Ninja Gaiden 3: Razor's Edge

 PlayStation 3
Metascore
67

Mixed or average reviews - based on 24 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 9 out of 24
  2. Mixed: 13 out of 24
  3. Negative: 2 out of 24
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  1. Playstation Official Magazine UK
    May 22, 2013
    70
    More characteristic of the franchise. [June 2013, p.101]
    All this publication's reviews
  2. COGconnected
    Apr 19, 2013
    70
    It might not be the A-level title fans hoped for but my only real complaint here is that I found the combat to get a little tedious. Everything else is pretty good.
  3. ZTGD
    Apr 12, 2013
    70
    This is by far the game that should have been released originally, and even while the giant T-Rex fight is still ridiculous, I had a ton of fun slicing enemies in half as the original ninja warrior.
  5. Gamers' Temple
    Apr 10, 2013
    70
    They took the bad out of Ninja Gaiden 3 and improved the game to "just OK".
  6. Eurogamer Italy
    Apr 5, 2013
    70
    Ninja Gaiden 3: Razor's Edge is a clear step ahead of the mediocre Ninja Gaiden 3. Team Ninja tried his best to improve the original game and the final result is pretty good. Not awesome, but still good enough.
  7. Official PlayStation Magazine Benelux
    Aug 25, 2013
    69
    Switching to a different character named Ayane from time to time does not mend the game's repetitive nature. Ninja Gaiden3: Razor's Edge is about slaughtering hordes of different coloured ninja and very, very little else. [May 2013, p.86]
    All this publication's reviews
  8. GameWatcher
    Apr 4, 2013
    65
    Those who enjoyed the previous games should give Razor's Edge a chance, the improvements allowing the finer aspects of the series to shine through much clearer, but if it's a Premier Ninja experience you are looking for you might have to look elsewhere.
  9. Playstation Official Magazine Australia
    May 21, 2013
    60
    Team Ninja takes one more stab and tweaks a below par sequel into being barely on the pace. Dismemberment has been reintroduced and shitty button mashing kills are now automated. [June 2013, p80]
    All this publication's reviews
  10. Thunderbolt
    Apr 25, 2013
    60
    Razor’s Edge doesn’t reach the same heights of fast, brutal action that its predecessors did, but it’s a huge step forward and warrants Team Ninja’s flawed sequel one more chance.
  11. Gaming Age
    Apr 15, 2013
    58
    All in all this is a Ninja Gaiden fan's redemption of sort, but for those looking for something new and exhilarating, you may want to pass altogether as this Ninja is starting to show his age, and a bit of a limp.
  12. TotalPlayStation
    Apr 18, 2013
    50
    At this point an "enhanced" edition (or editions) of a Ninja Gaiden release are obligatory, but none of the enhancements make this game any more viable as an actual game to enjoy playing. Let's hope the series can bounce back one day.
  13. PlayStation LifeStyle
    Apr 9, 2013
    50
    The cinematic slicing and dicing of enemies, with arms flying around haphazardly makes the game fun to watch, while the repetitive nature of the combat can make the game boring and tedious to play.
  14. TheSixthAxis
    Apr 3, 2013
    50
    Though Team Ninja has certainly spruced up a number of elements, they seem to have avoided the game’s most fundamental issues. The series’ trademark gameplay has always been challenging but never quite so obstructive and un-rewarding.

Awards & Rankings

99
#99 Best PS3 Game of 2013
67
#67 Most Discussed PS3 Game of 2013
44
#44 Most Shared PS3 Game of 2013

User Reviews

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User Score
7.0

Mixed or average reviews- based on 96 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 49 out of 96
  2. Mixed: 33 out of 96
  3. Negative: 14 out of 96
  1. Key_Notes88
    Feb 19, 2017
    5
    Geez, The Health System:
    The amount of cheapness in this game is REDICULOUS! I loved Ninja Gaiden 1 & 2 and the Sigma remakes, but this one    Geez, The Health System:
    The amount of cheapness in this game is REDICULOUS! I loved Ninja Gaiden 1 & 2 and the Sigma remakes, but this one did the health system ALL wrong. Basically, during fights, your health bar would get permanently decreased until you reach a savepoint, where it refills, but some savepoints would be way before a boss fight, so taking damage from the minor enemies beforehand would leave you with maybe half a bar to do the boss battle with.......and no way to refill it unless you're willing to restart in the level. Not to mention some bosses could be up to 3 bosses at a time or 4 different forms in one boss battle. With a cheapened health bar, this makes for a very unfair advantage. The formula was already there with the first 2 in the health system, why screw this one up. And I can understand wanting to take risks and try something creative *cough* Yaiba *cough* *cough*, but this wasn't the one to do it. Having never played the original Ninja Gaiden 3, I can't speak to all of it's flaws, but I can say for a certainty, this is the cheapest and most frustrating (in not a good way) release.

    Difficulty:
    From what I've read, the original NG3 was too easy. I can safely say that's not the case with this one. However, the difficulty for this version is not in the same way as that of the previous two games. They basically just keep throwing enemies at you over and over again until it starts to wear on your psyche. However, developing a certain rhythm happens over time as you keep fighting with a particular weapon, and once it's developed, it will make most of these situations a breeze, it's just annoying at how one can keep chopping away only to have 2 more spawn in 1 enemies place. This "difficulty" isn't a satisfying take on the series, it's just tiring, so much so, that once you get to the boss, you may have to put the game down for awhile (only if a savepoint was nearby) just so you can regather the motivation to beat the boss. Comparing this to the original two games is different in the sense that the originals had challenging enemies that could be understood with time and defeated with skill. There's a certain cheapness that exists here where button mashing will definitely get the job done, and efficiently so once you get that rhythm down, in other words, I didn't bother to learn any of the actual moves in the game and I was still able to beat it, (only performed the Izuna drop once for crying out loud).

    Story:
    Throw away.

    Graphics:
    What you'd expect

    Presentation:
    CAN I GET BUTTON PROMPTS FOR QUICKTIME EVENTS!?!?!?!! GEEZ    … Full Review »
  2. blue-ninja
    Apr 4, 2013
    9
    Team Ninja still have soul since Itagaki leave, & yes this games is look amazing with great graphic, new story, new char playable, if you fansTeam Ninja still have soul since Itagaki leave, & yes this games is look amazing with great graphic, new story, new char playable, if you fans ninja gaiden don't miss it… Full Review »
  3. T4nderG4mer001
    Apr 3, 2013
    10
    Maybe this game is not better than ninja gaiden and ninja gaiden 2 but I am glad that team ninja yave corrected the errors in ninja gaiden 3
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