When it comes to games featuring ninjas, it has been an embarrassment of riches this year with phenomenal titles like Shinobi: Art of Vengeance, Ninja Gaiden: Ragebound, and even Assassin’s Creed: Shadows. Does that streak continue with Ninja Gaiden 4? Yes, but it’s not an experience without its faults.
It’s been a long time since we had a new entry into Team Ninja’s Ninja Gaiden franchise, so of course, it was a welcome sight to see Ryu Hayabusa return for a new installment, even if it was just for a limited amount of time.
My history with the Ninja Gaiden franchise is a combination of frustration on one end, due to how difficult the games were to beat, and fun on the other, thanks to the frenetic gameplay.
With Ninja Gaiden 4, I hoped Team Ninja and PlatinumGames had finally found a way to balance the game’s difficulty while keeping it fun.
Thankfully, that mission was accomplished, and delivering a game that is good on paper but can easily be as polarizing as Hideo Kojima’s Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty, because they both share a story feature that keeps the story/gameplay fresh, but is also a major letdown in the eyes of hardcore fans.
Also, it features a story that many probably won’t give a damn about before and after the credits roll.
Let’s Get The Story Out of The Way
Regarding the Ninja Gaiden franchise, it’s safe to assume that no one picked up these games for the story. Outside of the Ninja Gaiden, Ninja Gaiden II: Black, the story is forgettable, and unfortunately, that continues to be the case with Ninja Gaiden 4.
I honestly couldn’t tell you what the hell is going on in this game, but it lets you know right off the rip that this will be newcomer, Yakumo, a super ninja from the rival Raven Clan, who takes the lead in this game.
His task is simple: resurrect the Dark Dragon, the constant antagonist from previous Ninja Gaiden titles, who is now a skeletal husk looming over Tokyo, forcing people to flee the once-vibrant Japanese city due to the unfavorable conditions created by the Divine Dragon God’s skeletal remains.
Yakumo’s task is to revive the dormant creature, only to take it out for real this time and the only way he can accomplish that goal is by defeating many large demons who protect seals that need to be broken to ressurrect the Dark Dragon, which adds a unique element to the gameplay, and rewards you with new weapons when you take out each boss.
Again, the story in this game is nothing to write home about, and something you won’t be talking about once the credits roll.
Ninja Gaiden 4 Is The Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty of The Franchise
When I pressed start on Ninja Gaiden 4 and immediately took control of Yakumo, I couldn’t help but be transported to when I first played Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty.
Now, stay with me here —you’re probably asking, “Where the hell am I going with this?”
Hideo Kojima managed to piss off some of the MGS fanbase well before he decided to make Kiefer Sutherland the voice of Big Boss in Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain, when players learned that instead of playing with Snake in the follow-up to MGS, you instead played as Raiden.
Kojima explained his decision to add a second protagonist: he wanted to give players a third-person perspective on Snake, showing that he was still the main hero of the game, while we saw his heroics through the eyes of Raiden, who was embarking on the mission as a new character.
While leading up to the game’s release, it was marketed as if players would once again be playing as Snake, but that didn’t turn out to be the case at all when we finally got to play the game, as you only controlled Snake for what could be described as the game’s prologue.
The same can be said for Ninja Gaiden 4; Ryu Hayabusa’s face is plastered all over the art, while Yakumo’s presence is minimized, but make no mistake, this is Yakumo’s game.
You do take control of Ryu, but it’s only for a limited experience to help push the lackluster story along, and all it manages to do is make you wish you were playing as Ryu for most of the game instead of the soulless Yakumo.
It’s only after you beat the game that you get the option to replay missions as Ryu.
Ninja Gaiden 4’s Action Is Fantastic
Where this game knocks it out of the park is in the action and combat department. Team Ninja, with help from PlatinumGames, takes the action this franchise is best known for to another level.
It’s fast, fun, and absolutely satisfying to slice, dice, and execute the iconic Izuna Drop on the wave of enemies thrown at you. The weapon variety is also fantastic, which shouldn’t surprise Ninja Gaiden fans.
Yakumo’s Bloodraven form, which you can activate by pressing down the left trigger button, adds additional weapons to your already stacked arsenal, turning your twin katanas into a longsword or a drill to help Yakumo add even more style to his deadly combos, while allowing you to deliver attacks that will break enemies’ guards.
For Ryu, the same button allows him to pull off devastating gleam attacks like rapid-fire sword strikes and other powerful moves, reminding you that he is the master ninja, and why we wished he was used much more than he was in the game.
Also, PlatinumGames is bringing stylish parries, perfect blocks, and other touches, taking the combat to another level.
Final Verdict
Despite a lackluster story, limited enemy design, and not enough Ryu Hyubusa, Ninja Gaiden 4 is still a pretty good video game, thanks in large part to the nonstop action it delivers.
I had so much fun stylishly pulling off sick combos, perfect dodges, and parries while taking on waves of baddies, despite some of them, particularly at specific points in the game, being overused.
The boss battles were entertaining and very challenging; one of them was particularly frustrating as far as its attack patterns, but still, all in all, Team Ninja and PlatinumGames did an excellent job of elevating what makes these Ninja Gaiden games so much fun to play: the combat.
The decision to make Yakumo the centerpiece of this game’s story was an interesting choice on the developers’ part, but don’t get it twisted —he is a blast to play as, but he is no Ryu Hyubusa.
Speaking of Ryu, it definitely felt like he was just thrown in the game as a consolation prize to reward players for making it through the 10-hour experience.
We fully expect Yakumo to return, and we hope the next Ninja Gaiden game has a much healthier dose of its star, Ryu Hayabusa.
*Review key provided by Team Ninja & PlatinumGames*
