Few adventure games manage to exhibit Gaiden's blend of visceral action, depth and graphics to such a triumphant extent.
Ninja Gaiden reinstates the notion that Ninja games need not be confined to the cliché abyss - yet at the same time makes such an impressive impact you couldn't possibly imagine any other ninja-based game being anything other than redundant in comparison.
Gaiden is a sprawling, challenging and, essentially, highly satisfying romp that manages to astound in every way. It's hard to imagine anybody not appreciating the care and attention that went into every aspect of this game - even those that prefer games with a much more forgiving difficulty level.
Gaiden's story tends to take a backseat to the action and doesn't even seem to be too important to fans of the game - suffice it to say, Ryu, the game's protagonist, is seeking revenge on a rival ninja clan that ultimately serves to send the player, as Ryu, on an epic journey, extracting razor-sharp revenge on his enemies. It's nice that the game does keep some form of narrative but could easily have gone without given that the game itself is satisfying in nearly every other respect.
Team Ninja have always been known as something of a graphical powerhouse, and one need only look at their Dead or Alive series to realise this. One look at Ninja Gaiden however and you'll appreciate just how much elaborate care the team has put into the game's environments and effects. The monsters are gruesome, large and menacing. Your human enemies exhibit the athletic grace that only a ninja could. Some of the bosses are so tremendous in stature you'll feel nothing but glee as your watch your tiny Ryu hacking away at them with such steely determination. And with some wonderfully varied environments, ranging from historical to Dali-esque, the game's visuals continue to astound with every step the player takes. Technological acheivements will surpass Ninja Gaiden in time, but the sheer imagination and detail put into these environments will serve as a demonstration to uninspired designers for years, such is their intricate beauty.
Simply witnessing Ninja Gaiden however, cannot make you appreciate just how deep the gameplay is. Ryu's smooth swordsmanship and near-flawless acrobatics are as easy to enjoy as the graphics, and hugely satisfying to master. Ryu's repertoir of moves is simple to comprehend, and chaining a combo together works so well with each individual button press - Ryu moves fluidly and naturally from one attack to another, in perfect tandem with the player's input.
One should, however, not presume that the responsive nature of the combat means that hacking and slashing wildly will see you through to the next area; nothing could be further from the truth. Enemies are as quick, deadly and able as you, and while it can be tempting to run into the thick of a battle with your sword waving wildly and your buttons mashing the pad, the enemy will soon make short work of you. Your rivals typically respond to cetain weaknesses, all while exploiting yours, and you'll realise that the block button will be used just as much as your attacks. Certain combinations of moves will cause Ryu to drop his guard for a split second, at which point the enemy will make their move, often sending you into the nearest vertical service. Figuring out the most effective combination for dealing with enemies is incredibly satisfying - and seeing your character carving through them without even breaking a sweat is reward in itself. The combat is both wonderfully fluid and deceptively deep; it's rare that a game with such smooth controls holds such a steep yet fair learning curve, and it's this that makes the game so pleasurable.
However, while tearing through wave after wave of enemies in the first chapter of the game eases the player in, the game's learning curve becomes damn-near vertical towards the later chapters. Make no mistake, Ninja Gaiden is hard. Rock solid, in fact. The game may grant you the moves of a ninja, but not the reflexes - they're something the player must develop themselves. How difficult people may find the game comes down mostly to how quick the player reacts to any given situation. Often, when attacked by a swarm of enemies, you'll have to prioritise the biggest threats, and adapt to their styles in order to beat them. Of course, with so many enemies coming at you at once, it's hard to tell who will help their comrades mid-battle - and how you'll cope when they do.
The game's difficulty might hinder many people's enjoyment of the game. It's harsh, brutal and unforgiving; you'll see the game over screen a number of times, often after panicking at the sheer scale of whichever group of enemies has decided to gang up on you. Yet it's never, ever unfair. Every challenge can be overcome, and every enemy has a weakness. The player is granted more than enough abilites to put to good use throughout the adventure, and will often have picked up a decent strategy by the fifth or sixth game over screen. It's hard to argue anything other than superb design when a developer can create a game this difficult without resorting to cheap and contrived tactics to make levels so challenging.
The game's difficulty isn't a compromise for the game's length either. Trust me when I say that Ryu's world is colossal; he'll not only travel by land through the city, but also underground (through ruined temples and water systems) and in the sky, battling a large enemy atop a zeppelin. The sheer variety in the levels, and the challenges within them, make the journey a constant delight, and you'll notice that each level entwines perfectly with the next, or even the one before it. Yes, you will be doing some backtracking in Ninja Gaiden, but it's not as imperative as the Metroid games, nor as forced as the otherwise excellent Castlevania games. Each level is linked coherently and sensibly, and as the game is split into chapters (more for the sake of the story than the game's structrue), you'll find that even revisiting these areas isn't as boring as it could be - events earlier on in the story will eventually affect the look of places you've visited before. You'll notice upon returning to the Cathedral that the roof has broken in, and helicopters are constantly flying over it. Not only that, but the enemies you faced prior are replaced by ninjas and mutants more on par with your own skills. The revisiting of areas not only helps the game proceed smoothly but ensures your abilities are on top-form along the way - something not even Metroid could manage.
Adding to the game's depth is the essence system - whereby killing enemies adds to your points, which you can use to buy and upgrade weapons (of which there are many), and the Golden Scarab collectibles. There are fifty of these in the game and collecting all of them unlocks the original NES Ninja Gaiden. It's an extra incentive to go through the game again and find all of them, although it's such a difficult task - and perhaps for too little reward - it's hard to imagine anybody with the patience to do so, unless of course, they wanted to play through the whole adventure again.
Mind you, who wouldn't? Ninja Gaiden is such an impressive, awe-inspiring and unforgettable adventure that you'll want to keep it in your collection for as long as possible. Granted, the lack of genuine replay value is a sore point, but with so many memorable scenes, not to mention how enjoyable the game actually is. It's worth playing through over again because even at it's impressive length, you simply won't be able to get enough of Ninja Gaiden.