Yaiba: Ninja Gaiden Z

Yaiba: Ninja Gaiden Z is a third-player action game, which is a spin-off title of the Ninja Gaiden series. The game was developed by three development teams. The main work was done by Comcept studio, founded by the legendary Keiji Inafune. The author, who has been working for Capcom for many years, is known primarily as the creator of the Mega Man series. Team Ninja, headed by Tecmo Koei, is responsible for the development of the Ninja Gaiden franchise, and Spark Unlimited studio, the developers of Lost Planet 3, also actively participated in the development of the game.

The main character of the title is Yaiba Kamikaze, a trained killer who once belonged to a powerful ninja clan, with whom he broke all ties. At one point, he crossed his path with Ryu Hayabusa, the protagonist of Ninja Gaiden, who challenged him to a duel. Yaiba lost his eye, shoulder, and life. Soon, however, he was resurrected with the help of advanced technology. He was saved by a mysterious organization which, apart from a new life and a chance to take revenge on his murderer, equipped him with a dangerous cybernetic weapon and abilities. However, in order to get a chance to meet Hayabusa again, the hero must first help to eradicate the zombie invasion.

The game is a typical and very fast hack and slash focused on spectacular action. As in many other productions of the genre, players have at their disposal several types of weapons, as well as special attacks. Yaiba: Ninja Gaiden definitely doesn't offer a big challenge and doesn't require skills like Ninja Gaiden which offers much higher difficulty level. The game uses a third person perspective, but direct control over the camera is not available at many moments - the game automatically frames and shows the arenas, using different perspectives and levels of close-ups. The main opponents are various kinds of zombies. From the standard, slow undead, to those agile and with special abilities. The culmination of some levels are bosses, which traditionally require additional strategies to overcome.

Comic style graphics, based on cel-shading technology, distinguish Yaiba from other games of the genre. Animations, character designs, interface, and the plot are crazy versions of clichés and ideas used in the most popular Japanese and Western games. Creators play with convention in many places, despite not the highest technical level of the engine, receive sensational effects.

Last updated on 09 October 2013