With Ninja Gaiden for the Game Gear, despite it not being the best of games, it had been proven at that point that Ninja Gaiden could work on a handheld just as well as on consoles, as long as some proper love and care went into it. So for the next entry in the series, it was only fitting to finally bring the series onto a GOOD handheld this time, but not directly by Tecmo, but instead by Natsume, and not for the reason you think. See, the game was originally meant to be a Game Boy port of Natsume’s previous title, Shadow of the Ninja, but somewhere along development, it was changed into being a Ninja Gaiden game instead. Now, I myself haven’t played Shadow of the Ninja (yet), but just by comparing the two side-by-side, I can see that, if you removed Ryu from the game, they would pretty much be the exact same game, as they didn’t even try to hide the fact that it was pretty much a straight port of that game. But, nonetheless, the game eventually came to be released as Ninja Gaiden Shadow.
When judging how well this game stacks up to previous installments, there are two things to keep in mind: how it works as a Ninja Gaiden game, and how it works as a port of Shadow of the Ninja. So, it may be hard to really grade this fairly, as there are certain elements missing from Ninja Gaiden that make Ninja Gaiden… well, Ninja Gaiden. That being said, from what I did experience with this game, I did have a good time with it, and I would say it’s a good game. Even if I never played it, as a port of Shadow of the Ninja, I can say that it did a good job at taking that game and putting it on a handheld, but as a Ninja Gaiden game, I would say that it works… well enough.
The story is the exact same as Shadow of the Ninja, which is “evil is attacking, go stop it”, except now Ryu is here, which works well enough, the graphics are Game Boy graphics, but the sprites themselves are alright, and I at least can tell that I am, in fact, playing as Ryu, the music is pretty good, providing the same feeling as tracks did from previous games, with there being some nice beats throughout, the control what you would expect from Ninja Gaiden, with some new mechanics thrown in, although your movement speed is pretty damn slow, which I am not a fan of, and the gameplay, despite being from a completely different IP, does still carry the same feel and fun as Ninja Gaiden for the most part, and I feel most can enjoy it if they are fans of either games.
The game is a 2D-side scrolling action platformer, where you go through several side-scrolling levels, take down any enemy that tries to take you down with either your main weapon or ninja powers (all one of them), gather health items, power ammo, and extra lives along the way, and take on the somewhat threatening bosses that stand in your way. It all carries the standards, challenge, and “charm” to make a good ol’ school 2D platformer, but the main question is, does it make a good Ninja Gaiden game? Well, to that I say… yes and no. Since it was primarily a port of Shadow of the Ninja before it got changed, it retains many aspects of that game, but thankfully, most of the elements from that game fit well into this game.
When I first played this game 3 years ago in college, I had no idea that it was even a different game. I just thought that it was yet another game in the series, and for the most part, it does feel like a Ninja Gaiden game. The inclusion of the mechanics from Shadow of the Ninja, such as a grabbing onto and hanging onto bars, do feel natural for this series, and they do somewhat add to the gameplay, making the title feel more fun and unique. In addition, all of the usual gameplay elements you would see from previous games do feel like they came from those games, transitioning almost seamlessly into this title, and still feeling fun.
Unfortunetly, there are certain elements of the game that make it not feel like a Ninja Gaiden game whatsoever, with the biggest of these elements being the lack of cutscenes. One of the defining features of the original Ninja Gaiden games, and one of the things that made them so iconic, was their plentiful 8-bit animated cutscenes, which were pretty uncommon at the time, and thus, became a part of the series’ identity. However, in this game, there are only two cutscenes, one at the beginning and one at the end, which is pretty much the exact same amount that Shadow of the Ninja had, and they aren’t changed that much from that original game, aside from Ryu being in them. Not to mention, they lack a lot of the storytelling that the cutscenes from the other games had, instead just relying on basic plot points to set things up, which is fine, but in the case of a Ninja Gaiden game, it does make it feel like it is lacking a part of its soul.
In addition, in comparison to other Ninja Gaiden games, this game is significantly less difficult then you would expect. It’s not easy by any means, but compared to the original trilogy of games, it is a walk in the park, and while it is appreciated, it also feels… off. It may seem weird to say, but the grueling difficulty of Ninja Gaiden was also one of the things that made it so appealing, because it gave itself a legacy. You would hear about how these games would be considered some of the hardest games on the NES, maybe of all time, and whether you realize it or not, that plants a thought in your subconscious. A thought provides an internal proposition: “....what if I could beat those games?” This then gets you to play the games, face the challenges, learn the strategies, and eventually, conquer them, while also growing a fondness with them. With this game, on the other hand, yes, it is still challenging, but it is significantly less so then it is supposed to be.
Overall though, despite the lack of cutscenes and the lowered difficulty, I still find this to be a pretty good entry in the Ninja Gaiden series, and definitely an improvement over what the Game Gear game gave us, despite how it was never meant to be one of these games. I would definitely recommend it for those who are fans of the other Ninja Gaiden games, as well as those who are also fans of Shadow of the Ninja, as there is something for both of you here. Hell, after playing this, I may even give Shadow of the Ninja a try at some point… probably very soon… and this is the part of the review where I would be winking, if you could actually see my face.
Game #306
When judging how well this game stacks up to previous installments, there are two things to keep in mind: how it works as a Ninja Gaiden game, and how it works as a port of Shadow of the Ninja. So, it may be hard to really grade this fairly, as there are certain elements missing from Ninja Gaiden that make Ninja Gaiden… well, Ninja Gaiden. That being said, from what I did experience with this game, I did have a good time with it, and I would say it’s a good game. Even if I never played it, as a port of Shadow of the Ninja, I can say that it did a good job at taking that game and putting it on a handheld, but as a Ninja Gaiden game, I would say that it works… well enough.
The story is the exact same as Shadow of the Ninja, which is “evil is attacking, go stop it”, except now Ryu is here, which works well enough, the graphics are Game Boy graphics, but the sprites themselves are alright, and I at least can tell that I am, in fact, playing as Ryu, the music is pretty good, providing the same feeling as tracks did from previous games, with there being some nice beats throughout, the control what you would expect from Ninja Gaiden, with some new mechanics thrown in, although your movement speed is pretty damn slow, which I am not a fan of, and the gameplay, despite being from a completely different IP, does still carry the same feel and fun as Ninja Gaiden for the most part, and I feel most can enjoy it if they are fans of either games.
The game is a 2D-side scrolling action platformer, where you go through several side-scrolling levels, take down any enemy that tries to take you down with either your main weapon or ninja powers (all one of them), gather health items, power ammo, and extra lives along the way, and take on the somewhat threatening bosses that stand in your way. It all carries the standards, challenge, and “charm” to make a good ol’ school 2D platformer, but the main question is, does it make a good Ninja Gaiden game? Well, to that I say… yes and no. Since it was primarily a port of Shadow of the Ninja before it got changed, it retains many aspects of that game, but thankfully, most of the elements from that game fit well into this game.
When I first played this game 3 years ago in college, I had no idea that it was even a different game. I just thought that it was yet another game in the series, and for the most part, it does feel like a Ninja Gaiden game. The inclusion of the mechanics from Shadow of the Ninja, such as a grabbing onto and hanging onto bars, do feel natural for this series, and they do somewhat add to the gameplay, making the title feel more fun and unique. In addition, all of the usual gameplay elements you would see from previous games do feel like they came from those games, transitioning almost seamlessly into this title, and still feeling fun.
Unfortunetly, there are certain elements of the game that make it not feel like a Ninja Gaiden game whatsoever, with the biggest of these elements being the lack of cutscenes. One of the defining features of the original Ninja Gaiden games, and one of the things that made them so iconic, was their plentiful 8-bit animated cutscenes, which were pretty uncommon at the time, and thus, became a part of the series’ identity. However, in this game, there are only two cutscenes, one at the beginning and one at the end, which is pretty much the exact same amount that Shadow of the Ninja had, and they aren’t changed that much from that original game, aside from Ryu being in them. Not to mention, they lack a lot of the storytelling that the cutscenes from the other games had, instead just relying on basic plot points to set things up, which is fine, but in the case of a Ninja Gaiden game, it does make it feel like it is lacking a part of its soul.
In addition, in comparison to other Ninja Gaiden games, this game is significantly less difficult then you would expect. It’s not easy by any means, but compared to the original trilogy of games, it is a walk in the park, and while it is appreciated, it also feels… off. It may seem weird to say, but the grueling difficulty of Ninja Gaiden was also one of the things that made it so appealing, because it gave itself a legacy. You would hear about how these games would be considered some of the hardest games on the NES, maybe of all time, and whether you realize it or not, that plants a thought in your subconscious. A thought provides an internal proposition: “....what if I could beat those games?” This then gets you to play the games, face the challenges, learn the strategies, and eventually, conquer them, while also growing a fondness with them. With this game, on the other hand, yes, it is still challenging, but it is significantly less so then it is supposed to be.
Overall though, despite the lack of cutscenes and the lowered difficulty, I still find this to be a pretty good entry in the Ninja Gaiden series, and definitely an improvement over what the Game Gear game gave us, despite how it was never meant to be one of these games. I would definitely recommend it for those who are fans of the other Ninja Gaiden games, as well as those who are also fans of Shadow of the Ninja, as there is something for both of you here. Hell, after playing this, I may even give Shadow of the Ninja a try at some point… probably very soon… and this is the part of the review where I would be winking, if you could actually see my face.
Game #306