Rumor mill round-up: Heavenly Sword 2 [Update]
by Andrew Yoon 
{ Jun 18th 2008 at 1:30PM }
According to the Kotaku report, the Heavenly Sword franchise is not seen as commercially viable, in spite of generally favorable reviews and respectable sales figures. Supposedly, Ninja Theory has "grown increasingly bitter about their treatment at Sony's hands." The bad blood between Ninja Theory and Sony has supposedly caused the developer to move offices, further away from Sony Cambridge.
If there is any truth to this rumor, it would be the third major game canceled by Sony's European arm in recent memory (The Getaway and Eight Days being the last two games canned). Today, SCEE responded saying "I think it is fair to say that we do not comment on rumor and speculation, especially about games that have never been announced." In addition, the rep wants to remind everyone that Killzone 2, LittleBigPlanet and Motorstorm: Pacific Rift are all from Sony Europe, emphasizing that first-party development in Sony Europe is not in any kind of trouble.
Update: Speaking to Gamespot, Ninja Theory confirms that the relationship between Sony and Ninja Theory are good. "We are moving, but it's completely amicable," Ninja Theory cofounder and chief development ninja Nina Kristensen told GameSpot. "We move mid July and have been planning it for the best part of a year; there's nothing nefarious about it. We are excited about the move--our new premises are considerably bigger and in an excellent location near the town centre." According to the report, Heavenly Sword 2 was offered to Ninja Theory, but the team declined to work on it.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
jordan @ Jun 18th 2008 1:41PM
i think they NNEEEEDD to make a HS2 the first game has to be one of the best video game experiences EVER!... and i mean EVER!
frankym @ Jun 18th 2008 1:52PM
Uhhh...Heavenly Sword sucked.
RazLeboL @ Jun 18th 2008 2:03PM
heavenly sword was awesome...
preciousdeath @ Jun 18th 2008 2:52PM
Heavenly Sword was ok.
SoCoolCurt (PSN: KillaKornbread) @ Jun 18th 2008 4:19PM
Heavenly Sword was one of the best games i played in '07. great visuals, great story, great controls, great gameplay, outstanding voice acting. the only thing i thought was wrong with it was that it was too damn short. if they can emulate that level of quality from the first one while giving us more than 8 hours of gameplay, i would be in heaven.
Lars @ Jun 18th 2008 5:29PM
I loved HS, but HS2 just seems like a hollow attempt at running with brand recognition.
I think the plot device has been explored to it's potential and a sequel wouldn't add anything to it. It's like the Matrix. When I heard there was a sequel coming for the Matrix, I was like "what? how? why?"
Hmm, well I could see if maybe hundreds of years have passed and the sword was lost over time but is found again by someone else... maybe that could have some potential. I retract my first statement.... If they can do it right, then go for it!
Lars @ Jun 18th 2008 5:48PM
I loved HS, but HS2 just seems like a hollow attempt at running with brand recognition.
I think the plot device has been explored to it's potential and a sequel wouldn't add anything to it. It's like the Matrix. When I heard there was a sequel coming for the Matrix, I was like "what? how? why?"
Hmm, well I could see if maybe hundreds of years have passed and the sword was lost over time but is found again by someone else... maybe that could have some potential. I retract my first statement.... If they can do it right, then go for it!
Dehshizknight @ Jun 19th 2008 1:10PM
@Lars
Heavenly Sword was originally meant to be a trilogy. I'm pretty sure the story was set from the very beginning.
Maverick Saturn @ Jun 18th 2008 1:43PM
This is old, someone came in over at Joystiq and showed the link to where Ninja Theory replied saying it was a false statement and they were commited to Sony, go check the Joystiq one.
Kodros @ Jun 18th 2008 2:42PM
Not anymore. For some reason the Joystiq editors removed that post and any other post that mentioned it. I replied last night to it saying "Is it just me or did Joystiq remove the post that basically debunked this rumour". And guess what? That got removed also.
So, until I hear otherwise, I have to assume that Joystiq's bias for the 360 is to blame here and they don't want to debunk any negative PS3 rumors.
Kodros @ Jun 18th 2008 2:25PM
Hmm, my replies seem to not be working.
Kodros @ Jun 18th 2008 2:26PM
Ok, now they are lol. What I said in my post that didn't show up is that Joystiq removed that post that debunked it Mav. They also removed any post that mentioned it.
Noshino @ Jun 18th 2008 2:41PM
yah...I was the one that posted the link on the Joystiq article but couldn't find it on my comment history...funny
Maverick Saturn @ Jun 18th 2008 4:58PM
They removed it for no apparent reason
Bowen @ Jun 18th 2008 1:51PM
Another example of Kotaku being. . . well Kotaku spreaders of misinformation.
http://www.maxconsole.net/?mode=news&newsid=28606
"We (Ninja Theory) never started work on HS2 as we wanted to focus on new multiplatform IP. Sony owns the IP for HS and we have never been privy to what they would do with it.
As for moving, we have been planning to move to larger premises for future expansion for the best part of a year. There is nothing bitter about the move.
And the rumour that the team has been disbanded is ridiculous. We have had an unbelievably loyal team especially as we went through some difficult times securing a new publishing deal. We have a new publisher and are busy on our new project which is going very well so far.
HS is far from our thoughts at the moment. "
JerJerBinks @ Jun 18th 2008 2:02PM
Andrew, are you official Negative Nancy of the PS3Fanboy staff? Something makes me think that you missed a staff meeting and wound up with the short straw.
BlackFreefall @ Jun 18th 2008 2:10PM
Yipe! How wude!
- Jar Jar Binks
Hahha sorry I can't help it.
Noshino @ Jun 18th 2008 2:05PM
http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showpost.php?p=11612633&postcount=78
Staff member from Ninja Theory posted on NeoGAF about these rumors...
Joe @ Jun 18th 2008 2:11PM
Yoshida strikes again. Also Ninja Theory never has to even work on HS2 because Sony owns the IP and Sony Cambridge could be the one to work on this game instead. I for one am really up set to hear that Eight Days Getaway and now this are canceled. The first news of Heavenly Sword might have been yesterday but did you really think there would not be another one the first sold well after all.
Plus as for Killzone 2, LittleBigPlanet and Motorstorm: Pacific Rift not being in trouble those games are not single player just another FPS game and a racing game. To me MotorStorm does not look that good the other ones I want to buy. But I my self want single player games more then just a new racer and another FPS. Plus LBP is a third party game.
So I am not sure if this is Yoshida or David Reeves. I my self love my PS3 but I hate seeing games I want get canceled. All I can hope is at E3 there will be many new games and no casual ones.
HektikLyfe @ Jun 18th 2008 2:19PM
Heavenly Sword was one of the rare few games I felt were worth my money on the PS3 and is one of the reasons I bought the console. It was exclusive and graphically superior to anything I had seen at the time on any other home system.
I do remember reading that they weren't even thinking about a sequel just yet but I am still dismayed at the prospect of not seeing a sequel bring to series to fruition. As a first outing they did a great job. They set the bar much higher for production value and I thank them for it.
I truly hope to see a sequel someday.
Put it this way, I would be much more excited to play Heavenly Sword 2 than Metal Gear Solid 4. I'm not saying one is a better game than the other so pull your thongs out fanboys. I'm just saying that I would enjoy it more. Me.
jordan @ Jun 18th 2008 8:30PM
i agree about how you feel towards heavenly sword compared to mgs4 ^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Noshino @ Jun 18th 2008 2:25PM
Well, Sony owns the IP, so they could make a sequel any time they want, but right now, they are sort of tight, pretty much all of their studios are at work...and they have put lots of resources in their key projects (Home, LBP, KZ2, GT5 just to name a few...) and the fact that HS wasn't as profitable or acclaimed as they had hoped makes the chances of HS2 zero to none at the moment...
HektikLyfe @ Jun 18th 2008 3:40PM
Perhaps some additional DLC might help. When some of the developers have some downtime they could drum up a "Special Edition" with more...stuff. Do a kind of re-release now that the PS3 has established a greater foothold on the market then it did when it was first released.
Tony @ Jun 18th 2008 2:27PM
This article has one glaringly HUGE ommission:
http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showpost.php?p=11612633&postcount=78
myself @ Jun 18th 2008 2:25PM
hs is great and maybe sony will reuse the franchise after gow3
interestingly Europe codes the majority of announced first party lineup of sony untill the end of the year(besides r2)
Noshino @ Jun 18th 2008 2:27PM
well, Sony London Studio IS the biggest one of the Sony studios
klexam @ Jun 18th 2008 2:39PM
The new king at Sony has already made it clear that he intends to focus the future on games that are multiplayer/online. Regardless, HS was a beautiful game and a really good experience. To bad we won't be getting a new one. The first was like playing a movie.
So, look for Sony to focus more and more on games that only have multiplayer and an online experience.
Daalyman @ Jun 18th 2008 3:32PM
If this is true then Sony has just shot themselves in the foot
again as to trying to ahead of the ms boys game box.
ClockWyze @ Jun 18th 2008 2:40PM
"Heavenly Sword was one of the rare few games I felt were worth my money on the PS3 and is one of the reasons I bought the console. It was exclusive and graphically superior to anything I had seen at the time on any other home system."
Exactly. Every system has their own over-hyped let downs, Triple A titles and unnoticed diamonds that truly shine Heavenly Sword was one of those. I hate the way people complain about the length and then take point off of the score because of it. Ppl who haven't played it because of negative reviews, give it a rent at least Is it as great or epic as the God of War series? It depends on ur own opinion For me it wasn't but God Of War is a GREAT game and they came close. i think too many ppl were expecting this to b too much like GoW
Nate the Prophet @ Jun 18th 2008 2:43PM
Heavenly Sword was and is one of the best PS3 games. It has sold over 1M units, #4 or 5 among PS3 exclusives. If that's not success, then I don't know what Sony is smoking.
PS3Fanboy Staff:
Who can we talk to about starting a "Save Heavenly Sword 2" petition or something like that? I think the PS3 needs more combat franchises (there are only 2 right now). We have 1,000 shooter games, but how many quality combat games?
Sony is just plain wrong on this one, very wrong. I know that Sony is TERRIBLE at listening to it's customers and fans, but there has to be something that we can do to try to get their attention. Help us PS3Fanboy!
basil ghazi @ Jun 19th 2008 1:24AM
count me in !!!!!!!!!! i love this game!!!!!!!!!
ClockWyze @ Jun 18th 2008 3:21PM
yea Please PS3fanboy(not the X360Fanboy/Yoon Lol) lets get a petition going for The Getaway and Eight Days also.
trueheart78 @ Jun 18th 2008 3:21PM
I was sad to hear about this - Heavenly Sword is one of the best games I've played thus far on the PS3. I know it isn't "the best", but it sure was is a lot of fun. I'd be interested to see the polish a sequel could bring about.
SimbaDogg @ Jun 18th 2008 3:39PM
@Kodrus
you're right man, they removed the post that had the statement from the person that worked at ninja theory, and they removed my post as well. i DO NOT like that. i didn't even think that joystiq was biased against ps3/sony, but now that you bring it up, and now that i see the removed the posts w/out even updating the topic...that seems very fishy to me.
Riley Freeman @ Jun 18th 2008 4:07PM
sony wants games that go online. thats what everyone on crapbox 360 keeps boasting about since they cant make excuses for games anymore especially since mg4 kicks all their games COMBINED ass. so now they troll about online play. sony wants to focus on that and i cant blame them heavenly sword really doesnt have a way for it to go online. while it was a fun game. i think a sequel would sell a lot better than the first one because of the larger install base.
it is nice to get away from shooters once in a while so i think sony should make a sequel dont screw people over that pushed out one of the few good games that existed when ur system was suffering.
basil ghazi @ Jun 18th 2008 4:50PM
sony better listen to us & not crapbox fanboys!!
were are the who buyes the games for ps3 not them!!!
Organic_Shadow @ Jun 18th 2008 4:53PM
I like how pissed at Sony everyone is, when it's just in rumor mode, and now we come to find that it wasn't Sony's fault at all. They wanted HS2 and Ninja Theory declined politely, and still loves Sony.
So the rumor was obviously an attempt to mudsling at Sony, seeing as the only shred of truth was that HS2 is not coming. But it wasn't CANNED, Sony wasn't being bad to NT, and they're still on good terms. Thank the Sony-haters out there for this one.
Playstation @ Jun 18th 2008 5:01PM
HS is a great game. I don't know why NT decided not to work on HS series again. The only downside of the first HS game was the fact it was short (thats what people have been complaining about). All they have to do is crank up the mechanism and more focus on the game than the FMV.. make the game longer possibly ard 12-15 hours. That should do it.
I guess they are just being discouraged. They probably thought with all these gorgeous movie, face expression and other stuff they would get at least 9 out of 10 rating on more of the game review sites. Although I think as people have been mentioning they are quite successful though.. but they think differently apparently
Vcize @ Jun 18th 2008 5:37PM
So Heavenly Sword was good? How did it compare to the demo? I never tried the full game because I thought the demo blew chunks even though I love this genre.
ScroogeMcDuck @ Jun 18th 2008 7:11PM
it was a rental at best. it averaged a 7.5. I can see why Itagki blasted the game. NT focused too much of graphics and not on gameplay.
ScroogeMcDuck @ Jun 18th 2008 6:41PM
heavenly sword wasn't that great. It had potential but the gameplay was mediocre. IF sony ever decided to continue with it,they should let another developer take a stab at it.
Mbot @ Jun 18th 2008 8:39PM
Thx to Ninja Theory for HS ! it was a great game, not perfect but i enjoyed it alot!
I hope they do another PS3 game, its one of the few studio that has proven that they can push the PS3 tech ! And it was at a time that not alot of 3rd party studio had figured out the ps3 tech !
I hope to see a new HS game, but take your time to do a richer game !
I really hope to see Ninja Theory do a PS3 exclusive, or if its going multiplatform that they push hard the PS3 and not do like other dev who limit the tech side to the x360.
Anyway Thanks to the Ninjas :p
Hexametaphosphate @ Jun 18th 2008 9:41PM
I hope the PS3 does not completely ignore 1p games. While it was too short, Heavenly Sword was a great story to play through, IMO, and looked beautiful. So far I've enjoyed it as much as any of my other PS3 games (I do not have MGS4 yet and don't really like GTA).
My favorite genre is the RPG. I'm very much looking forward to FFXIII, White Knight Chron, and a couple others (was hoping Eternal Sonata could tide me over till they hit, but maybe not now).
As a World of Warcraft player (or former one), I actually thought my PS3 would be good for a lot of 1 player fun. I'm not a big FPS player (not without mouse + keyboard anyway), but sports, fighting games, and mostly RPGs are what I want on my PS3. While I look forward to playing a friend at Madden w/o them having to come over, I have plenty of times I'd like to just relax and play an RPG or something like Heavenly Sword.
I just hope they're not ignoring good games of any genre (imo PS3 really needs more games) or forcing games online when it really doesn't fit.
TypeF @ Jun 27th 2008 4:58PM
she dies though in HS1 >.> there cant be a part 2 unless is someone else
Hoika @ Aug 12th 2008 6:49AM
For all HS fans. A HS2 petition!
http://www.petitionhosting.com/petitions/heavenlysword2
sign, it might work!