They believe. And so do I. Tenchu: Wrath of Heaven is a study in how to make a sequel right. The rigorous development shows that the new team K2 has tried to glean the best aspects of the previous two games and has in turn attempted to consolidate great action and stealth elements into a cohesive whole. For the most part, K2 has done just that. Tenchu: Wrath of Heaven is not going to bowl over the amazing AI routines, incredible graphics or unflinchingly good control shown in Konami's Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty -- the most notable stealth game on PS2 -- but in its on way, perhaps on a smaller, more focused level, K2's game is a pure thing, a game entirely dedicated to the beauty of the stealth kill, dealt exclusively by ninjas, with ninja tools, in ancient Japan. Shurikens, poisonous darts, exploding ninja stars, grappling hooks, caltrops, smoke bombs, magic spells, warring clans, magic portals, demon spells -- these guys don't miss a beat in delivering an all-encompassing, authentic ninja game.
In its third attempt at making the ultimate ninja simulator, Activision, for all intents and purposes, succeeds. Tenchu: Wrath of Heaven focuses on the best combat mechanics the series has ever seen, elevates the gameplay with multiple paths, loads it up with new weapons and returning characters, and finally encourages the stealth kill with more rigor than ever before in a seamless fashion, with a reward system giving gamers some of the coolest moves any gamer could want.
Story
As a true sequel to the first Tenchu, Tenchu: Wrath of Heaven answers long sought-after questions about the fate of Lord Mei-Oh and the game's primary star, Rikimaru. The original Tenchu took place in the mid-1570s, amongst a chaotic and dangerous time in feudal Japan. Rikimaru and Ayame were sent to keep order amongst the warring factions, ordered by their master, Lord Gohda, and while Ayame lived through the ordeal, Rikimaru didn't. Tenchu II: Birth of the Assassins was a prequel to the original, more of less showing the development of the two ninjas, and now we have the mother of all sequels, Tenchu: Wrath of Heaven. More or less, that is.
Set one year after the events of the original Tenchu game, Tenchu: Wrath of Heaven tells the story of Rikimaru's return and his battle with Tenrai, an evil sorcerer -- and the cunning and still living master of evil, Mei-oh. At least, that's what's going on at the surface level. Rikimaru returns from the supposed dead, having lived in a magical time portal, and having mastered the way of using his "shadow." His return is required because of the violent rebellion and civil strife erupting throughout Japan, and in the bigger picture, because Tenrai is corralling six lords of darkness and an unstoppable army of ninjas to conquer the country. Tenrai's goal is to attain a powerful sword capable of granting great power to the one who holds it. When Rikimaru goes on a routine assassination mission, he and Ayame learn of a secret deal that tips them off to more evil-doings, which then reveals even more of Tenrai's plans. The new and third playable character, Tesshu, replaces Tenchu: Birth of the Assassins's third character, Tatsumaru. He is a doctor by day, hired assassin by night, and his story works into the whole plot as well.
The story is itself a simple battle of good versus evil. Whoever gets the sword first wins. But what Activision has done so well this time is to layer the three stories of Rikimaru, Ayame and Tesshu into one rich narrative. You play through as say, Rikimaru, and you'll get one side of the story, but when you play though again as Ayame or Tesshu, you'll get another angle on the same story, completing the pieces of the puzzle left unsolved from the first time through. Only by playing through the game three times with all characters will you reveal the major twists and turns and get the full scoop.
Gameplay
If you have played the previous two Tenchu games, then you'll notice that Tenchu: Wrath of Heaven is unchanged at its core. Players have the choice of selecting from two characters, Rikimaru or Ayame (Tesshu is unlockable after beating the game with the previous two characters), and as each mission is prepared, a selection of items precedes each level's micro-story. Shown from a third-person perspective with both an automatic and an effective manual camera, Wrath of Heaven enables players to search out enemies in their path, kill them by either stealth or straight combat, collect items, and kill the boss at the level's end. The camera system is good and once you learn to maximize the use of the manual camera, it's as effective as any respectable cameras in other games. There are a few occasions when the camera just doesn't go where one wants it to, but that remains to be the core flaw in 99% of the 3D games I have played since Super Mario 64. Ninety percent of the time the camera is A-OK.
To score big in Wrath of Heaven players must remain in the shadows. You earn the most points by effectively remaining unseen, killing by stealth, keeping noncombatants alive, and by collecting items. By earning higher scores you'll unlock different types and more ninja items for the next mission; there are 30 items in total, from invisibility spells, grappling hook attacks, animal calls, smoke bombs, explosive bombs, poison rice, animals traps, blow pipes, undead swords and more.
The point system works like this: 20 points per stealth kill; 5 per normal kill. You earn 450 points for not being spotted at all. You'll be spotted 150 points the first time you're seen, and you'll lose 30 points each time thereafter. For killing noncombatants, you'll lose 50 points. Players have a Life Meter, a Kuji Meter, and a Ki Meter. The Life Meter measures your health; the Kuji Meter indicates the amount of stealth moves you have dealt, and the Ki meter indicates the distance of your enemy, even if you can't see it. And the inventory system, located at the bottom right of the screen, reads which item you currently have selected.
Unlike the first game, which provided difficult camera angles and annoying control, and the second game, which featured too much action, too little stealth and annoying control, Wrath of Heaven is a carefully weighed title that evenly delivers the goods on all fronts. Players are encouraged to kill by stealth, but if they get caught, the combat system is favorable. First, by pressing R2, players can lock onto their enemies, during which they can strafe, run in for a quick attack, or evade. Tenchu was never a great fighting game, and while it's still not the best out there, the lock-on feature helps make combat more fun and effective. Likewise, the 60-frame-per-second action rarely misses a beat, giving players a sense of quickness and speed. Players can attack from somersault jumps, or deliver brutal leaping stealth attacks from second story floors, third-story cliffs or the like, the latter being very satisfying. I feel that while the combat system isn't brilliant, it was an incremental improvement over the last two, but more significantly it's far more tuned as a fighting game than ever before. After all, K2 comprises former talent from SNK and Capcom.
The new moves greatly complement the improved combat engine. As an incentive to kill by stealth, Activision gives players a new special ninja attack after 10 stealth kills in a level. Moves such as powerful combo attacks, ninja vision, clinging to ceilings, feigned death, enemy-attack-enemy spells and even a move called the "Wrath of Heaven" add variation and a great deal of satisfaction to the overall game. Players can earn up to nine special moves per character. Most of them are excellent, and by this I mean, they add just the right touch of ninja specialties that a game of this kind needs to differentiate it from other stealth and action games. Performing a grappling hook combo is killer; using the wall clinging move is unrivaled good fun; and using ninja vision is very helpful in larger levels. In all, they new moves make the game better. My only dissatisfaction is with the feigning death move, which doesn't work as well in practice as it does in theory. In this move, you slit your throat and pretend to be dead. An enemy comes up and studies you, after which you instantly leap up and attack it. Only usually, the enemy isn't standing close enough for you for you to actually hit it when leaping up. The usual result, then, is that you lose points by being spotted and you lose health. Not so good.
As the game progresses, the enemies gather in groups and become more deadly. You'll meet up with martial arts characters that deliver spinning helicopter kicks and similar combos of their own, ninjas that can slit your throat, killing you instantly, and enemies that read you moves better than they ever have in this series.
Speaking of enemy patterns, the enemy AI is much like the enemy AI in previous games, meaning it's pretty good, followed by some pretty bad routines. It's a hard balance to get right, and K2 has done a fair job of getting this AI mostly down pat. The major improvements appear in combat. Like I said earlier, enemies have grown smarter in combat, blocking at the right times, attacking with quickness and timeliness, somersaulting over your head, or by using suicide bombs in their death throws or hurling bombs at you as you try to escape. In combat, they are substantially better to fight against.
However, they don't place very well in the other areas, specifically detection. Their range of sight isn't very long, and they rarely see you on roofs. Worse, however, is that most enemies will lose you if you jump onto a roof. Which is stupid. They do similarly poor jobs of following too. If you run away, usually they'll stop short and yell something like, "Yeah! Runaway, loser!" After which you sneak up on them and slice their heads off or stab your sword through their skulls. Heh. One of the worst cases of enemy AI was when I was fighting a horned creature and he stepped behind a column while I stood back in a defensive position. He then stopped and said, "Huh? Lost him!" I hadn't moved, but he stopped strafing or got stuck against the pillar, and couldn't see me anymore. He then began his series of circles and stances, and I snuck up behind him and detached his head from his body. It was funny, in a sad kind of way.
What I like this time around is the improved level design. In the Bamboo Forest, for instance, there are multiple paths throughout the level. There are hidden tunnels to crawl through, sneaky side routes over cliff tops, multiple footpaths and plenty of cavern hallways, just in this one level. You can beat a level and miss several different paths, so there is good incentive to play through them again. Additionally, each time you beat a level, you unlock a different mission scenario. They are two alternative mission scenarios per level. I also enjoy the platform-like level design. The Limestone Caverns offer an excellent set of hallways and platform-style areas to sneak through using smart grappling hook techniques and staying careful of bottomless pits. One level, the Amagai Castle is based entirely on tricks and traps, swiveling secret doors and trick rooms that lock you inside with gas or explosives. No level is designed with extraordinary surprising design, none are stunning or brilliant, but they're all solidly built, good-looking and fun. And if you have played the last two games, there are enough changes and improvements to make any Tenchu fan very happy.
Lastly, there are little things I like about the improvements and changes. There are lots of enemies and creatures this time around: Cats that alert guards, werewolves that tear into your arms, snowy wraiths, short-skirted enemy ninjas, and a great set of bosses. In the Bamboo level, there is a natural spring that regenerates your health. There is a cool invisibility spell Ayame earns that turns her invisible for a brief period of time, and the giant boss, Ganda, is a kick-ass monster, who handles you like Zangief from Street Fighter. Oh yeah, the Cemetery mode is great fun too. There are even different endings. At one point in the game you make a choice that alters the ending for each character. It's very cool stuff.
Also, though I lamented the loss of the create-a-level mode, swimming and carrying bodies, after I got my hands on this game and played through three or four levels, I totally forgot about them. It should be noted that the two-player modes are exceptionally fun. They are probably the game's biggest surprise. They're REALLY fun. Versus is a pure beat-'em-up that challenges your every skill against another human and a horde of hungry AI enemies. The co-op is also great fun to play with a friend, especially given the various styles of missions. Also, it should be known that the game is packed with extras: Thirty items, and about 16 different characters to fight with in Multi-player mode, plus multiple endings per character.
Graphics
In the same way that Wrath of Heaven is a good, respectably playing game, it's also a good, solid looking game. There is nothing too flashy about it, nor is there anything insanely technically superior about its looks, but it's better looking than a lot of games, and it does lots of little things well.
First, the character models are excellent looking. Rikimaru and Ayame look much like they did before, but they're created with thousands more polygons, layers of detailed clothes lots of vertical hair, and excellent animations. They're exceedingly quick and fluid moving characters. The backgrounds also are generally good looking. The Bamboo forest is lush and green, artfully done, and created with a style that blends a little bit of realism with a subtle art style that's consistent throughout the title. The Limestone Cavern sparkles with jewels and crystals, and the scene above the ocean cliffs is unexpectedly cool, even if its rather plain looking. Ronin Village and the Cemetery are also solidly built. The levels are mid-sized, but because you'll take time to sneak through them, they seem longer and bigger. What the designers did really well is to make long, compact levels.
The game is packed with seamless cutscenes. Each time you execute a stealth kill -- boom -- cutscene. Every time you see a boss, sub-boss, or experience the final scene in the game, another cutscene ensues. They're all handled seamlessly. There are some moderately cool special effects. Characters clash in same-time attacks, and sparks fly (just as they do when you scrape a sword across the rocks). There is no end to the spraying, gurgling, spouting blood from enemy necks and so you'll see lots of that. The water is pretty good looking, while everything is well lit with realtime lighting. Anytime there is a fire, check your character's coloring. There is a nice bit of rain that sprinkles down on you, and the snow in the Bamboo forest is soft and pretty looking. All in all, it's a better than average looking game, with an emphasis on great character design, fast framerates and clean, smooth animations.
Sound
Given its stealth roots, Wrath of Heaven puts an emphasis on sound effects. While the AI might be a little lame in detecting where you are visually, it has Daredevil-like hearing abilities. You do an extraordinary amount of listening to sound effects, from crackling fire, gurgling water, listening to enemy footsteps and conversation, to the sounds you make. It's a deceptively aural game that's very good at delivering good, crisp sounds and working well in all aspects in reaction to sound.
As is the tradition with Tenchu, the music in Wrath of Heaven is excellent, traditional and Japanese in style. Activision has mixed traditional Japanese themes with archaic instruments and electronic sounds of nature, and whether its wind or water, it sounds beautiful. The lead song is hauntingly beautiful, and there isn't a single bad song in the bunch of tunes throughout the game. Even the music for the menus is excellent. I would buy the soundtrack if they sold one. There is only one song, which is found in the Tenrai Temples that is annoying. Actually, I really like the song, but it's loud, percussive and clanging, with little sound effects that replicate enemy sounds. Oftentimes I am distracted by the song's sounds, thinking that an enemy is sneaking up on me.
The voice acting is...pretty OK. It's not great stuff, but in a way, the level of camp is funny enough that it makes up for the lack of content. The conversations between you and your fellow ninjas, and you and the enemy bosses are, naturally, direct, emphatic and dry. The conversations between the enemies are far more entertaining. In one, you hear an enemy say, " I heard there are some sneaky characters over near the caves [or something like that]." "Yeah, well, why don't you go over there and do something about it?" "Ah, my doctor said that with my back in such condition, I should take it easy." Or another conversation with another guard who loves his "high paying job." In short, they're funny little one-liners that are just kitsch enough to put a smile on one's face.
Verdict
Tenchu: Wrath of Heaven grows on you. It's not the best-looking game and in some ways it still has a few problems. Also, it's not a huge production like Grand Theft Auto, Metal Gear Solid or Final Fantasy, which takes some of the fire and hype away from its delivery. But to me, that's the beauty of it. Because it's a very good stealth game that gets better as you play. It's better in most obvious and in many subtle ways than its predecessors, and it looks to me like it has become the leading ninja game on any console.
The combat engine is solid, the new moves are great, and the stealth-reward system is an excellent, tried-and-true technique that works perfectly here. It's still filled with deadly stealth kills and gallons of blood, and each character looks, moves and feels different than the other. Ayame is surprisingly fun to play with her acrobatic attacks, and Tesshu is the coolest new addition ever. A damn fine addition to anyone's PS2 library.
