Let’s talk about Ninja Gaiden Black.
Before we begin, I’d like to apologize in advance for the potato quality video on here. I don’t have a capture card because I’m poor, so I just downloaded my streams off of Twitch. It’s not the tastiest crayon in the box, but I really don’t have any other options. With that out of the way, let’s begin the fun.
Ninja Gaiden Black is the updated version of the 2004 game Ninja Gaiden for the original xbox, which is a 3D reimagining of the 2D side scrolling Ninja Gaiden NES games from the late 80s and early 90s. I’ve only played a little bit of the original 2D games, and I honestly hated them because of my personal bias against a lot of 2D side scrollers, but I’m not reviewing them so it doesn’t really matter how I feel about them anyway. Ninja Gaiden Black for the TRUE xbox one and Ninja Gaiden 2 for the xbox 360 hold a special place in my heart because they’re two of my favorite ninja games of all time. I assure you, this isn’t just the nostalgia speaking. They are some of the most well-designed third person hack and slash games I have ever played, especially the game in question: Ninja Gaiden Black.
For starters, let’s get this out of the way right now buckaroo. This is an extremely difficult game, but it’s very rarely an unfair game. The only unfair moments I can think of are the slippery platforming sections, and the two Doku battles. But those are only unfair because the camera angles were designed by developers who thought that the potted plants on the side of the arena were the most crucial part of the sections in question, and the fritzy camera isn’t helped much by centering it with the right trigger. I’m willing to give the game a pass on this one though, because 3D action games in the sixth generation of consoles and horrible camera angles are an iconic duo that is only matched by driving down the New Jersey turnpike and being assaulted by a series of foul inexplicable aromas. You also have whatever the hell this is. I hated this. *show the vigoor emperor fight*.
The game puts you in control of Ryu, a young ninja from the Hayabusa clan who is also the wielder of the legendary dragon sword. Since action game protagonists are generally split up into two categories: the wisecracking joker and the strong and edgy silent type, Ryu falls into the latter category. He’s a serious man on a serious mission. No time for humor when you’re on a quest for revenge after a shrine maiden gets murdered by an extremely powerful fiend that eventually leads to a conspiracy regarding an evil sword known as the Dark Dragon blade that links directly to the emperor of the Vigoor empire. *Breathe in and out exaggeratedly*.
Ryu has an extremely varied arsenal of weapons at his disposal, but the most important weapon of all is his body. No, I don’t mean he seduces his enemies with those thick thighs. Ryu has a full range of motion that he can use to outmaneuver his foes and platform his way to victory. He can run along the walls and up the walls, jump on his enemies’ heads, shimmy across ledges, and even swing across tree branches. It feels extremely natural to pull these stunts off as well, and you’ll know exactly what to do because Team Ninja did an excellent job at giving the environment clear tells regarding what to do in each area. It also does what you want it to roughly 90% of the time. That sounds like a bad thing, but that’s roughly 50% more accurate than other games released in that era. That was a time of many broken controllers and newly acquired swear words I had to whisper under my breath because I wasn’t old enough to curse in 2007.
When mixed with this incredibly natural range of motions that was far ahead of its time, the combat is just, as the youths would say, straight fire. Each weapon is useful for different situations and enemies, and you won’t find yourself spamming the same attacks because the enemies will insert foreign objects into you if you aren’t thinking on your toes. Some enemies are quick and numerous and require the vigoorian flails. Some require crowd control, which is where the lunar staff would come in. Some need to be staggered but don’t require crowd control, which is why you use the dragon sword. And some enemies were diligent in eating their fruits and veggies, which is why you need the dabilahro to bludgeon them down a few notches. There are lots of moves for these weapons as well, and these moves aren’t for show or style points. They’re for efficiently taking down the baddies so you don’t die. Some moves will be used more than others (looking at you flying swallow attack), but they all will end up making an appearance in your playstyle if you ever want to have any chance of beating this game.
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