[alice]

So I burnt me a copy of God hand ages ago and started playing it and got pissed after the first level declaring the game impossible. About a month later, I went and read what's only the greatest game review ever http://hg101.classicgaming.gamespy.com/godhand/godhand.htm and decided to pick it up again. I've been hooked on the damn game since.

The system is just plain great: I thought the whole "chaining" thing was a bit of a nuisance but after a while, you start to see the subtlety of all the different possible combinations; not just stringing random moves together to dish out different amounts of damage but to take advantage of all the (rather specific) properties of every single move. The enemies constantly change as well, and I have yet to consider the game repetitive at all. Every stage, there is some new breed of enemy that requires a different strategy to beat. The bosses likewise, stay unique and insanely difficult. Finally, in pure capcom goodness, all the references (giant enemy crane) are just plain delightful.

References aside, the humor in the game is great and I find it more tasteful the the crap they put on TV. I read... a long time ago how there are very few games that are of the "comedy" genre simply because comedy and games don't fit. God Hand succeeds in throwing subtle and not so subtle jokes all over the place. Not often a game can make me laugh..... out loud while I'm playing alone.

So, I say greatest PS2 game evar.

[Cryo]

Dash cancelling Yes Man Kablaam makes the game so much more fun :)
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PS3 - Cryoh
X360 - Cryoh

[Felix]

you guys are going to make me finally play this game :-/

[Dark Age Iron Savior]

No offense, but what was the reason you couldn't buy it?
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[v84j3gs2uc7ns4]

[DaleNixon]

I still see it pretty regularly in most stores.
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[Sub]

Guys, this is the official #ic Game of the Year 2006.

Anyway, I did a pretty standard build throughout; I took out launchers altogether and used down+triangle for various wacky tricks throughout the course of the game (my favorite is the step back and knee move).Everything else was pretty much upgrading the defaults. My biggest source of damage was guard break into good old high kick. Next time I play through the game I'm thinking of making Gene kung-fu-only. I also want to try beating the game keeping the kick-me sign on but that's sort of insane, so I don't know if I'll actually go through with it.
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we bloggin'
they hatin'

[Baines]

God Hand didn't have the greatest print run, but I haven't had much issue running across it after release. It might not have had a great print run, with stores not ordering heavily, but it didn't exactly sell through that well either.


The game does get repetative though. There are less new enemy types than I expected based on the first few stages. Combat arguably starts to break down a bit near the end of the game.

And an annoyance is that while New Game+ makes nearly everything available at the shop from the start, it doesn't carry over either money or what you have bought. So you either have to cheat or spend hours or days building up cash in the casino to take advantage of what is available at the shop. This really kills the idea of going back to a beaten game just to have some beatdown fun.

As for keeping the Kick Me sign, I'd think the later boss fights would start to drag severely. Later bosses have really high HP to counter the really high damage Roulettes you get, and how often you can activate your God Hand as well. (Since a longer bar means you can get more activations in a fight.) The final boss takes what? At least five Double Shaolins? Which presumably does more damage than the regular Shaolin, which itself does I think 1500. How long would it take to bludgeon it to death with just regular moves?

[RecessRapist]

I remember getting my ass kicked VERY easily because I just used the strongest moves i could get without trying to chain them properly.

Until I arrived at level 6 and my friend came over and arranged me a super combination and I didn't die until the Afro guy in level 8.

And i beat all the fighting ring matches I couln't do before in a cinch.

[Toto]

Buying this game at launch in Australia, Feb 21st.

[haze]

I bought it today!

A little confused. Maybe I'll get better at it.

[Intentionally Wrong]

For Christmas, I bought this at Wal-Mart for my roommate's little brother, who loves hard videogames. He hasn't put it down yet.

The chihuahua races qualify as a party game in our apartment. We haven't quite gotten to the point of actually betting cash on 'em, but it's only a matter of time.
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JSNLV is frequently and intentionally wrong.

[professor_scissors]

I only used one Double Shaolin on the final boss, right at the end of the fight. It just seemed wrong to use that move more than once.

[alice]

Urr, I will buy it, just not right now. I'm cheap but not that cheap.... But still pretty cheap.

I need it for my shelf of badass games in any case.

[Baines]

[gooktime]

Play-asia have a Korean release that includes the soundtrack I think, for those of you with import ability.

[SplashBeats]

[shrugtheironteacup]

[luvcraft]

I'm playing it now (just started last night), and I'll post more about it when I'm done, but for now I have to say two three things about it:

If my two rockabilly friends spent a straight 48 hours doing nothing but playing Double Dragon and Ninja Gaiden Black, eating nothing but fruit, and occasionally taking breaks to watch Fist of the North Star and make fun of the dubbing, while their wives got drunk in the next room and shouted random semi-incoherent things to them, then when they finally went to sleep at the end of that marathon they would both have the same bizarre and wonderful dream. And the name of that dream would be God Hand.

and

I don't understand how people who love Godhand could simultaneously hate XBox Ninja Gaiden and/or God of War; the gameplay is basically a cross between the two.

and

This game feels a LOT like Rising Zan: The Samurai Gunman for the PS1, both in mechanics and aesthetics. I'm gonna go see if they have the same director or anything.

[skelethulu]

[dmauro]

I got pretty far into this and then just haven't done much console gaming since. I really want to find a chunk of time to sit down with this game because it's pretty rad, and the chihuahua races sound fun.
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[SuperWes]

[boojiboy7]

[luvcraft]

[boojiboy7]

[Baines]

[Gin]

I remember trying to play Ninja Gaiden, and I kinda couldn't because it was so rigid.

God Hand's gameplay reminds me of Way of the Samurai a bit actually.

[Mr Mustache]

I am pretty sure that there is nothing objectively wrong with dial-a-combos, button mashing, and fights involving Mario Party.
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The people are like wool to me

[Shapermc]

[option]

I've never played godhand or ninja gaiden...

But the "mario party finishers" were the only part of God of War combat I enjoyed.


Other than the finishers and some of the pretty environments, GoW was a watered down DMC with box pushing.


EDIT: I am going to play Godhand next week. From what I hear it will be something along the lines of a PS2 Final Fight....I really hope it is!

[SuperWes]

[boojiboy7]

[Ratoslov]

The Mario Party attacks pissed me off because it meant I had to stop playing God of War and start playing Mario Party.

[boojiboy7]

yeah, pretty much.

[dmauro]

The thing about Ninja Gaiden is that it changes SIGNIFICANTLY depending on what version your playing (original, hurricane pack, or black). I think each one had a different counter system.
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[SuperWes]

[luvcraft]

[The Drunken Samurai]

[boojiboy7]

[dmauro]

I watched Shaolin Soccer again last night and it really made me want to play God Hand.
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[luvcraft]