Ninja Gaiden 3

 Xbox 360
Metascore
58

Mixed or average reviews - based on 39 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 7 out of 39
  2. Mixed: 26 out of 39
  3. Negative: 6 out of 39
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  1. Eurogamer Sweden
    Apr 9, 2012
    40
    Lacking the clarity of vision and focus from the earlier two games, Ninja Gaiden 3 no longer feels like a proper Ninja Gaiden game. Without Itagaki at the helm, the first concession seems to be the difficulty and the precise controls. In an attempt to broaden the appeal of the franchise, the design decisions have removed the soul of the series and the result is a lackluster button mashing experience intercut with quick time elements.
  2. Giant Bomb
    Mar 23, 2012
    40
    Killing the combat system that made this franchise so enticing, and robbing it of any modicum of challenge was so far beyond what was necessary that it leaves Ninja Gaiden 3 feeling like little more than a stripped-down husk of its former glory. If the previous Ninja Gaiden games were like carefully built, brutally fast hot rods, Ninja Gaiden 3 feels like it should be up on bricks on somebody's lawn.
  3. ActionTrip
    Apr 5, 2012
    31
    The spirit of the series isn't there anymore. They've streamlined the gameplay to better suit mainstream tendencies. By doing so, they killed off the very spark that made this series stand out from heaps of generic action games. To sum up, Ninja Gaiden 3 sucks in so many ways, it's almost impossible to find any redeeming features.
  5. GamesRadar+
    Mar 20, 2012
    30
    Ninja Gaiden 3 has completely missed the point of everything that made the series great. Challenging combat, weapon variety, engaging enemies and the series' legendary difficulty have all been cut out in favor of a bland story, flashy finish moves, screen nukes, and button mashing.
  6. IGN
    Mar 19, 2012
    30
    Ninja Gaiden 3 is a gash on the face of the franchise and one of the worst games the action genre has yet suffered...It's a nightmare that's as easy as it is uninteresting, and it abandons what used to work for awful new ideas that don't work together. Under no circumstance should you ever waste your time on this self-indulgent and abysmal wreck.
  7. The A.V. Club
    Mar 26, 2012
    16
    This face-off is two things enemy encounters in previous Ninja Gaiden games have never been: pedestrian and predictable.

Awards & Rankings

41
#41 Most Discussed Xbox 360 Game of 2012

User Reviews

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User Score
4.5

Generally unfavorable reviews- based on 146 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 40 out of 146
  2. Mixed: 35 out of 146
  3. Negative: 71 out of 146
  1. RaYsoms
    Mar 20, 2012
    0
    Worst NG game of the 3. Feel really ripped off. To bad they screwed up my favorite action game. Story wise its a really bad story. 1 & 2 didntWorst NG game of the 3. Feel really ripped off. To bad they screwed up my favorite action game. Story wise its a really bad story. 1 & 2 didnt have a really good story but they made it up by killer gameplay. This time they `focus` a lot on the story but its horrible.

    Game has been simplified. If you enjoyed the first 2 games, stay away from this one.
    If youre a casual gamer that wants to finish a game by only pressing one button, than maybe youll enjoy the game.

    I at least feel really ripped off.    … Full Review »
  2. Deezie313
    Mar 20, 2012
    4
    This game is not terrible!! It's just not fun. As someone who best Ninja Gaiden 2 on master ninja difficulty (xbox) I enjoyed the punishingThis game is not terrible!! It's just not fun. As someone who best Ninja Gaiden 2 on master ninja difficulty (xbox) I enjoyed the punishing difficulty. This game is a dumbed down version. Those who thought the previous games erred too hard, are going to love this. One sword, one nimpo. I started the game in hard and I've yet to have one problem. All the gore is gone. You walk to one ares, press the x button, kill everyone and move to next area. Same thing over and over. Theres some stealth in the game, which is really cool. But there aren't enough moves. Fighting got boring during my first fight. Ultimate attacks are lame. They're just one hit one kill sword slashes. All in all, this new guy ruined this game. He removed everything that was fun. Like I said...its not terrible. Just not fun..wait until the price goes down. I forgot, online is ok......death match and team death match. Same thing...mash x.… Full Review »
  3. willdun
    Mar 20, 2012
    5
    Let me first say this..... This game is not a bad game.....IT'S JUST NOT A NINJA GAIDEN GAME!!! When it was announced that NG3 would have beenLet me first say this..... This game is not a bad game.....IT'S JUST NOT A NINJA GAIDEN GAME!!! When it was announced that NG3 would have been rebooted from scratch .As a fan i knew this could only mean one thing....either make or break. I don't particularly think that NG3 is a bad game, It just stripped out everything that made the previous NG games enjoyable and replaced it with poor choices. Yes the combat is fast / but it took away all the weapons (yes... one weapon throughout the whole game) Yes it's easy / but NG is suppose to be challenging. Yes it's bloody Aha! / but it took away limb decapitation (d'oh). What you're left with is a generic hack n slash game which allows you to play with Ryu Hayabusa.
    It's fun but they really drop the ball with this. I am praying that they release weapon dlc's for this.    … Full Review »
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