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No More Heroes


The NZA

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Let's be honest: the Wii hasn't been the machine for most of us games this generation. Metroid Prime 3, Mario Galaxy's great, most people slept on Zack & Wiki (another forthcoming wiiview), and Resident Evil: Umbrella Chronicles (likely my next rental) come to mind, but its been otherwise a slow first year, without a lot of post-Smash Bros relief in sight. This game - and im only one boss in so far, mind you - looks to really help fill that void, as best it can.

 

Its creator, Suda51, is one of those cult fan favorites that i only know from Killer 7, a nearly-definition-of-niche PS2/GC uh, cel-shaded, on-the-rails shooter about an assassin with 7 personalities, and...it gets weirder from there. i just tried it out last week in anticipation, and again, its like uber-esoteric: you'd obviously love it if you were inclined to stick with it long enough, because it's cool looking and there's not much out like it. I think Suda did a much better job of bringing his assassin story to a popular format this time, while still having it practically bleed style and somehow manage to make it a great deal more approachable.

 

You play Travis Touchdown, a fanboy dude who bought a lightsaber on ebay and is using it to work his way up some odd assassin society rankings, in obvious hopes of banging the firm's hot PR chick. The game basically goes like this: raid the next big boss' place, take out his crew, then an epic, stylish boss fight, followed by oddjobs in a GTA-like world to save up money so you firm'll give you the location of the next-ranked up boss. You start at # 11.

 

The gameplay's just awesome, and Suda clearly took the Wii's strengths and weaknesses into account with the game designs: the cell shading, the throwback 8-bit directions that just come off as cool, and the control setup that feels both largely intuitive and still putting the wiimote to good use; none of that tacked-on "now, turn the doorknob with your remote!" kinda shit. It really flows, and the first time (very early on) you find out how to answer your cellphone in the game, its that kinda breaking-the-4th wall shit many loved from Metal Gear Solid. There's fun moments like that in between really solid action and uh, saving/taking a dump. You'll have to see it.

 

Honestly, this game bombing in japan breaks my heart; again, im early enough where i guess it could get repetitive, but even looking at trailer material of later bosses, i dont see it, and that's about all i can figure would bring the game down. Otherwise, its just what the system needs: a fun application with cool story & styling, ridiculous hardcore shit (blood all over and crazy off-the-cuff-cussing), and an overall fun 3rd party package that feels like it woudlnt work on another system. To see its sales crap out next to Wii Fit and Mario Party fucking 8 is upsetting, so im getting further into it and looking to pick up a copy to show my support: in a sea of mini-games and shovelware, i want Suda & co, and the industry itself, to know id like to see more out there like this.

 

Overall: if you dig stylish fighting like Devil May Cry, Onimusha etc, and especially if your Wii is collecting dust next to your 360/PS3, this is definitely a rental, if not an easy purchase.

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update: its out in japan, still no one picking it up stateside yet. not sure why Ubisoft doesnt want to pitch it to larger markets. :werewolf:

 

that said, 360 version is supposed to be better at the moment, for the PS3 one getting oddly censored (dropped blood + several execution scenes). god, i hope it comes over, here's a screen comparison:

 

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