14 DAY TRIAL // For some time now, big publishers have aimed to create a market for hardcore titles on the more casual-friendly Nintendo Wii home gaming console and mostly failed. Dead Space: Extraction was not the hit Electronic Arts was looking for and titles like MadWorld also failed to make a significant impact.
Now, French publisher Ubisoft is trying to crack the same tough nut with the launch of Red Steel 2 and it seems that the stakes are laid out for all to see this time around.
Jason Vandenberghe, who is the creative director working on the Red Steel project, talked at a London event about the realities of videogame development. He said that “It was clear from the beginning we had to succeed. It was absolutely crucial. It was obvious that, if Red Steel 2 came out and it was not well-received by the fans, we were done. There would be no Red Steel 3. There would be no point in continuing that: Once is an offense, twice is a pattern.”
The original Red Steel sold moderately well but critics did not like its limited graphics and its very imprecise control scheme. The developers at Ubisoft Paris who are still working on the sequel have focused on these areas in order to deliver a better experience. The Motion Plus add-on is used to offer better control over the swordplay in the game, while the Wii is pushed to its limits to deliver good movements and fluidity, while the art style has been completely revamped.
Red Steel 2 will tell the story of a character called The Swordman who aims to revenge his clan. He can wield a sword, as well as firearms, and deflect bullets away from him in Jedi style. As the game progresses, he can acquire new abilities and weapons to better fight his rivals. The game is set to be released on the Nintendo Wii on March 23 in North America and three days later in Europe.