Asura’s Wrath Demo Is Alive & Kicking (and Punching) Over PSN/Xbox Live

POW! With its February 21, 2012 release right around the corner, CyberConnect2’s paradigm-changing cinematic action game finally gets a playable demo and it’s purely insane earth-shaking stuff of the gods.  And it’s funny as hell, too. Go play it and enjoy the crazy ride it takes you on. Capcom’s got a mega hit here that deserves a wide audience, so hopefully folks who think games like GOD HAND are the best thing since sliced bread will be all over this and tell as many friends as possible how cool it all is. What, you’re still reading this post? Don’t you have a demo to download? Go on, shoo!

Review: Naruto Shippuden Ultimate Ninja Impact

Platform: PSP

Developer: CyberConnect2

Publisher: Namco Bandai

# of Players: 1 (Ad-Hoc 1-2)

ESRB Rating: T (Teen)

Official Site

Score: B

 

Ever-busy developer CyberConnect2 went for a different, but “classic” beat ’em up approach for their latest Naruto Shippuden game and the results are mostly quite fun. Ultimate Ninja Impact takes many of the familiar characters and important parts of the story arc, puts a Dynasty Warriors-like spin to the gameplay, shakes well and despite some AI issues and PlayStation One-era background redraw, there’s a lot of game here that’s easy to pick up and play. A lengthy quest mode, unlockables galore, collectible cards that enhance skills and more are packed onto the UMD, making this an excellent value provided you’re willing to overlook some flaws.

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Asura’s Wrath One-Two Trailer Punch: Bet On This To Beat Your Mind Senseless (In A Good Way)…

It’s very hard not to ignore CyberConnect 2’s crazy cinematic action game and each time I see it in action, I’m glad the developer decided to get more creative than they have with their string of reliably feature-packed Naruto titles. Granted, what’s here is a few light years beyond weird in terms of nearly all about it. But that’s exactly what the industry needs, I say: more studios, large and small working on new IP that will shake things up a bit.

Hopefully, some of you folks out there will agree and want to come along form the ride. Capcom will appreciate that and CC2 will REALLY appreciate it even more,as it’ll show that there’s room at the inn for more originality and not just “me too” sequel mentality.

Asura’s Wrath Hands-On: One Of These Days, Argus… Bang, Zoom!

Thanks to a soundproof glass booth where attendees lined up to scream in order to win cool swag, Capcom and CyberConnect 2 had gamers literally screaming to play Asura’s Wrath, the upcoming PS3 and Xbox 360 cinematic action game that’s so very hard to describe in the space of something like the entire Internet. OK, overblown hyperbole aside, the demo on the show floor was quite an experience that packed in over the top quick time events, a bit of strategic button bashing and a classical music score that made the experience quite hilarious. This is shaping up to be one of those games that has to be seen and played to be believed and even after that, you’d probably wonder what the hell just happened. Think the mighty God Hand on steroids and with a serious case of rage issues and well, that’s about a tenth of what’s coming your way next year. Continue reading

Asura’s Wrath: CyberConnect2 Interview

Capcom sits down with the developer’s CEO and producer for a few minutes of chat time about the upcoming action game set to hit the PS3 and Xbox 360 in 2012. So far, the game seems to be quite like an anime in terms of the storytelling and over the top action sequences. I happen to like the visual style quite a lot and I’m also curious to see how it all fits together once the game is completed and ready to ship. By the way, if you don’t see subtitles, just click on the “CC” button on the video bar for English text.

Gamescom 2011: Asura’s Wrath (A One-Two Trailer Punch)

Cyber Connect 2’s latest is still hilariously mind-blowing even after seeing it in action a few times. It’s got that God Hand meets Dragon Ball Z vibe going on big time, yet there’s a great cinematic thing going on that should make the game pretty fun to play. Capcom should have a fun time marketing this one, that’s for sure.

Review: Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm 2


Platform: Xbox 360 (also on PS3)

Developer: CyberConnect2


Publisher Namco Bandai


# of Players: 1-2 (online)


ESRB Rating: T (Teen)


Official Site


Score: A-

Japanese developer CyberConnect2 pretty much has this Naruto thing nailed up tightly to the point of near perfection. Every time I get my hands on one of their games either PSP or console, I'm amazed at how well the developer can translate the crazy power of Naruto into playable form. Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm 2 manages to be even more of a total blast to play than the original game, adds speedy online play for the first time for those who want it (it's great) and overall, is definitely recommended for fans of the long-running franchise. Sure, it's probably not going to win over hardcore players of deeper fighters out there (who don't know what they're missing, frankly speaking). However, the sheer amount of quality oozing from the final product absolutely deserves a ton of respect no matter what your genre tastes are.

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TGS 2010: Capcom’s Asura’s Wrath: Now THAT’S What I Call A God Hand!

Or a “Good Lord!” Hand. The trailer to Capcom's ridiculously spectacular action game made my eyes pop and jaw drop on the first viewing, a second viewing had me cracking up for a solid two minutes or so. Holy cats, is this game going to be completely nuts or what? Cyber Connect 2 has always been one of my favorite Japanese developers since the days of the .hack games, but for a few years they've also been ceaselessly churning out a number of different Naruto games for Namco Bandai on the PS2, PSP and now, PS3…

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