Ninja Gaiden

[Zerodash]

I'm too lazy to proof-read. Beware!!


As I was picking up my copy of Ninja Gaiden, I noticed a group of kids playing the demo...kids about the same age I was when the first NES Ninja Gaiden came out. It struck me how different videogames are now for these kids compared to my youth- where now everything is in 3D, full of blood, gore, boobies and gamers aren't all friendless geeks. It was at this point, I began to wonder who this XBox Ninja Gaiden was made for: the nostalgia of older gamers or this new generation of "cool kids". Who, indeed.

**pause*

Ninja Gaiden is a 3D ninja action title designed by Team Ninja, best known for their titacular Dead or Alive series (in which NG star Ryu Hayabusa has been a character). Players are charged with taking control of Ryu and slash through legions of enemies, puzzles, and some platforming. The game flow is broken into multiple stages, each ending with a boss fight.

The star ninja has a good deal of abilities and weapons at his disposal. In true ninja fashion, Ryu can pull off feats such as wall jumps, wall runs, climbing, rolling, and swimming. To dispense with his foes, the ninja has a large and diverse variety of melee weapons at hand, ranging from swords to numchuku to war hammers. *As with all ninjas (game ninjas at least), there is also a plethora of projectile weaponry available. Simple shuriken, bows with multiple arrows, daggers, and the famous windmill shuriken all are present and prove to be useful in the ninja's quest to kill everything that moves.

Given the fondness Team Ninja has for the XBox (and their past achievements in graphics), it is of no surprise that Gaiden is a gorgeous game. The characters are chock full 'O polygons, textures, and details- from Ryu himself to even the most insignificant enemy grunt. The environments are equally nice, rendered and textured to near-perfection. The most wonderful thing about a game so gorgeous is the framerate- locked at 60 fps. (99% of the time). The art direction is very good as well, with nice character/enemy designs. This spills over into the level design, which is the most diverse set of design settings seen in any game as of late- they range anywhere from a military base to Egyptian ruins, to a demonic temple.

The original NES Ninja Gaiden games featured the groundbreaking "Tecmo Theater" style of cinematic presentation involving a clichéd, albeit entertaining, story- the same holds true for this new Gaiden as well. The story is your typical "omg I gotta save the world from the demon" tale, told via rendered and (gorgeous) pre-rendered cinematic sequences. Since this is a Team Ninja game, there is a fair amount of gigantic breasts involved as well. Sadly for some, this Gaiden has absolutely NO relation to the storylines of the NES games, though the SNES versions of said games can be unlocked.

The music and sound are nothing spectacular, and are so unremarkable that there is little need to discuss them. OK, there is NO NEED to discuss them...

And then that leads us to the issue of gameplay...and here is where it gets interesting. To be frank, Ninja Gaiden is little more than a merging of Shinobi and Devil May Cry. That's not really a bad thing, as NG is mostly well-executed. Control is tight and responsive, though there are fleeting times when wall maneuvers and air dashing are less precise than they should be. Despite this, Gaiden plays smoothly and is great fun to play once you get past the learning curve (more on that later).

The camera is...well...not as bad as some would let you believe, but is by no means perfect. It often obscures enemies and places itself in an inconvenient position- especially during platforming segments. The only control the player has over the camera is the ability to recenter the camera directly behind Ryu- had the right control stick been able to control the camera, this issue would have been nearly resolved.

What Ninja Gaiden will probably be remembered for is its high degree of difficulty, which is already the stuff of legends. Its true, a single grunt is more than capable of taking you out quickly. Groups of grunts can destroy you if you make a single error. However, the game is not impossibly difficult, and that is wherein the true glory of Ninja Gaiden lies- the player is FORCED to play at the top of their game. Ryu has the tools necessary to win, and its up to the player to use them to their fullest. To win, you must use every advantage, every trick, you can to overcome the odds. In most games, clearing out a room of monsters is mostly a "ho-hum" enterprise. In Ninja Gaiden, its a testament to the skill of the player.

I can only conditionally recommend Ninja Gaiden: If you have the patience and gaming skills to overcome the difficulty, then a wonderful experience awaits you. However, if you lack patience (or time) or the skill (younger gamers who shouldn't be playing "M" rated games anyway), then it might be a good idea to stay away. Ninja Gaiden manages to overcome its camera (and slight control) woes to be a great game, do you have what it takes to overcome the difficulty?


SCORE: 9.0

[Tyler_Durden]

As I was picking up my copy of Ninja Gaiden, I noticed a group of kids playing the demo...kids about the same age I was when the first NES Ninja Gaiden came out. It struck me how different videogames are now for these kids compared to my youth- where now everything is in 3D, full of blood, gore, boobies and gamers aren't all friendless geeks. It was at this point, I began to wonder who this XBox Ninja Gaiden was made for: the nostalgia of older gamers or this new generation of "cool kids". Who, indeed.

**pause*

Nigga please.

Gaming is about as cool as taking a shit in your pants.

[Melf]

Thoughtful and inciteful as always, Tyler.

Good review Zero. I agree about the camera and difficulty level. NG is one of those games that makes you turn off your Xbox in frustration, only to go back 15 minutes later and play some more.

"I'm not going out like that!" was the thought that went through my head when I got to Alma and was thoroughly whupped.