Ninja Gaiden - NES

 

Title:  Ninja Gaiden

Publisher: Tecmo

Year: 1989

Console: NES

Genre: Action

Number of Players: 1

 

               

 

 

Prologue: The wind howls as the two "Dueling" Ninjas glare at each other in the moonlight.  Though these men

seem like little more than shadows in the air, the moonlight reveals just for an instant, a glint of light that proves

to be the end of the contest.  Ken, head of the Hayabusa clan which has for generations been the guardian of

the Dragon sword, is defeated.

Ken's son Ryu, after learning of his father's defeat, finds a letter.  In it, Ryu is told that if his father does not

return, he must take the secret Dragon sword and go to America.  Ryu senses danger awaiting him in America.

What will be the fate of Ninja Ryu?!

 

                                              

 

Act 1: DESTINY

 

You start the game with a sword in hand.  You have the ability to gain other weapons (ninja stars

for example), as well as the ability to jump and hang on the walls.  In some areas, you have to

jump from wall to wall in order to climb to the top.

 

                                             

 

GALESBURG 

 Jumping from wall to wall is necessary here in order to climb to the top.

 

JAY'S BAR

 Barbarian is the boss of the first Act.  He's fairly easy to beat.  Stand just outside his sword range and slash your sword as fast as possible.  When he moves towards you, back up, and repeat.

            

                                                                           

After you defeat Barbarian, the story continues.

 

 

 

Act 2: THE ESCAPE

 

           

                   OUTPOST                                                        DEATH VALLEY

 

 

AMURA'S ALTAR

 Bomberhead is the boss of Act 2.  He's a little faster than Barbarian of Act 1 and can really cause some damage.  He has a sickle and chain that he uses to attack you.  To defeat him, as he makes his way towards you, repeatedly slash your sword at him.  When he swings his sickle and chain, move back away from danger.  When you feel yourself backed up against the wall, try jumping and hanging on the wall and then jump over his head.

 

 

 

Act 3: THE CHASE

 

           

            LIZARD MOUNTAINS                         

 

YOMI'S CAVE

 Basaquer is the boss of Act 3.  He doesn't do much except jump from one end of the cave to the other.  Keep hitting him as he lands.  But be careful when he first starts his jump because at times, he shoots out 3 projectiles (of some kind) at you.  Slash these projectiles before they hit you.

 

 

Act 4: A TRAP

           

                                        SOUTH AMERICAN AMAZON

 

 

           

            BAZLISK MINE FIELD                  TEMPLE OF DARKNESS- HALL OF DEMONS

 

 

 The bosses of Act 4 are two Kelberosses.  These guys are probably the easiest of all.  Just stand next to one of those wooden pedestals, duck, and slash away as they come near you.

 

 

            

WALTER SMITH, THE ARCHEOLOGIST

 

 

 The evil Guardia De Mieux (Jaquio)

 

 

Jaquio shows how evil he really is.  In this scene, he has you put the Dragon Statue on the ground.  Then he opens up the trap door where you are kneeling.

 

 

Irene Lew, the girl you met at Jay's Bar, looks in disgust.

 

 

 

Act 5: LIFE OR DEATH COMBAT

             

                    EAST TOWER OUTER WALL- THE NAILS OF LUKIFELL

 

 

 

CONFRONTATION WITH THE BLOODY MALTH:

           

 

 

 

Act 6: THE FALL OF THE DEMON

 

        

TEMPLE OF DARKNESS - HALL OF JUDGEMENT

 

 

After a very lengthy Act 6, you come to find out that your father is still alive.  He is under a spell and is told to kill you.

 

        

FATHER VS. SON

 Don't attack your father because it will do absolutely nothing.  Instead, hit the red sphere in the middle of the screen, which you found out was the cause of your father turning against you.  Your father will continue to follow where ever you go, so be sure to jump over him when he comes near.  Also, make sure you slash away at the annoying projectiles that the red sphere shoots out at you.

 

 

After defeating the sphere, Jaquio comes into the picture and shoots out a fireball towards you.  Just before this fireball hits you, your father, who just came out of the spell, leaps in front of it and takes the hit.

 

RYU VS. JAQUIO

 This is your chance to get your revenge against Jaquio.  He is rather easy to defeat once you figure out his pattern.  All he does is fly left and right, shooting fireballs at you.  The trick is to jump and hang on the left side of the wall.  When he approaches, jump off of the wall and slash him with your sword, while dodging his fireballs.  Repeat this until he is defeated.

 

Once you defeat Jaquio, you go back to your fallen father and he tells you that when there is a black moon (eclipse), the demon statues will come to life.  You watch in horror as the moon eclipses the sun and the statues come to life.

 

    RYU VS. THE DEMON STATUE

 

The demon statue is somewhat difficult to beat at first because you have to figure out where exactly you must strike it.  The first thing you should do is slash its head.  Watch out for the projectiles it shoots out from its back.  Keep slashing his head until it comes off.  Next, slash at its tail.  Its tail moves back and forth, trying to stab you.  Once the tail is out of the way, go for the red center.  Keep slashing this area while dodging the projectiles.  Be careful. If you die, you start all the way back to stage 6-1.

 

 

Once you defeat the demon statue, you go back to your fallen father, and see him die.

 

 

           

 

Foster, whom you thought was a friend of yours, orders Irene via satellite to kill you, but she refuses.  You find out that Foster used you to get the demon statues and once you got them, he wanted to steal them and execute you.

 

 

                Ryu and Irene kiss.

 

                        THE END

 

 

 

 

Game Evaluation

 

PROS:

CONS:

 

 

                                                               GRADES

 

Graphics:

A+

Amazing, colorful graphics really bring this game to life.  What's even more amazing is the Cinema Display, which immerses you into the storyline, flawlessly.

Sound:

A+

 

The sound effects and music are the best as you can get on the NES.  Each stage has a tune, from fast-paced (such as in The Chase) to dark and sinister (such as in The Temple of Darkness - Hall of Demons).

Control:

A+

 

This game has excellent control and response.  You can easily maneuver Ryu anywhere, including jumping from wall to wall.

Fun Factor:

A+

 

This game will keep you glued to your seat.  The rich and colorful graphics, along with the Cinema Display and well written storyline, make it a very fun and addictive game.

 

Overall: A+ Simply a must have (had) game!  If you never played this game, you missed playing what might have been the best game ever on the NES!  A true classic indeed.

 

 

The Future of Ninja Gaiden

 

Rumors have it that a Ninja Gaiden game will be made for Playstation 2 in the near future.  These rumors are true!

According to the developers, the new Ninja Gaiden game will look and feel like Tomb Raider, but the controls

will be much easier to handle (one suggestion is that it will only have 2 buttons, one to hit and one to jump).  The

storyline will somewhat be similar to the original, with a lot of the old characters returning to make their debuts on

Playstation 2.