Ninja Gaiden has long been a staple series in gaming, and one keen on making a return this year, if Ninja Gaiden 4 is anything to go by. However, one new entry is poised to bring the classic gory action into the spotlight: The Game Kitchen’s Ninja Gaiden: Ragebound. Combining the graphics of the 2D games and the finesse of the 3D titles, Ragebound looked to have the workings of something long-time fans would enjoy. Fortunately, after getting my hands on some of what the game has to offer, I can say with certainty that Ragebound is not one to miss, fan or not.
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In the 90s and early 2000s, nobody did gory ninja combat quite like Koei Tecmo’s Ninja Gaiden series. With several entries in the historic franchise, from the classic 2D titles on the NES to the 3D games on Xbox, it was pretty much everywhere. Sadly, for a while, nothing came of Ryu Hayabusa’s adventures. That is, until The Game Awards 2024, where Dotemu and The Game Kitchen revealed a new entry in the franchise: Ninja Gaiden: Ragebound. The Game Kitchen, known for its viscerally beautiful Blasphemous games, fit the bill right away to bring Ninja Gaiden back to life. Its pixel art style feels ripped straight out of the arcades, with some well-deserved updates, of course, especially the gore.
The demo begins with two tutorials, essentially. One teaches you the basics of combat and gameplay, while the other goes in depth with the moves and combos you can pull off as the new protagonist, Kenji. Right away, the feeling of Ninja Gaiden is prominently shown. Enemies appear left and right, slashing at you or throwing objects, blood splatters and all. While it gets a lot more hectic in the latter half of the demo, Ragebound definitely isn’t short on difficulty. Challenge is something Ninja Gaiden never skimped on, so I was glad to see it alive and well, even if it was brutally difficult. Don’t go into Ninja Gaiden expecting not to die, as you will, multiple times, but that makes the experience that much more satisfying when you get farther. Enemies are varied in health and design, so knowing how to take them down while staying alive is key to victory.
Right off the bat, Kenji is easy to relate to, threading the needle between newcomer and veteran. He serves as the apprentice to mainline series protagonist Ryu Hayabusa and his flashy new moves and ultimate attacks make him a force to be reckoned with. In a way, he feels much like Ryu, yet still his own character. Even more so, I also got to play two levels later in the narrative as a new protagonist, Kumori, a member of the Black Spider Clan who’s intertwined with Kenji and has to work together.
They are two uniquely different characters that, somehow, mesh together really well from what I’ve seen. They dislike each other, as both clans are sworn enemies, but know that they can’t separate themselves without working together. As Kumori, she is more cutthroat and varied in her moveset, making her vastly different from Kenji. While I wasn’t able to play as her for too long, her powerful attacks and diverse weapons did make her a standout addition.
Everything really felt like a flashback to the original Ninja Gaiden games, and not just with the pixelated art style. The music is loud and brash, making you feel even more like a badass than you already are. Its rock and roll aesthetic builds a fire under you and keeps you on your fast feet, much like 2016’s DOOM did. As I tend to do with many games recently, as was the case with South of Midnight, I sometimes just paused and rocked out to the tunes. I doubt there will be any shortage of great songs to come out of the full game, so that’s something I’m very much looking forward to.
Fortunately, my gameplay experience was quite smooth, not really running into any technical difficulties outside of a few frame drops when the action was big. However, the game is best played with a controller, as the tight movements of the characters and fast-paced combat feel a lot more natural to do with a controller, which I used during my preview. Though the preview was only on PC and, as mentioned above, worked really well, even if my laptop isn’t the best, so it should work perfectly on it, as well as on consoles.
2025 is the Year of the Ninja for Koei Tecmo, and Ninja Gaiden: Ragebound will likely be one of the best ways to celebrate it. The essence that makes the series so iconic has done the impossible and has been replicated and upgraded. It’s a nostalgia fest for fans and a rocking good platformer for newcomers. If anything, it seems like a surefire way to bring a once-dormant series back to life in a way many will enjoy, as I have. The Game Kitchen is living up to its name and cooking up what may be one of this year’s best platformers and one well worth the watch, even if it’s from the shadows.
Ninja Gaiden: Ragebound will slash its way onto Nintendo Switch, PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X|S this Summer.
