The drama surrounding Tecmo and their once highly touted director Tomonobu Itagaki continues to grow as the split between the two sides seems to now only mark the beginning.

According to Famitsu (translation provided by Engadget Japan on behalf of Joystiq) a gag order request was filed on Jun 10th against Itagaki by none other than his former employer. As of this time, it is also being reported that a verdict has yet to be reached.

The information below has been translated from the original Famitsu post and outlines the details of the filing.

Disclosing, destroying or leaking Tecmo’s trade secrets, especially those concerning software, development and marketing.

Making false or misleading statements about Tecmo’s business policies and strategies, or criticizing games developed by other Tecmo employees.

Making defamatory remarks to damage Tecmo’s reputation.

Making public statements about Tecmo, or accepting media invitations (e.g., interviews) to discuss Tecmo while still employed (until July 1) by the company.

Source: Famitsu (via Joystiq)

In what amounts to a short but important piece of news, Electronic Gaming Monthly editor Bryan Intihar confirmed that Left 4 Dead will be hitting the Playstation 3.

Over on the Neo Gaf forums, Intihar posted to clarify that EGM’s statement that Ninja Gaiden II would be hitting the PS3 was simply an editorial mistake. However, he didn’t leave PS3 owners completely in the cold, as he signed off with this little tidbit:

As for Left4Dead: Yes, it will arrive on the PS3, as well.

So, Sony owners, it looks like you’re out one ninja but you’ve got more zombies than you could shake a stick at. Not that bad of a deal, if you ask me.

According to the February issue of Electronic Gaming Monthly, it’s a definite “maybe”. Of course that could just be a typo.

Towards the end of EGM’s Game Over section, they always give a little sneak peek at the next month’s issue. This time, they happen to have Ninja Gaiden II listed in the previews section, but they have it listed for both the 360 and the PS3.

Now, I’m not one to start rumors, so let me just tell you now that I find this extremely hard to believe. I’ve been a reader of EGM for over 15 years, and I’ve seen mistakes like this before. Yes, I’m saying it’s a mistake — a typographical error.

Image courtesy of myself because it’s my magazine and I paid for it. The content, of course, is the property of EGM and Ziff Davis Media.

While it’s entirely possible that EGM knows something we don’t and inadvertently let the ninja out of the bag, I dismiss this idea for one main reason: Microsoft is publishing the game. Unless Tecmo and Team Ninja decided to let Sony or someone else (maybe themselves) publish Ninja Gaiden II for the PS3, I doubt the game is coming to the PS3 by way of Microsoft.

Then again, maybe EGM does know something, but they aren’t allowed to say, in which case they “accidentally” listed the game for both consoles. Again, I find this very hard to believe. They would all be killed!

EGM’s final page is all about the PS3 and how it’s going to have a big year. If EGM really did know that Ninja Gaiden II was coming to the PS3, I don’t think they would have excluded it from the conversation. You know, that would actually be some news worth talking about, wouldn’t it?

Unless you think this is how Ninja Gaiden II for PS3 would be announced, and it’s not just a three-letter mistake in the back of a magazine, I would just put this one in the “wishful thinking” department. Although the shockwaves could be significant, consider this just a simple error on EGM’s part. Great job, guys!

When the original Ninja Gaiden was released in the U.S. in March of 1989 on the NES console it was an instant classic. The mix of side scrolling action, shuriken power-ups, insane difficulty and memorable boss battles left a lasting impression on young gamers across America. It also set the record straight concerning the misconceptions surrounding that most mysterious of ancient Japanese arts: Ninjutsu. The game’s developer, Tecmo, encouraged us to look past the rants of so called “historians” who claim that the Shinobi were assassins who incorporated the use of avoidance, non-detection, information gathering and stealth to achieve their goals.

According to the Tokyo based game company that was all a lot of baloney. Ninjas actually cared very little for subtleties – favoring the slaughter of everything from birds, leopards, dogs and spiders to fellow ninjas, grenade hurling hulks, axe lobbing hockey masked maniacs and even women…all in broad daylight. Yes, Ryu Hyabusa definitely utilized extermination over espionage and little has changed in the almost two decades since the series’ inception.

Now with the announcement of Ninja Gaiden II (the highly anticipated sequel to the platinum selling original XBOX title) fans are excited to know where young Ryu’s adventures will be whisking him off to next. All that we can say for sure is that whatever road Hyabusa heads down would benefit from a crew of diligent street sweepers, because getting all that dried blood off the pavement ain’t gonna be easy.

When Tobonobu Itagaki and Team Ninja brought the Ninja Gaiden series back to life on the XBOX console after roughly 10 years of hibernation, fans were understandably hyped. And it delivered. It stayed true to the spirit of the original NES trilogy by including all the fast paced action that those 3 games introduced. The game continued to grow in subsequent months with the release of the highly popular Hurricane Packs made available over XBOX live, and the re-release of the improved Ninja Gaiden: Black. XBOX 360 owners were dealt a tough blow, however, when news was released that Team Ninja had no intentions of releasing Ninja Gaiden: Sigma – the 2007 next gen port, and Playstation 3 exclusive, of Ninja Gaiden – to the Microsoft console. Hardcore XBOX gamers felt betrayed and alone. But the clouds were lifted on September 12th when Microsoft announced that an entirely new and original Hyabusa adventure would be released exclusively on the XBOX 360, rather than yet another remake of its 2004 counterpart. Hallelujah!

Ninja Gaiden II is slated for a 2008 release. Itagaki and the rest of Team Ninja will once again helm the game’s development. But this time around there’ll be a little twist. Unlike the 3 previous entries, Ninja Gaiden II will not be published by Tecmo but directly by Microsoft Game Studios (Halo, Gears of War, Mass Effect). While this move pleases a lot of 360 owners who’re anxious to steer young Ryu through another acrobatic slash fest, the PS3 faithful will never get that chance. Ninja Gaiden II will be a 360 exclusive.

Little is known about the sequel’s story at this time, but it is known that you will once again be fighting to prevent the annihilation of the human race, using an assortment of authentic (and not so authentic) ninja weaponry while avenging your clan in the process. Like Ninja Gaiden before it, this addition to the series will be taking place before the circumstances of the original NES games. That means that a guest appearance by Ruy’s father (Ken), or some of the other characters that graced the earlier story arcs, is still a possibility. Who knows?

The gameplay and difficulty level are things that have always shined in the Ninja Gaiden series. Gameplay mechanics are expected to remain faithful to the original XBOX game with some welcomed additions. One of these additions has been titled “Obliteration Techniques” which have been described as moves that can be engaged to stylishly end an opponent’s existence. It hasn’t been made clear if essence collecting will play into these new techniques (pretty likely), or if a blocking mechanic might be the catalyst.

Itagaki said during a presentation of Ninja Gaiden II that this game would be used to implement a lot of the features that had to be left out of the first game due to the original XBOX console’s restrictions power wise. That same presentation also left hints of a variety of environments for our hero to wreak havoc in, both urban and rural. You’ll travel from quiet Buddhist temples to the gritty streets of New York and Tokyo, while visiting the Netherworld in an attempt to learn its secrets. Real life locations also seem like a possibility, with footage showing places that seem to resemble Kiyomizudera in Japan and the obvious inclusion of The Statue of Liberty in the Big Apple.

In an effort to make the game a little more accessible to the average gamer there has been a new auto healing health system incorporated into the gameplay. Operating similar to Halo in the way that you will gradually heal yourself as long as you avoid taking hits, with semi permanent damage being healable at save points to revive your health bar’s full potential. Although the gaming industry seems to have made a lean towards the more casual gamer with the success of Nintendo’s Wii and Bungie’s decision to lower the default difficulty setting for Halo 3, Itagaki assures us that this next Ninja Gaiden won’t alienate any of its masochistic fans. And if the early videos circling the Internet are anything to go on, those who are gluttons for punishment can expect a good hearty spanking come next year.

All in all, Ninja Gaiden II looks like it will be a promising ride. Team Ninja seems to have taken a lot of steps over the past 3 years towards giving us the perfect numchuku swinging, wall scaling, head decapitating thrill ride that we’ve been longing for. With improvements in camera control, interface design, weapon variety and item selection over the course of the last 3 installments – this game will most likely expand an already amazing upcoming lineup of XBOX 360 must haves.