I'm one of those types of gamers who likes to stick up for the artistic merits of computer games in random internet forums. Blogging comes naturally to me, which is why I now have a big chunky catalogue of TL:DR blog posts about why Braid is the best game ever made and why anyone who doesn't enjoy GTA4 has no soul.

BE THAT AS IT MAY

I'm one of those types of gamers who likes to stick up for the artistic merits of computer games in random internet forums. Blogging comes naturally to me, which is why I now have a big chunky catalogue of TL:DR blog posts about why Braid is the best game ever made and why anyone who doesn't enjoy GTA4 has no soul.

BE THAT AS IT MAY

You don't mash buttons in Ninja Gaiden. That IS the wrong way to play it. Do yourself a favor, pick up Ninja Gaiden Black (xbox), and learn how to play from that (play on ninja dog mode, if you can't survive). Then pick up NG2 again. 
 
Ninja Gaiden has always been fast, and very difficult. I requires a degree of timing that some people don't have. I played NG: Black on Master Ninja mode, and it took me 33 tries to beat Alma the second time. 
 
There is a method to the madness- it's less chaotic than you think.

"  There is a method to the madness- it's less chaotic than you think. "

I can see how there being no tutorial in NG2 would be fustrating to a NG newbie. NG1's opening level was alot more forgiving and there were hints and tips scattered all over the level. However, if you can manage to learn the combo's and various weapons, then the game becomes one of the biggest thrill rides in gaming (fighting the final 3 bosses in a row not withstanding.)

Well, they aren't MANDATORY, just helpful for a newb. I thought it was common knowledge that the Ninja Gaiden series are some of the hardest games ever made :P. 
 
Once you get into the mindset of how the game works (not wasting attacks, because you need a fraction of a second to reset, and that's when they hit you, etc) and you master the combos (especially the ones that get you away from other enemies, like the aerial combos), it becomes a bit less punishing. 
 
Ninja Gaiden DOES have a bad habit of placing multiple bosses right after each other though. 

lololol Ninja Gaiden 2 did suck. And Too human did too, would have been better if the controls were actually "good".

"Games are art, no doubt."

NG2 is like a good Big Black album. Behind all the noise and anger is something masterfully created.
 
Actually, it's more like Ninja Gaiden Black. Yeah, that game was kickin'

" @Sweep said:

"Games are art, no doubt."

Congrats, you just settled a debate that's been running the past decade all by yourself. You're too awesome.As for the game, just because you're not any good at it, or don't like it, doesn't make it shit. Is that hard to get? "

If you were trying to button mash, that is why you are failing at it. You probably got through the first bit with button mashing, and therefore did not learn how to do it correctly. I recommend going back to the beginning, and actually figuring out how to execute the few moves they give you there- then, when they give you more moves, you won't be as confused.

I don't know what to tell you then... tbh, I though NG2 was easier than NG1 :P 

NG2 was unfair rather than difficult. I finished NG1 on master ninja but didn't bother with NG2's projectile spam on harder difficulty levels.

" @Al3xand3r said:

" @Sweep said:

"Games are art, no doubt."

Congrats, you just settled a debate that's been running the past decade all by yourself. You're too awesome.As for the game, just because you're not any good at it, or don't like it, doesn't make it shit. Is that hard to get? "

Um, I think I justified why I don't like the game, so there's no need to be a dick about it. You have to admit that it's brutally difficult for new players to pick up.  
 
EDIT: Fair enough, I can see how this game could be great if someone actually explained to me what the fuck I should be doing.
 
If you want to read about why I think games are art then go read my Other Blogs. I don't see the point in repeating myself every day. The purpose of this blog was to reflect on how inaccessible Ninja Gaiden 2 is, not whether games are art. "

This is Ninja Gaiden as it should be, I wouldn't want the game to be pandering to new players by making it easier. Every NG game except for the DS game has been hard  to master, and that's how it should be. NG 2 does have a high trial and error factor but I find that the to be part and parcel of the experience, it's just as it was in the NES days which is the foundation to what we see today in the series.
 
I treat Ninja Gaiden like a rhythm game, because that's what it basically is at it's core, The game forces you to block and attack in a almost rhythmic fashion, and if you break away from the notes it shows you, it will punish you.

" @Sweep said:

" @Al3xand3r said:

" @Sweep said:

"Games are art, no doubt."

Congrats, you just settled a debate that's been running the past decade all by yourself. You're too awesome.As for the game, just because you're not any good at it, or don't like it, doesn't make it shit. Is that hard to get? "

Um, I think I justified why I don't like the game, so there's no need to be a dick about it. You have to admit that it's brutally difficult for new players to pick up.  
 
EDIT: Fair enough, I can see how this game could be great if someone actually explained to me what the fuck I should be doing.
 
If you want to read about why I think games are art then go read my Other Blogs. I don't see the point in repeating myself every day. The purpose of this blog was to reflect on how inaccessible Ninja Gaiden 2 is, not whether games are art. "

Your other blogs don't make it a fact, and they (probably? I can't bother checking) didn't go undisputed. Again, not liking Ninja Gaiden doesn't make it shit. It makes it a game that's not for you. I guess both of these things are really hard for you to get, my bad for asking.And yes, I agree it can be brutally hard. How that makes it shit is beyond me. Just don't play it, say you hate it and leave it at that. "

I beat all ninja gaiden games on atleast normal but i found NG 2 to beat pretty cheap. Its difficult, but not in a smart way especially on later difficulties.  
 
Ninja Gaiden 2 felt unpolished in general so i kinda agree with you.

Alexander is a total troll, Sweep. /ignore.
 
NG2 is shit. It's unfair, has a habit of throwing projectile shit at you, terrible camera angles you can't do anything about and some awful level design (fuck the swamp). The combat CAN BE fun, when you're pitted against other ninja-type enemies, rather than guys that stand at a distance and spam rockets and shit at you. I loved the opening 2-3 levels, and the ones on the zeppelin, because those have enemies that are fun to fight. But no, Itagaki insisted on making the game brutal for the sake of it and it is no more fun for it. 
 
NG1 is less shit but still overrated.

torus and others are right.  Play NG Black on the original Xbox.  NG2 sucks hard, anyway,  It's far more cheap with annoying little enemies and offscreen rocket ninjas and shit.  skip it.

I never thoughts ninjas were cool.

" lololol Ninja Gaiden 2 did suck. And Too human did too, would have been better if the controls were actually "good". "

People still argue that games are not art? ... Stop that!
 
Anyway, I hear you, Sweep. I was looking very forward to NG. And when I played it I felt instantly punished for doing so. The game is obviously good to someone. And certainly has it's merits. But it basically told me to fuck off, and I can't fault someone for giving it the finger in return as I did the same.
 
I didn't even bother trying NG2.

"  Games are art, no doubt. But sometimes you have to take a step back and realise that just because it's in an art museum doesn't stop it from being a pile of shit on the floor. "

My favorite game on the 360.  You gotta get used to it...this thing has a LOOOOOOOOOOOONG learning curve and is meant to be played through multiple times.  You got it pretty much right: it's a fighting game.  It doesn't have an all-purpose tutorial for the same reason normal fighting games don't.  There's so many different ways to go at every situation that a tutorial on exactly what to do at any given moment would be pretty useless.

"Fuck, why are you making such a big deal of this? Alright captain pedantic, when I said games are art I was referring to my own opinion, which you can't dispute. If you want to then go do it elsewhere. I can't help but feel you are trying to pick apart my blog, just because you don't agree with the sentiment, which is pathetic. It's shit because it doesn't teach you to accommodate it's difficulty - therefore making it largely unplayable to anyone who doesn't already know what they are doing. I notice everyone here defending Ninja Gaiden 2 has some sort of experience with the previous NG games so perhaps this concept can be a little hard to grasp. Again, I don't see why you are being such a dick about this. If you love Ninja Gaiden so much that you can't bear to hear a word spoken against it then i'm sorry but I'm not going to alter my opinion just for the sake of your extra sensitive ears. "

" Sweep said:

"Fuck, why are you making such a big deal of this? Alright captain pedantic, when I said games are art I was referring to my own opinion, which you can't dispute. If you want to then go do it elsewhere. I can't help but feel you are trying to pick apart my blog, just because you don't agree with the sentiment, which is pathetic. It's shit because it doesn't teach you to accommodate it's difficulty - therefore making it largely unplayable to anyone who doesn't already know what they are doing. I notice everyone here defending Ninja Gaiden 2 has some sort of experience with the previous NG games so perhaps this concept can be a little hard to grasp. Again, I don't see why you are being such a dick about this. If you love Ninja Gaiden so much that you can't bear to hear a word spoken against it then i'm sorry but I'm not going to alter my opinion just for the sake of your extra sensitive ears. "

I'm making a big deal out of this? You're the one who made a blog that goes in the general discussion listing...Saying a sequel is shit because it doesn't teach newcomers well is quite silly too. No, that simply doesn't make it suitable for newcomers.Anything that isn't suitable for you is shit? Please, grow some common sense and understand not everything's made for your highness alone. "

Ninja Gaiden II is a steaming pile of crap. It's true. I played it.
 
CONFIRMED.
 
EDIT: Sweep, trying to convince Al3xand3r of anything is madness. It's like shouting at walls. Walls with fists on them.
 
Madness.

For even attempting to manhandle Ninja Gaiden 2, Sweep, you are a bigger, better, much sexier man than I could ever hope to be.    
 
For that reason, I can't completely relate on the specific subject matter, but I know Too Human has a similar issue, and since you mentioned it, I feel confident in opening that scab.  
 
I see where Al3xand3r is arguing from. There is a niche of gaming that doesn't even attempt to coddle the player's rhythm into fruition with anything but brute fucking force. And, because of that, there is a sort of mystique, a sort of aura, around the players who can intuitively adapt to the mechanics and devise intricate strategies for returning the favor of pain.  
 
That said, I am--generally speaking--not that sort of player. While I appreciate the ambition in the difficulty of games like Ninja Gaiden, I can't force myself into embracing those design choices. They aren't streamlined enough for my ever-depleting patience with video games. 

" maybe its just getting older and having much more choice of games means you aren't willing to put the time and effort into mastering games, tough as nails games from years past never had tutorials they just expected you to know and if you didn't "fuck you, learn it""

From my memory of playing Ninja Gaiden you just have to dodge and block a lot (I think you could block...) and learn some combos, it should say how to do them in the menus somewhere.  I would just do that move where you jump and dash forward slicing someones head off lol.