Ninja Gaiden 4 Preview: New ninja, same old tricks

Ninja Gaiden is back in a fourth installment, making it 13 years since we last walked in the shoes of the cult ninja in the main series. Team Ninja, together with PlatinumGames, has breathed new life into the brand via Xbox Games Studios ahead of a grand comeback with Ninja Gaiden 4 this autumn. After the announcement at the beginning of the year, many raised eyebrows when Ryu Hayabusa was no longer at the forefront and the focus, as instead a new protagonist named Yakumo was introduced. I've played through the opening chapters and chopped up bodies in all possible angles to see whether the sharpness the series has long stood for is maintained after all these years.

Ninja Gaiden 4 begins aboard a runaway train on the outskirts of Tokyo, a shorter level that acts as a basic tutorial for the broad and advanced combat system we've come to expect from the series. I step into the shoes of the young upstart Yakumo of the Raven clan, a rival clan to Hayabusa, who makes their debut here. Playing as Yakumo is thankfully familiar to those who have played the series before, as the new ninja shares many of the series' older and established movement patterns. Fans of the older games will feel at home, which is not to say that it's a self-playing piano, as the pace is fast, the enemies are numerous, and we are immediately faced with a myriad of new attack patterns, specials, mechanics, and abilities to master.

Yakumo practices Bloodbind Ninjutsu, which means that after building up a meter in battle by spilling blood, you can reach an elevated stage where new attacks can be used through Bloodraven Form. In the battles there are two main basic weapons at your disposal; the Takeminakata is a double set of katanas for faster offensive play at the expense of less damage dealt, while the Yatousen is a classic sword for slightly slower attacks but slightly more damage. Entering Bloodraven Form creates a blood bond with your weapon, which thereby gains new, more devastating properties, where the double katana becomes a longer Tachi and the sword instead transforms into a massive lance that can pierce through the opposition or be swung with a wider degree of coverage. Juggling between the different configurations is encouraged in order to slaughter the opposition on the battlefield in the most effective way possible, which is done seamlessly by holding down a button. The Bloodraven attacks are also necessary when the opposition charges up more powerful strikes that cannot otherwise be countered or broken through with normal attacks. This creates a space and dynamism in the arena where the slightest deviation in focus soon pays off in the absence of attention.

After the opening sequence on the train that ended in an airborne attack, I take part in a level that takes place a week earlier in the story. Yakumo has just infiltrated a high-risk prison guarded by The Divine Dragon Order located deep in a mountain, where the mission is to assassinate a priestess named Seori to fulfil the Raven clan's prophecy as the woman is linked to The Dark Dragon who has placed a curse on the world. The priestess is located and with a little cunning and new information on hand, the scenario turns into a prison break instead, as the woman plays a central role in the task of lifting the curse that The Dark Dragon has placed on the world - the same entity and sworn enemy that Ryu Hayabusa has fought before and failed to fully destroy. After the successful mission and escape, it's clear that the aggressive D.D.O. general in the cutscene that just took place is in direct contact with the Hayabusa clan. In Ninja Gaiden 4, Yakumo and Ryu Hayabusa's paths cross and the player gets to shoulder both sides of the story over time, although Yakumo is the focus in the two-hour preview version I tried.

The game then takes us back to the present day where, after the opening train sequence, Yakumo hits the streets of a cyberpunk and industrialised wrecked Tokyo. The rain and evil flood the streets as a result of the curse that rests on the world and the run-down, darkened back streets open up into larger environments that encourage exploration. I soon come across a shrine and altar that acts as a disguised command centre, where Umi, an ally within Raven, acts as a shop for defensive and offensive items in addition to offering a huge list of side quests via the DarkNest terminal. These smaller side quests consist of simpler tasks such as killing a certain number of enemies, finding a specific item, or roaming beyond the main objective in search of hidden combat challenges with higher difficulty, where you are rewarded for completing the task the next time you interact with the recurring centre.

Learning in battle requires development. Thankfully another NPC is available, the Tyrant, who acts as a valued dojo of information, tactics, and new attacks that are purchased via the game's currency acquired from the battles. As mentioned, the battles represent different forms of combat in addition to moves that can best be described as input commands found in any fighting game, which requires a lot from me as a player. Chaining these manoeuvres together is both challenging and satisfying where the combat dance is easy to get into but challenges even the best if you want to become a master.

In the levels, not only death, misery, and blood await, as hidden chests and new abilities have been sprinkled around, meaning curiosity is rewarded when you deviate from the main path. After running along walls at different angles, swinging via grappling hooks from scaffolding, and jumping vertically in tight spaces, I stood in front of a portal called Purgatory, a hidden arena with attacking waves of threats where the reward matches the difficulty with the effort you put in. Entering the challenge with 75% of my health missing makes for an immense challenge, but I when I walk away victorious with newfound abilities in addition to Ninjacoins I can soon invest, it's all worth it.

The cannon fodder and range of enemies in this preview build consisted mainly of a white-armoured military group and less of the titular demonic elements, something that is promised in the game's latter chapters instead. The preview version ends with a boss fight, a really angry and larger shinobi with several health bars that I have to wear down before continuing my mission. Speaking of chapters, you can also play through all chapters and story levels through the game's main menu with your favourite character, and in Challenge Mode you are free to climb the leaderboards either across complete levels or selective boss battles where you choose freely between Yakumo or Ryu Hayabusa.

Ninja Gaiden 4 takes place chronologically after Ninja Gaiden 3, which was launched in 2012. After the Xbox Developer Direct in January, many may have wondered about the protagonist, but fear not, Yakumo fits well with the intense action, brutal violence, and ruthless pacing. Team Ninja and PlatinumGames understand what they are doing and on October 21st you'll be able to see that for yourself when Ninja Gaiden 4 is launched on day one for Xbox Game Pass in addition to being on PC and PlayStation 5.