Gaming Nexus writes: "If you asked me what 8-bit action game I wanted a sequel to, I would have probably mentioned Kid Icarus, Gun.Smoke or Rolling Thunder. Never in my wildest dreams would I have considered asking for a sequel to The Legend of Kage. It's not that Taito's arcade game was bad, but it wasn't memorable enough to warrant a second try. Yet here we are a quarter century after its first release and I'm looking at an honest to goodness sequel to The Legend of Kage. And I'm not just looking at it; I'm actually having a great time. Who knew that the sequel I should have been asking for was The Legend of Kage 2?
The kneejerk reaction to The Legend of Kage 2 would be to compare it to Sega's classic ninja game, Shinobi. But the more you play this Nintendo DS sequel the more you realize that this isn't a fair comparison at all, this game has more in common with Sonic the Hedgehog than it does Shinobi. Sega's ninja series is slow and deliberate, while The Legend of Kage 2 is a fast-paced action game, more akin to a game like Strider or Ninja Spirit."
Inspired by 8-bit movies like Wreck It Ralph, game developer and VFX artist Peter Tieryas is going through his old NES inventory and playing some of his favorite levels with running commentary. This segment is from Legend of Kage for the NES. Players have to rescue the princess a total of three times before the game ends, at which time the princess is kidnapped again. This rounds out the trio of Ninja games starting with Ninja Kid, then Ninja Gaiden, and now Legend of Kage.
The Legend of Kage 2 isn't the type of niche game that has limited appeal or has become redundant, it just isn't a good game at all. You can find some real gems in the genre but The Legend of Kage 2 unfortunately, is not one of them.
411mania talks about this week's game releases. Highlights include Oboro Muramasa, Suggoi! Arcana Heart 2, Guilty Gear XX Accent Core Plus, The Chronicles of Riddick: Assault on Dark Athena, Hammerin' Hero, Professor Heinz Wolff's Gravity, and Rhythm Heaven.
