The thing about Suda's games is that there is always that question -- "Is that a mistake, or is it a comment on gaming/society/meaning of life?" It's an impossible question to answer, and one that invigorates Suda's fans as much as it infuriates his detractors. That's the thing about No More Heroes 2 that will probably puzzle people on both sides of that divide the most: the game is really low on anything that could be interpreted as a mistake. It's extremely well crafted from beginning to end, and rarely (if ever) sacrifices fun for delivering a message.
Half-Glass Gaming: "Travis Touchdown is awesome, and he’s a huge reason No More Heroes is so great. That said, series creator and director Suda51 said he would be open to making a spinoff starring fan-favorite Shinobu. And though the series’ fate isn’t entirely up to Suda [as he doesn't own the IP], a sans-Travis entry could definitely work."
NMH seems to revolve around Travis like DMC revolves around Dante, GoW revolves around Kratos, Ninja Gaiden revolves around Ryu, and Bayonetta revolves around well…
It wouldn’t feel right to have these kind of action games to not have their main character in the lead role or not present at all
I totally get the sentiment, and I agree to a certain degree that these character action games feel a certain type of special because they focus on a single character most of the time. That said, given NMH's lore and other rad characters like Shinobu and Bad Girl, I'd say that universe could definitely be explored from a different character's perspective and still be super badass.
@ Crimson
Yakuza 7 plays dramatically different than the other Yakuza games. Judgment hardly even used any plot elements from the other Yakuza games.
@ Sanchez
Many of those other characters & themes revolve around Travis though. Suda even stated the unique setting of NMH is based on Travis. He as a character is too ingrained in the very essence of this series to ever be removed. Suda also stated Travis is his favorite character.
I could see other characters being made playable like in NMH2 and NMH TSA alongside Travis similar to how other playable characters along with Dante have been introduced since DMC1. However not featuring Travis at all doesn’t seem feasible.
In addition one must also consider that NMH as a series has niche sales as if is. Removing the most recognizable face of the franchise wouldn’t work well commercially.
Travis is definitely integral to NMH. I think if a spin-off were made where he's not the playable character, it would still work if he's an important NPC or a core part of the story.
Suda also said he'd be down to make a game where Shinobu is the main character, and she's super popular among the NMH fan base. So while the series is pretty niche, that niche audience has an appreciation for a lot of the characters (especially Shinobu).
So while I don't necessarily disagree with most of your points, I think in terms of a spin-off or a Shinobu-centric game, it could def work.
If PC is your only platform for No More Heroes 2: Desperate Struggle, don't pass it up; if you have a Wii or a Switch, grab it there.
Now available on PC, No More Heroes and No More Heroes 2: Desperate Struggle are both charming games but their ports are awfully basic.
Such a shame! Was hoping they'd be better, but some of the prompts reinforced my fears!
Awesome review, Destructoid. Can't wait till it comes out in Europe :)
He likes it! Hey, Mikey!
I'm not gonna have time to get back to my apartment tonight to play any NMH2, but this review sure makes me want to.
My copy is also in the mail. Looking forward to checking it out; I didn't enjoy the first one very much, but it looks like a lot of what I didn't like isn't present in the sequel.
Wow. Great score!