play! Sony kicked off their show with a nice little look at Monster Hunter Wilds, in all its open-world, monster-bashing glory. If you haven't been following this game, it's worth checking out the trailer as it showcases a wide variety of beasts and environments. Monster Hunter Wilds ships on February 28, 2025. With some slick-looking art and 2D platforming hack-n-slash action, Shinobi: Art of Vengeance seesthe folks behind Streets of Rage 4 take a shot at resurrecting Sega's classic ninja series. Let's hope it plays as good as it looks. I mean, some of those landscapes are just too gorgeous. I could die there and be okay with it. Crossworlds, as the name suggests, seems like it's putting a world-hopping spin on the Sonic Racing series, with mid-race portals you can drive through to take you to other realms. It has a closed beta on February 21, which you can sign up for now. Oh hell yeah, it's a Digimon game! When was the last time you played one of those? Time to stop playing Palworld! With an ethereal presentation that promises a sword-swinging hero's journey through some pretty spectacular-looking environments, Lost Soul Aside looks promising for fans of speedy and flashy third-person melee action. Hopefully it will be stylish enough for the more discerning fans of the genre among us. Lost Soul Aside launches on March 30, 2025. A demo for the new Yakuza title arrives this week! Here's a mashup you probably didn't expect. Ichiban Kasuga from Like A Dragon brings his cheerful disposition and thrilling heroics to the world of Dave the Diver. This Portal-meets-Halo-like sequel is rolling out an alpha demo later this month, on February 27. Hey, if you always wanted to roam around a virtual hub dedicated to everything WWE (akin to the City in NBA 2K25 but for wrestling), check out the video above as Paul Heyman shows off The Island. Oh, hi Randy. And other Randy. The Randys (Randies?) showed up to give us a quick look at the latest game in the cartoony-yet-always-gory Borderlands universe. I'll have to wait till I get the game in my hands for sure, but from the looks of the trailer at least, the gunplay looks more solid and substantial than ever. The Randys also announced a special State of Play later this year that will go all in on BL4. Bordelrands 4 launches on September 23, 2025. Today's SoP showed off even more of the upcoming Split Fiction, the science fiction meets fantasy fusion co-op adventure from the makers of It Takes Two. I always sit up straight when a domineering masculine voice demands a status report. Maybe that's something I need to work out with my therapist. Either way, Directive 8020 is a flashy-looking science fiction horror romp that gives me some serious Alien vibes. Dead bodies on space stations, the creepiness of 'substances' in space? Heck yeah. Directive 8020 arrives on October 2nd. Five Nights At Freddy's is getting yet another game, likely filled with even more animatronic creeps just waiting to scare the heck out of you. With a lush, dark, and creepy aesthetic that's giving some gentle Tim Burton vibes, The Midnight Walk is a fresh-looking first-person shooter with some clear stealth and puzzle elements. It arrives on May 8, 2025. It'll also be playable on PS VR2! I keep telling people that Octopodes are super smart. And Darwin's Paradox! is all about that. This cute-looking platformer from Konami arrives later this year. A roguelike Dynasty Warriors just might be the twist to this legendary series you never thought you needed. It's available on PS5 and PS4 today if you're interested in giving it a shot. These days I continue to suspect that the PS2 era was peak gaming. It's all been downhill since then. Is that true? I don't really know. But what I do know is that an ambitious remaster of Onimusha 2 is arriving on May 23 if you want to get a taste of that PS2 magic. If Onimusha 2 wasn't enough, today's SoP followed it up with more Onimusha (nuts, right?). This one isn't a remaster, however. Rather, with a stylish modern presentation and some great-looking physics interactions, new series entry Onimusha: Way of the Sword is definitely worth putting on your radar with an expected release window of 2026. Okay, for those of you who enjoy MGS3, I'm happy for you. The game is fine. This remake doesn't inspire me to put up with it again, but hey, if you want to hear David Hayter play Snake again (who wouldn't?) It'll probably be worth it for that alone. Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater arrives on August 28, 2025—but you knew that already, didn't you? Give me Adam Jensen—err, I mean his voice actor, Elias Toufexis—and a moody trailer for a pretty intense-looking sci-fi game and I've almost forgotten what Deus Ex even is. With a release date of September 4, 2025, Hell Is Us looks like it could be a gripping adventure. If you were fan of 2023's soulslike Lies of P, you'll be happy to check out a trailer for its upcoming expansion, arriving this summer. Where to begin with this one? Somehow, I imagine this is what Hideo Kojima's dreams look like—glimpses of play with violent interuptions. Kojima isn't involved in this game, but it still looks worth checking out as it seems quite imaginative. Days Gone might be mid at best for some folks, but I quite enjoyed it and with a permadeath mode and other features, I might be willing to give it a spin again. This remaster launches on April 25. If you're up for looking pretty and slashing weird monsters, Stellar Blade is getting a PC release and an expansion this June. Lost Records: Bloom & Rage Tape 1 sees the folks at Don't Nod take on the story of a fateful summer in the lives of a group of young friends, and how they're dealing with its ramifications as adults. Blue Prince is a puzzle game billing itself as an 'atmospheric architectural adventure' set inside a cryptic house that's hopefully filled with worthwhile secrets for those of us who like to snoop around where we probably don't belong. Abiotic Factor, already a huge hit on Steam, is a co-op survival game that gives me some Half-Life vibes, with strange creatures and scientific endeavors that hopefully won't doom us all. The original Armored Core, Armored Core Project Phantasma, Armored Core Master of Arena, and Patapon 3 are coming to PlayStation Plus for subscribers with access to the Classics Catalog. There sure were a lot of swords at today's event. And while Hell Is Us maybe looks most appealing to me, I'd be lying if I said Tides of Annihilation wasn't a close second. Blood-pumping music and stylish action complete with wall-running and first-person shooting are at the heart of Metal Eden. It's expected on May 6, 2025. Mindseye is an action adventure game about 'AI and human greed' destroying society. It's directed by Leslie Benzies, the former president of Rockstar North, so don't be surprised if it gives off some serious Grand Theft Auto vibes. Saros is the latest game from Housemarque, makers of such elegant games as Returnal and Resogun. It stars Rahul Kohli and while the trailer has no gameplay, it hints pretty strongly at this game building on what the studio achieved in Returnal, which, it seems, is exactly what they're aiming to do. Saros arrives in 2026. They closed the show with this one, so maybe it's worth keeping on your radar? And that wraps up our rundown of Sony's February 12, 2025 event! Nope, there was no Bloodborne or God of War. Sorry! For the latest news, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
