Yaiba: Ninja Gaiden Z

Yaiba: Ninja Gaiden Z delivers in some respects but fails on others.

Yaiba: Ninja Gaiden Z gets to the point: action, zombies and katanas for hack'n slash lovers' delight. Team Ninja and comcept managed to avoid making a boring game, although Yaiba is, perhaps, quite short and suffers from a lack of variety.

If you're expecting a Ninja Gaiden experience, you're not going to find it here. If you just want a crazy action game, you will definitely have some fun with it.

It may be overpriced and too short, but Ninja Gaiden Z has a few thrilling moments.

Like its second-fiddle protagonist, Yaiba: Ninja Gaiden Z resides in the shadow of many other better third-person action games, but it’s not terrible if you’re specifically looking for a schlocky Saturday.

A colorful and eye-catching presentation can't mask Yaiba's numerous gameplay design flaws, but it tends to be just fun and rewarding enough to continue to grind through.

Yaiba gets some of the important parts right when it comes to a Hack and Slash Game, but at the same time it has its issues with length, camera and story.

From a serious IP with an intense history and silent main character to a bloody mix of non-stop action, zombies, hemoglobin and over the top gore-shaded visuals, Yaiba: Ninja Gaiden Z is what it is: A non-serious festival full of brainless hack 'n slash that is not perfect, it has important shortcomings, but also that is fun and honest. After all, its Keiji Inafune signing its own Ninja Gaiden.

If a computer generated an elevator pitch for a game based on random, stereotypical gamer interests, it might spit out a jumble like Yaiba: Ninja Gaiden Z. And while that could totally still be awesome, this experience is so mired in frustration that even a few well-timed jokes can’t save the day.

My advice for you is to beat the game simply to unlock Z mode. It’s a worthy pursuit. After that, shun the campaign.

Yaiba: Ninja Gaiden Z is fun 80% of the time and utterly loathesome the other 20%, the difficulty spikes goring what could have been a light, frothy, tongue-in-cheek zombie hack and slasher.

Yaiba: Ninja Gaiden Z does some decent things right like the cel-shaded comic book narrative… and well, that’s about it. I wouldn’t suggest this for a fan of the Ninja Gaiden franchise or for someone who enjoys speedy action platformers.

What is sad about Yaiba: Ninja Gaiden Z is how much potential there is. A slightly goofy take on the universe isn't a bad concept, and the combat, while not as refined, can be fun at times. However, the litany of problems, from the stubbornly low enemy count to the bad camera and terrible platforming bog, put a damper on the game's few positives.

Yaiba looks really cool from screenshots, but the combat system is very cheap and makes the game more frustrating than fun.

If you're the sort of person that enjoys a challenge and doesn't mind overlooking a few rustier moments, buy a box of super absorbent tissues and give this a go.

Past Ninja Gaiden games demanded a certain level of commitment and you could actually feel yourself get better while playing. In Yaiba, even when you're doing well, it all feels like a mess. Between the horrendous camera and the overly simplistic combos, you'll never truly feel like a ninja. At this point, it seems like Tecmo Koei has no idea what to do with Ninja Gaiden, but whatever comes next, we hope it's better than this.