This is why I still play random games on a whim. A while back I received a copy of 10 Second Ninja X as a PlayStation Plus subscriber. It just sat in my library, until today that is. There aren't that many games I can play through in one sitting and still enjoy it as much as I did this game. I still have several bonus levels to play through so don't let that fact bother you too much. What this game may lack in length it makes up for in its puzzle fueled adrenaline. It is truly amazing just how much can be accomplished in just ten seconds.
It all starts at your home in the forest. The pirate Greatbeard has captured all the birds from your home and you must fight through his many trials to free them all. This fun and wacky villain has spent a lot of time on this scheme to humiliate you and will be very disappointed if he can't even get a reaction from you. In the meantime the power keeps going out on Greatbeard's ship and its up the Benji to get the generator back up and running. Of course Benji would love nothing more then to be you're partner and help put an end to Greatbeard. Too bad he just keeps getting in the way.
Every trial has one goal; destroy all robots within ten seconds. As the fastest ninja in the world this seems like a simple enough task. You're armed with a sword for close-quarters combat and three shruiken for distant foes. Of course you'll need to jump and double jump in order to reach all of your enemies. There are several worlds each with ten stages. Each new world offers a new set of challenges and gimmicks. Most revolve around when and how you'll have to use your shruiken, such as electrified enemies that can't be cut with the sword and lasers you can use to reflect the shruiken at different angles.
There is a surprising amount of depth and strategy to this game. You will get a star rating depending on how fast you can finish each stage. This is where a lot of the replay value comes in. Many stages will take a couple tries just to figure the puzzle like layouts. Then as you replay the same stages over again you may notice more efficient routes to better your times. Also, the timer won't start until you move allowing you to pan the camera around and plan out the best course of action. If replaying old levels isn't enough a whole new set of stages is unlocked after finishing the main story-line.
For someone who doesn't play many fast action-games anymore I was shocked by just how satisfying it was playing through 10 Second Ninja X. Although it is incredibly fast-paced the controls are super tight and responsive. In addition to a great level of control this is equal parts a puzzle game. Once you finally figure out what you need to do to beat a stage time isn't so much an issue. Speaking of, if you're short on time it certainly isn't too much of an issue when this game can be beaten in just a few hours. However, with a silly story-line and exciting gameplay they'll be a couple hours well spent.