Ninja Blade

52%
Game Brain Score Based on 129 reviews
  • gameplay
  • story
  • graphics
Ninja Blade Game Cover
Ninja Blade is a decent attempt at stealing Ninja Gaiden’s thunder, but falls short on everything it tries to do.
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In Ninja Blade, players assume the role of a skilled ninja tasked with combating parasitic infestations that cause rabid behavior in infected hosts. Set in a realistic world, the game features fast-paced combat, wall-running, and swordplay, with the ninja utilizing a range of weapons and skills to save humanity. The parasites, known as Alpha-worms, cause infected victims to undergo rapid necrosis and liquefaction, leading to a gruesome and deadly infestation.

  • PC
  • Windows
  • Xbox
  • Xbox 360
Genres & TagsPlay Modes

Reviews

52%
Audience ScoreBased on 129 reviews
graphics4 positive mentions
gameplay10 negative mentions
  • The game features fast-paced, fluid combat and stylish maneuvers that are enjoyable for fans of action games.
  • Cinematic cut scenes are visually impressive and add to the overall experience, especially in HD.
  • Despite its flaws, the game offers a nostalgic experience for those who enjoyed it on older consoles.
  • The PC port is plagued with numerous technical issues, including game-breaking bugs, poor frame rates, and unresponsive controls.
  • The gameplay is heavily reliant on quick time events (QTEs), which can become tedious and frustrating.
  • The story is weak and filled with clichés, making it less engaging for players looking for a compelling narrative.
  • gameplay47 mentions

    The gameplay has received mixed reviews, with many players noting its repetitive nature and reliance on quick time events, which detracts from the overall experience. While some appreciate the old-school action and the variety of combat mechanics, others criticize the numerous bugs, poor hit detection, and lack of polish that hinder enjoyment. Overall, the gameplay is described as a blend of fun moments and tedious mechanics, appealing primarily to fans of retro-style games.

    • “Despite it being a bit weird, it is really good and I loved the gameplay.”
    • “True, it doesn't have high levels of polish, superb platforming mechanics and the like, but it's fun, action-packed, and offers a lot of ways to kill the baddies.”
    • “Fans of old-school action games will appreciate the simple console-like interface/options and straightforward swords and stars gameplay.”
    • “The gameplay is bland and gets boring.”
    • “Hit detection is infuriatingly imprecise, character animations are hilariously terrible, and the combat is mindless, button-mashy nonsense which has any and all possible sense of flow absolutely destroyed by constant quick time events.”
    • “Gameplay-wise, it feels like it's trying to be three different games in one and fails horribly.”
  • story39 mentions

    The story of the game has received overwhelmingly negative feedback, with many users describing it as confusing, generic, and poorly executed. Critics highlight a rushed narrative filled with clichés, lack of character development, and a reliance on absurdity that detracts from the overall experience. Additionally, technical issues such as saving glitches further hinder the storytelling, leaving players frustrated and disengaged.

    • “I adore the storytelling in Dark Souls, and the combat and story of Sekiro gets 5 gold stars out of 5.”
    • “The story isn't anything special, but it thrives on being absurd.”
    • “Ninja Blade is one of the best games in my collection; the action is intertwined with the plot and makes this game so good.”
    • “A plot twist at the start of the game where nothing was explained how it happened, and I was left scratching my head in utter confusion about who these characters were, what was really happening, why it happened, and how it happened.”
    • “The dialogue, story, and cutscenes are an idiotic, brainless bit of B-movie fun.”
    • “With the way the game speeds through some characters like the Yakuza pair, it can feel like some characterization is missing, almost like there is an expansive backstory that should have been the first part of the game, but instead we are dropped into the point in the timeline where everything is coming to a head.”
  • graphics15 mentions

    The graphics of the game have received mixed reviews, with many users noting that they appear outdated and struggle to run smoothly, often failing to exceed 30 frames per second even on capable hardware. While some appreciate the aesthetic and find the visuals decent for their age, others criticize the lack of graphic settings and overall performance issues that hinder gameplay. Overall, the graphics are seen as a significant drawback, detracting from the game's potential enjoyment.

    • “The graphics are decent, maybe showing their age but still great.”
    • “Running at walls, different swords, really great graphics and a good sound.”
    • “Great graphics and exciting gameplay.”
    • “My version is broken; controls and graphics are all messed up.”
    • “Ninja Blade is a cool game with stylish maneuvers and extremely fast, fluid combat; but this PC port is utterly atrocious, not even running at 30 frames per second on 2015 graphics cards.”
    • “Graphically, this game looks sub-par for its era at max settings, and you will have to keep going back into the settings in order to have a decent frame rate due to the game insisting that your frame rate does not exceed 30 fps.”
  • stability14 mentions

    The game's stability is severely compromised, with numerous glitches, crashes, and freezing issues reported across platforms, particularly in the poorly optimized PC port. Players experience frequent stuttering, unresponsive controls, and inconsistent audio, making for a frustrating gameplay experience. Despite these significant flaws, some players still find enjoyment in the game if they can overlook the bugs.

    • “I would recommend the console version of Ninja Blade for its stability, as it has little to no glitches compared to the PC version, which is full of bugs.”
    • “The game runs smoothly on my console, providing a stable experience without any frustrating interruptions.”
    • “I've had a fantastic experience with the stability of this game; it rarely crashes and performs consistently well.”
    • “The game is fine, had a good time playing it on Xbox 360 back in 2010-2011, but that port is disgusting with its optimization, 60 fps and it freezes a lot, and controls (playing it on mouse and keyboard btw), it feels really bad especially with all these lags.”
    • “Constant stuttering, crashing, freezes that make you have to close the game and start it again, and numerous controller bugs.”
    • “Unstable like hell... skipping a cutscene freezes it.”
  • optimization11 mentions

    The game's optimization has received overwhelmingly negative feedback, particularly for its PC port, which suffers from severe performance issues such as stuttering, freezing, and crashes. While some users report achieving better frame rates through manual adjustments, the overall experience is marred by inconsistent performance and control bugs, making it feel poorly optimized compared to other titles.

    • “The game could use more than its fair share of optimization, because I get better framerate in Crytek games with loads of particle effects.”
    • “The game runs smoothly, but hangs awfully when cancelling cutscenes or going between menus.”
    • “You can fix it by forcing V-Sync using your GPU drivers, but the performance should have been solid out of the gate.”
    • “The game is fine, had a good time playing it on Xbox 360 back in 2010-2011, but that port is disgusting with its optimization. 60 fps and it freezes a lot, and controls (playing it on mouse and keyboard, by the way), it feels really bad especially with all these lags.”
    • “The game is pretty bad, and the abysmal PC port and its performance make the joke that is Ninja Blade even worse.”
    • “Constant stuttering, crashing, freezes that make you have to close the game and start it again, and numerous controller bugs.”
  • humor8 mentions

    The humor in the game is described as intentionally edgy and quite funny, with a story that entertains despite the overall gameplay being criticized as a sloppy mess. While the character animations and mechanics are often hilariously poor, leading to moments of unintentional comedy, the over-the-top nature of the game provides a sense of cheap fun that some players appreciate.

    • “The story is hilariously edgy, and it's very intentional.”
    • “Yet it's hilariously over the top and some very, very cheap fun.”
    • “The game mechanics are somewhat funny.”
    • “Not funny anymore.”
  • music2 mentions

    The game's soundtrack is highly praised, with users noting that it features excellent tracks that complement the solid art direction. Overall, the music enhances the gaming experience significantly.

    • “There's some excellent soundtracks in this game's OST.”
    • “The art direction is solid, as is the music.”
  • grinding2 mentions

    Players find the grinding in Ninja Blade to be tedious and repetitive, leading to a sense of fatigue despite the presence of some enjoyable moments.

    • “It quickly becomes tiring and tedious.”
    • “Ninja Blade is a handful of cool moments surrounded by tedious, repetitive gameplay.”
  • emotional1 mentions

    Ninja Blade is perceived as a blend of parody and genuine homage to Japanese gaming and entertainment stereotypes, with reviewers noting that it takes its emotional elements seriously despite its exaggerated presentation.

    • “Ninja Blade appears to be a parody of all the stereotypes of Japanese games and entertainment, but it is also a heartfelt homage that takes itself seriously.”
Positive mentions (%)Positive
Neutral mentions (%)Neutral
Negative mentions (%)Negative

Critic Reviews

60% average critic score

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Play time

2hMedian play time
2hAverage play time
2-2hSpent by most gamers
*Based on 1 analyzed playthroughs

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