I don't mean to come off like a hater, but for The Greatest Action Game of All Time there sure is a lot of shit that sucks in here lmao. I know you're already fuming so keep in mind, I didn't play on Master Ninja and my opinion is not valid. Okay? Cool.

So what do I mean? The occasionally finicky platforming, the tedious (but graciously easy) water level, and especially the part where the game goes DMC2 mode and makes you fight tanks and a helicopter with ranged weapons. C'mon man, how can you directly invite that kind of comparison and not think "what are we doing here?" If the idea was "we can do it better," well sure, you did, but not by much.

Frankly most of the bosses weren't great; the first fight with Murai sets you up to expect a bunch of sick duels and then most of the fights are just giant stationary creatures with three attacks and a nasty grab. I mean you fight four of those worms, man. Is that really making the most of the killer combat system? I understand that higher difficulties mix things up with adds, etc. but to me that kinda illustrates how weak the boss designs were in the first place...

As negative as that came off, when the game is cooking, it is absolutely sick and overall, I had a very good time with it. But given its monstrous reputation I was really surprised how just much of the mid-game felt like a slog.

The problem with 2D ninja games is that you have to answer a very difficult question: why shouldn't I just go play Shinobi 3 instead?

Ultimately, it feels a bit less than the sum of its parts. Shinobi with a grappling hook; it's like some other freak read my mind and manifested my dream game. Maybe that's why I feel lukewarm about it - it hits the right notes on paper, but it doesn't quite come together the way I would've wanted. The "exploration" focus just kind of feels tedious, particularly on repeated attempts through trickier stages. Structurally, it's just not that interesting to me to backtrack through levels to collect keys and unlock doors. There's too much waiting, for hazard cycles, for hostage takers to show their weakness. I can see how an adept player might navigate more efficiently, but the penalty for mistakes is too high and the busywork of reloading too odious to go for the risky strats. Wish I loved it, but I don't.

Solid classicvania, reminiscent of Zangetsu from Inti Creates' Bloodstained spinoffs. Differentiates itself with more of a ninja flavor, with some enemies and obstacles taking clear inspiration from Shadow of the Ninja, the Super Shinobi, and others. As far as classicvanias go, it felt generally on the easier side - there's the death pit knockbacks, but you're given mobility to compensate early on, plus a generous checkpointing system prevents it from feeling particularly punishing. The final boss was a noticeable difficulty spike, with two phases that deal high damage, but the patterns are pretty straightforward so it's just a matter of clean execution.

Completing the game unlocks a second ninja character with a faster running speed and a starting moveset that rivals the fully-upgraded main character. I went through the first couple stages and it seemed to trivialize a lot of the level design, so it seems more like a victory lap NG+ mode, or something for players who want to try the game with a more classic ninja action feel.

Surprised at how significantly they nerfed the game compared to the betas - maybe part of that was coming to grips with their take on Nioh-meets-Sekiro, but the final game was a total cakewalk by comparison. To me it feels like an overcorrection, especially with most missions including NPCs by default - maybe one of the most approachable games in the subgenre.

Not really the kind of person who likes grinding through the NG+ modes so hopefully the DLC brings a little more heat...

Update after DLC1: A bit more of the same, the last couple sub-missions started to feel more challenging though.

DLC2: Team Ninja's finally cooking. Taishi Ci was the first boss in the game that had me on my heels and feeling like I should take a closer look at my build. Really fast and aggressive, nice change of pace.

DLC3: Somewhere between the quality of 1 and 2. Yuan Shu and Guan Yu were similarly standout fights.

To really understand just how good this game is, I highly recommend a no-kunai playthrough(1). Despite being an unofficial mode, there is just a single obstacle which can't be easily passed without kunai. Even then, you have options - offensive ninjutsu will clear it, and there is even advanced movement tech which allows for a pure melee approach. In any case, it's totally viable without glitches or speedrun strats - you don't need to throw a single kunai to beat the game.

What I think really elevates the game isn't that this is possible, but how fun it becomes to engage with every obstacle without kunai. It's harder, yes, but this isn't a bullshit challenge run, the game is actually more interesting this way. You aren't hanging back chipping away at bosses, you're in their face, using the full extent of your abilities - guarding, divekicking and exploiting the running slash's i-frames for stylish as fuck boss kills. You have to actually learn how to deal with their attacks - it's difficult to express just how much more engaging the final boss becomes when you can't just spam kunai. Overall, I was particularly impressed by how well-balanced the game remains - the increased risk is nicely offset by your increased lethality. It's incredibly satisfying, and ever since I tried this mode, it's my preferred way to play. If you think you've mastered this game, give it a shot.

(1) The easiest way to experience this - download Najar's Shinobi III Enhancement Patch. However, there are options - you can use six-button mode for a dedicated melee button (though be careful of the double jump kunai burst, which still triggers). Alternatively, you can set the starting amount to 0 and either avoid kunai pickups, or use the game genie code RFST-G6ZC to receive 0 kunai from pickups. No matter your setup, there's a way to make it work.