Itagaki on real violence: Ninja Gaiden 2 has none

Fingers are crossed over Ninja Gaiden 2‘s pure brutality – will it be dubbed as an Adults Only video game because of very graphic decapitations, or make it safely past discrimination? Team Ninja leader Tomonobu Itagaki doesn’t seem to be bothered, as he doesn’t think there’s actual violence in the game they’re making for the Microsoft Xbox 360. Learn more at the full article.

The unyielding and outspoken Japanese video game developer, Tomonobu Itagaki of Ninja Gaiden fame, had a chance to chat with the prominent online newspaper known as Telegraph, the digital outlet of UK’s leading broadsheet The Daily Telegraph. While talking to the high-profile publication, Itagaki even used one of the katanas (widely known as the samurai sword) in his office as a tool to explain that Ninja Gaiden 2 for the Microsoft Xbox 360 is not really violent.

During the discussion, Itagaki went into differences between the Japanese and western market. While casuals and core gamers aren’t too far apart as writer Nick Cowen pointed out, Itagaki explained that “In Japan the casual type of gamer and the hardcore gamer are so far apart now… that they can’t see eye to eye on anything: they’re literally fighting each other.”

Itagaki’s opinion on violence also varies greatly from those who perceive killing and bloody decapitations as violent. After picking up a sheathed katana and holding it in front of Co wen, he said:

In the Japanese warrior tradition you would shame an opponent. A real sword expert would aim his slice at the first four fingers of his opponent’s sword hand. This would cost a warrior his livelihood and someone suffering this wound would normally commit suicide rather than live without their sword hand. That’s what I consider to be real violence.

Itagaki stressed out that inflicting dishonoring wounds is real violence – it’s not all about chopping limbs off. Ninja Gaiden 2, while abundant in gruesome dismembers and pools of blood, doesn’t have anything that will entice you to hate enemies enough to dishonor them. In other words, nothing in Ninja Gaiden 2 will ask players to commit violent acts.

For the full interview, click on the via link below.