Ninja Gaiden Shadow

"A classic Ninja Gaiden experiance, without all the frustrating eagles"

Ninja Gaiden, the cult classic on the NES, was a big hit for several reasons. For one, it offered fast paced gameplay that required quick reflexes (something any ninja could not do without), memorization, and correct timing in order to avoid being knocked back by enemies and down into pits. It was CastleVania on steroids, because while it uses the same life bar and similar "sub-weapon" system, the character, Ryu Hayabusa, moves much faster, and the whole scheme of things is just very fast and furious. Another big asset is the spectacular plot, with cutscenes between levels, it was really something to show off, and was way ahead of its time on the NES. Just due to the fact that Tecmo could create a game with solid, challenging gameplay and an engaging, touchy storyline is something not to be missed. And with such a success, there had to be a sequel; two sequels infact, and ports! Skip a few years later shortly after the release of Ninja Gaiden III: The Ancient Ship of Doom for the NES, Tecmo thought it was time to bring the well renowned ninja, Ryu Hayabusa, onto the black and white brick. But does live up to it's name? Yes, but not in ways you'd expect it to. Read more down below to find out why.

Storyline 6/10: While the NES games made the story a bigger deal, its not so important here. Sadly, there aren't cutscenes between each stage in this game, as there was between each "act" in the Trilogy games for the NES. However, there is a scene at the very beginning and end of the game, giving insight as to just whats going on. Whats cool is this game takes place three years before the NES games. Before Irene, Jaquio, and Foster, Ryu fought a different evil. Sadly, the three characters previously mentioned are not present in this game, it's just Ryu and "the dictator" as the in-game text reads. It's funny they won't even give us a name of the head honcho in Shadow, yet the final sentence of the intro says "Jaquio has not yet been awakened". So they tell us the villain from the FUTURE, but won't even tell us who we are fighting now? Pretty hilarious. Also something to consider is that there really was no reason or drive for Ryu to go after this guy, as it was nothing personal to him like it always was on the NES games, but hey, good practice for whats to come right?

Graphics 10/10: Wow, this is some of the sweetest pixelation to grace a gameboy, and thats including the arguably worse Gameboy Color games that graced the late 90's. Not only is Ryu animated just like in his NES games (if not looking just alittle scrunched), but detail in certain enemy movements, and the awesome explosions enemies give off when you cut them clean with your Dragon Sword is pretty jaw dropping, you'd almost thing it should belong on some SNES game since it's so fluid. Not all of the game is like this, and too be fair the games backgrounds are pretty mundane and almost non existent. The first level shows Ryu in New York, but after that he's pretty much in fantasy land places for no real reason. This doesn't tend to be an issue however, since the level design and enemies on the screen are things that'll be catching your attention. There are also nice scenes of Ryu slashing up the boss he just defeated at the end of each stage, and while they all show the same still animation of Ryu, its still something I've never seen on a gameboy before. It reminded me alot of when Joe would finish a boss in a still picture during the Stage Complete screen in Shinobi III for the Sega Genesis. It was just freakin awesome, and trust me you will get more special treatment once you slice and dice the games final boss, as you are rewarded with a better scene before the credits.

Controls 9/10: Another thing that comes to mind when I think of "Ninja Gaiden" (the older ones, not the new fancy 3D game) is it's responsive controls, which was required since those games were very demanding with clearing obstacles and wasting enemies coming at Ryu left and right. Thankfully, the responsive controls are fully intact in Shadow. There are some changes, however. Ryu now moves alot slower, which was a gripe for me as I was so accustomed to his quick movements on the big screen, but it won't be anything to trouble a newcomer to the Ninja Gaiden series. I guess this was done since levels would go by too quickly if he could move any faster. All the games controls are pretty fluid and straight forward; Ryu swings his sword with B, jumps with A, he can crouch and swing his sword, he uses "Ninpo" (something I'll explain in the Gameplay section, so hold tight) with up + B, and finally he has a grapple hook entirely new to the series, which is used to cling on ceilings with conveyor belts. This is done with up + A. Sadly, the grapple hooks first appearance was also its last, as Ninja Gaiden Shadow is the only game to date to feature it.

Gameplay 10/10: What can I say? This is one badass ninja game! It's a short but sweet experience, however the fun factor is so great that you won't put it in the storage box (or, dare I say, trade this gem in) once you beat it. Its still sitting in my gameboy as I type this. So there have been some massive changes in Shadow. Originally, a game company called Natsume created a game called "Shadow of the Ninja" (commonly known as Blue Shadow in Europe) which was a huge success on the NES. I never played it, so I can't tell you the great things about it, other than that its great, but I believe it originally used the grapple hook feature that is in Shadow. So Tecmo heard rumors that Natsume began working on a gameboy release of Shadow of the Ninja, so they bought the rights from Natsume, slapped the games cover with Ryu's pretty face, and called it a Ninja Gaiden all their own! Thus, the true Shadow was born. Thankfully, Tecmo still put alot of care and dedication into this game, and it shows.

This would explain why Ryu uses the grapple hook. While I find Shadow to share little resemblance to the Trilogy, fans claim it to relate most to NG III since this game features more of the robotic enemies, and seeing that Ryu can climb on certain ceilings (he couldn't do this in NG I or II). However, Ryu cannot cling to any walls in Shadow, so this should tell you that the levels have been cramped down, otherwise Ryu's sprite wouldn't be so big and flourishing on the ol' brick! So yeah, the game consists of five stages, each with a unique boss fight at the end. Some can be hacked to death, while others require a bit of strategy, and they will kill you in the meantime until you figure this pattern out. The game has no time limit what so ever (unlike the Trilogy), so there is no rush in beating them. Some boss fights even require use of the grapple hook, which was an innovative idea. Thankully, the game has unlimited continues after you lose you're last life, forcing you to start back only at the beginning of the stage, rather than the whole game, I only had to use one continue on my first playthrough, and NG vets should not be surprised if they can clear it with one or two deaths. This game is not that hard, and can't even be compared to the difficulty of the NES games, but Shadow still offers a solid challenge in both its platforming and boss fights.

There are also some disadvantages to the player in this one, to make up for the games easier difficulty. The first is that Ryu can only aquire one ninpo (or ninja magic) in this game, and that is the Art of the Fire Wheel from the NES Trilogy. It is a big circle of flames that Ryu shoots upwards and can wipe out multiple foes at once (think of the Hoduken in Street Fighter only with fire and its much bigger). This ninpo looks like a japanese symbol, which are found in "candles" (like in CastleVania!) throughout stages and whereas Ryu could store a massive build up of ninpo in the NES games (which replicated the hearts in CastleVania), Ryu can only carry five of this ninpo at once. Believe me it comes in handy during some rough spots in the game, and is great for ending a boss before he ends you. The other drawback is Ryu only has six bars of health, versus the sixteen he had on the NES, so don't be surprised to not make it far if you aren't conscious about the damage you receive, but thankfully 1-ups and health potions can be found in "candles" from time to time.

From beginning to end, you can expect an action packed platforming ninja experience in Shadow, and the ending will hit you so fast you won't believe its already over. That is my only major gripe about the game; five stages is way too short, alas alot of gameboy games during this age were short, but then you think of Metroid II and Zelda, or even Wario Land and figured Ninja Gaiden could've also been something more, however that just shows how good of a game it is. It isn't gonna bore you or feel like a chore, it's just a solid platformer, and who can't like ninja's?

Music/sound 10/10: Oh yeah, crank up that 8 bit goodness! While Shadow didn't have as great BGM's as the Trilogy games (primarily NG I and II), it still exceeds most of the crap you'd find in later gameboy games. Even some tunes from the Trilogy are present in Shadow, including "Ryu's Determination" from the original NG. But some of the games tracks are very good on their own, and even the final boss theme and credits was truly epic. Nothing to complain about here, other than that they could have been lazy and used more of the truly awesome music from the Trilogy, which I could have benefited for nostalgia sake. This again shows that Tecmo really wanted Shadow to be its own independent game, save the fact it "borrowed" from Shadow of the Ninja, you know it was all for the better.

While Shadow is easily one of the rarest NG games to come by, in the end its a fantastic experience if you ever get the chance to buy it, and I would highly recommend it to anyone interested in trying the old NG's and seeing where it all began, or just for someone looking to keep themselves occupied with a cool action platformer for their gameboy. You don't have to play the Trilogy beforehand, as this is a game you can just dive right into, like most gameboy games should be. And to the NG vets, you cannot claim that you've seen all of Ryu's original adventures through the end until you've played Shadow. It may not spank you with eagles and sending you back a few stages every time you die on the last boss, but who couldn't care for some portable Ninja Gaiden goodness?

Pros.
+Two games incorporated into one
+Still fun even once you do beat it
+A great start to a critically acclaimed challenging series
+Experience where it all began for young ninja, Ryu Hayabusa
+Awesome BGM's
+Great graphics
+Oldschool Ninja Gaiden gameplay now made portable
+A cutscene or two with an epic finish for the effort you put into beating it
+Grapple Hook!

Cons.
-Alittle easy after awhile, especially for those who could beat any of the Trilogy games
-No cutscenes between stages, so don't expect any plot twists
-Alittle slower paced than the Trilogy
-Only one ninpo this time around
-TOO SHORT

Reviewer's Score: 10/10, Originally Posted: 03/12/08

Game Release: Ninja Gaiden Shadow (US, December 1991)