"Ryu, be always brave...."

Ninja Gaiden is one of the best games on the NES and one of the best games period, but is undeniably one of the tougher entries to grace the original NES. Much of the game's infamous reputation for difficulty is owed to the final act. While the game has a steady and fair difficulty curve in the first five acts, Act VI ramps things up to insane levels, featuring two or three of the most difficult jumps/sections in the entire game, way more enemies than usual, and a three-form final boss that will boot you back to 6-1 if you fail. Moreover, while the final boss will start you on the form you died on upon return, your health from the stage will not be refilled upon reaching him. In this sense, its easy to say that you might as well reset the game if you can't beat him in one run, but like the rest of the game, with enough determination and focus you can beat each of his forms even separately. This aspect was not the only tough part of Ninja Gaiden, but it is easily the most difficult part for me.

Despite this, I still adore this game. Anyone who knows me knows that I love difficult games. Dancing on that razor's edge between adrenaline-pumping intensity and full-on, manic, seeing-red rage is one of my favorite feelings and is up there with eating extremely spicy food as my anti-drug. The best part of this game is that it really dances on that edge for me: its definitely really tough but its just tough enough where you still want to keep going. It dares you to finish it, just one more continue, just one more play, focus enough and you will make it! Ninja Gaiden boasts the ultimate concession and the best part of the best difficult games: unlimited continues! This prevents the game from delving into that horrible-hard territory with the likes of Silver Surfer. Ninja Gaiden with its unlimited continues, I would argue, wants you to finish it.

If you have the patience to withstand its tests of your will, then you will find one of the best NES games of all time. Boasting amazing cutscenes with some of the greatest shots I have seen in an NES game (or any game for that matter, the arrival at Jaquio's castle and the sunset ending come to mind), some of the best music on the system, and a legitimately compelling story for the time, this game is incredibly rewarding for anyone with the patience and determination to hone their ninja skills.

Reviewed on May 25, 2022


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