Another paragraph, another gripe - but as much satisfaction as we gleaned from the unique combination of careful blocking, dodging and rapid fire combos that victory in Gaiden 1 demanded, there was never enough of a visual reward for our efforts. After all, disappearing corpses in this day and age frankly isn't acceptable.
Not any more though, friends. How's about being drenched in arterial spray, lopping limbs off like sheaves of ripe corn and disemboweling your foes to the extent that you'll be able to tell just what the SOBs had for breakfast? These mothers don't die, they explode - covering Ryu in giblets and turning our furrowed brows into beaming grins. Awesome.
Moving at a much faster, slicker pace than its predecessor, our ten minute encounter with Gaiden 2 passed by fairly breathlessly as our PVC-clad hero scythed and razor-clawed (changing weapons is now mapped to the D-pad - yay!) his way in joyous 60fps through the winding streets, waterways and markets of Venice (referred to here as, er, 'Aqua Capital'). The overall aesthetic was achingly beautiful and strikingly reminiscent of Devil May Cry 4's awesome architecture as Hayabusa tore his enemies asunder - although that pesky camera still hid enemies at times; a problem we hope will get sorted.
Ryu's also got new moves, like devastating hurricane and fire Ninpos that alternatively toss/torch bad guys if they dare to back him into a corner. As Hayabusa continued to lop off heads with his gigantic scythe, we couldn't help but gape at the sheer visceral nature of the carnage - even God of War isn't this sick and that's saying something...
