All things Ninja Gaiden

[JaySevenZero]

Here is where you can leave your thoughts regarding the Ninja Gaiden / Black / Sigma / Plus for possible inclusion in the podcast when it's recorded.

[Joshihatsumitsu]

Right off the bat I should say that I am a Ninja Dog. I have not finished any version of this game at all, and really, I only have myself to blame.

Despite that, I still love this game and this series. Being born in 1980 means I grew up seeing many VHS tapes at the video rental stores with ninjas on the cover, or in the title, as well as the Ninja Turtles, and basically ninjas in so many other pieces of pop culture. These ninja's were not very good at staying concealed at all.

Growing up with a Sega Master system meant looking on enviously at the NES with it's Ninja Gaiden series. The promotion material for Ninja Gaiden in gaming magazines still sticks out in my mind, especially the cover of the American release, which for the longest time I thought the game was actually title Ninja "THE" Gaiden! And the cover of the second game had the same bad-ass ninja with a half-sheathed sword and a dragon... compared to the box art of Sega Master System games, NES box art was so alive with details, and regardless of the quality of the games those covers drew your eyes towards them.

The SNES years saw the release of the Ninja Gaiden Trilogy, which I wanted but never saw on shelves in Australia, and subsequently I missed out again... reading some reviews maybe I didn't really miss much.

Now we come to the Xbox version of Ninja Gaiden. Like I said, I have not completed it, so I won't speak for the experiences I haven't had yet.

The one thing that first stood out to me was how the game looked. It was a game that made me glad that I picked up an Xbox instead of a PS2 at the time. The transition of the series from 2D side-scroller to full 3D was an astounding achievement, a transition that many games still struggle with. And it was so fast, and bright, and colourful! And again, cover art - bad-ass ninja, this time including a little white box in the bottom left corner saying "MA 15+: Medium Level Animated Violence". No shit Australian Government!

Still, to this day and probably for a long time to come, Ryu Hayabusa is the definitive version, the absolute iconic interpretation of what pop-culture considers to be a ninja. The level of detail on Ryu's outfit, the different textures of cloth and (I assume) leather, the intricate silver headpiece, all those details blew me away at the time. And the speed and grace at which he moves could not be more spot on. There's no excess in his animation, just composed and ready to strike at will. Everything you imagined a ninja could and should do, Ryu did, and he did it better than anyone. He was still the same character from the 2D days, still recognisable as Ryu Hayabusa, just transitioned to 3D.

I'll have to get back to this game, for as challenging as the game is, Ryu is a delight to control. Occasional camera issues aside, that a game captures the feel of being an incredibly powerful ninja is something that continually draws me back to it. And damn it, I will have to finish it.

(As a side note, the interpretation of Ryu in the Dead or Alive series... again, spot on.)

I still own my Xbox copy of Ninja Gaiden, and only just recently pick up a copy of Ninja Gaiden Black. While it may be available online in other regions, once again Australia missed out, so my copy is disc based. The day's of those VHS tapes with ninjas on the cover may be long gone, but all you really need is Ryu Hayabusa - the ultimate, perfect distillation of ninja design.

[KSubzero1000]

I first came in contact with this game around ten years ago when an internet acquaintance (who would later become a very dear friend of mine) recommended it to me one day out the blue. "Buy Ninja Gaiden Black!", he brayed. "It's a really cool action game with a really cool ninja, ey! The guy from DoA! Blades, Babes & Bossfights!". I felt like trusting him for some reason and quickly tracked down a used copy at a local game shop. Little did I know this scratchy disc would soon become one of the most beloved games in my collection. I don't think I had ever played any real action game prior to this one, and what a baptism by fire it was! This game is obviously known for its difficulty, and I only managed to see the credits roll after several months of enlightened perseverance. I hit wall after wall, cursing and sweating my way past Alma, Doku & Co. But this experience taught me a lot about the value of game design.

I've taken the liberty of quoting myself from another thread in which I had already expressed my thoughts regarding this game:

I'm of the opinion that DMC3, Bayonetta & Bayonetta 2 are all natural evolutions of the initial concept first introduced with the original Devil May Cry. They follow the same basic design philosophy, which is that of offense-based, spectacular action with limited defensive capabilities and a clear focus on cool and flashy combos. The Hideki Kamiya brand, so to speak.

Ninja Gaiden Black is a different beast entirely. It didn't create a new genre, it was released late in the life cycle of a console with a comparatively small user base, it received a gimped port on PS3 which changed a lot of things for the worse, its direct sequel is a broken mess of wasted potential, and the third entry is a complete abomination which probably killed the franchise off for good. So it really should not come as a surprise that this game is hardly on anyone's mind nowadays when compared to DMC or GoW or Bayonetta. But what I love about it is that it follows its own design philosophy. The game is not based around combos at all. You're not supposed to feel cool or omnipotent while playing it. No, the main theme in Ninja Gaiden is efficiency. The game is fairly difficult, has minor control quirks and takes a while to get used to. The enemies are smart, relentless and hardly leave you any room to breathe. Every encounter can be your last if you don't pay close attention, which puts you on the defensive and trains you to recognize and exploit every window of opportunity that presents itself. You instinctively learn the mechanics and the ins and outs of every weapon not by looking at a combo list, but by actually using them. The boss fights have no QTEs and are not particularly spectacular, but they provide an incredible feeling of satisfaction upon beating them. And once it finally clicks and you start getting into the metagame of trying to survive while being as fast, fluid and deadly as possible, that's when the game transforms into a work of art. In many ways, I consider it to be more of a precursor of sorts to Dark Souls rather than a DMC wannabe.

Another thing I really like about this game is how the different difficulty levels differ from one another. It doesn't just take the easy way out and bumps the damage modifiers up a few notches like most other games out there. Instead, the majority of the enemy encounters are completely revamped, as well as different weapon and item placements, which forces you to adapt your tactics significantly. You'll even face some brand new bosses!

Short version: The initial difficulty is nothing but a tool with which Ninja Gaiden teaches you to play as efficiently as possible. The excitement comes from the ever-increasing fluidity of the combat and the progressive mastery of the mechanics instead of the spectacle being presented to the players. And I consider this to be an incredibly solid and rewarding design philosophy.

I'm sure you guys will go through and speak about the entire game during the podcast, so I won't waste time on a step-by-step walkthrough. Suffice to say, the level design has peaks (Hayabusa Village, Airship, Aquaduct) as well as valleys (Catacombs and (ugh) water level). The animations are really fluid. Ryu's overall design and demeanor is minimalistic yet strangely charismatic and leaves a strong impression. The female character design and story are silly nonsense but the soundtrack is atmospheric and very underappreciated in my opinion. I can hardly think of a boss who doesn't become satisfying to fight once you've learned their quirks and patterns. Vigoor emperor, maybe? The camera can be really irritating at times but should be used like an integral part of the moveset and only re-centered from time to time to mitigate 95% of the issues. Smoke bombs are useless. The heavy weapons offer a wonderful risk vs. reward mechanic in that they are borderline useless in the wrong hands but will go through foes like butter if the player can read enemy attacks and time their own moves properly. And I have to admit that I really like the small adventure and traversal parts that punctuate the action. It's a shame they were almost entirely removed in the sequel.

One aspect I'd like to touch upon is the game's longevity. When my initial playthrough ended, I felt equal parts happy and exhausted and quickly relegated the game to storage while laughing at the idea of tackling any of the higher difficulty levels. "But the hunger still remaaained!" So it didn't take long for me to put the disc back into the drive in order to take a look at this Mission Mode thingy. And wouldn't you know it, I soon ended up hooked on that special brand of challenge. Weeks went by, slowly but surely clearing one mission after another. I ended up stuck about two thirds of the way through, but a pernicious idea had started to take place inside my head. "Let's just at least try Hard mode and see how far I can get." And so I did, and perseverance paid off once again. I encountered the fantastic doppelganger fiends for the first time and saw the credits roll for the second time while having gained all that extra knowledge of the game's various systems. Years went by, and I successfully tried my hand at Very Hard, as well as beating the incredible Eternal Legend mission. And it was only last year (nine years after my initial purchase) that I somehow managed to beat the game on Master Ninja (the first level truly being the most difficult and unforgiving part of the game). One grueling, week-long session later, and I could even count Eternal Legend on Master Ninja among my noteworthy gaming achievements. I had finally done it! Seen everything and beaten every challenge the game had to offer! "I'm my own master nooow!"

Dear Cane and Rinse, I hope that at least one speaker will be able to talk about the differences between the difficulty levels (Doppelgangers, challenge rooms, Nicchae and Ishtaros) as well as Mission Mode? This type of high-quality extra content is something that I'd love to see more games incorporate, especially action games with an already high replay value.

Ninja Gaiden Black is like an old friend now. No matter how much time we spend apart, every reunion reminds me of why I became so attached to it in the first place. It is a timeless classic, a work of polish and genuine quality the likes of which you don't see very often. Currently #5 on my official "FAVOURITE GAMES OF ALL TIMES" list. (Look at me, taking my hobby seriously and stuff!). I'm really looking forward to this particular episode.

Three Words Review: "Unlabored Flawlessness UT"
Alternative Three Words Review: "Ghost Fish Lifestyle"


PS: I consider Ninja Gaiden Black to be the best version of the game to date and head and shoulders above the rest. Vanilla NG pales in comparison due to its cheese tactics potential (Flying Swallow spam) and lack of content. Sigma on the other hand looks beautiful but all of its gameplay changes were clearly for the worse. It's basically a soulless and dumbed-down Director's Cut by the WRONG DIRECTOR and is best left ignored in my (admittedly harsh) opinion. Plus is just Sigma with unresponsive controls and half the frame rate. Progress!

[Michiel K]

^^^^

If a certain person makes it in, I have no doubt he'll be talking about the differences between difficulty levels. As insurance, I'll keep on playing the game on higher difficulty after I finished it on its default setting, up until the podcast recording!

[Golar]

It's a good thing the Xbox Duke controller is as tough as an old Nokia phone, because I don't think any modern counterpart would withstand the number of high-speed rage-throws I subjected it to during Ninja Gaiden. The polystyrene ceiling tiles in my old bedroom back at my parents' house still has scars.

I loved the game, and I think a few years ahead of the curve, it quietly brought about the hard-as-nails game renaissance that Dark Souls/Demon's Souls takes credit for.

I vividly recall spamming that roll-jump-swipe manoeuvre frantically during every fight, and tears of frustration strumming across the adrenaline-fueled veins on my neck. There was nothing like the feeling of actually beating one of its many cruel bosses, and reaching the solace of a savepoint.

Sadly, I never finished it, and I wonder whether the abuse my teenage self suffered at the hands of this game is one I can revisit without traumatic flashbacks. I don't think Rachael's buoyant fan-service antics would have the same sway on me now.

My polythene-wrapped copy of Sigma 1 and 2 still sit dormant on my shelf waiting for "one day" to come.

Kudos to the team for actually finishing this game in time for the podcast.

[Alex79]

I've only played Ninja Gaiden Sigma on the Vita, which was free with Playstation Plus a couple of years ago. I think if I'd played it years back, there's a chance I could have enjoyed it a lot more, but since it was released there's been the Souls games, Bloodborne, DMC and others. I wanted to like it, and I feel like I gave it a fair whack, but ultimately after wave after wave of identical baddies and not much story to speak of I just didn't find anything pulling me back in. The combat felt basic compared to those other games, and I found the whole thing just a bit boring. I realise I'm in a minority here, and if I'd seen it though to the end maybe it would have revealed itself to be more, but no, not for me.

[Michiel K]

With all the games I have on my plate, it's very hard to go back and tackle games I've 'completed' on higher difficulties, but Ninja Gaiden Black certainly makes me feel compelled to do so, more than most games I love.

However, I feel confident enough about having mapped the basic mechanics to muscle memory to where I can do short bursts every now and then: play a mission or two or tackle a new chapter on hard difficulty. Sort of like how I pop in an arcade game for 30 mins to an hour before or after a longer playing session with another game. I'm pretty excited by the prospect, actually!

[KSubzero1000]

That's actually a good way of tackling the higher difficulties. The game is fluid and arcadey enough in that sense. Every time I go back to it, halfway expecting complete mechanical atrophy on my part, I tend to be surprised at how quickly I manage to get back in the zone. But be aware of potentially getting caught in a frustrating loop of giving up before a particularly tough boss, only to run headfirst into the exact same wall two months later. So I would definitely recommend tackling an entire chapter at a time, ideally.

In any case, it took me nine years to finish the game properly, so I certainly don't expect you to 100% it within six months!

Looking forward to reading about any progress you'll make, though. Have fun!

[Michiel K]

Oh, for sure. Doing a full chapter each time is a must, I feel!

And thanks, I'll be sure to drop back in with progress updates.