Ninja Gaiden : Web Wombat : Games

According to my Year 9 history teacher, bless his tortured soul, a ninja is best described as a Japanese mercenary who would have been well versed in the martial arts.

These 14th century assassins could literally slay their prey by just thinking about it, and were also keen on stealth, sabotage and sushi.

But my Year 9 history teacher was also a dickhead, and though this was one of the few things he actually had a clue about, he never let us play the original Ninja Gaiden (on NES) in class --hence the name calling-- which would have taught us so much more about these misunderstood provokers of violence.

Like, for instance, how ninja's flip out and regularly go psycho, killing everything within sight, and sometimes killing themselves seppuku-style, just because they were tough.

And we would have learnt about dragon scrolls, ninjutsu powers (Ninpo) and the hallowed 1-Up, which would magically resurrect a slain ninja. Yes, important things all humans should be educated upon.

But we didn't get to play videogame in class, so here I am reliving my very well spent, highly educated and well adjusted youth playing the latest Xbox violence-fest that is Ninja Gaiden.

For those people who are still scratching their heads wondering "Why is this game at the top of sales charts?", or "How did this loser get to publish his work on such a killer website," allow me:

Firstly, the game is awesome, and secondly, I'm very persuasive when drunk.

In this new Xbox game from Tecmo, the same crew who brought us the busty goodness that is Dead or Alive Xtreme Beach Volleyball, you play a ninja called Ryu Hayabusa, who must avenge the slaughter of his clan by undermining the powerful Vigoor Empire.

Simple story, no messing around, and it's also a great alibi for plenty of blood and gore. You control Ryu "GSX-R1300" Hayabusa from the third person perspective, and to call this a pretty game would be an understatement. The graphics are sweeter than licking a bees honey hole, incorporating all the latest graphical techniques to great effect.

Even Ryu is fixated by the demon,
who casually bites a Vigoor soldier

The visual quality alone is exceptional, and add a super smooth frame rate with some of the quickest, coolest animation you've seen and the result is pure gaming goodness that hasn't made me sit up and take notice like this in a long, long time.

Special effects abound, and within its code is some of the best volumetric lighting I've ever seen. Luminosity freaks take note.

While there is no official tutorial, picking up and playing the game is a doddle.

The left thumbstick makes Ryu run here and there, while the four major buttons act as quick attack, heavy attack, jump and throw shuriken/shoot arrows.

Repeatedly mash the two attack buttons and our main man Ryu will start getting jiggy with his combo-licious katana technique that blends fighting styles from Street Fighter, Dead or Alive and Soul Calibur. It's quite a rush the first time you manage to squeeze out a 50+ hit combo.

And fans of these games should do themselves a favour and check this game out - there are scads of moves on offer and some of them devilishly hard to perform. This is another reason why Ninja Gaiden kicks arse: mastering the fighting techniques that span three weapon classes (blade, nunchaku and war hammer) is a real challenge.

You begin the game with just the Dragon sword, which was apparently carved out of the fang of a dragon, and it is capable of some hefty combos and nice jugular-piercing moves.

In addition to this, there are a number of other weapons, and most of them can be upgraded at the various shops, which adds a delightful hint of RPG to proceedings and makes progression even more rewarding.

When you get the nunchaku, and then the bladed nunchaku, the game really starts to open up, and it's here that the art of juggling comes into its own. Aerial attacks are also hugely powerful, and if you have even a slight interest in martial arts or fighting games, you have to check this game out. It's brutal art at it's finest.

Combat takes up a large proportion of gameplay, and when you get the hang of the controls it's amazing how quickly you can decimate a troupe of baddies.

Ryu is as quick as a fox, and in addition to being able to jump around the place like an electrified frog, he's also quite a good blocker too.

Ryu strikes a pose straight after
completing an 'Ultimate Technique'

As well as standard combos and light/heavy attacks, there are even special attacks - officially called 'Ultimate Techniques' by the Tecmo crew. And let's face it; a ninja game without special attacks is like a woman without a beard. It's just not sexy.

There are a many 'wall' -based moves and combos that end in semi-special attacks, but the 'Ultimate Techniques' are where the coolest special effects lie.

Just hold down the heavy attack button, and normally such input simply sees Ryu dash forward leaving a transparent image of himself behind.

Now consider that every time you strike down an enemy he or she will leave behind essence, which can be collected as cash to buy new weapons, spells and artefacts.

Alternatively, if you ready a charge attack, any essence floating around will be absorbed by your chosen weapon and the next time you strike out you'll automatically perform an eye-melting mega combo of justice that will fry the brains of the unprepared.

Spells are a nice addition to proceedings, and while they were more useful in the original side-scrolling NES games (all three of which have been kindly included in the package), it's nice that they've been included and I suppose that they do come in handy when you have to face the boss monsters.

These spells, or Ninpo techniques, do mega damage and comprise fire, ice and electrical elements. But for my money a good slice in the eyeballs with the dragon sword is just as rewarding, and it kind of feels like these Ninpo spells are only there to appease to the traditionalists.

Ultimately, though, Ninja Gaiden is an astoundingly cool game.

What Tecmo have done with Ninja Gaiden is to cleverly marry the aspects of a free-roaming beat-em-up with the complexity of a one-on-one fighting game. It's an awesome game on so many levels, and challenging too.

By the time you reach the final few levels - there are 16 all told - you'll be scratching your head thinking "This is stupid. It's too difficult. Where's my Llama?"

The pacing is spot on too. There's a good mixture of exploration and carnage, and the way you slowly discover better weapons, items and spells will keep you playing until the wee hours, and even though the map is sometimes impossible to read, it's rare to get lost or stuck.

The nunchaku are ranked up there with
electric bread knives for ease of use

The online aspect is a bit of a cop-out, and what is arguably one of the best action adventure games of the 128-bit era is let down by a lack of one-on-one fighting online. Instead, gamers simply wade through various challenges and are ranked on their performance.

Another thing I couldn't get my head around was the lack of decapitations for PAL version of the game. An American NTSC video of the game Microsoft sent us a few months before the game's release clearly shows the art of head lopping.

But for some reason European and Australian territories don't get this. Which is a bit weird because it's still an incredibly violent gore-fest, rated MA15+.

Apart from these minor issues, Ninja Gaiden is one of the best games to release on the Xbox in quite some time.

The gameplay is addictive, challenging and ultra violent, the pacing is spot on, and the audio-visual aspect borders on greatness.

What was once a classic NES series has made its 128-bit debut, and what a debut it is. It's one of those games where you know you should go to sleep, you know you have an exam or an important meeting early the next day, but you still play, loving every minute of it.

It's a rewarding experience to play this Ninja game, and I could easily go on forever and ever about how good this game is and why Tecmo should be in charge of space exploration. But I won't, because I have an editor to appease and a NASA writ to abide by.

Ninja Gaiden is the best game Tecmo and Team Ninja have ever made, and one of the best games on the Xbox. Long live Ryu Hayabusa!

Game: Ninja Gaiden
System: Xbox
Players: 1
Online: Yes
Developer: Tecmo
Distributor: Microsoft

Rating: 95%

(Ratings Key/Explanation)

Ninja Gaiden is on the shelves now.

	Announcement