Heavenly Sword demo too short? Watch these vids
by Andrew Yoon 
{ Jul 28th 2007 at 12:00AM }
We're sorry that the playable Heavenly Sword demo that was recently released on the PlayStation Store is so short. Instead or providing you with the meaty experience we received at E3, Sony decided to give you about five minutes of gameplay -- a mere tease that might mask how truly brilliant Heavenly Sword truly is. Don't be fooled: as we said before, this is not meant to be God of War -- it's far more methodically paced than Sony's Greek epic.
In lieu of an extended gameplay experience, the best we can offer are these videos from GameVideos.com. Watch as Nariko devastates a small army of minions with her stylish moves. We've become enamored by Nariko and hope that the final game is as good as we hope it'll be.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
DanMacMan @ Jul 28th 2007 12:14AM
Interesting that you say its a short demo, considering it is nearly a 1GB download...
Todd @ Jul 28th 2007 12:27AM
I didn't find the demo very fun to play. I didn't think Nariko controlled very well.
Michael K. @ Jul 28th 2007 12:31AM
The heavenly sword demo wasnt only short, it sucked.
sam-evans @ Jul 28th 2007 12:34AM
An update to the demo would be good to see as such a short demo would put off quite a few potential buyers who were disapointed with the demo
Wayne @ Jul 28th 2007 12:39AM
I wan't too impressed with the demo. The battle system is complicated, but you get no time to use it.
Cagalli @ Jul 28th 2007 12:40AM
The demo is from an old build, according to the developers on the official Ninja Theory forums.
cheese @ Jul 28th 2007 1:11AM
complicated... did you even bother to go check out the control setting to figure out how it works?
Andy @ Jul 28th 2007 1:50AM
I liked the demo and you know what I find funny. The opening cinematic sequence probably was 15% of the file size.
I love throwing things(sometimes people) at the enemies. Good demo though.
The only thing that bothered me was how chunky the redhead's hair looked. I compare it to her sister on drugs who had much more realistic hair and more polygons to her face.
zoltari @ Jul 28th 2007 2:01AM
Did anyone else notice a really bad video tearing issue when running side to side?
Hope this really was on old build, 'cos if the release version is like this I really can't see what all the hype has been about.
pdoggeth @ Jul 28th 2007 2:17AM
I hate to say it, but the demo left me entirely unimpressed. Perhaps it was from playing Ninja Gaiden Sigma too much, but what the smeg is this 30 fps deal? Yeah, things look really beautiful, but it's terribly jerky.
iDzlla @ Jul 28th 2007 2:20AM
I'm enjoying the hell out of the demo...
I've played it maybe 15 times now, each time trying to learn a different aspect of her varied fighting moves -- not just the different stances, but breaking your opponent's blocks, aerial combos, counter attacks after blocking, using the sword to knock objects at your enemies, etc.
I definitely see the God of War comparisons, but the fighting really has *so* much more depth to it -- there are 12 screens of instructions on what she can do.
I wasn't expecting to have 20 minutes of the story revealed... a demo's supposed to leave you wanting more. I just wanted to finally wield that sword. ;)
DownwardMonkey @ Jul 28th 2007 3:04AM
No offence to some people here but I think it's clear to anyone that bothered to look at the control/combo/stance/break lists that there is going to be way more to this game than the demo had to show. I thought it was amazing. What the hell do people expect from a demo?!
Stellarpimp @ Jul 28th 2007 3:49AM
I don't know what these guys are on but this is hands down the best demo I've ever played. I do hope once this game is complete that it will give many hours of game play and a story equal to or greater than God of War. I didn't see any of the tearing you spoke of on my system (trust me I was looking for something to be wrong). The only game that I've had the tearing issue was with Ninja Gaiden.
I wonder how big this game actually is though... That short demo was damn near one gig worth. There is ONLY 50gigs on the disk (like how I said ONLY)...one thing is for sure we will never hear of this game getting ported. Mess around and use 5 disk on the first level on a 360(do note I'm exaggerating a bit).
This has shapped up to be a must haver period!
clavian @ Jul 28th 2007 4:55AM
I've played the demo about 5 times now, and I guess I'm just not noticing the choppy framerate that people ate complaining about...? To me, it looks and plays great. If you are looking for a button mashing beat-em-up, this is NOT it. Very deep, very intricate. Delicious.
insane257 @ Jul 28th 2007 4:55AM
the demo was AWFUL. It was just like Genji. I bought my PS3 for nex-gen gaming, not these awful 'Ninja' games. I will not be buying this rubbish.
Laurens Holst @ Jul 28th 2007 5:25AM
Yeah, I liked the demo even though it was too short. Played it a couple of times, testing out the different stances and such, and it seemed pretty solid; also saw some footage on Kotaku of the entire 2nd chapter of the game, it seemed real nice and contained different modes of battle such as sniping enemies with remote-controlled arrows and fighting some enemy that throws waves of water at you.
It’s also fun to toy with the different translations; the Dutch one isn’t so good I think (compared to the English), but it’s cool to see Nariko speak French or German or even Finnish :). When I have the full game I might even re-play the game in a different language just for the fun of it ^_^.
@15, I haven’t played Genji, but Heavenly Sword doesn’t resemble Ninja Gaiden at all. And Genji got such terrible reviews, I didn’t even bother buying it, so I find it hard to believe that this game is anything like that. Plus, I’m glad there’s something other than FPS games to enjoy, because *that’s* definitely a genre that I’m sick and tired of.
DownwardMonkey @ Jul 28th 2007 7:15AM
@16 I agree with EVERY word you said, I loved playing with the different translations! I'm also SICK of FPS games.
Jldowning @ Jul 28th 2007 8:02AM
@ 15
Translation: "I only like FPS's BOOM HEADSHOT, NO SCOPE! NO SCOPE!"
@ Everyone.
Lol ok for real though, the Demo leaves you wanting, so play it about 15 times like I did, learn the controls and combos, and you will LOVE this game.
This game is sure to be a MUST have for any PS3 owner with their eyes on anything other then the next FPS.
Don't go into this game expecting Goddes of War, LEARN the game, and you will LOVE the game.
doug @ Jul 28th 2007 9:06AM
The only thing this game has in common with God of War is Narikos ranged stance (which really doesnt even seem the same when actually used)and the fact that its made by Sony.
DownwardMonkey @ Jul 28th 2007 9:53AM
@19. Shock horror, some people like a game some don't! Whoa didn't know that could happen. News flash, I hated Halo and WoW that didn't stop them being massive hits.
Thomas @ Jul 28th 2007 11:17AM
I dont care what the nay sayers say, I don't care about the reviews that probably won't give the game credit when its released.. This is definitely a day one purchase for me, I've been impressed with the game since November... as HS is really supposed to had been a launch game. The demo is really just for people to get used to the fighting, great games don't need long demos... HS franchise is going to be as big as God of War... this is a launch game.... first generation ps3 game, I'm so impressed I can't imagine it looking better in part 2.
Bran8 @ Jul 28th 2007 12:09PM
I downloaded the demo yesterday and have played it 3 or 4 times. The introduction cut scene has a lot of frame drops. I watched a posted video of the same cutscene and don't see the problem. Is anyone else seeing this in the demo? I have the 20GB PS3.
Michael K. @ Jul 28th 2007 1:49PM
I'm just glad that they put demos of crappy games like this and ninja gaiden on the psn so I know not to buy them, I was actually excited for both of them, i like the genre, but they are just mindless trash that dont control well.
DownwardMonkey @ Jul 28th 2007 8:51PM
Some of the comments here are getting kinda funny now, they kinda show that people have played the demo once, turned it off and come here to moan that they don't like it.
Post 21, learn how to play the game. They are not meant to get up, if you do the combos/counters right they won't get up and if they are still alive kill them on the ground and they won't get up again.
Post 24 the game is anything but a mindless thrash. It's a demo, it's not meant to show us everything, the game requires learning the block breaks and using the different L1/R1 stances because each of the 3 stances will only block certain types of attacks.
shawn piazza @ Jul 30th 2007 1:49AM
after playing the 1gb demo, it made me wonder. How long will this game be? It has to fit on a blu-ray disc which is huge, but 5minutes for 1gb worries me....
Oz @ Jul 29th 2007 12:10PM
I liked the demo - the fighting style is very different, but I also had that frame rate issue. I don't think it is anything to fret over because I had the same issues with the ninja gaiden demo. And when I bought the game it was non-existant
Consolcwby @ Jul 29th 2007 11:28PM
X_x ...i wonder wtf some people were expecting... x_X
Okay. Allow me to reiterate what some people here are saying: If you are playing this as a button masher, you are playing it wrong. Let me repeat: You are playing it wrong.
This game is much more subtle in it's execution than I was expecting, and as such, I can understand all the people here saying it's shallow. The first time I played, I was mashing those buttons like crazy. Then I read the instructions. And I was like: O.O WTF??!!... So, after reading and rereading the instructions for 10 minutes (making mental notes on what each and every button and sixaxis movement was basically for) I replayed the demo. And I was hooked. BIG TIME. So now I keep playing this damned demo, getting better and better at the core mechanics while always finding a new strategy I hadn't thought of before. If I take my time, allowing the enemies to come to me and countering them one by one, then the demo lasts about 20 minutes for me. If I rush through them, executing combos then it takes me about 2 minutes. I find that a more relaxed approach on the first level (the tower top) is the best. I like to use counters here, and execute a difficult block breaking combo every so often, until my style gauge is full. I NEVER press the O button here! So, once I get to the 2nd level (the plaza??) after the tower has crashed down, I usually go over to a baddie, and after hitting him with a single blow, I THEN press O and watch the fun! 2nd level cleared! =o THAT'S RIGHT! To clear the plaza, it can only take about 5 seconds tops... That is, if I WANT to do it this way. THAT'S what I like about this game the most - it's deep enough to allow me to play it in different ways and styles. Unless you can tell me you've executed an aerial combo - you haven't played the demo yet. At least not correctly! At least not intelligently. And THAT'S the thing Heavenly Sword has over GOW. Intelligent game play. I guess that's why so many people missed the point. =o
On a side note, I have not experienced ANY tearing or shearing with the demo thus far. I've played it about 20-25 times and it looks good to me. As far as demos are concerned, it's stable, looks good, and the play feels right. The only thing I can think of is it being a TV/Resolution flaw in the demo. But that's just guessing!
PS: Check this out for my FAVORITE cut scene I've seen so far! (I LOVE great bad guys! Road Warrior inspired, maybe? =D ):
http://www.gamevideos.com/video/id/13535
Andy @ Jul 30th 2007 1:43PM
"after playing the 1gb demo, it made me wonder. How long will this game be? It has to fit on a blu-ray disc which is huge, but 5minutes for 1gb worries me...."
This is why you bought a PS3, for Blu-Ray.
This game will be long and good.
exogen @ Aug 2nd 2007 4:08PM
hmm... odd of you to mention these tearing issues. i know some people notice them better than others.. but for me, for example, when she says "need you to play Twing-Twang" it skips/loads really bad for a second or two (loading the next scene etc.). i see nothing of it in this video, and i'm willing to bet it's not happening at all for other people. anyone?
maybe some of us are using older model ps3's? :P