Ninja: Shadow of Darkness - A classic beat 'em up filled with demons and all kinds of dangers
I don’t know about you, but I remember that when I was little, I wanted to be a ninja warrior. In fact, when playing with my schoolmates during recess, each of us would wrap a scarf around our heads and strike combat poses. Well, I was able to relive this curious childhood dream recently thanks to Ninja: Shadow of Darkness.
This game, part of the Beat 'em up genre, is structured in levels that are divided into several sections. In each area, there are a series of doors that are initially closed. If we manage to defeat the hordes of enemies that emerge, a chest will appear containing a key, and also show us the route we must follow to escape. In addition, the levels are filled with other chests that hide various items. Firstly, we have some with different amounts of money. We will also find a mix of magic potions, food, and smoke bombs.
It should be noted that although we don’t have any weapons at the beginning, we can attack in four different ways. The two main methods to crush the enemies are punches and kicks. By simply striking the air, we will perform a basic move, but if we hit the enemy three times in a row, our character will chain a good combination of blows that almost always knocks the opponent to the ground.
Another attack method involves using special magic potions that we collect as we progress. To improve these small items, we need to gather scrolls. The last method of attack is the use of daggers, which can be thrown at will without ever running out. Although these weapons are not very powerful, they are especially useful for knocking down monsters before they can get close enough to hit us.
An important aspect is that the game’s dynamics are not solely based on combat. To complete some parts of the adventure, we must navigate moving platforms, such as disappearing bridges or half-hidden ledges. Additionally, we also need to find levers or switches to open earlier closed zones in each level.
As we advance, the enemies become more interesting. In my opinion, the most surprising creatures are the skeleton soldiers, because when you manage to destroy their bony torsos, you have to keep fighting against their legs and then jump on the torso while it shakes violently on the ground. One of the aspects that caught my attention the most were the battles against the huge end-level bosses, since it’s vital to find the right special tactic to defeat these beasts.
Regarding the scenarios, they have an isometric design that doesn’t make things easy for you. For example, there are times when executing a jump can become problematic, mainly due to the strange control method of moving diagonally with the character.
Now the game’s automatic camera helps a bit to correct this problem, but it doesn’t always position itself at the best angle to follow the action, which means that sometimes you can get hit without knowing exactly where the attacks are coming from. On the other hand, the combat doesn’t rely on complex mechanics like a fighting game, as it only needs accuracy from the player. The key is to avoid failing when executing a three-hit combo to escape from exposing our backs to the claw of any enemy.
I must add that in most cases, enemies will only react if you are within a certain distance of their position. Considering that this is a PS1 game, the scenarios are quite extensive and of decent quality. Additionally, everything moves smoothly, and the characters animations are well done.
In conclusion, although Ninja has some small flaws, those don’t take away from how much fun I had while playing, mainly thanks to a good variety of enemies, challenging traps, and an exciting pacing.
THANK YOU FOR READING!
All images in this post are screenshots taken from my playthrough.
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I haven't seen a videogame like this for a long time, it really looks great how the videogame world has evolved, this one in particular reminded me a little bit of castlevania lament of innocence, what good videogames there were in that time too.
Both games look graphically similar, but their gameplay style is different. Ninja is more like Double Dragon, Final Fight or Street of Rage.
Bro, I didn't know this Ninja game, it looks like Mortal Kombat 4 haha.
Yeah, I think he looks like Sub-Zero xD
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