The regular eastern chicks of Chicadas flew a few months ago. They last appeared back in 2008, but it was just in time for the release of the ninja Gaiden 2. In the interim, they missed the global pandemic, the rise of chat GPT, and of course, the ominous release of the ninja Gaiden 3. Ninja Gaiden 4.
Think about it: Ninja Gaiden teeth Video game CICADA. It has suffered and emerged from dormant states of cult consciousness over the years, with a coco of cult consciousness, reminding us of everything we lack. In 2025, we saw a shadowy remake and acclaimed arcade throwback, but the series is still not ready to go back to the ground.
The collaboration between Koei Tecmo, Platinum Games and Team Ninja should be enough to excite self-proclaimed Ninja Gaiden fans, but he throws out Nakao from Bayonetta 3 as producer director and has a recipe for a really good time.
In Ninja Gaiden’s grand scheme of cultural relevance over decades, I am an extreme clinician. Ninja Gaiden 2 Black was a revelation of a series that I’ve been sitting around me for a while, and provided the perfect excuse to make it a complete focus. I was hoping for Grimm Dark and relentless throws through the infinite waves of enemies, so I found a totally charming camping action adventure.
Still, the essential issues with the remake persist in the Ninja Gaiden 2 Black. As such, the average audience often prefers to look to the future rather than the renovated past. The future of Ninja Gaiden is imminent at the moment, and there is no greater evidence than the new protagonist Yakumo. He doesn’t look like a classic ninja, he looks like a K-Pop idol. You can’t blame the team’s ninja for trying to appeal to Gen Z viewers. He makes decent foil against Ryu Hayabusa’s bulging muscles.
Ninja Gaiden 4 takes us to Neo Tokio, Neo Sky City Tokyo. The dark dragon shell still dangles heavily in the sky, its blood descending mercilessly with neon-style streets and corroded dunches. Where Ninja Gaiden 2 Black’s Sky City Tokyo leans against cherry blossoms and traditional Japanese architecture, Neo Tokyo is an all-out cyberpunk dystopia. The God Dragon Order rules over the city, clearly allied with Ryu to ensure that the dark dragons remain dormant.
Meanwhile, the Ravens of Yakumo live in the shadows of the heritage of the Falcon clan, and nurse prophecies to kill priests, cleanse dragons, and restore peace to the world – essentially, despite all his efforts, Ryu is not well-managed. “I’ll leave it to the Ravens and peck the trash,” says Umi, a member of the clan, to stop the Yakumo via correspondence. Unfortunately for all involved, the priest in question is a sweet speaker who not only saves her life, but persuades the dragon to awaken him. This has absolutely no disastrous consequences.
I fell fast and violently for Ryu in the Ninja Gaiden 2 Black, but Yakumo’s fighting style stands out enough so he’s not a consolation prize Authentic The protagonist of this legacy. If playing as Ryu is a nostalgic embrace of a blood-filled mug, the Yakumo brings platinum prosperity.
As a Yakuma, I unleash the gust of backstabs from the twin katanas, throw enemies into the air and thrust them through them with Lancer’s drill bits, then slice them with a huge horizontal swipe using a comedic long cutlery blade. His Bloodbind Ninjutsu fighting style consists of a basic form for building his bloody gauge to create his bloody shape. This empowered state is where the action actually lies, and my preview reaches the classic Ninpo Power of the Ninja Gaiden.
I’m not throwing out elemental magic, but the Yakumo transformation in the blink of an eye, and the conversion of one-winged Raven offers far more variation in combat. You can use it to break through elite enemy guards, interrupt power attacks, give counterstaggers, even start ferocious states and cut off where they stand. Naturally, surgical removal fills blood gauges faster. The demolition was an important part of Ninja Gaiden 2 Black, but it’s a scary highlight in Ninja Gaiden 4.
Evasion is also an important element of the Ninja Gaiden’s battle, but Platinum Zhuzhed it in Bayonetta’s Witch Nation. This is the perfect Dodge slowdown effect for those who have never experienced it. Side effects? Parrying and doding takes priority over blocking this time. The rapid rhythm of combat requires a second of decision to use the right movement at the right time. Why gamble on blocks when a particular attack can break through the guard, instead you can quickly slide and reposition them?
Of course, fast-paced combat has its own problems, and the cameras of the Ninja Gaiden have historically been a law in itself. I’m happy to report that the Ninja Gaiden 4 camera is the best ever. For the time you want to target a particular enemy in the middle of the crowd, you’re responsive with snappy with optional “hard” lock-on. I can’t say the same thing as running on a wall. When you want to run vertically, you inevitably run horizontally and vice versa. I don’t think you can get it all.
Whether it’s Yakumo or Ryu, the Ninja Gaiden 4’s travel list is extensive, but not as complicated as the DMC-style combo. We are still very The input is a calculated button mash, and the controller face buttons are intuitively mapped to a specific directional movement. Additional movements in the territory of Ninja Gaiden and Bayonetta are unlocked via the skill merchant rather than the technique scroll, and all movements in the preview build have been unlocked. This inevitably means I am deprived of the opportunity to organically acquire combat skills, but when my beloved guillotine throws, flying swallows, and isunadorable drops are at my fingertips, I can’t complain much.
In Hero and Normal Mode, Ninja Gaiden 4 offers an accessible experience for those new to the series. Otherwise, traditional people can switch off-style “flow” states of their brains. However, like all the best action games, victory in Ninja Gaiden 4 is minimal. Beyond Hard Mode, you need to carefully observe positioning, environmental interaction possibilities, and enemy weapons. In short, it’s the most authentic ninja Gaiden 4. Most difficult, I’m one shot by enemy power attacks. It teaches two basic lessons. One is that hacking and slashing your own path through clues of enemy attacks at this level is not enough, and two practices will be perfect. Thankfully, the training mode for the Ninja Gaiden 3 is welcome.
Ninja Gaiden 4’s Challenge Mode definitely helps with a combination of chapter and character selection menus. The chapters that play the story as Ryu not only provide what might be considered the “classical” ninja gaze, but also double as a reprieve from the chatter of the story-specific dialogue between Yakumo and his friends. Instead, I need to develop my fighting skills and focus on breaking previous records.
The Ninja Gaiden 4 has as much merciless forward momentum as the refresh. Neo Tokyo’s levels are linear enough to remain true to the series’ arcade roots, but if you’re the type of player who prefers to pass through any level with a fine-toothed comb, there’s plenty of detour to complete side missions and pop open treasure chests. Simply put, if you want it, you feel like you’re running in an endless corridor – and when your final grade takes into account your clear time, the clarity of direction is comforting relief.
My biggest point from the platinum level design? Everything is useful in the battle. Verticality doesn’t just point large enemies into the air. Instead, I jump over security drones, use grappling hooks to swing the battlefield around, zip over wall handhelds, exploiting countless rooftop perspectives offered by Neotokiko’s impressive city sprawl.
The temptation to incorporate soul-style mechanics into the revival of old-fashioned action games has been a common trend over the past few years. Consider God’s War in 2018. This is enough to cannibalize in the rebooted combat system and considers it to be a very different beast than what came before. This behavior and soul-like exclusion gave us black myths: turmeric, but it also instilled anxiety among players of a certain age. Will Ninja Gaiden fall into the shaking effect of FromSoftware? Onimusha: Way of the Sword?
There is no doubt that my appetite has changed. I still can’t get enough souls, but for many, they have become the equivalent of Bruce Boglotter’s chocolate cake: an overconsumption endurance test where every bite is the same. Thankfully, Team Ninja implicitly understood that fatigue and resisted the urge to chase after his contemporaries. Ninja Gaiden 4 is the inpatient ninja Gaiden, from flying limbs and Jackson’s Pollock-style blood splatter, from Tom of Finnish fashion sense and retrofuturism.
Ninja Gaiden 4 has not forgotten the roots of Doa. The priest’s Theori robes are put together in a shibari rope, but the Big Boss in this preview build is a kimono-covered demon in the Neotokiko Joy District. My disappointment was the limited enemy design of the parts I played. I’m sure the later levels will bring more variety, but it’s just as fun as cutting endless waves of DDO Stormtroopers. It’s a far cry from Venetian werewolves and spider ninjas.
If you haven’t enjoyed the Ninja Gaiden 2 Black, you will highly doubt that the Ninja Gaiden 4 is enough to change your mind. Apart from some platinumism, they are fundamentally the same. However, if you’re looking for a new action game without Soulslike Mechanics, it’s definitely worth checking out. And if you’re an established fan still licking the wounds given by the Ninja Gaiden 3, consider this to return to shape. It’s a good time to become CICADA.
