Mystical Ninja starring Goemon

"An excellent action-RPG that stays true to its roots."

Mystical Ninja Starring Goemon was released in 1997 by Konami. The game is based on a popular Japanese Manga/Anime series. This is an action/RPG and it retains much of its Japanese flavor (for example, the game’s theme song is sung in Japanese.)

Graphics-8/10- The character designs are excellent (the fortune teller is hilarious), very original and vibrant. The graphics themselves are nice, the characters look great, as do the levels, they are a little blurry, but no too much. There are small graphical touches that I enjoyed in this game, for example; Goemon’s facial expressions change when you attack an enemy (I’d like to see this in other games like this, it really adds to the game’s personality) , this helps to make you feel like you’re in a real world. The only graphical downside is the camera; the camera is seemingly never in the right place, it’s either perfect or horribly screwed up, there’s no in between. Overall, they’re great, the camera is the only serious downside.

Pros- Facial expressions add a lot of humor to the game. Excellent character design (the fortune teller cracks me up.) Excellent and original level design.
Cons- The camera is very problematic, it's never in the right place.

Sound-10/10- The music in this game is excellent, the Japanese sound really helps you get into the game, the songs sound great, clear and of a high quality. My personal favorite is the intro song (hey, it has lyrics.) Overall, great, the Japanese music really helps set the mood.

Pros- Excellent Japanese music that helps get you into the game. Great sound effects. Clear voice effects.
Cons- None

Story-6/10- A UFO comes to town and takes over the castle, it’s your job to get the castle back. Yawn, it’s a typical anime storyline, I know it’s based on an anime, but a little originality wouldn’t have hurt.

Pros- True to it's anime roots.
Cons- Not very original.

Gameplay-9/10- The game is relatively big, and it’s got a lot of personality. It’s still a basic action/RPG though, only this time with Anime characters, it is a little too easy though, the enemy AI is really lacking. It’s no big deal though, the game was meant to be fun, not cumbersome, so it works out great. Overall, it’s great, there’s tons to do (you’ll never be bored, there’s always something to do, the game also has many interesting areas and towns to keep your interest.

Pros- Tons to do, the game's funny characters and imaginative settings ensure that you'll never be bored.
Cons- It's a little on the easy side.

Control-7/10- The control is a mixed bag, for the most part, they’re excellent, all attacks are easy to execute, but in some instances, they’re terrible, most notably, the platforming areas, they are way too sluggish and unresponsive (the camera doesn’t help any.) Overall though, they are good.

Pros- Attacks are easy to execute due to the responsive controls.
Cons- Platform jumping is a pain, the controls are too sluggish in these areas.

Replay Value-5/10- It’s an RPG-ish game, once you’ve played it through, there’s no real reason to do it again (meaning you’ve probably seen all there is to see and playing through it again would be rather pointless.)

Pros- It's fun the first time through.
Cons- It's an action-RPG, nce you've beaten it the first time, there's little reason to do it again.

Presentation-10/10- Everything fits the Japanese setting perfectly, from the towns-people to the game’s menu’s everything looks like it should be in the game. Overall, excellent.

Pros- Everything stays true to the game's Japanese roots, no corners were cut.
Cons- None

Overall-9/10- The game features great graphics (barring the camera), wonderful sound, good control and a decent story. It’s a must-buy for anime fans.

Buy or Rent?-Rent- Rent it, it’s an acquired taste, the game is great, but it may be too bizarre for some (mainly some of the characters, they’re beyond belief.)

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 10/04/00, Updated 10/04/00