Strengths: Okay graphics, fast gameplay, just right difficulty level. Pure action game!
Weakness: A little too fast to handle sometimes, graphics could use some help.
For those of you who liked Shinobi, this game is a welcome title for you. It's pretty much the same type of gameplay...you run at very fast speeds and destory many things in sight while implicating various ninja types skills and spells. The type of gameplay is also similar to that of Dynasty Warriors because it's mostly a hack and slash game.
Save points are after every level, so its not like Prince of Persia where the save points are random and it becomes too hard to beat the game.
This game is great for a budget title and anyone who has the money (most of you) could easily buy this $10-15 title.
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Strengths: Intense action, upbeat techno soundtrack, new combo systems, attractive female lead
Weakness: Weak graphics, high difficulty level, camera issues, limited save options
Sega decided to follow up its semi-successful PS2 Shinobi with Nightshade, replacing Joe Musashi with a new female lead. She's pretty on the box art and in cutscenes, but the in-game graphics don't let her look nearly as good.
Like in PS2 Shinobi, you'll perform combination attacks against a variety of enemies to complete each level. You'll fall to your death many times, and given no mid-level checkpoints, you'll repeat levels again and again before you finally reach the save point at the end.
The camera causes some problems by giving you a limited view of your surroundings, making multiple kills difficult to accomplish because you can't see where your enemies are located. Still, the action comes at you quickly and the soundtrack stays upbeat.
Overall, Nightshade remains a decent ninja action game, but the camera issues and first-generation PS2 graphics may not justify paying full price for this one. Also, please be away of the difficulty level going in and avoid this title if you don't have much patience.
Weakness: Graphics, gameplay may be too difficult for some, and camera.
Nightshade is an action/adventure game for PS2. Nightshade is the sequel of Shinobi on PS2. The game changes the main character of Shinobi for Hibana a female ninja. The graphics of the game basically uses the same graphics engine that was used in Shinobi. The game even plays exactly the same and that includes the insane difficulty. Which is why this game might not be good for some.
Give the game 2 stars if you are looking for an ok ninja game and 1 star if you already played Shinobi.
Strengths: Sequel to Shinobi, lightning fast ninja action (who doesn't like ninjas?)
Weakness: Lack of Shinobi 1 save data disallows unlocking of certain things
When the first PS2 version of Shinobi was announced, I was quite ecstatic to say the least, as the arcade classic Shinobi games were some of my favorite. If that game revolutionized stylized 3rd person action games, then Nightshade does nothing but reinforce the dynamic changes that Shinobi presented upon its release. In short, this game r0x the b0x (don't be confused, I am not referring to the Xbox as there is no Xbox version) like no other. I recommend it to any fan of action adventure games. Who doesn't like running on walls?
Strengths: Ninja, super fast-pace, fun chain combos
Weakness: Repetitive, bad camera, easy to fall down pits
Nightshade is the interesting sequel to Shinobi. It adds some cool features, such as a timer for the Tate combos, and different kinds of Ninja magic. It is a decent buy for the price, and defnietly has a unique feel to it. Shadow-dashing from one enemy to the next and killing them all instantly is quite fun, but it brings about two problems. The bad camera makes finding enemies quickly (necessary for bigger tate combos) a chore, and the enemies don't really fight back. It is almost as if they are ways to move around quicker (shadow dash, kill an enemy, use that kill to jump higher and do it again, jump across a gap, etc.) then fights against bad guys.
If you can find it cheap I'd go for it. It is a unique and fun experience, but it may let down some because of the bad camera and easy enemies.
This game is unique in that skill with air motions is the best and most rewarding way to play this game. However it also makes the game very hard for anyone except the most skilled players. Falling to your death is no fun, the previous game also has this problem and this game is equally unforgiving. The graphics are fairly good and the streaming ribbons really help to keep track of where your character is. The look of the main character is not as cool as Hotsuma and is still descent, most of the other enemies in the game are average. Having different difficulty settings is helpful, but even on easy, the bottom-less pits still kill too often. The story is simple and does not get in the way of the action. An improvement over Shinobi, better level design, but the main character is not as interesting.
Strengths: Stylish gameplay, ninjas, female ninjas, a nice challenge.
Weakness: Gameplay that's hard and repetitive, graphics that are passable.
Even though it was developed more than a year later, Nightshade is most certainly Shinobi's little sister. The game managed to carry over all of the original's faults (a wacky camera system, one hit falling deaths, average graphics, and a brutal--and cheap--difficulty), while at the same time coming up with new problems, such as far less interesting boss battles and an even weaker story line. It's honestly a decent enough game if you love action games or loved the PS2 version of Shinobi. Otherwise, stay far far away.
Strengths: + Satisfying action gameplay - when you learn to string together attacks, it's a thing of beauty.
+ Multiple difficulty settings really help you learn how to play and beat the enemies.
+ Fast pace
Weakness: - Very plain graphics.
- Jumping in the game is really awkward and makes it a difficult game at times.
- Auto locking is inconsistent
- For casual gamers, this game may seem a bit repetitive
If you're a fan of Revenge of Shinobi from the Genesis and Arcade days then playing Nightshade is a mildly satisfying experience. The fast paced action, tricky jumping, and the music make it very reminiscent of the old 16 bit games although it doesn't quite hold up in the graphics department. Whereas the old 2d Shinobi games were very detailed and had some of the best graphics of its time, Nightshade's graphics are mediocre at best. The enemies are generic and unoriginal, even the bosses (which Sega put more effort into) are very plain and forgettable.
The best feature that Sega has added into this generation of Shinobi games (Shinobi, Nightshade) is the chain attacks. When you attack and kill one enemy, they'll freeze momentarily and a tiny timer will count down. You'll be then given a few seconds to run over to and kill the next enemy and the timer will fill up again for the attack on the 3rd enemy, etc. At the end of the chain attack your treated to a cool cutscene of the enemies falling apart. It's very similar to the stealth kill in Tenchu: Wrath of Heaven but unlike that game, Nightshade's chain attacks requires skill and good timing. While on the subject, don't mistaken Nightshade for a stealth game like Tenchu just because of the character is a ninja.
Strengths: Not as hard as Shinobi. Excellent character design.
Weakness: Later levels become too challenging. Controls take some getting used to.
Sega's Nightshade is the follow-up sequel to Shinobi. This time you play as a female ninja and fight more futuristic enemies than last time. The action is still fast and furious and is fun up until the later levels. Graphics-wise, the game does not look that much different from Shinobi. The game has a nice art style but does not compare to games such as Ninja Gaiden. All in all, the game is fun and not as difficult as Shinobi but fans of the first game will love Nightshade none the less.
Weakness: Not much different from Shinobi, Unforgiving
Nightshade is the sequel (not sure if it should be considered the sequel really but is related to) to Shinobi for the PS2.
Nightshade doesn't really offer anything much different from shinobi which is bad if you didn't like shinobi but won't bother you much if you enjoyed Shinobi. One of the things that makes the game alot of fun to me is how TATE works. When a group of enemies appear you kill one & a TATE meter will fill up & if you can kill afew guys fast enough you will get a cut scene that will come up, also as you fill up the TATE meter you will do more damage the more it's filled up which is the key to killing bosses easily as you will be able to kill bosses with only afew hits if they are hits executed on the boss with your TATE meter filled up. One of the things some people didn't like about Nightshade was the pit fall deaths & no check points during levels while this didn't bother me to the point of not liking the game since I liked how the fighting worked for some people it was enough frustration for them to not want to play the game. I would mostly recommend this game to hardcore action fans or anyone that enjoyed Shinobi if you don't fall into one of these categories you may want to rent Nightshade first as although it's not as hard as Shinobi some will like it while others won't.
The sequel to Shinobi is finally here and it's designed to appeal directly to that crowd. Nightshade features graphics nearly identical to Shinobi with some minor improvements but overall, it still looks pretty good. The sound is good too with the soundtrack being awesome and really setting the mood for areas. The gameplay is like Shinobi except with a lot more complexity thanks to new combo opportunities that the game provides. Of course, like Shinobi, this game is extremely hard and people who are not very coordinated shouldn't bother with the game. Overall though, action fans who can handle a challenge will love this game.
Strengths: Fans of Shinobi will like this game, good graphics and sound,
Weakness: Might be too easy for some
Fans of ninja game Shinobi have more ninja action to enjoy in Nightshade.
Nightshade has a female ninja in place of Shinobi, with the graphics and sound being tweaked nicely in comparison to Shinobi. The gameplay is basically the same, kill or be killed, working hit combos as high as possible. The gameplay is a bit easier than in Shinobi, which may be too easy for some hardcore Shinobi fans.
The game is a very well done ninja action title, and action gamers should look into it.
Nightshade receives an overall TopTenREVIEWS rating of 2.75 out of 4.00. It is ranked the #3,888 game of all time, #141 game of 2004 for the PlayStation 2 and #801 PlayStation 2 game of all time. The rating and ranking is based on an average of 65 critic scores, awards and other criteria. To see a breakdown of the game ranking, read individual critic reviews, or see how other games ranked, click...
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Nightshade
Strengths: Okay graphics, fast gameplay, just right difficulty level. Pure action game!
Weakness: A little too fast to handle sometimes, graphics could use some help.
For those of you who liked Shinobi, this game is a welcome title for you. It's pretty much the same type of gameplay...you run at very fast speeds and destory many things in sight while implicating various ninja types skills and spells. The type of gameplay is also similar to that of Dynasty Warriors because it's mostly a hack and slash game.
Save points are after every level, so its not like Prince of Persia where the save points are random and it becomes too hard to beat the game.
This game is great for a budget title and anyone who has the money (most of you) could easily buy this $10-15 title.
100% of readers found this review helpful. Did you find it helpful or unhelpful?