Ninja Spirit

[EThugg]

Hmmm... I think I know one of the games I'll be getting when I get my system... ...in 5 years...

[Korly]

Originally posted by lee vicious
I also LOVED Ninja Spirit!!
Its the best of the Ninja\Samurai genre by far (Shadow Dancer being its closest comp), great play control, amazing graphics (moreso back then), a really cool weapons system (I love games that give you everything right away, and force you to master each weapon in order to advance in the game). My favorite part is (of course) the final level before the last boss, where you have to fall through a continuos sea of enemies without getting hit...that sh!t was genius...too bad the last boss was just as easy as the first.

I broke a controller over that part. Between that and the 5th level of Legendary Axe 2, I damn near broke a hole in my wall.

[Zerodash]

Ninja Spirit is almost always in my TG16. Excellent game. Did this come out before Ninja Gaiden 2 or vice-versa? I am wondering which was the first to sport "shadow doubles"

The game is pretty damn tough, too. Level 2 still gives me problems

[EightBit]

I got this and Y's Book 1&2 with my Duo, and this definitly gets more play time. I would like to see more stuff from the ninja mythos, like wall climbing, and some ninja magic. Still it makes other ninja games seem like just another action game. I'm glad to see I made a good choice. Also, I think its the only ninja game to sport a ninja from a hippy commune. Moonlight the Ninja... hahaha.

Z-roe

[Plasma]

No one said a thing about Gunforce...

[NeoZeedeater]

Both the arcade and PC Engine versions of Ninja Spirit predate Ninja Gaiden 2.

The domestic TG16 release came out a few months after Ninja Gaiden 2. Both came out in the second half of 1990.

[skelly]

Originally posted by Plasma
No one said a thing about Gunforce...

Maybe they're all still bitter about the shit SNES port.

[NeoZeedeater]

I really liked Gun Force in the arcade, great Run N Gun game. Is the SNES port really that bad? What did they screw up?

[skelly]

It was just crap in every imaginable way. It's so bad it's really hard to describe (and I've never played the decent-looking arcade original, so I can't compare it to that). Poor animation, poor control, sluggish speed, bad sound, complete lack of fun... etc. You should probably seek it out yourself and play it just to see how bad it is. My words can't do it justice... Plus you're probably already suspicious of my taste since I don't particularly enjoy Silent Bomber... ;)

I'm sad to report that the company that ported it is still in business.

Edit: And oh yes, I have a copy for sale. Someone please take this excellent, RARE game off my hands. SIDE SCROLLING ACTION LIKE CONTRA, L@@K!!! :D

[gameoverDude]

Damn, Ninja Spirit has a great soundtrack. In the TG-16 version, there's a jukebox mode to play the tracks on demand. It looks better than your ordinary sound test screen.

One boss encounter that really gave me fits was the Army of Forgotten Warriors. The trick in dealing with them is not to move.

The bombs and the powered-up sword are my favorite weapons in this game.