Quirky and interesting perspective on the Ninja Gaiden idea, despite looking like it could never work, it sort of did? Hear me out.
The early DS games had to display in full what the console was able to do. A touchpad wasn't anything new at the time, but something as responsive as a modern handheld device (from which I'm typing this review by the way) was completely and utterly game changing, even if it was just a gimmick. Most games were gimmicks, at their hearts, very few titles utilized the full potential of the touch screen more than a few times; even fewer were entirely basing their gameplay on the new technology, which in and out of itself is a crowning achievement. I respect the dev team for pulling through this.
The game is kind of ass though. Ninja Gaiden has to be precise with its input and, punishing as it is, you'll sometimes be screwed and there's nothing you can do. It feels unfair and it takes enormous effort to beat.
Everything else gets my seal of approval, the prerendered backgrounds look fantastic and the atmosphere is stellar. Holding the console vertically can get tiring when you're playing this game, so I'd recommend playing it just for its novelty and as a time capsule of early DS games, more than anything. If you want to play a Ninja Gaiden for its tight gameplay, you can go and play Dead or Alive or get your hands on the OG Xbox, but at the same time Dragon Sword works just as well as the intended to-go & portable alternative.
The early DS games had to display in full what the console was able to do. A touchpad wasn't anything new at the time, but something as responsive as a modern handheld device (from which I'm typing this review by the way) was completely and utterly game changing, even if it was just a gimmick. Most games were gimmicks, at their hearts, very few titles utilized the full potential of the touch screen more than a few times; even fewer were entirely basing their gameplay on the new technology, which in and out of itself is a crowning achievement. I respect the dev team for pulling through this.
The game is kind of ass though. Ninja Gaiden has to be precise with its input and, punishing as it is, you'll sometimes be screwed and there's nothing you can do. It feels unfair and it takes enormous effort to beat.
Everything else gets my seal of approval, the prerendered backgrounds look fantastic and the atmosphere is stellar. Holding the console vertically can get tiring when you're playing this game, so I'd recommend playing it just for its novelty and as a time capsule of early DS games, more than anything. If you want to play a Ninja Gaiden for its tight gameplay, you can go and play Dead or Alive or get your hands on the OG Xbox, but at the same time Dragon Sword works just as well as the intended to-go & portable alternative.