Tenchu 2 Birth of the Assassins
Reviewed by Dyson Turner
When I think of Tenchu 2, the only word that comes to mind
is remarkable. This game left me with a wide differentiation
of emotions, from excitement shock and suspense. This great
story line which is tucked neatly away in a killing spree,
really leaves you thinking. So many no and innovative
features were added to this one you will be really glad that
Activision waited this long to release this game.
Although a few problems I will state from the top are not
easily overlooked. For one is the bad camera angles,
original Tenchu gave the gamer a good view from and angle
where you can see the fight. Now you have to 's earch' for
that angle because its almost hard to get. I will discuss
more flaws later but this is the one that stuck out the most
in my opinion. Even so this really didn't hamper my overall
outlook on the game, I still enjoy every minute of my Tenchu experience.
Story 10/10
The story in Tenchu is a very vast and unique one, and I
really can't get too deep into it, for fear of giving to
much away to a potential buyer. Basically Lord Gohda is
going through some rough times by enemy forces, all is not
well in the 'House of Gohda'. The ninjas Rikimaru, Ayame
and Tatsumaru must try and stop these forces. This game has
enough plot twist and story structure you will think you are
playing a very short btu quite fascinating ancient times
RPG. Let me go more in depth on the characters they are:
Rikimaru: The young Rikimaru is quick smart and thinks
before every situation. He is very noble and will die for
Lord Gohda, he exhibits qualities all Lord's would want in
their Ninja. The only difference here is he doesn't have as
much reserve as he use to, he has more quick wit now. He is
Mr. Average good strength and ok speed, Rikimaru is for a
person who likes balance, he also has one of the coolest
Stealth kills in the game.
Ayame: Ayame, doesn't have her smart mouth and cleverly
timed smart cracks that would always make us smile in the
original. Childish jokes and silly sayings have replaced
them. Although she may try to act like a normal girl she is
also just as dedicated as Rikimaru when it comes to serving
Gohda. She is the fastest and she also comes out of her
stealths very quickly. I would recommend her for the
beginners because she is easier to use than the other 2.
Tatsumaru: Leader of the Azuma ninja Clan he is quite a few
years older and he is wiser than his two friends Rikimaru
and Ayame. Tatsumaru is takes pride in his work as you can
see from the way he does his stealth kills, he is all work
not much flash in any of them. He is quite a bit stronger
than Rikimaru but his Stealths are the slowest.
Visuals: 9. 5/10
The graphics in this game are awe expiring, no longer do we
have to deal with the block characters from the original
Tenchu everyone is smoother and they look 100% better.
Everything has been improved motion in Stealth kills enemies
and their faces and movements during cut scenes, they use to
look like puppets but now they move normally. Both Rikimaru
and Ayame have costume changes Rikimaru resembles a common
ninja with a tighter fitting green outfit which is a change
from his almost samurai like costume in Tenchu 1.
Ayame donned a short skirt and long ninja boots, and no mask
or veil over her face, which ruins her ninja mystique. She
looks too common now, and not much like a ninja. Everything
in this game graphic wise has had a huge overhaul, the water
flowing, the massive amounts of blood flowing after the
stealth these things really improve on the game as a whole
and make it a much more enjoyable to watch.
Audio 8. 0/10
The cool Japanese music has been replaced by nothing, which
is not really a good or a bad thing. Some may argue that you
wouldn't be listening to Japanese music while fighting while
others may say they should of left the music in the game. In
my opinion I think it should have been a choice to have the
music in the game because I do feel as though something is
indeed missing from the overall environment without the cool
Japanese music playing.
The voice acting in my opinion is the same as before not
better or worst. Although they changed the Ayame actress but
that had to have been done since she was only about 14 and
she was 21 in the original. Rikimaru stayed the same,
although he sounds more natural now. The fighting sounds
have improved and so has the screams some times you can hear
fighting sounds in the background, along with footsteps and
more voice clips from the enemies when they spot you.
The small sample of music that the game does provide is
excellent, and comes off clearly and gives you remembrance
of the original game. The boss music has changed, and it
sounds more modern than ancient, even though I still liked
it, it was different and unexpected.
Game Play 9. 5/10
This game is for one player only. You now have three
characters to chose from instead of 2. Also you have 7 ways
to stealth kill an enemy instead of 3 plus extra Ninja
weapons. Plus a new mode called Mission Editor, which is
extremely over hyped. It is quite hard to make a good
mission and you have scenario choices so all you really do
is placing enemies and tiles. You also have new stealth
moves like being able to go under water, to get a good drop
on enemies. You can also drag enemies now, which is wasteful.
Dragging an enemy is pretty useless; half the time another
enemy will see you trying to drag him away. The new stealth
moves is a breath of fresh air, I got tired of doing the
same 3 repetitively. The new weapons come in handy
especially the Blow Dart which can instantly kill an unaware
enemy. The camera angles like I mentioned earlier are
horrific, since you often will get caught trying to find
that good view.
The controls are more precise than before and with the bad
camera angles this will really hinder you trying to get away
while an enemy is looking at you. Also since you can't
cancel the Stealth animation and you do a Stealth Kill on an
enemy if another enemy is near by you won't be able to get
away afterwards. This is one of the only advantages the
original had, even though the new ones are cooler to watch
they should be faster. The difficulty is Adjustable and it
takes one Block to Save.
Overall 8 out of 10
This game overall well done but it has its flaw as you can
see. Even though these flaws they really don't ruin the game
much, this game is still playable, and great game many will
like. If you loved the original Tenchu you won't be
disappointed it just takes some getting use to, if you can
settle with poor controls funny angles and the lack of music
and the former voice then you will be able to like this and
get something out of it. If you are looking for a good ninja
game look no more the birth will really get to you.
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