Not everyone is going to be accepting
of the fact that Ninja Gaiden 3 exists without the assistance of former
Team Ninja leader Tomonobu Itagaki. For the longest time, this producer
defined what the hardcore ninja experience is supposed to be, and since
his hasty departure from Tecmo Koei’s camp, many were wondering how the
legendary Ryu Hayabusa would fare without him. Well, now that the
game’s here, we can honestly say that, yes, it is a different venture
for him, but that doesn’t mean it sucks. In fact, this ninja is still
as sharp as ever, mind a slight misstep or two.
The third chapter follows Ryu as he
carves his way through an enemy army, before coming face-to-mask with an
evil alchemist who has a trick up his sleeve in the way of sorcery.
Following a fierce battle, Ryu finds his arm infected with a strange
demonic force. Desperate to get back to his normal self – and save the
world in the process – Ryu sets out on his most difficult task yet,
stopping this madman and his mutant army.
Yeah, the story goes off the
rails at times, but that’s just part of the fun. One minute, Ryu finds
himself in a test facility, facing off against mutating creatures and
narrowly escaping death by jumping across chasms; the next, he comes
face to face with a robotically enhanced T-Rex, charging at him from all
directions and then, just when you think he’s disposed off, popping up
again. This is probably the most lively we’ve seen the Ninja Gaiden
series be, even if it’s slightly unbelievable.
To make the gameplay feel a
little more fleshed out, Tecmo added a few things to the sequel. For
instance, you can now climb up walls using your daggers, and while it
takes a bit of practice (one hand needs to be firmly planted or you’ll
lose grip), it’s an interesting new technique. You can also call upon
occasional dragon ninpo to clear the screen in an explosion of brightly
lit fire, or use your demon arm to cut some enemies to shreds in a
hurry. There are quick-time events too, though they aren’t nearly as
annoying as we’ve seen in previous games. In fact, some are pretty damn
slick, particularly when you’re getting the jump on a surprising enemy,
stabbing him without looking.
The controls retain the same
hack and slash action we’ve gotten used to. While we’re a bit sad that
you can’t chop off limbs like you could in Ninja Gaiden II, there’s
still plenty of blood to spill, which is a good thing. And while things
do get slightly repetitive (you’re stuck with the main sword at first,
though more weapons are coming via DLC), it’s still quick, ninja-enabled
fun, so if you’re a fan of that, it’s still intact.
Graphically, Ninja Gaiden 3 may
not have evolved much from the previous game, but parts of it still look
quite fantastic. Both the indoor and outdoor environments look great
(particularly the dusty deserts of Saudi Arabia), and the animation is
razor sharp, right down to Ryu’s cool little “ghosting” ability with
some attacks. There are times the frame rate drops a bit when the
combat gets somewhat heavy, but never to the point that it becomes
lackluster. And the camera manages okay, though there are slight
occasions it gets stuck behind a wall. No biggie.
As for the dialogue, it’s acceptable.
Not to say it’s not cheesy at times, as enemies repeat the same thing
over and over (“Damn ninja!”) and the alchemist is a little too
show-offish for his own good, but we’ve heard worse.
Along with a main story mode,
which will take you a few hours (maybe longer on Hardcore difficulty),
you also get some pretty good online content. A co-op mode has you team
up with a fellow ninja for various Spec Ops-style missions, relying
heavily on teamwork. There’s also a cool little four-on-four team
deathmatch kind of mode, which may not be heavy on strategy, but still
packs plenty of bloodshed. Nothing wrong with that.
So maybe Ninja Gaiden 3 doesn’t
raise the bar like some fans may be expecting it to be, but overall,
it’s still a worthwhile sequel, especially when it comes to its crazy
boss battles (I'm telling you, that T-Rex is NUTS), great online
compatibility and an above-average presentation. What it lacks in the
“Itagaki touch”, it more than makes up for with some impressive
“slice-and-dice”.
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