There are a depressingly small number of people on this site who've played this game. It's that more than anything else that makes me think people just don't have enough information to make a purchasing decision. So ask me anything and assuming people reply, I'll start answering right after I get back from returning this game to Blockbuster.

How long is the game? 

 ...I'll start answering right after I get back from returning this game to Blockbuster.

Why did you S-rank this game?

I am very on the fence with this game. I hear it's mosly QTE's with a small amount of combat. I like over the top games such as Bayonetta do you think the spectacle is worth 60 dollars? I assume not seeing how rented it.

The anime craziness I saw in the quick look appeals to the same stupid part of my brain that likes DBZ. Does that stuff continue to get way crazy? Does the gameplay hold up? Is it fun to play? Does it ever feel like you're doing much more than mashing x and doing QTE's?

What was the most tedious achievement and how many times did you have to play the game to S-rank it?

@ADarkMatter said:

How long is the game?

Asuming you don't skip cutscenes, about 6 hours

@kuz101 said:

Why did you S-rank this game?

Because I could, and because since I rented it, I knew I couldn't come back to it later

@ImmortalSaiyan said:

I am very on the fence with this game. I hear it's mosly QTE's with a small amount of combat. I like over the top games such as Bayonetta do you think the spectacle is worth 60 dollars? I assume not seeing how rented it.

Yes, it's mostly QTE's, but it's constantly over the top and you really couldn't do that sort of stuff with actual gameplay. I made the decision to rent the game weeks ago. honestly, it's longer than I thought it would be.

@SuperWristBands said:

What was the most tedious achievement and how many times did you have to play the game to S-rank it?

That has to be the one for getting all the gauges. For that, you have to get at least A rank on all episodes, S rank on at least 10, and beat the entire game once each using specific gauges (one removes HUD, one reduces health). Also annoying is the fact that the achievement for S-ranking episodes don't stack. So I had to get S rank on all missions on Hard, and then do the whole thing again on Normal. I beat the game 3 times straight through, once in English, once in Japanese, and once skipping all the cutscenes just to run through it. I replayed a few tricky missions upwards of 10 times to get S-ranks in them. That's no problem though. You can beat some of them in a few minutes if you just keep mashing the back button to skip any cutscene that doesn't involve a QTE.

@Itwastuesday said:

The anime craziness I saw in the quick look appeals to the same stupid part of my brain that likes DBZ. Does that stuff continue to get way crazy? Does the gameplay hold up? Is it fun to play? Does it ever feel like you're doing much more than mashing x and doing QTE's?

It gets crazier if anything. The quick look actually happens before the game picks up. The second half of the game is fucking crazy. The quick time events are done well enough and the timing on button presses correlating to action is perfect enough that it never feels like you're just pressing a button. It feels like you're actually impacting the insane crap happening on-screen. I noticed that the better I got at the combat sections and the faster I could respond to landing hits or getting hit myself, the more the gameplay resembled the quick-time events. Essentially though, you are watching and pressing buttons at the right time for a majority of Asura's Wrath.

Was the story any good at least? To try to make up for the gameplay or lack there of.

@Seedofpower said:

Was the story any good at least? To try to make up for the gameplay or lack there of.

I loved it. It's crazy, over the top in a way that even Bayonetta never was, and somehow makes more sense. You really get attached to the characters toward the end of the game. I'll qualify that though, by saying that I love anime, so this sort of thing already appeals to me in a big way.

What's your favorite flavor of ice cream?

@GlenTennis said:

What's your favorite flavor of ice cream?

Would you rather have sex with your favorite ice cream or your favorite animal?

@Shadow said:

@SuperWristBands said:

What was the most tedious achievement and how many times did you have to play the game to S-rank it?

That has to be the one for getting all the gauges. For that, you have to get at least A rank on all episodes, S rank on at least 10, and beat the entire game once each using specific gauges (one removes HUD, one reduces health). Also annoying is the fact that the achievement for S-ranking episodes don't stack. So I had to get S rank on all missions on Hard, and then do the whole thing again on Normal. I beat the game 3 times straight through, once in English, once in Japanese, and once skipping all the cutscenes just to run through it. I replayed a few tricky missions upwards of 10 times to get S-ranks in them. That's no problem though. You can beat some of them in a few minutes if you just keep mashing the back button to skip any cutscene that doesn't involve a QTE.

...you did all that just for achievements?

@BigChickenDinner said:

Would you rather have sex with your favorite ice cream or your favorite animal?

My favorite animal is a snow leopard, so ice cream would be the obvious choice since it wouldn't end with me being mauled to death.

@gladspooky: Look at my gamercard. I did a lot of shit just for achievements.

If I buy this and regret it can I unfairly blame you? It is a hard call, I like crazy nonsense and you saying it goes beyond Bayonetta has me really curious.

Who will be the republican nominee in 2012?

@captain_max707 said:

@Shadow said:

...I'll start answering right after I get back from returning this game to Blockbuster.

I think that answers what I might have asked.

Yuuuuuuuup.

I'm in the same boat as you Shadow in that I think the games craziness and art direction etc makes up for its length and lack of "proper' gameplay so I actually ordered a copy. Probably not the smartest decision money-wise since it'll be discounted in a month or so I imagine but I really can't wait to check it out. Don't really have any specific questions but is their something even more over-the-top and crazy than the scene involving the giant fat guy fingering the planet? I just wanna know if it peaks there or not, cause that'd suck.

What is all this "certain" bullshit on the achievements list?

@ImmortalSaiyan said:

If I buy this and regret it can I unfairly blame you? It is a hard call, I like crazy nonsense and you saying it goes beyond Bayonetta has me really curious.

The game is fucking nuts, and remains fucking nuts for 6 straight hours. Whether or not that's worth the purchase is based on how much you plan to play it immediately. In a few days (in which I did go to work for 5 hours each day), I feel safe in saying that I did absolutely everything there was to do in this game. However, that was also all I did in those days: eat, sleep, work, and play Asura's Wrath. The only thing I regret is that I will have to rent it again if I want to play the DLC that will obviously be released. If nothing else, rent it. This is a game that needs to be played at least once.

@papercut said:

What is all this "certain" bullshit on the achievements list?

It's just a dumb attempt at being vague. Those numbers are always either 50, 100, or somewhere in-between.

@hidys said:

Who will be the republican nominee in 2012?

Fuck if I know...Jack Black? He's running, right? Yeah...Jack Black. He's going to go into the debate, stand up on (that's right: on, not at) the podium, yell "SKA-DOOSH!", walk off, and all the other debaters will just give up.

@Shadow: I would totally rent it if that were a option where I live. There is no place to rent games anymore, at least a good place that would have Asura's Wrath.

@Shadow: Want to be my friend on XBL? I love your gamertag alias, and our shared insanity when it comes to achievements.

Good to know Blockbuster still exists.

where are my keys?

This might be a question better asked somewhere else, but I'm really thinking about getting this game. But I'd rather play it with Japanese VO's. Do you have any knowledge regarding if it's possible to change the audio track (Xbox 360 and EU btw).

Or if anyone else knows for that matter.

Thanks!

Does Asura get any action with Aphrodite or an equivalent sexual goddess?

I had no interest in this game before until you mentioned "S-rank".

Then I looked at how much you had to do in order to S-rank it...

...and now I'm back to having no interest in this game. = /

Did you play the game....OR DID THE GAME PLAY YOU!?

@phrali said:

where are my keys?

Under a box in the corner of your room

@49th said:

Does Asura get any action with Aphrodite or an equivalent sexual goddess?

No outright sex (this game is rated teen), but chapter 10 is absolutely hilarious for this exact reason. The 'Denied' achievement may be the funniest achievement unlock I've ever seen

@Finalcell said:

This might be a question better asked somewhere else, but I'm really thinking about getting this game. But I'd rather play it with Japanese VO's. Do you have any knowledge regarding if it's possible to change the audio track (Xbox 360 and EU btw).

Or if anyone else knows for that matter.

Thanks!

I beat the game once in English, and once in Japanese. The option to switch between them is there and it works just fine. I honestly prefer the English track though, which is weird coming from someone like me. I never watch dubbed anime if I can help it. The biggest disappointment about this is that the lip synch still isn't right, even in the Japanese version. I think they changed the timing of when people speak to match the subtitles, rather than to match lip movements.@mrfluke said:

@Lukeweizer: if you were a giantbomb editor, rate this game out of 5 im betting some brad bucks to say that you would give it a 4/5 also how long did it take you to get 1000? i myself am a achievement junkie, so this game triples its length for me, how is chapter 13 without spoilers, as brad said that it " permanently rewired a small part of his brain" xD And where the fuck can i get me some of that peppermint ice cream? none of my local groceries stock that shit :(

Chapter 13 is fucking awesome. It's a pretty serious, and awesome plot twist so I can't say it without spoiling most of the game. Peppermint ice cream is seasonal, so they wouldn't carry it right now.

Do lips synch with the American or Japanese VOs?

@gabha said:

Do lips synch with the American or Japanese VOs?

neither, sadly

Was the game's debut trailer ( this one) composed of actual cinematic from the game ?Or was it like  a target render?

Have you played God Hand? What did you think of that.
 
This game looks like that, to me.

@gabha said:

Was the game's debut trailer ( this one) composed of actual cinematic from the game ?Or was it like a target render?

There's no blood and that scene doesn't exist. Other than that, it pretty much looks like the game they put out. Asura's Wrath is fucking gorgeous.

@I_smell said:

Have you played God Hand? What did you think of that. This game looks like that, to me.

Never played it. I don't know that I've ever even seen a trailer. I've just heard other people saying it was mediocre.

What is your avatar? It looks like super sayin 3 kid goku with an eye patch.

On a scale from 1 to 10, what is the likelihood that Miss Frizzle from The Magic School Bus was a lesbian?

What platform did you play it on and how was the performance?

It gets crazier if anything

The latter half of the quick look was incredible, so this makes me really happy.

...Would you recommend a game for someone who's looking for quick and dumb fun?
 
@Shadow said:

@I_smell said:

Have you played God Hand? What did you think of that. This game looks like that, to me.

Never played it. I don't know that I've ever even seen a trailer. I've just heard other people saying it was mediocre.

How can I be just like you?

There's a real possibility I will end up just like you. :(

@Shadow:

What is the quick time event to actual gameplay ratio?

....why?

How can I be just like you?

There's a real possibility I will end up just like you. :(

@DarthOrange said:

What is your avatar? It looks like super sayin 3 kid goku with an eye patch.

Go watch Bleach. It's a really good series.

@Landon said:

On a scale from 1 to 10, what is the likelihood that Miss Frizzle from The Magic School Bus was a lesbian?

I don't know. Is her bus female? I always suspected they were getting it on off-camera

@mrfluke: Get a "S" ranking on 5 or more episodes, which is really easy to do.

@IkariNoTekken said:

What platform did you play it on and how was the performance?

It gets crazier if anything

The latter half of the quick look was incredible, so this makes me really happy.

Xbox. There was a few instances of texture pop-in when I rapidly skipped cutscenes. Other than that, the performance was rock-solid

@MikeGosot said:

...Would you recommend a game for someone who's looking for quick and dumb fun?

Absolutely. The game is quick, it's very dumb, and it's a ton of fun

@JasonR86 said:

@Shadow:

What is the quick time event to actual gameplay ratio?

about 50/50. However, if you count straight up cutscenes (where you don't press anything) as being part of the quick time event category, it's closer to 80/20. This is not a game you play if you want to PLAY a game.

@Brad said:

How can I be just like you?

There's a real possibility I will end up just like you. :(

you have to get really, really good at getting that 'Excelent' rating every time in those timed button presses. That, and unlock the Obliterator gauge before trying to S-rank hard mode. that means getting 10 S-ranks to unlock the mortal gauge. This reduces your health by a lot. Then beat the entire game on easy using that to unlock the Obliterator gauge. That one gives you infiniite unlimited mode (the super sayan thing that happens when you press the L trigger after building up that meter). Apart from making you totally invincible (or super fast in...um...those chapters), it also makes the game completely bananas (as though it weren't already).

@mrfluke said:

@Shadow: how much hours did it take you to hit 1000 points ?

and how many stars would you give the game?


and .....

SPOILER WARNING: Click here to reveal hidden content.

what are the requirements to unlock the true ending ( apparently thats a thing in the game)

I played it for probably around 25 hours total to get all 1000 points.

I'd give it a solid 4/5. There isn't a whole lot there, but all of it is absolutely fantastic. The only thing that does quick-time events that get anywhere even close to the quality of this game is Naruto Ultimate Ninja Storm 2, which happens to be this developer's previous title