Ninja Gaiden

"Ninja Gaiden - A test of one's patience"

Ninja Gaiden is a prequel to an old classic created for the NES. With two sequels and a long time following, Ninja Gaiden has been eagerly awaited by fans. Returning too the series, is Ryu; sporting the Dragon Sword and a handful of nifty ninja toys and ninpo, we get too see our young ninja back at his roots. As the story is a prequel too the original Ninja Gaiden, there isn't much in the ways of continuity in the series, since we now get to see a bit of Ryu as he is a developing ninja, to learn more about his clan and their tasks and the power of the Dragon Sword.

Gameplay:
Gamplay wise, it is a typical 3d action game. You have your camera, the onslaught of enemies and your tools/surroundings to utilize in your combat against the baddies. While not a constant flow of enemies at your fingertips to destroy, they fight more in groups and require more then simple button mashing to get by. Enemies now fight as a group, forcing you to watch what they are all doing to insure you avoid receiving great damage. As one attacks, the other two may fall into support using range weapons; perhaps sneaking up behind you and attacking from behind to disrupt your chain attacks. Also capable of performing their own chain combos, the enemy can cause a great amount of damage upon you in a very short amount of time. Which brings you too the difficulty level. Even in normal mode, it is possible to watch yourself die a great number of times to accomplish very little. If you don't utilize your acrobatics you will find yourself constantly frustrated with how difficult the game can be. Utilizing Ryu's abilities to run along walls, up walls, and perform special combo attacks using the surroundings to create stronger attacks, the player can avoid deadly attacks and inflict great damage as well.

Do not underestimate the difficulty of the game. If you've played the original Ninja Gaiden for the NES, imagine replaying the last 3 levels of the game, from the very beginning. It can be that tough.

Graphics:
Graphic wise, Ninja Gaiden is nicely detailed and rendered. The rendered cutscenes look good and give you a better grasp of the detail that has gone into the game. Reflections of the light upon the metal, the wisps of the hair and bandana in the wind. Going with a more realistic look, the transition from gameplay to cutscene is near seamless. While it is expected too see a change, it is good to see that Team Ninja attempted to get both to look so close, so neither stands out from another.

Sounds:
Nothing great, though nothing annoying. One gets so wrapped into the actual gameplay, that it is easy to completely forget about the music. When sitting around just to listen, the music flows with the scene, but is easily overlooked. While it does set the mood, it is quiet enough for you to hear what is going on around you. Be it a flip of a shurikeen aimed for your back, the hiss of a fiend or the running of water from a river.

Pros:
The game is fun, though very difficult. For me, the difficulty is a nice change compared to most games.
Variety of weapons, ninpo and techniques to master. Climbing walls, performing dashing slices and tossing shurikeens are amongst the fun that one can unleash as they come up against the enemy. Though be careful, as the enemy may inflict similarly used techniques.

Cons:
Camera is horrible. Not really a surprise for a 3d game, as it is easier to count games with good cameras then it is to count games with bad cameras, there being so many. It isn't uncommon to be running up a wall, jump to perform a slash and then wonder where you and the enemies are at. When the camera does focus on you, easy to do with a quick R2, you still have to figure out where the enemies are, as they are often times left off the camera. Funny me, but I like to see what I'm supposed to be fighting.

Overall, the game is very solid and reminds me of my time with the classics. Which, if the player is good enough, can unlock and revisit on the xbox. Though to do so, will require the player to have mastered their skills to score high enough on each board to unlock the later games, to scale high areas to find hidden objects to open the first.

If you are looking for a fun challenge with a nice variety of action, this prequel to a classic will be right up your alley. Not only will you have bragging rights when you've defeated one of the hardest games to date, but your be able to re-own all the classics too your collection, even if they aren't in a hard copy.

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 03/07/04