Alright. Time to see if Sup Forums actually plays challenging videogames...

Alright. Time to see if Sup Forums actually plays challenging videogames, or just complains about there being none while avoiding the ones that exist.

I recently started playing pic related, and am having some issues understanding the gameplay. Searching online barely gives any advice. My main issue?

How the fuck does that yellow stuff that drops from enemies work? Essence, I think it's called.

It seems like, sometimes, I can't absorb it at all, I'm sitting there, blocking an enemy, waiting for it to come to me, but it doesn't, and then disappears. Or maybe, I'm trying to charge a heavy attack, and then it comes to me and I flash or something? Sometimes, it just comes normally? What's the difference between the big yellow stuff and the small ones? Can I get the big ones to spawn more in any way? I believe it may be currency, but the game doesn't fucking explain anything.

Is there a way to disable the resurrection scroll bullshit. I want to save it for a SUPER hard boss but every boss if I die it activates and I have to reset the whole game.

Are weapons easily missable? I picked up the Lunar but it seemed like something that would be super easy just to walk past in the normal game.

What's the difference between the 3 different levels of a heavy attack charge? It feels like, if I wait for Ryu to flash once, that's an insta kill on many enemies, but if I wait for it go to up to the highest level, it stops being an insta-kill and is actually worse. Sometimes, I decap enemies before the first flash even happens. What the fuck.

I like hard games, but I don't like cryptic unexplained bullshit. I'm getting frustrated since it seems like for the most part enemies don't respawn, and I may only be able to get a limited amount of this stuff, so when a big bit disappears I feel like restarting the game. Sucks you can't reload a save in mid game.

Any advice/information on this? General tips and tricks also appreciated for a beginner.

Thanks.

Tl:dr

Not as hard as OPs choice but pic related on dmd is brutal. Ngb on master ninja is fucking ridiculous tho

Should've played Sigma instead.

DMC3 is pretty good. I beat special edition on normal without using items most of the time. Spammed the hell out of what I had though against the final virgil battle. I just feel there's a bit too much button mashing on a fair few weapons/attacks. Using some of the gun skills and the pistols in general kills the thumbs, along with all the sword swinging to begin with.

You have to press the button so fucking fast just to get the shotgun to do the multishot thing, it's insane.

Fuck cerberus and A&R

does it actually explain shit?

You don't absorb essence while you block.

The higher your style rank, the less input required to do the mashing moves

>How the fuck does that yellow stuff that drops from enemies work?
Drops from dead enemies. When you block you won't absorb it. When you don't, you gain essence which is money. But when you charge (holding strong move button) while it's still there you absorb it instantly for an instant charge.
This is key to NG's gameplay so remember that. Remember that pushing strong attack button while landing from a jumb cut down the charge time as well, this is really really important

>Is there a way to disable the resurrection scroll bullshit
Don't die

>Are weapons easily missable?
Not really

>Sometimes, I decap enemies before the first flash even happens. What the fuck.
Each moves have their own decapitation chances. You'll now which ones by playing more. It also depends on the enemy

>I don't like cryptic unexplained bullshit
It's not bullshit. That's just the kind of things you have to figure out by playing more to actually understand them indepth. Not everything need to be spoonfed to you. The game could tell you everything you can do but you won't know WHY you should do it or not until you start mastering the game.
Because this really isn't an hard or unfair game at all, you just have to take the time to learn it.

Pretty damn great answer. Thanks. I appreciate it. Though I still think these things could be covered in game, at least with a short few messages like they did with wall running at stuff. I don't need to be spoonfed everything, but there are practically vital mechanics that could take ages to actually learn or realize naturally.

I was having a lot of trouble on that first numchuck boss until I eventually learned to slow the fuck down, be patient, and that for some reason, the game arbitrarily decided that strong attacks shouldn't work on him at all.

>Fuck cerberus

I'm still convinced I only managed to make it through that fight by sheer luck

I still don't get the pattern to his attacks or anything.

literally the worst version

at least the original had new game plus

Yeah it sure could have been handled better.

The thing about NG1 is that the fundamental moves are more important than pure weapons combos in the end, so you have to experiment more than other games focusing on the actual weapons move set to do anything.

Like, jumping on top of the human enemies seems useless at first, until you realize this actually stun them for enough time to land a launcher on them or attack someone else in peace
Or the guillotine throw move not only does a lot of damage on walls, but has a good lock-on to set up other moves such as the Flying Swallow (which cuts heads in one shot at the right range)
Most of NG is really about finding and especially creating an opening in the middle of all the attacks. That's why a good flow between attack and defense is important.
Pic related, that's NG2 but the same concept apply, if you're confident in what you're doing you will never ever get hit, no matter what stupid crap the game is throwing at you.

>Flying swallow (which cuts heads in one shot at close range)

Is this before or after the nerf in black?

It can still work in Black and Sigma

>tfw only have PS3 so only have sigma
I mean, some of the features it has are cool, but they need an HD port of Black.
I'm playing Razors Edge right now, it's pretty garbage.

>Not the fukken flying centipede

That was literally the easiest boss in the game

You... you do know that you can jump on it's back and hit the head with your sword to do huge damage, right?

...right?

I forget this boss exists it's so quick and easy.
Are you using A&R

It's damn hard to fight him without Trickster or Double Jump because he combos his moves a fucking lot and some of them can hit on air
Not to mention his head snap that comes literally out of nowhere

>that boss gauntlet before the final boss
>tfw had to do all of it (including demon guy in the underworld) without a single curative or ninpo-restoring item

Also FUCK ghost fish, they are by far the most annoying enemy I've ever met in a game.

oh my fucking god

how can i avoid such a fate?

i cant imagine doing all the bosses at once, let alone without healing items

couldn't you farm and buy some potions or something?

oh wait, you didn't say no HP stuff

my bad

Curatives = any sort of HP restoring item. Just be stocked up and don't expect to get to buy new ones after any boss, it's not a given. Most people generally run out of curatives at the underworld boss, then save, without realizing they won't get another chance to buy anything and there are 3 bosses ahead of them.

TL:DR keep well stocked with curatives and all that when you start nearing the end of the game.

your suffering will lessen my future pain user

for that, i thank you

>Is there a way to disable the resurrection scroll bullshit. I want to save it for a SUPER hard boss but every boss if I die it activates and I have to reset the whole game.

Jesus, you'll be able to complete the game no problem no need to reset the game.

Yellow stuff is currency.

Just spam jump + forward light attack back and forth. Gives you enough I frames to become immune to their attacks and shreds them easily. Good way to farm essence too.

That roll jump and then heavy attack makes the game almost easy once you get the hang of it.

>Are weapons easily missable?
No, but you can miss a few golden scarabs. However even if you do it shouldn't be a problem at all since the ultimate weapon you can get from collecting them all in Master Ninja isn't really needed to finish the game. It's helpful for the missions though.
At any rate don't stress over it until you're playing the highest difficulty.

>I'm getting frustrated since it seems like for the most part enemies don't respawn
Most of Ninja Gaiden Black's enemies are infinite, but if you want them to respawn sometimes you have to exit an area or move a few screens away and then come back.

t. Someone who completed NGB's MN and is currently playing the harder game, NG2 on Xbox 360, on Path of the Master Ninja.

Beat this game and dmc3 on normal mode as well as hard mode on the former, and why do people always say these games are harder than dark souls? They're much easier, unless you count their hardest difficulty, which honestly they should have the highest difficulty unlocked from the beginning. Why the fuck would I want to play the games 5 times to play at its hardest.

>why do people always say these games are harder than dark souls?
Not him but it should be obvious: you can't level up your stats and weapons until you're an unstoppable force of nature in NG and DMC.
If you grind and farm enough you can get stupidly strong in DaS to the point you could kill the bosses in a couple hits (or even a single one if you've the right equipment).
Plus summoning exists, giving you the option to tackle areas and bosses you find too hard with the help of other players.

good times

...

I guess, but shit like that never even crossed my mind. So would you say if you play dark souls the "legit" way, no summoning and no ridiculous farming it'd be more difficult than these games barring their hardest difficulty?

I will admit that the bosses in NGB were real assholes, and the first two>>>>Taurus and gargoyles. And no boss in DaS was as much of a kick to the scrotum as awakened alma was. I had much more difficulty getting through the levels in DaS though then in NHB and DMC3. Took me forever to get pas send fortress.

Also haven't played dmc3 in ages but couldn't you grind the lower levels if Cereberus and Agni and Rudrs give you trouble too?

No, but it'd still be a challenging game. Anyway don't concern too much with that, since all the mentioned games are perfectly doable for most players on their normal difficulties if they pay attention and try different approaches/types of weapons and strategies. The reason why these games are lauded as super hard is due ultra casual shitters and people who write reviews but lack the interest in video games to play them thru.

You can grind for currency but you can't increase your base stats. What you can do is buy as many healing items as you're permitted to. It'll greatly help but it still can't make the game a cakewalk.

*can't increase your base stats to the point it'd nullify the challenge, like in a DaS's first run.

>Why the fuck would I want to play the games 5 times to play at its hardest.
It's sort of bullshit but it makes perfect sense for their design. You're expected to have all the moves you can unlock and be somewhat proficient with them by the time you get to the harder modes. They're balanced for experienced players, a newbie will get torn apart in seconds and won't even make it past the tutorials.

You can just farm ghost fish and run back to Muramasas shop. Then buy literally everything.

Black is harder, but in standard NG you can cheese the final bosses so hard with ninpo and all those sweet devil elixers.