The original Shadow of the Ninja (Dark Operative Kage in Japan) is a cult classic NES game from Natsume. Released in 1990, it featured 2-player local co-op – a rarity for 8-bit platformers. Over 30 years later, Natsume Atari’s Tengo Project team and ININ Games have unleashed a full remake onto modern consoles and Steam called Shadow of the Ninja - Reborn. A full remake in every sense of the word, Reborn features astounding pixel art, a new item unlocking system, and the return of 2-player local co-op support. Unfortunately, a punishing level of difficulty limits the appeal of the new game.
Shadow of the Ninja - Reborn opens with an expanded introduction that explains the premise in very rough terms. There are some bad guys who’ve put the world in darkness or something, and a pair of ninjas are called upon to save the people. Inexplicably, this is communicated by scrolling Japanese text with English subtitles at the bottom of the screen. Why wouldn’t the developers replace the Japanese text with localized text which would look better and be easier to read? Maybe bad guys prevented them from doing so. After the vague text scrawl, the intro does depict a few cool animations of the two lead ninjas fighting robotic enemies, so it’s not all bad.
From the main menu, players can select Arcade or Time Attack modes, view online rankings, and adjust options (which is also where you view unlocked items). Time Attack allows players to replay and speedrun previously completed stages. Arcade Mode is the main game, offering two difficulty levels for single-player but only one difficulty for local multiplayer.
At the start of the game, players select from a pair of playable ninjas: Hayate and Kaede. Hayate has a longer jump and Kaede moves slightly faster, but otherwise, they play the same. In co-op, each player must choose a different character, so you can’t run with double Hayates or anything. Players also get to select a certain number of items to take into the run, but only after the primary player has already played and unlocked some items.
Reborn is an action platformer like the original game, and the characters, levels, and enemies are all based upon the NES classic. However, it doesn’t play as close to the original as you might expect. The view is more zoomed in (presumably to show off the gorgeous pixel art), but the actual game differs as well. Our heroes now carry a sword and kusarigama (chain and sickle) at all times rather than starting with one and gaining the other via power-up. The sword does more damage and can only slash forward, but power-ups will increase its range. The kusarigama has much greater range and can be unleashed in 8 directions, coming in handy for reaching hard-to-get enemies. Charging up the sword button will unleash a lightning strike that hits all enemies, but this attack drains the player’s life, so most players will probably never use it. There’s also a new backwards dash for skillful dodging.
The other new mechanic is the ability to carry and use an assortment of consumable items. These include healing items, power-ups, and weapons. Items are found in futuristic chests, some of which are visible and others that are hidden in specific locations. Unfortunately, the interface for using items is extremely clunky. Players first have to hold the item button and scroll through the available items. Having found an item, the player must then either activate it with a button or switch back to the ninja’s sword. Reborn is an extremely difficult game with an unforgiving level timer, so it’s tough to safely select and use items when you need them.
The item unlocking system further discourages item use. To actually unlock an item, gamers must beat the level while holding the item. This adds two wrinkles. First, you shouldn’t use an item if you haven’t already unlocked it, because using the item will keep you from unlocking it. Second, dying and restarting at a checkpoint will cause players to lose most of their items, so you basically have to play a level almost perfectly in order to unlock most of its treasures. If players kept items upon dying, it would be a fun system, but the current implementation punishes all but the most hardcore players since most of us won’t be able to carry the majority of the items past the finish line.
In fact, difficulty is where Reborn really stumbles. Tengo Project has long shown a proclivity for high challenge, as their other games like Pocky & Rocky Reshrined and Wild Guns Reloaded are tougher than average. Reborn is harder than the original game, though. My partner and I recently soared through the first level of the NES game without dying. Here, the first level took several tries. It’s beatable, but there’s an increased focus on memorization and perfection as opposed to just playing and having a good time. Enemies move in ways that require fast and specific responses, and they’re often positioned to deliberately trip up the player. The bosses, as big and cool as they are in this remake, are also quite tough and memorization-dependent.
2-player local co-op is relegated to a separate mode, so a second player can’t hop in at any time, unfortunately. The game does save the last level reached for both single-player and multiplayer, though, so players can juggle progress between the two modes. Bringing a second player along doesn’t make the game much easier since both players are quite vulnerable at all times. If one player dies, they can’t be revived until the remaining player reaches a new checkpoint or dies and returns to the previous checkpoint. Both players carry their own inventory, which can potentially make it easier to unlock items if both people can reach the end of the level with them. My partner found the difficulty irksome, regrettably, and didn’t have the stamina to grind through the whole game with me. That’s the trouble with a co-op game whose challenge is cranked up so high: finding a partner who's up to the task.
I really wanted to love Shadow of the Ninja – Reborn. The original game is a co-op classic, and Tengo Project brings wonderful artistic talent to this remake. Sadly, however, the developers chose to lean too far into the difficulty for my tastes. It’s not that hard games are bad or anything, but the challenge here turns what should be an exciting and fun experience into an arduous and repetitive one. Yes, players can restart from checkpoints as much as they want, but you have to enjoy the process of dying and retrying over and over again, and then coming back later with everything memorized and perfected. If that sounds like your jam, don’t miss Shadow of the Ninja – Reborn. I’d rather play Dead Cells or Rogue Legacy 2 if I’m going to play a tough platformer.
Shadow of the Ninja - Reborn costs $19.99 on Xbox, PlayStation, Switch, and Steam.
An Xbox download code was provided by the publisher for this review.