Monday, June 11, 2007

xbox 360 New Games : The Tenchu Z

The Tenchu Z

Ninjas will invade the Xbox 360 in From Software's latest stealth action game. We tried out a nearly localized build.

Some people may not remember that Tenchu helped start the stealth action craze back on the PlayStation. This took place even a few months before the seminal and more highly regarded Metal Gear Solid exploded onto the scene.

The original Tenchu let you choose one of two master ninjas and then embark on a series of important secret missions throughout feudal Japan. In these missions, you used your stealth, guile, and bag of ninja tricks to assassinate important targets, sabotage enemy operations, and gather sensitive information. From Software is now finishing up a new entry in the Tenchu series for the Xbox 360, and we got to try out a nearly finished English version. Some of the particulars have changed in Tenchu Z, but the underlying formula in the series is definitely still here.

There seems to be less focus on the storyline in Z because you won't take control of past named main characters, such as Rikimaru. Instead, there's more emphasis on customization. You'll choose between a male or female lead ninja, whom you can then trick out with the usual custom-character assortment of faces, hairstyles, and types of ninja garb. More important than your appearance is the distribution of your various skills, which you'll tweak before you start the game itself.

You'll have a fixed number of points to distribute to your movement speed, health bar, and attacking power, so you can influence your overall ninja ability to an extent. You'll then get to visually spec out and name a partner (whose gender seems by necessity to be the opposite of your own), but after playing a handful of missions, we didn't notice that our partner had an effect on anything but a few end-level cutscenes.

All that customization stuff is relatively new, but the action within the missions is classic Tenchu. You'll begin at a little hub camp in the forest where you can equip a set number of ninja goodies. These include throwing stars, smoke bombs, explosive darts, and so on. Then you'll talk to your master to receive your next mission (of which there are about 50 in total).
The game's first few missions proceed in a linear fashion, but they'll soon branch out and allow you to skip around a little bit as you progress through the storyline, which seems fairly thin so far. Our objectives in the first few missions included killing a couple of high-profile bad guys, collecting a number of bombs that had been scattered around a village, and making our way across an occupied town to cross a bridge into enemy territory.

In practical terms, you'll accomplish all of those objectives by sneaking around and cutting throats a whole lot. This is how Z is closest to all the preceding Tenchu games: You've got the same color-based enemy-proximity indicator, along with a Splinter Cell-style meter indicating your relative visibility, to help you remain hidden from the numerous guards that you'll want to neutralize silently.
Performing a stealth kill is as easy as getting behind an enemy and hitting the attack button. Additionally, if more than one enemy is nearby and none of them detect you, you can actually kill all of them in a combo kill if you have the right timing.
However, we encountered some preternaturally observant enemies in our build, some of whom could see us in places where it seemed like we'd be safely hidden, so pulling off stealth kills will require a lot of patience and care.

Of course, if an enemy spots you, you'll have to fight him head-on, which seems a tad clunky right now but is mostly manageable. You can lock on to an enemy and circle around him or flip over him while throwing sword combos and the occasional ranged attack his way.
Luckily, you can escape back into the shadows with relative ease because your character is a lot more nimble than your enemies. Plus, the trademark grappling hook in the series returns, which allows you to take to the rooftops in just a few seconds to evade pursuers.
But you'll suffer other penalties for repeatedly getting noticed because the game grades just about every aspect of your performance in a given mission. Everything from mission duration to number of stealth kills and number of times caught to the manner in which you killed the boss character will contribute to (or deduct from) your final score.
Your final rating will be tallied and then converted into the amount of gold you'll receive, which you'll use to buy new ninja items, attack combos, special abilities, and so on. However, there are a lot of things that can heavily impact your income. For instance, getting spotted by a guard deducts a relatively huge amount from your final score.
In another example, playing on the easy difficulty will only award you 90 percent of your original total. Before we got the hang of it, we actually managed to receive no money upon successfully completing several missions early in the game.
But luckily, you can replay any mission over and over to earn extra gold, which will buff up your character something fierce.

Our build of Tenchu Z was still a little rough around the edges, with some localized text still in need of polish and various cinematic animations missing. But the fundamental gameplay seemed to be on the money for Tenchu fans (aside from a few stealth-related oddities).
So the real question will have to do with the amount of variety and replayability that will or won't exist in the whole of the game's dozens of missions. We'll have the final word on that with our full review of the game in June.

25 comments:

Anonymous said...

A little off topic, Guys... I have a question. A week ago I discovered this site:
[url=http://www.rivalspot.com]Rivalspot.com - Ps3 Live Tournaments[/url]
They say you can play online Nhl2k game tournaments on any console for cash... had anyone tried that before? Looks like a cool idea...
Are there any other sites where you can play sports games for real moneys? I Googled and found only Bringit.com and Worldgaming.com but it looks these guys don't specialize in sport gamez. Any suggestions?

Anonymous said...

New here,

I'm spending my time here for the children of Haiti.

I'm doing this for a non-profit haiti group that gives time to
building oppurtunities for the kids in haiti. If anyone here wants to donate then do so here:

[url=http://universallearningcentre.org]Donate to Haiti[/url] or Help Haiti

They give children in Haiti a positive learning environment.

Yes, they're legitimate.

It would be great if you could help

Anonymous said...

Hello,
I have developed a new clean web 2.0 wordpress theme.

Has 2 colours silver and blue, has custom header(colour or image).
I am curently working on it, so if you have suggestions let me know.

You can view live demo and download from here www.getbelle.com
If you found bug reports or you have suggestions pm me.
Wish you a happing using.

many thanks to [url=http://www.usainstantpayday.com/]USAInstantPayDay.com[/url] for paying the hosting and developement of the theme

Gresydaysleem

Anonymous said...

megan fox riding, [url=http://discuss.tigweb.org/thread/187756]why are humans so mean to artic foxes[/url] megan fox jennifer's body pics
watch ray j and kim kardashian full video, [url=http://discuss.tigweb.org/thread/187768]new kim kardashian getting it[/url] pics of kim kardashian in a thong/g string
taylor swift image, [url=http://discuss.tigweb.org/thread/187772]taylor swift wallpaper[/url] taylor swift thug story
hannah mantana the movie, [url=http://discuss.tigweb.org/thread/187786]hannah montana soundtrack[/url] dress up hannah montana game
lego harry potter video game, [url=http://discuss.tigweb.org/thread/187792]harry potter charms[/url] harry potter and sims 2
cruise vacations to mediterranean, [url=http://discuss.tigweb.org/thread/187798]tom cruise tom welling[/url] adding cruise control to 1993 goldwing
justin bieber age, [url=http://discuss.tigweb.org/thread/187812]justin adam cole bieber[/url] justin bieber quizes
britney spears crouch shots, [url=http://discuss.tigweb.org/thread/187814]britney spears no underware[/url] britney spears shots
brachydactyly megan fox, [url=http://discuss.tigweb.org/thread/175542]megan fox bashing michael bay[/url] megan fox toe thumbs

Anonymous said...

if you guys requisite to conjecture [url=http://www.generic4you.com]viagra[/url] online you can do it at www.generic4you.com, the most trusted viagra pharmacopoeia seeking generic drugs.
you can ascertain drugs like [url=http://www.generic4you.com/Sildenafil_Citrate_Viagra-p2.html]viagra[/url], [url=http://www.generic4you.com/Tadalafil-p1.html]cialis[/url], [url=http://www.generic4you.com/VardenafilLevitra-p3.html]levitra[/url] and more at www.rxpillsmd.net, the compelling [url=http://www.rxpillsmd.net]viagra[/url] start on the web. well another great [url=http://www.i-buy-viagra.com]viagra[/url] pharmacy you can find at www.i-buy-viagra.com

Anonymous said...

if you guys requisite to conjecture [url=http://www.generic4you.com]viagra[/url] online you can do it at www.generic4you.com, the most trusted viagra pharmacopoeia seeking generic drugs.
you can ascertain drugs like [url=http://www.generic4you.com/Sildenafil_Citrate_Viagra-p2.html]viagra[/url], [url=http://www.generic4you.com/Tadalafil-p1.html]cialis[/url], [url=http://www.generic4you.com/VardenafilLevitra-p3.html]levitra[/url] and more at www.rxpillsmd.net, the compelling [url=http://www.rxpillsmd.net]viagra[/url] start on the web. well another great [url=http://www.i-buy-viagra.com]viagra[/url] pharmacy you can find at www.i-buy-viagra.com

Anonymous said...

if you guys requisite to conjecture [url=http://www.generic4you.com]viagra[/url] online you can do it at www.generic4you.com, the most trusted viagra pharmacopoeia seeking generic drugs.
you can ascertain drugs like [url=http://www.generic4you.com/Sildenafil_Citrate_Viagra-p2.html]viagra[/url], [url=http://www.generic4you.com/Tadalafil-p1.html]cialis[/url], [url=http://www.generic4you.com/VardenafilLevitra-p3.html]levitra[/url] and more at www.rxpillsmd.net, the compelling [url=http://www.rxpillsmd.net]viagra[/url] start on the web. well another great [url=http://www.i-buy-viagra.com]viagra[/url] pharmacy you can find at www.i-buy-viagra.com

Anonymous said...

if you guys requisite to conjecture [url=http://www.generic4you.com]viagra[/url] online you can do it at www.generic4you.com, the most trusted viagra pharmacopoeia seeking generic drugs.
you can ascertain drugs like [url=http://www.generic4you.com/Sildenafil_Citrate_Viagra-p2.html]viagra[/url], [url=http://www.generic4you.com/Tadalafil-p1.html]cialis[/url], [url=http://www.generic4you.com/VardenafilLevitra-p3.html]levitra[/url] and more at www.rxpillsmd.net, the compelling [url=http://www.rxpillsmd.net]viagra[/url] start on the web. well another great [url=http://www.i-buy-viagra.com]viagra[/url] pharmacy you can find at www.i-buy-viagra.com

Anonymous said...

if you guys requisite to conjecture [url=http://www.generic4you.com]viagra[/url] online you can do it at www.generic4you.com, the most trusted viagra pharmacopoeia seeking generic drugs.
you can ascertain drugs like [url=http://www.generic4you.com/Sildenafil_Citrate_Viagra-p2.html]viagra[/url], [url=http://www.generic4you.com/Tadalafil-p1.html]cialis[/url], [url=http://www.generic4you.com/VardenafilLevitra-p3.html]levitra[/url] and more at www.rxpillsmd.net, the compelling [url=http://www.rxpillsmd.net]viagra[/url] start on the web. well another great [url=http://www.i-buy-viagra.com]viagra[/url] pharmacy you can find at www.i-buy-viagra.com

Anonymous said...

if you guys requisite to conjecture [url=http://www.generic4you.com]viagra[/url] online you can do it at www.generic4you.com, the most trusted viagra pharmacopoeia seeking generic drugs.
you can ascertain drugs like [url=http://www.generic4you.com/Sildenafil_Citrate_Viagra-p2.html]viagra[/url], [url=http://www.generic4you.com/Tadalafil-p1.html]cialis[/url], [url=http://www.generic4you.com/VardenafilLevitra-p3.html]levitra[/url] and more at www.rxpillsmd.net, the compelling [url=http://www.rxpillsmd.net]viagra[/url] start on the web. well another great [url=http://www.i-buy-viagra.com]viagra[/url] pharmacy you can find at www.i-buy-viagra.com

Anonymous said...

if you guys requisite to conjecture [url=http://www.generic4you.com]viagra[/url] online you can do it at www.generic4you.com, the most trusted viagra pharmacopoeia seeking generic drugs.
you can ascertain drugs like [url=http://www.generic4you.com/Sildenafil_Citrate_Viagra-p2.html]viagra[/url], [url=http://www.generic4you.com/Tadalafil-p1.html]cialis[/url], [url=http://www.generic4you.com/VardenafilLevitra-p3.html]levitra[/url] and more at www.rxpillsmd.net, the compelling [url=http://www.rxpillsmd.net]viagra[/url] start on the web. well another great [url=http://www.i-buy-viagra.com]viagra[/url] pharmacy you can find at www.i-buy-viagra.com

Anonymous said...

if you guys requisite to conjecture [url=http://www.generic4you.com]viagra[/url] online you can do it at www.generic4you.com, the most trusted viagra pharmacopoeia seeking generic drugs.
you can ascertain drugs like [url=http://www.generic4you.com/Sildenafil_Citrate_Viagra-p2.html]viagra[/url], [url=http://www.generic4you.com/Tadalafil-p1.html]cialis[/url], [url=http://www.generic4you.com/VardenafilLevitra-p3.html]levitra[/url] and more at www.rxpillsmd.net, the compelling [url=http://www.rxpillsmd.net]viagra[/url] start on the web. well another great [url=http://www.i-buy-viagra.com]viagra[/url] pharmacy you can find at www.i-buy-viagra.com

Anonymous said...

[url=http://bejepewa.t35.com/news_646.html]online poker gambling http[/url] [url=http://bejepewa.t35.com/news_180.html]win online gambling everytime[/url] [url=http://bejepewa.t35.com/news_278.html]united states restrictions online gambling[/url] [url=http://bejepewa.t35.com/news_695.html]how to play craps video[/url] [url=http://bejepewa.t35.com/news_731.html]new orleans casino vegas[/url]

Anonymous said...

nauseating cancelled drink. I brook on a binge it after a needful epoch at power, it calms me down. I would be nothing without it. It's the most adroitly letting up knock turn out to be in return ever. It calms me down, peradventure you should cook an hint it out? it gobbledygook torture right? and ull run-of-the-mill pick up be dressed and extort personally of it, certainly, u should!


[url=www.minichill.com/ChillRecipes.html]alcohol recipes[/url]


[url=www.minichill.com/ChillRecipes.html]bartender drinks[/url]


[url=www.minichill.com/ChillRecipes.html]alcohol mixes[/url]


[url=http://www.ChimneyCareInc.com]sweeping chimney[/url]

[url=http://www.ChimneyCareInc.com]chimney sweep[/url]



[url=http://www.ChimneyCareInc.com]chimney repair[/url]


[url=http://www.ChimneyCareInc.com]chimney sweeper[/url]


[url=http://www.ChimneyCareInc.com]chimney sweep[/url]

unreal r 'vacation drink. I into on a binge it after a taxing epoch at potency, it calms me down. I would be nothing without it. It's the most pro tem bib letting up the gas out-and-out ever. It calms me down, peradventure you should fight it out? it uncomplicated spoil right? and ull de jure upwards it, de facto, u should!



[url=http://www.AmericanChimneySupplies.com]chimney cap[/url]
[url=http://www.minichill.com.com]Stress Supplement[/url]
[url=http://www.minichill.com.com]Stress Supplements[/url]
[url=http://www.minichill.com.com]immediate Stress relief[/url]

Anonymous said...

cool guys! thwart the latest unregulated rid of [url=http://www.casinolasvegass.com]casino[/url] games like roulette and slots !after demonstrate the all strange unburden [url=http://www.casinolasvegass.com]online casino[/url] games at the all up to the minute www.casinolasvegass.com, the most trusted [url=http://www.casinolasvegass.com]online casinos[/url] on the entanglement! complicated our [url=http://www.casinolasvegass.com/download.html]free casino software download[/url] and cause of home the bacon money.
you can also control other [url=http://sites.google.com/site/onlinecasinogames2010/]online casinos bonus[/url] . check out this new [url=http://www.place-a-bet.net/]online casino[/url].

Anonymous said...

Infatuation casinos? go over this late-model [url=http://www.realcazinoz.com]casino[/url] games. counsel and play online casino games like slots, blackjack, roulette, baccarat and more at www.realcazinoz.com .
you can also retard our untrained [url=http://freecasinogames2010.webs.com]casino[/url] guide at http://freecasinogames2010.webs.com and replace in legitimate fabulously misled !
another lone [url=http://www.ttittancasino.com]casino[/url] spiele chain of events is www.ttittancasino.com , because german gamblers, retrieve unrestrained online casino bonus.

Anonymous said...

looking for [url=http://www.web-house.co.il/SEO%20Specialist.htm]seo specialist[/url] ? check for all to see our [url=http://www.smashflash.com/]free twinkle templates[/url] and influence your own falsh website in return free today, huge electing of unchained [url=http://www.smashflash.com/]flash templates[/url] for the purpose you online, many unexplored designs with ir without flash.
so choose your [url=http://www.smashflash.com/]free flash template[/url] from the larget [url=http://www.smashflash.com/]flash templates[/url] selection. so get your [url=http://www.smashflash.com/]free website templates[/url] now and build your [url=http://www.smashflash.com/]free website[/url] .
want to watch [url=http://www.sex4sex.co.il/adult-movies.htm]adult movies[/url]? or even to [url=http://www.sex4sex.co.il/]buy viagra[/url] online, check this new [url=http://www.toys4sex.co.il/]online pharmacy[/url] for great deals. so [url=http://www.ewgpresents.com/]buy viagra[/url] online. check out this [url=http://www.realcazinoz.com/fr//]Casino en ligne[/url]. or [url=http://sites.google.com/site/casinospiele2010//]casino spiele [/url]. [url=http://www.cd-empty.com/]online casinos[/url] , check out this great [url=http://www.omniget.co.il/]online casino bonus[/url] .

Anonymous said...

Junior Member I want to merge 3 parts of a downloaded ppv into one video to burn to disc but for some reason unknown to me, the second part has different parameters then parts 1 and 3. And so when I attempt to merge them together the software program warns me about this issue, telling me that merging them will result in possile problems with the audio and video being in sync so it won't do it. How do I combat this probelm without having to resort to using my screencapsture program to record the videos and degrade the overall quality of the video in the process. Is there a program anyone can recomend that will merge avi videos regardless of their bitrates? I've tried encoding theh avi's to MPEG's using Super but even then, the files are still unable to be merged together as the original framerates apparetnly remain unchanged. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks
[url=http://www.topvideoconverter.com/convert-x-to-dvd/]convert video to dvd[/url]

Anonymous said...

I would like to thank You for being the member of this website. Please allow me to have the opportunity to show my satisfaction with Hostgator web hosting. They have professional and express support and they also offer numerous [url=http://adf.ly/213105/thankyou-hostgator ]Hostgator coupon codes[/url].

I like hostgator hosting, you will too.

http://ubuntuhub.net/member.php?2758-Lydaykaksgo

Anonymous said...

It’s better to have fought and lost, than never to have fought at all.
[url=http://burberry-sale-outlet.weebly.com/]burberry outlet[/url] burberry-sale-outlet.weebly.com
[url=http://www.spyderjacketsski.info/]spyder ski jackets[/url] www.spyderjacketsski.info
[url=http://www.bootsuggoutlet.info/]ugg boots outlet|[/url] www.bootsuggoutlet.info
Wasting time is robbing oneself.
spyder jackets spyder-jackets-outlet.blogspot.com
fox fur ugg boots fox-fur-ugg-boots.blogspot.com

Anonymous said...

Cheap Jerseys Paypal

Kiser has used only mercury-free substances in his treatments since the mid 90's and concentrates his practice in the areas of sedation dentistry and complete smile makeovers Jewelers should tell your if the pearls are cultured or imitation However, everything in life has a reason and a cause

Texans JJ Watt Jersey

The truth of this story may be questioned, but it is a fact that the stones were highly prized and much used by the Incas and Aztecs in the extraordinary civilization which once existed in Peru Her clients, friends and colleagues know her as a fearless mountain climber and nature lover with an insatiable spirit of adventure Many laser printers use very fine wires (called 'corona wires') that are often exposed

JJ Watt Jersey

Anonymous said...

Did you [url=http://www.onlinecasinos.gd]slots[/url] cognizant of that you can on Revolving Villa presently from your mobile? We comportment a predominance motorized casino elbow against iPhone, iPad, Android, Blackberry, Windows 7 and Smartphone users. Ride your gaming with you and be a title-holder [url=http://www.adultsrus.us]dildo[/url] wherever you go.

Anonymous said...

We [url=http://www.casinovisa.com]casinos online[/url] have a corpulent library of totally free casino games in regard to you to play sensibly here in your browser. Whether you want to procedure a provender game scenario or scarcely examine manifest a insufficient late slots before playing on the side of genuine in dough, we procure you covered. These are the claim verbatim at the same time games that you can play at real online casinos and you can join in them all representing free.

Anonymous said...

louboutin zdiyqpqg christian louboutin ozklegfe louboutin pas cher zbkicxoj escarpins louboutin wfnfltzi louboutins helalzvc

Anonymous said...

Give the opponent so hurt the earth and,[url=http://www.acelg.org.au/top.php]cheap nike shoes[/url], of course,[url=http://www.4dmv.com/toms.php]toms sale[/url], is to the Tokgo be intoxicated fingertips supernatural powers. Since there are internal forces can be sent fingertips supernatural powers,[url=http://www.4dmv.com/rayban.php]ray ban sunglasses sale[/url], then the description [url=http://www.4dmv.com/cl.php]cheap christian louboutin[/url] internal forces, in fact, there is a surplus, so, looking at smiling Tokgo be intoxicated, Yang Gongzai very consciously that grace word to swallow back. Siege of Solitude and drunk four to last only one person escaped back, the [url=http://www.4dmv.com/inc/burberry.php]burberry handbags[/url] three are all linked to the presence of. Side to contain the ground nine birds that group of people, than the fate of these people also suffer, the four men, all hung up!