I like hack 'n' slash games, no I LOVE hack 'n' slash. It is my favorite action genre if I should say. But somehow this game managed to make me hate it. *slow claps*
Ninja Gaiden is known for being extremely hard and infamous unbeatable bosses. Z, the spinoff uses the same strategy....but with a tiny twist. You see, these bosses who take forever to kill, they're gonna be treated like normal enemies later on in the game..oh and btw, you don't get to make it to the next upgrade!
Speaking of which, why did they make this upgrades screen anyway? I mean I sincerely see no difference after applying the "upgrades". Take other games from the same category as an example (personal picks are Devil May Cry or God of War) the upgrade actually gives you extra devastating power and more effective combos for stronger enemies as you progress the game. Just for informative reasons let me tell you how NGZ upgrades look like. You have a chain in Yaiba's (the main character) arm called "flail" (that weapon sounds so familiar...I know you know where did they get it from) one of the moves he uses the weapon in a 360 manner, the next upgrade is like "long push of the flail button for a 360 attack".
This gameplay has awful effects, one of the worst is the last boss in the game that is already short (6 levels!). When you reach the boss it's like he sends you enemies to grab zombie weapons from them just shoot the closest area to kill him, what are his powers you may ask..crushing arms, yeah that's it crushing arms. So in short by the end of the game you ran out of ideas.
So to sum this up, this is game is not recommended at all. It will leave you with a death count and total frustration. I admit I finished this game with a trainer, I feel no shame saying that because as the title says it's the worst game design in 2010's!