Alongside Knights of the Old Republic, Ninja Gaiden is a must own for anybody with the bullet-proof system. With the exception of Otogi: Myth of Demons the ‘box has been seriously lacking in action games, and the industry in whole has more or less ignored this genre recently. Granted Devil May Cry (PS2) has been the watermark for this console generation in action/adventure and has influenced the entire industry, but Ninja Gaiden takes the best elements of Devil May Cry and loses the fat.
The story is based around young ninja Ryu Hayabusa who must avenge the destruction of his entire village by the Ultimate Evil. This is truly a story worthy of a movie deal, one possibly helmed by Ron Howard. Honestly though the story is superfluous and just sets the stage for some jaw dropping action and remarkable gameplay.
Given that ninja are some of videogames' most prevalent protagonists, surprisingly few of them have ever been given the proper treatment. That’s not to say that this is a realistic game, what with the demons and bullet-deflecting swords and all, but Ryu controls, looks and acts like we expect a ninja to, In other words, you can run along a wall, jump of an enemy’s head, and then slash him to bloody bits, all while looking incredibly cool. In fact, most of the game requires amazing combinations of acrobatics and manoeuvres that would make Dante cry, and let’s not forget the ancient Japanese art of summoning fireballs from your hands. Yes, there is ninja magic in this game, which is very helpful and keeps in tune with the previous instalments, but I could have done without it. My advice would be to save all of it for the boss battles where it can mean the difference between life or stomping on your controller in a fit of rage.
Of course all this means nothing if the controls don’t work properly. Many games have been relegated to bargain bin status because of wonky controls. Thankfully this is not the case with Gaiden, as the fluidity of the controls are some of the best I’ve ever seen. The buttons are can be mapped anyway you see fit, eliminating any complaints about awkwardness, the sole exception being the camera.
If this game has a down side, it is that the trigger buttons, eschewing the more natural right analog configuration, controls the camera. This would not be such a big deal in a slower paced game, but in a game dominated by fast moving characters, this becomes more than a minor nuisance.
As for the graphics, good luck finding something so beautifully rendered on your Xbox. In one city level I spent time counting bricks on a building, this is how much detail was poured into this game. The lighting effects are well done, not amazing, but very faithful to the overall artistic direction. There are CGI cut scenes sprinkled throughout the game and they do not disappoint in the least. In fact they are so gorgeous I wish Team Ninja had done more to give the story some substance to support the massive amount of time it had to taken to make the characters look so damn good.
The gameplay isn’t very diverse, but it does not need to be with the slicing and dicing being so much fun. The first worry I had when hearing about my childhood favourite being remade was that the game play would revolve around stealth. I am happy to report that there is not even a shred of stealth in NG, because frankly I’m sick of it. It’s so bad I expect that Madden 2005 will feature a stealth mode. Gaiden is pure action, bloody and quick. Your tools of slaughter include katana, nunchukas, war hammer and a sword that would put Cloud Strife into phallic envy. By killing more enemies you are awarded more souls (money) to upgrade your weapons for faster annihilation or to buy much needed health potions.
Just for a fair warning, this game is not for the weak hearted or the easily irritated. Every enemy you kill dies in a fountain of blood, often with their heads falling off first. Unfortunately it disappears rather quickly, so no chance for a “slippery when wet” physics engine tryout. As for the irritated this game is hard, and if you forget to buy potions, you can get stuck fighting a boss 20+ times in order to continue. Every enemy on the screen can kill you, which makes for a very intense game, as any battle you fight could be your last. Expect to see the game over screen frequently. I found the difficulty to be entirely fair however; cheap deaths do not seem to exist. For instance, if you are fighting on a cliff Ryu will not combo himself right of the cliff, he hits an invisible barrier that keeps him from falling to a cheap ticket to Hell. In this way the game seems to guide you to smart decisions, buy health upgrades, choose your weapons wisely and do not attack wildly. It’s very nice to see a hard game that doesn’t resort to crevices opening under you or other nonsense instant deaths to create a challenge.
The replay factor is extremely high because, at no cost to you, the original Ninja Gaidens have been included as unlockables. Of course, this being Team Ninja they require an almost inhuman amount of work but the reward is well worth it. If you own an Xbox and forty smackers then get this game. Now.
Michael Darnell
