Ninja Gaiden’s meteoric rise and subsequent Izuna Drop is one of the greatest tragedies of the character action genre. The masterfully crafted and nail-bitingly difficult first game kicked things off in style before being eclipsed by an even more chaotic, brutal, and satisfying sequel. Then Ninja Gaiden 3 jumped the shark and put Ryu Hayabusa on life support.
Team Ninja’s attempt to bring Ninja Gaiden to a wider audience and humanise a character that everyone was satisfied using as a badass killing machine nearly killed the series. It’s painfully ironic considering how the Soulslike genre managed to make difficult games more popular than ever just one year earlier, which is exactly when Ninja Gaiden should have been stealing the spotlight.
Ninja Gaiden 3 did get an enhanced port called Razor’s Edge that significantly improves the experience, but it’s still the weakest of the trilogy.
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That 13-year-long tragic tale is finally coming to an end with the long-awaited fourth mainline entry and a brand-new 2D sidescroller (Ragebound) both arriving later in 2025. It’s already looking like a stacked comeback tour for Ryu, but Team Ninja shadowdropped a big surprise to tide us all over until the main events – a remake of the best game in the series, Ninja Gaiden 2.
Considering how universally disliked the Sigma port of Ninja Gaiden 2 is (more on that later), bringing back such a beloved game was an unenviable task. After playing it non-stop over the past few days and falling in love with both NG2 and the series all over again, I’m happy to say it’s a task that Team Ninja nailed as Ninja Gaiden 2 Black is a stunning step-up from Sigma in nearly every way.
A Looker, If Not A Listener
If you’re new to the series and wondering if it’s risky to jump straight into the sequel and not have a clue what’s going on, I’ll put that worry to rest right now. Ninja Gaiden 2’s story, which follows everyone’s favourite stoic ninja Ryu Hayabusa as he journeys around the world to take on the Black Spider Clan is, as it always was, barely worth paying attention to.
While the increasingly ridiculous situations and conveyor belt of otherworldly foes like talking werewolves, ninjas, and demons keep things interesting, the story itself is still utter nonsense. Ryu isn’t really a character (which is how we like him, Ninja Gaiden 3!) and mostly just wanders into arenas where enemies monologue at him until he kills them and everyone else in the room.
The plot has therefore aged less like milk and more like water – mostly unchanged, but somehow more stale. However, Black does at least make the nearly two-decade-old adventure a feast for the eyes thanks to its Unreal Engine upgrade. Ninja Gaiden 2 looked fine in its HD Master Collection port, but the latest version is on another level altogether.
As impressive as the new character models and often blood-soaked textures are, Ninja Gaiden 2 Black’s fresh coat of paint is most noticeable with its updated environments and lighting. In the original game, it was easy to barely pay attention to the levels you were wreaking havoc through, but their stunningly realistic look makes them steal the show now. At times, it’s a little unbelievable how good Ninja Gaiden 2 Black looks, and I found myself stopping to smell the roses for the first time in a game that otherwise flies by at literal breakneck speed.
Ninja Gaiden 2 Is Still Best In Character Action Class
Ryu’s phwoar-inducing green eyes and the slick new UI are an unexpected treat, but what really matters for a character action game is how it plays. Ninja Gaiden 2 is one of my favourites of the genre thanks to how fast-paced, brutal, and flashy its combat is. That’s true of Devil May Cry, Metal Gear Rising, and Bayonetta too, but Ninja Gaiden’s notoriously punishing difficulty makes you feel every sword slash, Izuna Drop, Flying Swallow, and complete failure like no other action game even to this day.
The original Ninja Gaiden did all of the above more gracefully, but the sequel made it even flashier and put the emphasis on satisfyingly tearing your enemies to pieces. There isn’t a single attack in the game that doesn’t cause blood to spout like a fountain, and the execution moves of 2 become an essential part of your toolkit to make battles fair. It takes some time to figure everything out, but once you do Ninja Gaiden 2 feels exquisite in nearly every way.
Unlike the complete overhaul that Ninja Gaiden 2’s graphics got, Team Ninja decided to leave the gameplay pretty much untouched for its Black remake. For the most part, that’s a wise decision for a game with such masterfully crafted combat. But it does feel its age in a few key areas, like the fiddly camera and rigid controls, especially when the game remembers it has platforming to break up all the murder.
Begone Sigma, And Take New Game Plus With You
Long-time fans will be used to the small annoyances, but anyone playing Ninja Gaiden 2 for the first time through Black will have to overcome this learning curve and quickly realise that it’s more of a Dead Rising-style deluxe remaster than a full-on remake. Even then, Black is still the best version of Ninja Gaiden 2 we’ve had since the original thanks to how it fixes some of the issues Sigma introduced.
For those that don’t know, Sigma was the PS3 port of Ninja Gaiden 2 that infamously cut down the difficulty, blood, and even actual content of the original Xbox 360 release, while also making some small but impactful changes to levels and mechanics. Black still has the reduced enemy count on Normal difficulty and keeps Sigma’s structure, but many of its issues like its butchered weapon upgrades and lack of gore have been reversed.
The purist Ninja Gaiden 2 fans aren’t going to be happy that Black hasn’t completely said goodbye to Sigma, but newcomers are unarguably getting the best version of the original. The only major downside to Ninja Gaiden 2 Black that non-hardcore fans are going to be affected by is its surprising amount of cut content. Lots of unlockable costumes are missing in action here, and entire modes like Survival and Ninja Race have been left behind, making the post-game feel a lot lighter.
The returning Tag Missions are a nice bonus though, and Chapter Challenge does make the erasure of New Game Plus sting a little less.
Even with the confusing cut content that hopefully gets added back in at a later date, Ninja Gaiden 2 Black is the perfect way for newcomers to get into the series with its most action-packed and visceral entry. Veterans are still likely to prefer the ridiculous cruelty of the original game, but most fans are just going to be happy to see Ryu return and right most of Sigma’s wrongs.
Reviewed on PS5.
- Released
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January 23, 2025
- ESRB
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M For Mature 17+ // Intense Violence, Blood and Gore, Suggestive Themes, Partial Nudity, Strong Language
- Developer(s)
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Koei Tecmo Games Co., Ltd.
- Publisher(s)
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Koei Tecmo Games Co., Ltd.
- Stunning new visuals
- Combat is as visceral and satisfying as ever
- Gets rid of most of Sigma?s annoying features
- Missing modes and bonus content
- Will feel its age to newcomers
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