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Ninja Gaiden drops on by the DS and livens up the party

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 30 / 31
Date: March 28, 2008
Author: Amazon User

I've held off from buying the Nintendo DS for a couple years now. I used the excuse that there really wasn't any games for it that appealed to me. While the DS line-up of games have gone beyond the Nintendogs, Brain Age and Pokemon lines it was still limited in heavy action-oriented games. It took the announcement and subsequent release of Team Ninja's latest title in their great Ninja Gaiden series to finally make me pick up a Nintendo DS. I am more than happy and glad I broke my embargo of Nintendo's newest handheld. Ninja Gaiden Dragon Sword was all I had hoped it would be and actually made the DS fun to play with.

Anyone who games a lot knows that Team Ninja's Ninja Gaiden series for the Xbox (soon for the 360 as well) was seen as a game for the hardcore of the hardcore group of gamers. This series was unforgiving in its difficulty and didn't baby the players. While such a thing may alienate the more casual player it does pose as a great challenge for gamers who have seen and played all types of games and where a challenge to their gaming skill comes only rarely. I was concerned that transferring that difficulty level from the console to the handheld would prove to be a problem, but Team Ninja seem to have found a balance in Dragon Sword's overall execution. While Ninja Gaiden Dragon Sword is not sadistically difficult it's also not a pushover. There's enough of a challenge in the gameplay that it shows the spirit of what the Ninja Gaiden series has always been: a challenging and fun action series.

Dragon Sword also made great use of the DS touch screen and stylus system by pretty much using it as the end-all and be-all of moving and fighting throughout the game. The rest of the buttons, shoulder bumpers and D-pad have been relegated to act as a way to block incoming attacks. This makes the game quite intuitive as making slashing motions over an enemy on the touch screen would cause Ryu Hayabusa to lock on that opponent and make his attacks. Combo attacks and chains could be achieved by making the correct patterns with the stylus over an opponent. For hack and slash players the combat system will be easy to use even fancy attacks are not made, but for those willing to learn the special techniques the stylus-touchscreen mechanic could be quite rewarding.

The graphics on this game is some of the best I've seen on an DS game released so far. While not on the same level as the Xbox's Ninja Gaiden Black or the upcoming 360-exclusive Ninja Gaiden 2 this DS title pushes the limits of what the handheld's innerworkings can accomplish. Dragon Sword using 3D animation for the player and the enemies on the screen while using pre-rendered 2D animation for the background. Similar to past Resident Evil titles this marriage of 3D characters with 2D environments makes for quite a beautiful looking game. The comic book style animation for the cutscenes also makes the game play out like a manga. This illusion is further enhanced by the fact that the game is played with the DS opened like a book.

Overall, Ninja Gaiden Dragon Sword was quite the successful foray for the traditionally hardcore Ninja Gaiden series which always came out on the newest and powerful console system. Team Ninja was able to bring the action-oriented gameplay of the original console titles, but also bring an innovative and intuitive gameplay through near-exclusive use of the DS stylus and touchscreen. Here's to hoping Team Ninja will continue to make more Ninja Gaiden and original IP titles for the DS to complement the titles they've been releasing on the 360.

Just plain awesome

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 5 / 5
Date: April 02, 2008
Author: Amazon User

Tecmo's classic franchise Ninja Gaiden makes its debut on the DS with fantastic results. Ninja Gaiden: Dragon Sword continues the adventures of the heroic and deadly master ninja Ryu Hayabusa, as he takes on evil forces including all sorts of beasts and baddies. What makes Ninja Gaiden: Dragon Sword on the DS so unique is the game's control scheme and presentation: holding the DS sideways (like with Hotel Dusk: Room 215 and Planet Puzzle League), you move Ryu with the stylus, and attack enemies by slashing across them with the stylus as well. This allows for some great combo attack strings that are just plain cool. Not to mention that this is one of the best looking and well animated games to hit the DS yet, especially from a third-party. One thing the Ninja Gaiden series has always been known for is the challenge it provides, and while there is a bit to be found here, it isn't nearly as super difficult as past games in the series have been. This can be good or bad depending on your own experience with the series, with the game's only other real flaw being that the touch screen controls aren't always as precise as they could be. However, everything else about Ninja Gaiden: Dragon Sword is spectacular: from the cut-scenes to the storyline to the epic boss battles, this game is a blast. All in all, Ninja Gaiden: Dragon Sword is one of the best recent third-party titles to hit the DS, and for fans of the series that own Nintendo's handheld, this is an essential pick up.

Nintendo's DS finally gets a Pair !!

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 8 / 13
Date: March 28, 2008
Author: Amazon User

That's right you heard it here first the DS gets a pair,...and MAN is it about time!! Was getting tired of seeing nintendogs on the shelves

I was really surprised by how tight this game is... smooth like butter moves...sharp graphics...different camera angles add to the enjoyment Really pushes DS to the limits

Bonus for those who ordered early.. a big old dragon sword stylus w/ sheath (hells yeah) to engage you even more in this game

If you have DS dust it off and prepare to sharpen your hack n slash skills
If you do not have DS this game may make you take another look at the little handheld that could

Great Action Game

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 1 / 1
Date: April 17, 2008
Author: Amazon User

This game was fun for me to play. I have been waiting for a game like this since I got a DS.

Ultimately, its a game where you run around and kill bad guys by slashing them up. Not having played many of the other Ninja Gaiden games, I can't compare.

The gameplay is very, very similar to God Of War on the Sony systems: you run around and slash, and you get some super powers as the game progresses. However, there are no puzzles to solve.

To some reviews that pointed out drawbacks, they are true, and thus this isn't a five star game. You do just hack and slash, and it can get a bit repetitive (but I do think that its fun with the stylus). Also, a lot of the gameplay scenes are not real 3d.

All that said, a game like this on the DS is long overdue, and I'm glad I have a copy.

NInja Gaiden on the DS, need I say more?

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 1 / 1
Date: April 16, 2008
Author: Amazon User

Ok yes i need to say more because the game is awesome. I love seeing games on the DS that arn't nintendogs or other cutsy games. You run around as Ryu killing ninjas and some truly gruling boss battles( at the highest difficulty). Please just buy this game, so Nintendo makes more games for mature audiences.

Meh!

2 Rating: 2, Useful: 3 / 11
Date: April 02, 2008
Author: Amazon User

The music is great, The graphics are good. The game play itself is boring, and I've finished it twice with different difficulty levels just to make sure. Basically, for much of the game, you walk into a room where you have to defeat a group of enemies that reconstitute ad nauseum. You can either mash keys, or scribble the stylus until the baddies disappear. It's even more silly when you're in the furthest portion of some room with depth perspective, fighting 3 enemies, and scribbling over a space of a square centimeter. There's only one small portion of this game where the environment is rendered in 3-D, not counting the bosses. Wasn't the idea behind the DS for 3D gaming? Is Metroid Prime Hunter the only thing out there?

Pros/Cons

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 1 / 2
Date: April 09, 2008
Author: Amazon User

Pros:

- Ninja Gaiden on the DS... Hellooo?
- Outstanding production values
- Stylus controls work amazingly well
- Comic book style cut scenes
- Same great sound effects/music score from Xbox classic
- No graphical equivalent on DS

Cons:

- Short
- Some of the moves can be tricky to execute
- Vertical view can make you feel boxed in
- Most bosses are recycled from xbox ninja gaiden

Slash-tastic

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 0 / 0
Date: July 07, 2008
Author: Amazon User

This game was so fast-paced it made my heart race at times. the boss battles are intimidating but surprisingly simple to adapt to. There are few ARGH! moments, which I think no good game can go without, but on the normal difficulty setting it was pretty quick to play through without being boring or monotonous. I have yet to try the subsequent difficulty modes (Head Ninja, Master Ninja, and finally Master Kunoichi to play as Momiji) as I am an adult with a stupid full time job (children, take heed) but I have heard tales of the fury these can incite in hardcore players. Probably similar to the original series on the NES. At any rate, HIGHLY recommended. Try not to stab your stylus through your touch-screen.

Awesome Ninja Action

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 0 / 0
Date: July 30, 2008
Author: Amazon User

This is one of my favorite games for DS. You hold the DS on its side while playing. It is very fast paced and actiony and involves a lot of stylus slashes. It is extremely fun. Using ninpo is also very fun. All you do is tap a button and then trace the ninpo symbol for whatever ninpo your using. The diffuculty is pretty high even on easy so I used the healing ninpo a lot which kinda took the fun out of the ninpo feature. The story was pretty good and had great comic book style pictures. It also had great voice acting for the various grunts, screams, or one word sentences they said. So if you like fast paced ninja action, a unique control configuration, and a highly polished game, get Ninja Gaiden: Dragon Sword.

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