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Great game, but should have been better of the PS2

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 2 / 2
Date: March 16, 2003
Author: Amazon User

I own the previous two Tenchu games (both of which are PSX/1 games). The first game was amazing, then second lost a lot of the gameplay and tried to expand too much and lost the play-control. For this version they seem to have learned from their sequel's mistakes and made this game very true to the first one. It's great fun to sneak around on rooftops and watch enemies, drop down and slit their throat without them noticing you, and the controls let you pull most of it off like it was second nature after you quickly learn them. This makes the game very immersive.

The largest problem with this game is a common problem with most games today. The camera code sucks. It's especially bad when you're fighting and use the "Lock on" button to keep yourself facing your opponent. At this point the camera just lines itself up with you and your opponent -- too bad that means that you complete block your own view of your opponent. You don't know when they're going to strike which means you get hit a lot in straight fights. Two days worth of coding a camera that would stay on your side when you got into a fight would have made this game a lot better in that respect. (One other place where this character occlusion becomes a problem is with the "Ninja Sight" ability you can get, which is basically a zoom. Too bad the back of your head takes up 60% of the screen when you're zoomed in all the way....)

Now that problem becomes minimal when you play this game the way it was meant to be -- all sneaking and killing people in the one-shot kills from behind. But there is at least one point in the game where they force you into head-to-head fights and it can get very frustrating.

The other problems with this game are that the levels art and the game engine isn't as amazing at it could be. There are plenty of PS2 games that look better with the same size levels. Don't get me wrong -- the game doesn't look bad, but it doesn't look great. AI is taken right from the first game I think actually; I haven't noticed much difference. That's not a bad thing, but it's not the improvement they might have made on a faster machine. The last complaint I have is that the "finishing-move" animations are very limited -- I think there are 5 or 6 total. You get a little tired of them after a while; it would have been cool to have a little more variety, especially when you get someone from behind (the most common direction).

Back to the good things. The music and sound are quite good. I actually play by ear a lot, and can do it fairly well. The music tends to be unobtrusive but nice to listen to. Also, each level is laid out three different ways (different enemy layouts, not level geometry layouts) which lends to a good replay (well, two good replays really). There are multiple endings (which I have yet to get to ). There are multiplayer Co-op and deathmatch which I have yet to play, but probably suffer a little from the fact that a split screen is a small screen. And the most important thing is that the game is fun!

Hard Core

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 2 / 2
Date: April 12, 2003
Author: Amazon User

OK, i wrote a review before, then i played it a bunch, so im changing my view. This game really is one of the best games for ps2 yet. top 5 for sure. The AI is pretty good in open areas, bad in close quarters where you can duck around a corner. the levels are pretty expansive compared to the last 2 games. they change only slightly from person to person. the bosses are pretty cool, but fairly easy. the real challenge is in the stalking. they put you in a few situations where you really have to plan your course of action, which is awesome. The stealth kills are dope, of course, and theres a new feature where on each level, if you get nine stealth kills, you get a new move, (ninja vision, hanging from ceiling, faking your own death, etc.). this motivates you to stay silent and stealthy, which, of course is the whole point. yes, the camera angles are bothersome, but fairly trivial in the face of an excellent game. Its really fun, pretty, and challenging. take it from an artist: this game is VERY good looking. I would give it ten thumbs up. rent it, buy it, borrow it, just get it in your PS2. oh, and be quiet!

Good game but could be Better

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 2 / 2
Date: April 21, 2003
Author: Amazon User

When it comes to gameplay Tenchu 3 is great, no, FANTASTIC! Character animation, background animation and sound effects are all well beyond a high level in action/adventure games and it has a good storyline and plot. However, to me personally, the game didn't have that good of a character depth when it comes to the enemies and unlike Tenchu 2, Rikimaru and Ayame's levels are all the same except they come in a different orders. When you pass the game and see the ending movie its sort of short and leaves the game feeling a bit unfinished. The game is sort of a little too much like Tenchu: Stealth Assassins and needs a little bit more uniqueness like Tenchu 2: Birth Of The Stealth Assassins. But in the end, Tenchu 3 is still a good game and I would recommend if you never played any game in the Tenchu series to at least play the first two games so you can understand the characters and the game more. If you're a veteran of Tenchu, then this game is must buy.

plenty of action - not enough stealth

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 2 / 2
Date: April 27, 2004
Author: Amazon User

These days the term "stealth action" is used so often around the gaming industry its ever-broaden definition ranges from titles like MGS franchise to Splinter Cell to Hitman to many other less-known imitators. To many the notion of out-smart your foes is much more rewarding than blasting them into pieces. Techu:WOH falls somewhere in between that line though it offers greater amount of gore, blood and various type of instant-kills where you character sneaks up from behind the unfortunate and quite deaf guard and slice his throat or break his spine. In fact, it is the preferred way to eliminate the enemies you encounter because AI is quite effecient in blocking your attack should you choose to greet them face-to-face.

Control of this game can be quite cumbersome from time to time as WOH offers more than a few slick moves you can perform while investigating the surroundings and fighting for your life. Tricky camera angles can present the source of frustration for some. Over all the game's fast pace proves to be quite entertaining and the co-ops mode allows you to have more ways of taking out guards than you can ever imagine...

Words of advice - if you constantly find yourself being surrounded by multiple guards who's trying to stick their spears through you, you are not playing this game right.

THIS GAME IS THE BEST EVER!!!!!!!!!

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 2 / 2
Date: May 20, 2004
Author: Amazon User

I have played all three of the Tenchu games, and this by far is the best. I always loved the ninja-type gameplay, but i really thought the graphics sucked. When i got Tenchu: Wrath of Heaven I was amazed at how much better the graphics were. This is number one on my list of favorite ps2 games. EVERYONE SHOULD BUY THIS GAME BECAUSE IT ROCKS!

This is Ninja

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 2 / 2
Date: May 21, 2006
Author: Amazon User

Tenchu 2 was once claimed to be the goriest game of all time. In many ways it lived up to the hype with its stealth kills. Tenchu 3 turns up the graphics, gameplay and stealth kills by a factor of 10 and then some more. Hopping across roof tops with your ninja blade looking for the enemy to perform a drop down standing on shoulders head through jaw thrust or a heart pull just makes this game a lot beyond want you have seen on the PS2 before. By the time the credits roll you would have been through a Ninja experience like-no-other. I can't believe how fierce this was to play. There is nothing, and I mean nothing, out there that plays quite like this. Imagine Solid Snake in MGSIII but with ninja skills. The game is as good as that.

Note: I am very surprised by the 15 cert on the game. It looks like whoever reviewed this game for content advisory probably didn't perform all the moves correctly. This should be 18 cert for good reason. There are murders moves in the game that would rank up there with "Manhunt".

This is not a game to buy, but worth renting

2 Rating: 2, Useful: 3 / 5
Date: August 06, 2003
Author: Amazon User

This game is pretty fun the first time around but it only takes about 5 hours to beat. Then you can try and do it with a different character on the exact same levels with slightly different situations, you'll find that beating a level the first time is pretty fun but doing it again is just an annoying chore.

The graphics are excellent for the opening video and the main characters, but thats it all the other characters graphics are second rate and the surroundings have horrible lighting and barely any detail.

The plot has to be the worst part about this game, but if you would buy it based on everything i said before this your probally not the kind of person that cares about the plot, you just wanna kill some people right? well even that is no fun at all, you sneak up behind them press square and it shows rikimaru either slitting their throat, stabbing them in the back, or a couple of other action sequences, killing like this is fun for the first level than its just old. If you want a game for killing just go to Devil May Cry or Devil May cry 2.

Overall this game just isnt worth buying, if you want to buy a ninja game that is challenging fun and has replay value go for Shinobi. Dont make the mistake of buying it like i did becuase then you'll just end up selling it on ebay 5 days later.

BTW: The last boss has to be a joke hes easier than fighting ayame's imposter, its hard to get close but before the last level just stock up on shurikens and pick them up on the way, when you fight tenrai simply avoid his lame attacks and throw them at him one at a time. This game has horrible A.I. when compared to other stealth games Like Metal Gear Solid 2.

Bad review wussies...

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 2 / 3
Date: March 11, 2003
Author: Amazon User

For one, this game is based on stealth. Duh, haven't you played the other tenchu's? Who wants to run around picking fights head on like every other game out there when you can sneak up on an unsespecting victim and turn them into quivering bloody sushi? The graphics are tremendous and the game play is incredible. It takes patience and technique to play this game, so if you're a run around and just push buttons moron like the others who wrote bad reviews because they don't have a clue about stealth or tactics, then stay clear. Because death usually comes from one swift, unsespecting blow. Not from a life bar. Bunch of wussies.

This is what I live for

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 2 / 3
Date: March 16, 2003
Author: Amazon User

I am a huge fan of the tenchu saga and must say that this game continues the greatness of each story. I play games where hand to hand combat is the key but I mean just emagine sticking to the ceiling waiting for the enemy to walk under you then smack you land feet on his shoulders with your sword jamed in their unsuspecting head, and if thats not enough to convince you how great this game is then place your self with a man walking around a corner and he wont come to you so you cant stealth kill then cut your own throught or stab yourself in the gut to trick them in to coming over to you and when they get up next to you to stab your double blades into thier face then run back to the shadows and then stealth kill his friend

The series that pioneered stealth action is back with style.

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 2 / 3
Date: May 03, 2003
Author: Amazon User

Before the breakout hit SPLINTER CELL, before THE MARK OF KRI, even before METAL GEAR SOLID, there was TENCHU: STEALTH ASSASSINS, an Activision release for the PS One that pioneered the stealth-action subgenre in style. While the game may seem painfully dated now, TENCHU featured innovative gameplay focused on the idea of lurking in shadows, moving without being seen, and killing mercilessly when the opportunity arose. After forcing fans of this phenomenal and groundbreaking title to endure an awful follow-up in the form of TENCHU 2: BIRTH OF THE STEALTH ASSASSINS, Activision has given them TENCHU: WRATH OF HEAVEN, a PS2 installment that is everything that the original was and more.

The first and most obvious improvement is graphical. TENCHU: WRATH OF HEAVEN looks terrific, with attractive character models and moody environments. Certainly there are better-looking games on the PS2, but TENCHU: WRATH OF HEAVEN gets the job done very well. Both of the original gameýs heroes, Rikimaru and Ayame, return looking truly spectacular. The gameýs graphical engine renders them in fine detail, all the way down to the glint of light off the blades of their weapons. Similarly, the seriesý trademark ýstealth killsý return with a gory vengeance. Pulling off a successful attack on an enemy while remaining unseen prompts a short rendering of that enemyýs truly brutal death. Each stealth kill moves the player closer to unlocking hidden abilities that, in turn, make further stealth kills even easier. Itýs a vicious and addictive cycle.

Gameplay remains the core of the gameýs appeal. Rikimaru and Ayame each have ten missions. Once these are finished, aspiring ninja masters can follow the exploits of a new character, the doctor-assassin Tesshu, over six more missions. Every mission features three layouts that alter the number and position of enemies and collectible items. Once a player has worked his or her way through all of these variations, they will have conquered 78 different assignments! A final, secret level is available to those who have truly mastered the game by obtaining the highest rating on all the available missions.

Getting through those missions unseen while doing the most damage possible to the enemy is what makes TENCHU: WRATH OF HEAVEN so absorbing. While it may not seem like a thrill to replay the same level three times, this constant repetition allows the player to become intimately familiar with the large environments, and thereby learn the best way to kill without being seen. Some of the areas teem with enemies, and only constant practice will allow a player to slip in and kill without being spotted. Earning top honors with a high score on a tough level can be deeply satisfying.

Unfortunately, TENCHU: WRATH OF HEAVEN suffers from an occasionally sluggish camera. The controls are much improved over previous installments in the series, but can sometimes be more deadly than the enemy when the player is in a tight spot. No matter. These are small prices to pay for the visceral thrills TENCHU: WRATH OF HEAVEN offers.

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