gamingeek said:

SteelAttack said:

Foolz said:

FUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUCK

*quote avatar*

How come I haven't played the first NMH? I've bought far worse turds than that game. I suck.

At this point you might as well wait for NMH Paradise to be localised.

What?! Did the cold weather freeze your brain or something? You are asking Steel to wait for localization of a game that has not been confirmed that it will be localized anyways. So that he can play a game that has its best feature 'motion control' removed.  And pay full prize while he can get the Wii version for 10 bucks now? Why? For HD graphics?

Steel you have two practical choices. Buy NMH now and then NMH2. Or, if you can't be asses to play NMH, just look it up on youtube and watch all the cutscenes, so you would be up to speed story wise. 

gamingeek said:

Iga_Bobovic said:

gamingeek said:

SteelAttack said:

Foolz said:

FUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUCK

*quote avatar*

How come I haven't played the first NMH? I've bought far worse turds than that game. I suck.

At this point you might as well wait for NMH Paradise to be localised.

What?! Did the cold weather freeze your brain or something? You are asking Steel to wait for localization of a game that has not been confirmed that it will be localized anyways. So that he can play a game that has its best feature 'motion control' removed.  And pay full prize while he can get the Wii version for 10 bucks now? Why? For HD graphics?

Steel you have two practical choices. Buy NMH now and then NMH2. Or, if you can't be asses to play NMH, just look it up on youtube and watch all the cutscenes, so you would be up to speed story wise.

Yeah wait to see if it will be localised, it might not even be full price you never know. NMH on the Wii was far too unpolished, might as well get the better version.

Motion control in NMH isn't its best feature. It's hardly a groundbreaking, or a gamebreaking feature in that game.

 Motion control make NMH fun. NMH without motion control would be like playing a light gun shooter with a joypad. Sure it is possible, but what would the point?

And why do you think NMH: Paradise will suddenly become polished? Just adding HD graphics does not make the game polished at all.

The Japanese price of NMH: Paradise is not a discount price, so why should the localisation be any cheaper? And even if it is, why not just buy the Wii version for 10 bucks? Why wait, if you can get it for hobo price right now. 

gamingeek said:

Iga_Bobovic said:

gamingeek said:

Iga_Bobovic said:

gamingeek said:

SteelAttack said:

Foolz said:

FUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUCK

*quote avatar*

How come I haven't played the first NMH? I've bought far worse turds than that game. I suck.

At this point you might as well wait for NMH Paradise to be localised.

What?! Did the cold weather freeze your brain or something? You are asking Steel to wait for localization of a game that has not been confirmed that it will be localized anyways. So that he can play a game that has its best feature 'motion control' removed.  And pay full prize while he can get the Wii version for 10 bucks now? Why? For HD graphics?

Steel you have two practical choices. Buy NMH now and then NMH2. Or, if you can't be asses to play NMH, just look it up on youtube and watch all the cutscenes, so you would be up to speed story wise.

Yeah wait to see if it will be localised, it might not even be full price you never know. NMH on the Wii was far too unpolished, might as well get the better version.

Motion control in NMH isn't its best feature. It's hardly a groundbreaking, or a gamebreaking feature in that game.

Motion control make NMH fun. NMH without motion control would be like playing a light gun shooter with a joypad. Sure it is possible, but what would the point?

And why do you think NMH: Paradise will suddenly become polished? Just adding HD graphics does not make the game polished at all.

The Japanese price of NMH: Paradise is not a discount price, so why should the localisation be any cheaper? And even if it is, why not just buy the Wii version for 10 bucks? Why wait, if you can get it for hobo price right now.

It's hardly like playing Elebits with dual analogue is it?

It's arbituary waggle to finish off baddies. The game is being re-built with HD assets by an outside company and with that time and investment and more powerful platform it can easily be more presentationally complete and run at a better framerate too. Hence, polished.

For other games that are already polished and have no technical problems I wouldn't be interested, when it comes to an unpolished gem then I would rather have the game I already like only polished.

It's not just waggle, what about the phone? Or the change in between high and low positions or the wrestling moves? The waggle feels good, flicking an analogue stick or pressing a button would not be as satisfying.

The framerate problems were not due to the Wii's lack of power, unless you think the Wii has trouble running N64 like graphics. And do you really think they will build it from the ground-up? It is going to be a cheap up port, unless Marvellous wants to go the way of the dodo.

And unpolished gem talk is grade A BS. Even with the polish still have the crappy overworld and broken side missions.

gamingeek said:

It doesn't matter about power with regards to framerate, the whole point is that its being remade and I dont think that they are going to keep the sluggish framerate in as a part of gameplay.

Yeah, I am not believing the remake until I see it. I think they are just HD-ing the game.

gamingeek said: 

The phone and wrestling moves... come on man. 

 Come on what? You rather push some analog sticks around? NMH uses motion control in a satisfying matter. It's so satisfying chopping someone in two by using motion controls. That feeling would be lost with buttons or analogue stick.

And waiting for a supposedly superior version, while the current one is out now and hobo priced is idiotic to say the least.

gamingeek said:

Iga_Bobovic said:

gamingeek said:

It doesn't matter about power with regards to framerate, the whole point is that its being remade and I dont think that they are going to keep the sluggish framerate in as a part of gameplay.

Yeah, I am not believing the remake until I see it. I think they are just HD-ing the game.

gamingeek said:

The phone and wrestling moves... come on man.

Come on what? You rather push some analog sticks around? NMH uses motion control in a satisfying matter. It's so satisfying chopping someone in two by using motion controls. That feeling would be lost with buttons or analogue stick.

And waiting for a supposedly superior version, while the current one is out now and hobo priced is idiotic to say the least.

Hack and slash games existed and were enjoyable well before motion control, especially arbituary motion control - this is no motionplus 1:1 swordfighting.

But fine, whatever. God forbid anyone should want a better looking version of an unpolished game.

 Good idea. Steel, GG I forbid you to buy the HD version

On a more serious note, there are hack and slash games that use buttons well. Games like Bayonetta, but we are talking about NMH. Unless they change the whole fighting systems, it would not work well with just buttons. NMH has a pretty shallow fighting system that is somewhat disguised by the motion controls. 

No More Heroes 2 IGN Review

The original No More Heroes on Nintendo Wii set a precedent during its 2008 release. Here was a game that pulled no punches, broke the fourth wall, and catered to the sliver of hardcore players that looked for bloodshed, sex, and violence on Nintendo's otherwise squeaky clean console. Franchise creator and longtime game designer Suda 51 invented a world that felt halfway pulled from his previous works – most obvious Killer 7 on GameCube – and mashed-up with Japanese cinema, punk style, and classic spaghetti westerns. It lacked polish, and the game had its not-so-impressive moments, but it found a fanbase and became a classic.

Well it should come as no surprise that No More Heroes 2: Desperate Struggle follows in the blood-soaked footsteps of its predecessor. Travis Touchdown makes his triumphant return to the world of ranked assassin battles. After winning the #1 spot two years ago, he walked away from it all. During his absence, the world of Santa Destroy – and those that call it home – have gone through one hell of a metamorphosis. Oh, you'll tear through the ranks in Desperate Struggle, but as he title name indicates there's more at stake here than a #1 spot. Santa Destroy has changed, and Travis is out for blood.

Rule #312: Giant Robots Always Rock.

For the most part, Desperate Struggle doesn't stray away from the No More Heores formula. Combat can still be a bit too frantic, lacking a way to roll or guard-break out of any situation, so you're going to trade hits with enemies. It's just a fact. You don't have camera control, the core mechanics are virtually unchanged, and those looking forward to the playable characters of Shinobu and Henry will have to come in with an open mind, as they're more of a parlor trick than a fully-realized extension of the game. This isn't meant to push you away – you're going to want to play it – but it's important to note that far as the core gameplay goes, No More Heroes is as it always was.

As for every other aspect of the game though, Desperate Struggle turns the No More Heroes design on its head. Gone is the clumsy overworld of Santa Destroy, and while the optimist in me remembers the moments of fun I had blasting through the city on my supercharged bike and burning donuts in intersections, the move away from that design does wonders. Everything is streamlined, allowing you to head out from your apartment in the No More Heroes Hotel and instantly find what you're looking for. You still have load times from area to area, but with one easy-to-use vertical menu, you spend less time in transit and far more time ripping people to pieces or expanding your character.

Check out new bosses, mini-games, and plenty of fan service in our full video review.

Another small detail that's worth mentioning is that the entire city is still as it was originally imagined. The coconut mini-game is still on the beach, for example. Instead of having to drive everywhere or stress out every time you screw up a battle-based revenge side mission, you can just use the menu to travel. Those that hated the cash system from the first game are going to love the changes made with Desperate Struggle. Ranked missions are free to enter, you can skip every cut scene if you want (though you'd be crazy to miss the game's antics), and there's never anything holding you back from progressing through the story if that's all you want to do.

But trust me, that's not all you'll want to do.

BJ5 Girl Says: You are now on every FBI watch list ever!

No More Heroes 2 oozes with personality. In fact, you'd be hard-pressed to find a game with more style and downright originality than Desperate Struggle. It took me two hours to simply get to the second ranked battle in my final playthrough, as so much of my time was spent checking out everything else the game has to offer. In your apartment alone there's plenty to do, including workout mini-games with your overweight cat Jeane, a free-to-play arcade game on your TV showcasing a fictitious anime called BJ5 (I'll leave any inferences to you.), complete with a fully-animated faux intro to the series as a reward for beating levels, and more. You can read up on wrestling moves, a dozen of which I was able to find on my first playthrough, and at any time you can run on over to your dresser, switch out your gear, and then hit the road. As you play, you also unlock new decorations for your apartment

And then there are the job mini-games. Just… wow. Save for one overworld mini-game I discovered, all the jobs around Santa Destroy are now played out via retro challenges, similar to classic games you'd find on the NES or TG-16. Not all of them are engaging, and the amount of cash you can earn is swayed in favor of a few specific games, but luckily those are the games I also had the most fun playing. Bug Out, a combination of Luigi's Mansion and Pac-Man is a blast. Coconut Grabber is also amazing, as is the space-themed Getting Trashed level. While some of the others are really basic, even emulating previous No More Heroes mini-games – Man the Meat is the same "hold A" mini-game as the original gas attendant game in the first NMH; now with a better style and digitized voice to help it along – I still found myself going back again and again. Once you earn cash, it can be used for whatever you want. Because you no longer pay to unlock story missions, that means you can afford dozens of clothing options, new weapons, and sink cash into powering up Travisat Ryan's Gym. As you'd expect, the two training games at the gym are also old-school retro designs. They, too, are both fun and challenging.

When it comes to the rest of the production, No More Heroes 2 is all about pushing style over anything else. While that's very commendable and far from the status quo, there are some downsides to the decision. On the plus side, the game is constantly flooding you with new areas, new bosses, hilarious story elements, new playable characters, and simply off-the-wall situations that'll have your brain screaming for equilibrium. Travis transforms into a tiger during battle, super robot fights occur over Santa Destroy, and the team has no problem switching on a grain filter or going into classic PSX jittery-frame animated sequences if they think it'll add to the game's outrageous style and humor. It's obvious that the game was fun to develop, and when the devs are having fun, you're having fun. I can honestly say I've never played a game with so much style. You know right away to expect the unexpected, and yet it still smashes you in the face like a Mac truck. My first playthrough ended in a cool 12 hours, and it's maybe the fastest 12 hours I've ever had reviewing a game.

You may not get to walk around in it, but this is such a better Santa Destroy to be a part of.

Desperate Struggle is not without shortcomings, though. A lack of camera control really confines the battles, and while you can center and lock-on whenever needed, there are times when you won't know what you're looking at for up to five seconds during battle.

The fact that the No More Heroes series is essentially a straightforward beat-em-up at its core also means you'll be fighting many of the same enemies for hours on end, and that can lead to some stages that drag on with spawn after spawn. While I was never bored playing No More Heroes, I did occasionally wish a generic battle stage would end a few rooms earlier than they did. In addition, the inclusion of Travis's bike again pulled the experience down, even if only for a few brief moments.

Wow?

And while the visual style is a complete feast for the eyes, the audio is mixed. Repetitive lines like "Mama!" and "Help me boss!" annoy. One of the gun-toting baddies has three specific lines, all of which contain vulgarity. There's nothing wrong with a baddie that swears in an M-rated game, but when it repeats the same VO string every three seconds or so – and when you've got multiples of each guy on screen at once – it gets pretty annoying. However, for every moment of questionable audi, there are dozens upon dozens of amazingly delivered lines, awesome rock and punk music, and hilarious retro bleeps and bloops that set the mood when in job mini-games. As with most other aspects of No More Heroes, you'll need to ignore some bad to really get to the awesome moments, which thankfully come en mass.

Closing Comments
The original No More Heroes was a fun game with obvious flaws that set the experience back. Suda took a step back, figured out what worked, and delivered on the game's original strengths. Desperate Struggle blows it out of the water with a more streamlined experience, far more charm and style throughout, and some downright amazing boss battles. You still run across the occasional weak boss fight, horrible camera situation or framerate crawl, but with as much pure fun as there is packed into the game, you forgive the downsides almost instantly. Suda and company have an amazing ability to deliver original, inspired stuff to players, and the shotgun blast of concepts and designs ensure that there's something fresh at every turn, be it a top-down shooter, a strict workout regimen with your overweight cat, a few rounds in the sparring ring, some hilariously fun retro mini-games, or the purebred ranked battles. This isn't a game that begs you play it. It's a game that knocks on your front door, waits for you to answer in a towel and your favorite pair of slippers, rips your head off, and shoves itself down your throat.

But in a good way.

8.8

Dvader said:

^

I'd rather buy Endless Ocean 2. (Ok I'd rather buy neither)

You know what that picture is so totally me.

And the ghosts are you lot.

The tag line is perfect:

He sees dead people...

...and they annoy him.

Gamespy

"NMH2 carries with it a constant swagger, a decidedly lo-fi marriage between grime and prodigy. It's one of the best-paced games I've ever experienced, stringing together hilariously over-the-top "oh crap!" moments from beginning to end. Ask the random editors that amassed around my desk as I played, all of whom yelled, "what the f***?" about as often as my in-game character did in his deluge of ad-libs. "

Gamedaily

"No More Heroes 2: Desperate Struggle is incredibly entertaining. A few of the problems that plagued the first are long gone, while the crazy combat and presentation are still present and accounted for. Kudos to Suda and his gang for giving us a game that surpasses the original in every way possible."

Gamesradar

"A bizarre, wonderfully trashy sequel, No More Heroes 2 adds a ton of cool new activities and boss fights without messing too much with what worked the first time. It wears thin toward the end, but until then it’s one of the most brilliant experiences the Wii has to offer."

G4TV

"No More Heroes 2: Desperate Struggle makes some big improvements on its predecessor. It’s more funny, it looks better and the 8-bit minigames are a fantastic addition. It's not an exceptionally long game, but it's a tight, lean experience that trims away a great deal of the first game's bloat. It has a few big stumbles on the way to its bombastic finale, but it's still a very satisfying experience at its conclusion. Undoubtedly, it's one of the finer games to be released on Wii in some time."

Gameinformer

"All the bad stuff from the original is gone or fixed in some way, and all of the good elements are magnified and improved.  This is yet another third-party Wii exclusive of which Nintendo faithful can be proud. Finally, Suda51 delivers a game that almost anyone can appreciate"

Gamepro

"Quirky, crass, and incredibly fun, Suda51's stylish sequel to 2008's No More Heroes slashes its way onto the Wii with even more boss battles, much-improved gameplay, and loads of worthwhile new content"

Nintendo Life

" It’s all about looking cool while slicing fools with beam katanas and cracking skulls with piledrivers. This is a game where you can turn into a tiger and bite the limbs off panicked enemies and cause blood geysers."

VGChartz

"While the original No More Heroes set the bar high for action games on the Wii, Desperate Struggle absolutely surpasses it in every way imaginable. Refined gameplay, stellar presentation values and hours of extra content past the main campaign all come together wonderfully to make this a must own for Wii gamers with a slight taste for carnage. Despite some slight technical miscues, Suda 51 has delivered a game that is loaded with his unique personality and one that Wii owners should not look over."

1up

"Superficially, Desperate Struggle is amazing: The first game's muddy, low-detail, harshly-shadowed characters are completely refined here, boasting greater detail all around. Throw in better animation, flashier effects and even nicer-looking environments as you run around the city, and Desperate Struggle makes itself one of the best-looking Wii games in its category. "

"you'll find that Desperate Struggle is a fine sequel that takes the fun parts of the original (the combat, the characters, the dialogue) and tries to make those the focus while practically quartering off the weaker parts. By being the high-quality, consistently enjoyable action game it wanted to be the first time around, Desperate Struggle is now a must-buy, and at the very least, finally makes the series deserving of the evangelism surrounding it."