In a Unique Level of Insane
All the criticisms for Ninja Blade are all legitimate:
Yeah, it isn't a great looking package in the XBox360 library. Yeah it story is paper-thin. Yeah, it's gameplay element mimics other series like God of War and some franchise named Gaiden. These portions of the game do not inspire much confidence about the game's quality... until you see the cutscenes.
In those sizable moments of the game, Ninja Blade is electricity personnified. I cannot count how many times the ninja protagonist performed one of the craziest acrobatics I've ever seen in an XBox360 game and I enjoyed every of the experience, whether it's outrunning an explosion while wall-running upward, pushing a wrecking ball into the face of a boss character, or (get this) riding a motorcycle on top of mid-air trucks and debris. So from the standpoint of putting gamers on the edge of their seats, Ninja Blade delivers. So put everything together, and the game is a satisfying, albeit rough, action game.
The game puts you in the perspective of modern ninja Ken Ogawa, who along with a task force must help the monster-weary city of Tokyo from a monster invasion. However, what was supposed to be an easy task becomes more complicated once Ken's father (also a ninja from the task force) and other hinjas betrayed our hero and almost gets him killed. Once the shock is set aside, Ken must not only deal with the immediate danger from the "Alpha Worm" monsters but he now has to get to the bottom of his father's betrayal. If the premise does not sound interesting, it's because it isn't. Beyond their initial coolness (being a ninja and all), Ken and the rest of the cast are a generic bunch. Their voices are actually fine; it's just that gamers do not, and will not, now anything about them save for first impressions. Tense moments are few and far between. In the end, just keep in mind that the plot is just there to excuse Ken for doing what he's doing.
Once Ken finishes debreifing with his superiors he jumps into the third-person action blades a'blazing. As noted earlier, if you already played actions games then you know what to expect. For around 10 or so hours you guide this ninja from Point A to B, laying waste to any monsters in the way and performing light platforming. Ken's arsenal has some variety: 3 types of swords (heavy, medium, light) each with their share of combos/special moves and 3 elemental spells (fire, water, lightning) to further put the pounding on enemies and clear out some environmental obstacles. These are your main weapons, although you can also include a machine gun that doubles as a rocket launcher during some rail-shooting sequences. Finally, there's the "ninja-sense", which slows things down, increases Kens' offensive capabilities, and identifies areas of interest.
One part I liked about the combat was that all the swords go screen time. Only until very late in the game I used all three blades extensively and enjoyed using them. I really can feel and power from the large stone cutter, the balanced lethality and swiftness in the middle blades and the uber-quick twin blades (if you ask me, Ken wields them like a ribbon dancer, and beautifully so). On the downside, there isn't much strategic depth in the combat. It's also not the most original combat system either, since the game borrows heavily from other successful action games (like Ninja Gaiden). However, I would prefer to have an imitation done well than an original idea gone terrible, so the fighting itself is not a large issue in my opinion.
The highlights from the action game has to be from the cutscenes/quick-time events hands down. I understand that some people don't like QTEs, but the over the top acrobatics performed by Ken make the button pressing worth the trouble. Whether you're talking about crazy stunts (like [again] riding a motorbike on airborne cars and debris), or executing a todome ([outlandish] killing blows), be ready for your butt to launch from your seat and your jaws to enter terra firma; the cutscenes are just that good.
Beyond the fact that the fighting is not entirely original, the main issues involve the controls and some of the boss battles. Ken moves like the wind, an asset for the work he's doing, but the controls cannot keep up with him, so expect instances where our hero gets out of position, leading to missed attacks of opportunity or serious damage. Combine the looseness from the controls with a lack of a targeting system, and it becomes harder to land blows. Naturally the control difficulties lead to the problems in some boss battles that are tedious/trial and error affairs right up to the todomes.
That being said, there are still the elements of excitement, disbelief and off the wallness found in Ninja Blade. Its flashy and eye catching combat, not to mention the even crazier cutscenes, are more than capable of diverting your attention from its crucial shortcomings. Just don't take the ordeal too seriously and keep expectations in check.
Noting in rapid fire: Presentation is OK; good character/monster designs but models not the most detailed........ Music totally forgettable... Game has collectables to help Ken increase life bar, improve weapons.... multiple difficulty levels......
Pros:
- Crazy, Crazy action, in combat and away from it
Cons:
- Uninteresting plot
- Gameplay is not original
- Controls a bit too loose
- Some boss battles are tedious
Final Verdict: 3.5 stars. It seems weird that there are more specific cons than pros, but Ninja Blade's action is just so cool to watch without being a total trainwreck that the game should be played at least once if not more.
