Mark of the Ninja

 PC
User Score
8.0

Generally favorable reviews- based on 1166 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 907 out of 1166
  2. Mixed: 156 out of 1166
  3. Negative: 103 out of 1166

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  1. harryscribner
    Mar 30, 2017
    9
    I would give this game 9.5/10... Unfortunately I can't, so I have to give it 9 because it's not something I will remember for all my life. Just good solid platform game. I like it)
  2. greenbey
    Jul 9, 2020
    9
    A+
    Stealth gameplay is better than most of AAA games.
    Story is ok.
    Art style is on point.
  3. shkipermann
    Feb 25, 2023
    9
    {__/}
    ( • - •)
    /つ☕______________________________________________________________________
  4. Prometheus1241
    Mar 20, 2021
    9
    Mark of the Ninja is an engaging stealth game, and one of the best in it's genre, at least on PC. Totally worth getting.
  5. Corefitz
    Feb 15, 2020
    9
    VERY interesting, stealth based game!

    Mechanically, it's very well made, by that I mean it offers you quite a few creative ways of getting through a level.
    Has a belivable story as well!

    And can we just take a moment to appriciate the absolutly gorgeous art style of this game!?
  6. BryanAndrew
    Apr 6, 2020
    9
    Mark of the Ninja has easy to learn control mechanisms and yet boasts sublime, nuanced game-play with the freedom for creativity in approaching varying situations, allowing for polarizing types of experiences to the player, whether it be aggressive or stealth-minded. The designs of the game levels are absolutely gorgeous and stylistic, but the story falls short of predictability andMark of the Ninja has easy to learn control mechanisms and yet boasts sublime, nuanced game-play with the freedom for creativity in approaching varying situations, allowing for polarizing types of experiences to the player, whether it be aggressive or stealth-minded. The designs of the game levels are absolutely gorgeous and stylistic, but the story falls short of predictability and simplicity. All in all, a must-try experience for any fan of the stealth game genre.… Expand
  7. Saitakis
    Jan 20, 2022
    9
    Best 2d stealth experience i ever had in a game, a sequel to this masterpiece should have existed, i'd trade many AAA titles for another one!
  8. B00tador
    Dec 5, 2021
    9
    Whether you love or hate stealth games, this game makes stealth fun for everybody. It's a fantastic game that everyone should play.
  9. Spawnah
    May 15, 2013
    8
    TL;DR Really fun side-scrolling stealth game, if a little short. Ending makes you think. Definitely try it.

    I really enjoyed this game. It's a side-scrolling stealth game with an art style that really makes me think of Samurai Jack. The gameplay is really gun and fairly challenging at times. The controls are really good, and hardly ever caused an issue besides once or twice where I    TL;DR Really fun side-scrolling stealth game, if a little short. Ending makes you think. Definitely try it.

    I really enjoyed this game. It's a side-scrolling stealth game with an art style that really makes me think of Samurai Jack. The gameplay is really gun and fairly challenging at times.

    The controls are really good, and hardly ever caused an issue besides once or twice where I stuck to the wrong wall, but that was likely my fault. The controls are so good enough that you never feel cheated when you die, it's always your fault.

    The story doesn't seem like much until you get close to the end, where there's a twist and then everything starts to make sense. The ending itself left me felt a little unfulfilled, but I think it's made to make you fill in the blanks yourself. It really gets you thinking about your choice, why you did what you did, but doesn't tell you what happens next, so how good the conclusion to this game really is what you make of it.

    I only got 7 hours out of this game, so I felt like it could have been longer, although I did skip a lot of the side missions, and I do feel like much of the challenge comes from the challenges you set yourself (Don't raise any alarms, never get seen, don't kill anyone, etc). but besides that I can't really think of anything that was wrong with this game.

    I'm not sure what else I can say about this game, but if you enjoy stealth games, this one is great fun, and worth the money. If the store page looks good, get it, otherwise try it when it's a bit cheaper.

    8/10    … Expand
  10. JimCorbett
    Jan 19, 2014
    8
    I am relieved to say that we finally have a good game from Klei Entertainment. Their previous iterations of Shank and its sequel were disappointing to say the least. Thankfully, Mark of the Ninja is a great game. It's a 2D stealth game where you go around hiding bodies, sneaking through levels, setting traps, and solving puzzles. The art style is the same as all of Klei's games and that'sI am relieved to say that we finally have a good game from Klei Entertainment. Their previous iterations of Shank and its sequel were disappointing to say the least. Thankfully, Mark of the Ninja is a great game. It's a 2D stealth game where you go around hiding bodies, sneaking through levels, setting traps, and solving puzzles. The art style is the same as all of Klei's games and that's fine. The gameplay itself is good and never seems to get repetitive. The game is a decent length for an indie game, clocking in at 6-7 hours for a single playthrough. There are hidden collectibles, challenges, and a scoring system as well as a New Game+ mode to add to the value. The cons are the story, which strives to be something great, and judging by the ending, they thought they had something great, but in reality I really wasn't interested at all in the story. There was nothing about it that drew me in and in the end, you are faced with a decision that you must make, but i was so confused by what was going on, the gravity of that choice didn't have any meaning to me. On top of that, as with all Klei games, the controls are terrible. I played with a gamepad and the controls annoyed me, i can only imagine how awful they are with K&M. There are way too many keys that are used for multiple functions. For instance, you press the "B" key on my 360 gamepad to pick up/drop a body and to interact with cover and other items in the world. So, if you have a body in front of cover or an item to interact with, you have to pick up and move the body and then go back to use the item or cover. There were quite a few times this poor control scheme cost me a life. All in all, the game just isn't fun enough for me to say it is one of the best games I have played. It is a very good one, and definitely the highlight of Klei. If you enjoy 2D games or stealth games, you should definitely check this out.… Expand
  11. meediocre
    Jul 21, 2013
    8
    Fun side-scrolling stealth-action gameplay, with some puzzles. Nice art-style and story as well elevate this game above its competition in the price-range. Level-design is hit and miss though needed a little more variety. Generally-speaking it's worth checking out.
  12. Buba28
    Dec 21, 2012
    8
    I got this game on steam just without any expectations. And I got really surprised how good it is. The game reminds you with its art style of some old times when we played games on commodore or some earlier pc platforms. But this game is really fun, I played it trough in 1-2 days. Only its a bit to short.
  13. chujfugh
    Dec 22, 2012
    8
    TotalBiscuit calls it
  14. Invasion
    Feb 21, 2013
    8
    Mark of the Ninja is a 2-D sidescrolling, stealth-action, platformer. It is first and foremost a stealth game, from sneaking through the shadows and having to hide bodies. Mark of the Ninja brings a fresh take on the genre with is unique visuals and gameplay mechanics.
  15. fire897
    Mar 19, 2013
    8
    Before Mark of the Ninja, a 2D stealth didn't seem possible. However, thanks to Klei Entertainment's brilliant level design and mechanics this actually proved to be a possible task. The game was fun and addicting. The stealth mechanics like the covor system, grappling hooks, visible sounds, and climbing worked surprisingly well to create a well designed 2D stealth game. The game was veryBefore Mark of the Ninja, a 2D stealth didn't seem possible. However, thanks to Klei Entertainment's brilliant level design and mechanics this actually proved to be a possible task. The game was fun and addicting. The stealth mechanics like the covor system, grappling hooks, visible sounds, and climbing worked surprisingly well to create a well designed 2D stealth game. The game was very fun and unlike a lot of other stealth games on the market, this game felt like a true stealth game rather than it being blended with some other genre like action for example. The game also has an achievement-like honor system which is great for completionists, and honor gained can be used to purchase upgrades and abilities for your character and your gear. The are only few complaints I have for this game. The story for this game is badly written and the endings aren't very satisfying, and I felt the Newgame+ mode was a bit tedious. Overall I felt the game was very enjoyable and a welcome addition to any Stealth fan's game library.… Expand
  16. Claytality
    Apr 22, 2013
    8
    Never played a stealth game before. Positives: 1. The "oh crap I've been seen" factor that sends you into panic. (This becomes easy as you adjust and you simply hide in a vent or just barely out of their sight range). 2. Exciting missions usually entailing assassination, escape, security shutdown, etc. 3. Choice of killing everyone or sneaking past everyone (minus assassinations). 4.Never played a stealth game before. Positives: 1. The "oh crap I've been seen" factor that sends you into panic. (This becomes easy as you adjust and you simply hide in a vent or just barely out of their sight range). 2. Exciting missions usually entailing assassination, escape, security shutdown, etc. 3. Choice of killing everyone or sneaking past everyone (minus assassinations). 4. Ability to see around corners so you have an idea of what to expect next. 5. Good voice acting pulls you into story 6. Good variety in weapons, distraction items, and ninja outfits which modify your abilities. 7. Good music/sfx 8. Good puzzles 9. Harder difficulty in new game+ if you thought it was too easy 1st time 10. Three optional scrolls and three optional objectives give plenty to do when replaying
    Negatives: 1. Short game (12 levels 20-50 minutes each) 2. Sometimes find yourself simply waiting 10 seconds after you are spotted making it stop & go action. 3. No difficulty settings except for new game+(requires completion of original play-through 4. Control problems when multiple options are available for the E key/ right mouse button-- sometimes you will pick up a body when you meant to hide/close door/ or grapple (usually not big problem) 5. A LOT of checkpoints so not very much challenge (sometimes I would suicide just for the hell of it)
    Overall: Great game, beaten in about 10 hours (1st play-through). Don't know if worth $15, maybe buy on sale.    … Expand
  17. Mykwon
    Mar 8, 2013
    8
    Mark of the ninja is actually quite a good game. The stealth system is well built, the challenges are real and the continuous progress of your character makes you replay the levels to find new techniques to pass them, earning achievements.
  18. VSinGamer
    Dec 26, 2012
    8
    A new take on the stealth genre, I believe that Mark of the Ninja does its job in showing that not all good stealth games need to be in 3D. It is interesting and fun play. Overall the game does do what a game should set out to do...mainly entertain. It has a nice story line that can get most anyone involved with the mission. The missions get longer and harder as one progress making oneA new take on the stealth genre, I believe that Mark of the Ninja does its job in showing that not all good stealth games need to be in 3D. It is interesting and fun play. Overall the game does do what a game should set out to do...mainly entertain. It has a nice story line that can get most anyone involved with the mission. The missions get longer and harder as one progress making one have to constantly view the surroundings in order to avoid almost instant death. The most interesting part is that you cannot go guns blazing ever because as it turns out your fists and kunai don't kill people, only your sword does. While the concept is there, Mark does fail in a few categories, namely the visibility and movement. I would prefer that the entire outer point of the screen not be all foggy, but this is quickly fixed by a check box in the settings. My real problem with the game is frankly the lack of color unless the room is lighted in which case your probably dead by getting shot and the movement because I doubt a ninja hasn't been trained to run silently, so for most of the game one is moving at a slow pace. Repetition is very obvious as the game progress so don't think that you can beat the game in one sitting, you'll probably get bored before you finish. Don't be chased away however because of these relatively small problems. The leaderboards for every level give a huge incentive to replay some of your best moments and the killing scenes are frankly done just right, but not too many variety to kill someone unless you start getting the power ups which start a bit too late for my taste. Great game to play, frankly one that should be taken time with not just sped through. Would recommend to those who have their tablets in which case its perfect and some core gamers looking for an indie game that steps outside lines and still delivers.… Expand
  19. mckw
    Feb 12, 2013
    8
    What a great platformer. I had tremendous fun being a stealthy ninja and it wasn't made easy with point reductions and the fact you cant slash enemies head on. May be punishing at times, but that's the fun of it. The fun lasts for a good few hours, worth it.
  20. gerszom
    Apr 20, 2013
    8
    I spend a lot of good time with this game. You can really go in to it for 100%. There are a lot of solutions for making Your own ninja experience. Great fun for many hours.
  21. xTreeCutterx
    May 19, 2013
    8
    Real fun game.
    I still feel that thrill every time I sneak up on an enemy and stab him in the back. The visuals are amazing and the level designs are controls are pretty accurate.
    The only complaint I have for this game, is that it's on the easy side. Sure some situations get kind of tricky, but checkpoints are abundant, and there is no real penalty to dying and restarting. The levels    Real fun game.
    I still feel that thrill every time I sneak up on an enemy and stab him in the back. The visuals are amazing and the level designs are controls are pretty accurate.
    The only complaint I have for this game, is that it's on the easy side. Sure some situations get kind of tricky, but checkpoints are abundant, and there is no real penalty to dying and restarting. The levels are pretty much a joke once you get familiar with the game. And I lied, that's not my only complaint. There's also the issue, that this is a complete stealth game. It's quite boring to have every single level to be the same. It would have been a nice touch to add boss fights or something to give you a break from the constant hiding.
    However, even with it's flaws, it is still a very fun game.    … Expand
  22. everin
    Oct 1, 2015
    8
    Tier 2
    + Totally fluid mechanics coloring the stealth gameplay
    + Accounts well for a couple different play styles
    ? Non-lethal gameplay poses a significant challenge that might put off players
    ? Gameplay has incredible highlights, but its flow doesn't evolve particularly well
    - Despite being present throughout the whole game, the story is stale and uninspired
  23. TheLowFatJelly
    Jan 1, 2014
    8
    Mark of the Ninja revives the stealth genre in a way like no other. Even if you're not a big fan of sidescrollers I still recommend picking this game up. The art style is drop dead gorgeous, and it's a game you can really get lost in. It reminds me of if you took Batman: Arkham Asylum, turned Batman into a badass ninja, and stuck him into a 2D world.

    Pros: Beautiful Graphics For a 2D    Mark of the Ninja revives the stealth genre in a way like no other. Even if you're not a big fan of sidescrollers I still recommend picking this game up. The art style is drop dead gorgeous, and it's a game you can really get lost in. It reminds me of if you took Batman: Arkham Asylum, turned Batman into a badass ninja, and stuck him into a 2D world.

    Pros:
    Beautiful Graphics For a 2D game
    Kick-Ass Animations
    Best Stealth Game I've Played Forever
    Great Price

    Cons:
    Needs a more Engaging Storyline
    Probabbly would work a lot better with a controller than they keyboard and mouse set up.    … Expand
  24. anggadaz
    Aug 8, 2014
    8
    Mark of the ninja is not mainstream game, this game unique gameplay. You must patience and use your brain to play it. The has many feature like you can change costume, abilities, and weapon.
  25. DarkSoul47
    Mar 7, 2014
    8
    Simply great indie game. Even on Easy, it will take almost 6-7 hours to complete this game. It's not just a side scrooler platform gama. You've decisions to make. You can stealth or kill, you can hide bodies or hang them to terrorize other guards. It's all up to you. You have a lot of great items. Maps are also splendid. Story, characters are really good. Puzzles are brilliant, most of theSimply great indie game. Even on Easy, it will take almost 6-7 hours to complete this game. It's not just a side scrooler platform gama. You've decisions to make. You can stealth or kill, you can hide bodies or hang them to terrorize other guards. It's all up to you. You have a lot of great items. Maps are also splendid. Story, characters are really good. Puzzles are brilliant, most of the time you must combine reflex and intelligent to solve puzzles.

    Just buy it if you like games like this. You don't have to wait 'til sales, it already worths its standart price.    … Expand
  26. ThePCGamer101
    Jun 25, 2015
    8
    Mark of the Ninja, developed by the critically acclaimed studio Klei Entertainment, with their successful Shank series, Don't Starve and now Invisible Inc.

    Mark of the Ninja is like Dishononered mixed in with Thief: The Dark Project and produced into a 2D stealth action platformer, with great stealth, great bloody action and challenging yet not too difficult puzzles. Mark of the Ninja    Mark of the Ninja, developed by the critically acclaimed studio Klei Entertainment, with their successful Shank series, Don't Starve and now Invisible Inc.

    Mark of the Ninja is like Dishononered mixed in with Thief: The Dark Project and produced into a 2D stealth action platformer, with great stealth, great bloody action and challenging yet not too difficult puzzles. Mark of the Ninja really shines as a 2D stealth game and Klei Entertainment have actually done a very good port from is original XBOX360 port to the PC. Controls are easy and quick to use. The music is brilliant and reminds me of some of the great Ninja films I have seen.

    The cutscenes and their animation truly shine as a Klei Entertainment game, as Pixar has its own animation techniques with its masterpieces, so does Klei Entertainment with its games and also Mark of the Ninja. The cutscenes' animations remind me of Disney/Pixar films, only more gory than the family friendly Disney we all know and love.

    The only thing that put me off was the voice acting. Its not terrible nor is it the best voice acting performance. Certainly it won't win any awards from me for best voice acting, but it gets the job done. Another thing which kind of bugged me was the puzzles, sometimes they were too easy, sometimes too hard, and sometimes damn frustrating!

    The story, very well written and has a good plot twist in the end. However, about midway into the story, it kind of lacks in storytelling and I got really bored in playing that specific bit. It was the same guards and dogs, etc... just re-textured to fit in the environment your in.

    I did notice some minor bugs here and there like guards not noticing me when I am fully visible in light and sometimes guards getting stuck in an area, however not game breaking.

    Plus once you complete the game, there is a new game plus mode which removes all the things that helped you and make it even more challenging. Overall, this is a great Klei Entertainment game and should be definitely be played be people who either like 2D games, stealth games or want to play something a little different...    … Expand
  27. Melgacius
    Jun 1, 2017
    8
    1 – GENERAL

    Mark of the Ninja is a 2D ninja stealth game. It can be a bit counter intuitive, but you play as a ninja, and you try to progress along the levels using stealth or silent kills to remain undetected by all the guards. All the story makes sense in the end, when you are able to putt all the parts together to make your final decision in the game. That story is told almost    1 – GENERAL

    Mark of the Ninja is a 2D ninja stealth game. It can be a bit counter intuitive, but you play as a ninja, and you try to progress along the levels using stealth or silent kills to remain undetected by all the guards. All the story makes sense in the end, when you are able to putt all the parts together to make your final decision in the game. That story is told almost entirely in cutscenes. I usually do not like that, but in this game this does not ruins immersion, since levels are long and some moments of rest between them are welcome, so we can clear up our mindset.

    Graphics are in "comic style" but the final result is, for me, very impressive. All the shadows and textures clearly stand out, becoming a important part of gameplay. Even all the sound effects, represented as image, are a must, and they are not a intruder in the game, they are perfectly incorporated and soon we see all that elements as part of the story.

    The sound effects are minimalist, and that feels great, because you can easily associate sound effects to actions of NPCs and you can react and plan over them. Soundtrack is very well set, and contributes to the stealthy aspect of the game.

    2 – GAMEPLAY

    One of the problems of making reviews from old games is that almost everyone know what to expect. I was expecting flawless controls, and that was not the case. If you play with keyboard and mouse, like I did, the controls seem... clunky. Just a small twitch in the mouse and the game recognizes an entire different move and you lose the round. Sometimes you want to jump down and you jump to the side or you do not jump at all. So do not be stubborn and play this game with a controller, I think it probably will be much better and easier.

    Despite that, the gameplay is very good. Here stealth is really stealth. You must evade or hide behind objects to escape the guards that can easily kill you if they spot you. Sure you can fight for a bit, but only against a guard at any time, and a sniper will kill you with just one shot. You have a skill tree to unlock, and that will give you some tools and abilities to make your task easier, but not easy.

    Stealth games often choose to hide mechanics, but this is not the case. Here you will know when, how and why you've failed. You can see all the consequences of your actions and take decisions over it. You can easily anticipate all moves so you can plan ahead properly. And imagine what? The game is great.

    The AI is well set. Behavior of guards is quite predictable and fair. Even so your window of opportunity is small so you have to plan properly or you will be shot dead quickly.

    Devs say that you can skip violence almost the entire game, and only one boss requires direct confrontation, but killing people is so much fun in this game...

    There are some hidden passages that lead to collectibles and puzzle style bonus levels. You can search them or skip them entirely. It's up to you.

    3 – CONCLUSION

    I've loved this game from the start to finish. I was a bit disappointed with the ending, but that's not enough to make you not play this game. The game is quite cheap, and it's on sale a lot of times. Search for a sale and try it because this is a seriously great game!    … Expand
  28. Sting01
    Nov 4, 2018
    8
    One of the good games.. This game have a good graphics. Musics are fine fot the game. Gameplay things are good. Some control buttons are not good but ıts okey.
  29. hypernewbie
    Mar 16, 2017
    8
    Overall fantastic game. Simplified Splinter Cell in 2D.
    2 main issues: too many context sensitive buttons, sometimes gets it wrong. and sometimes fuzzy mechanics fuzzy mechanics in a game demanding precision = random trial and error gameplay.
  30. auditbadger
    Jul 30, 2017
    8
    I think that this is truly a unique game and I would recommend that if you are a fan of this type of genre then I think you should give this game a try.
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Awards & Rankings

2
#2 Best PC Game of 2012
39
#39 Most Discussed PC Game of 2012
36
#36 Most Shared PC Game of 2012

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
91

Universal acclaim - based on 14 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 14 out of 14
  2. Mixed: 0 out of 14
  3. Negative: 0 out of 14
  1. PC Master (Greece)
    Feb 6, 2013
    84
    A dreamy amalgamation of Shinoby, Deus Ex and Thief. It’s not only the best downloadable game of the year, but a welcome gift for fans of pure stealth gameplay. [November 2012]
  2. LEVEL (Czech Republic)
    Nov 30, 2012
    80
    Splendid stealth platformer offers high levels of addictiveness. Surely aspiring to the title of "Independent title of the year". [Dec 2012]
  3. Absolute Games
    Nov 29, 2012
    88
    Corvo Attano and Agent 47 couldn't possibly have expected that a platformer from the creators of Shank would stab them in the backs and claim the title of this year's best stealth game.
    Read full review
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