Every so often, developers attempt to port or remaster a beloved game or franchise from the retro era. Back in the 80s and 90s, side-scrolling beat ‘em ups were all the craze, and kids would gather at the arcades to play their favourite games. Alas, since household gaming became the norm, developers have tried to provide the same experiences that everybody felt as kids for modern consoles. Nostalgia can sometimes get the better of us though as Shadow of the Ninja – Reborn is clunky, absurdly challenging even on easier difficulties, and doesn’t remain fun for long.
Cowabunga…Oh Wait, Wrong Game
I’ve tried my hand at various retro games, and I’m pleasantly surprised at what I missed out on since I was born in the late 90s. I never played the classic version of Shadow of the Ninja, but I can see a large improvement from the 30+-year old title. Shadow of the Ninja – Reborn is marketed as a remaster but appears more like a full-on remake, allowing players to fight as ninjas in a dystopian world solo or alongside another player. There are two ninjas to choose from, Hayate and Kaede, and they both possess very similar abilities and are essentially the same character model with a different gender, voice and coat of paint. During the player’s adventure, they will pick up various kinds of weapons, like caltrops, large clubs and shuriken stars, that will aid the fight. Some weapons are far more useful than others whilst encouraging different play styles, albeit for a short while as each additional weapon has a limited number of uses before having to go back to the old samurai sword.
Travel Back in Time
The developers have done a brilliant job of creating a living world that doesn’t look like an amalgamation of sprites like the 90s classic. Enemy variety is vast, ranging from giant robots to patrolling henchmen and armoured monkeys. Boss fights are even more wild, and at times, they are comprised of set-pieces like fighting a moving tank or balancing on falling platforms whilst avoiding a gigantic dragon. The design of each enemy and boss is completely overhauled and fantastic to look at, but to fight these monstrosities is another challenge altogether. Playing on normal difficulty, my run-through of the game seemed much more difficult than I anticipated, and I’m a veteran at video games like Ninja Gaiden, Dark Souls, etc. The developers may encourage co-op play to slightly trivialise the gameplay, but having only played solo, I can only say this through assumption. Maybe the difficulty stems from the janky movement of the characters, particularly the stodgy jumping and attacks that make the players stop in place like an old game on outdated software. There are no accessibility options for gamers used to modern controls, which can be expected for a 2D action game where players have no omnidirectional movement and are limited to just four simple directions. However, a simple way to move whilst attacking would be ideal, considering how the main characters are supposed to be ninjas.
*Cue Disco Inferno*
You can’t have a classic game without a classic soundtrack, and Shadow of the Ninja shines with an updated version, managing to simulate feelings of pure nostalgia even for players who aren’t familiar with this specific era of gaming. Gameplay becomes ever so slightly more bearable with the music playing as we attack our enemies whilst being glued to the ground. The techno vibes capture the essence of the past, and as I said previously, they help to bring this remade world to life. Granted, the gameplay itself ran especially smoothly on an Xbox Series S, but it looks like something you could find in the Xbox 360 Arcade, so I had no expected issues with performance.
Final Thoughts
Shadow of the Ninja- Reborn is most definitely old-school and won’t appeal to everybody, especially gamers who grew up playing these kinds of titles as kids. There’s a pretty barebones, basic story with a heavier emphasis on the gameplay that doesn’t quite knock it out of the park. Its brutal difficulty can trip up more modern gamers and seems to have more of an appeal with those who grew up playing these kinds of titles back when the software was much less advanced. For what it is, the game is, at the most, an okay addition to a gamer’s library but can be easily shelved in favour of other, more approachable titles.
Developers: Tengo Project, NatsumeAtari
Publishers: NatsumeAtari, Edigger, United Games Entertainment GmbH
Platforms: Xbox Series X/S, PS5, PS4, Windows PC, Nintendo Switch
Release Date: 29th August 2024
Gaming Respawn’s copy of Shadow of the Ninja – Reborn was provided by the publisher.
