Review: ‘Mini-Ninjas’ Storm Onto Consoles
This week sees the release of Mini-Ninjas, a new title from Eidos/Square Enix Europe and IO Interactive, the developers behind Hitman and Kane and Lynch. In contrast to other productions by IO Interactive, Mini-Ninjas is a hack and slash platformer; a family-oriented game with a bit more of a light-hearted adventure feel to it. The developers initially designed the title to be a game “that could be enjoyed with the kids”, and it seems they have stuck to that ideal well; there’s not a drop of blood in sight!
Set in Japan, Mini-Ninjas focuses on the return of the Evil Samurai Warlord, an evil tyrant who (surprise, surprise) wants to conquer the world. Using dark powers to transform animals into his mindless Samurai minions , the warlord has upset the balance of nature and angered the gods, threatening innocent people all over Japan. Hiro, the game’s lead character, is one of the youngest ninjas in his village; after all of the other ninjas have vanished on their journey to the ‘Fortress of Doom’, it’s up to him and his best friend Futo to save the day.
The game has been created in a very cartoony three-dimensional style, touching on something vaguely similar to Zelda: The Wind Waker’s cel-shaded design. The environments look truly beautiful with lots of open fields, rocky regions, lakes and waterfalls; and as you constantly move to new areas throughout the game you have the feeling that this world is one cohesive whole as opposed to a slew of haphazardly sewn-together “levels”. The open areas are enjoyable to explore and generally lacking in repetition. Naturally, with a name like Mini-Ninjas, the characters all look quite young and ‘chibi’, with most of the heroes and smaller enemies looking like they’re straight out of a cartoon. That being said, some of the larger enemies are a bit nastier looking, befitting the minions of a demonic warlord.
The general gameplay involves exploring different stages while fighting your way through numerous enemies and traveling between various locales. While utilizing Hiro’s ninja skills, you’re able to perform simple combos using a mix of basic attacks and guard-breaking moves. While the combat itself is quite simple, there’s not much in the way of strict combos so it doesn’t feel too limiting while playing. Most of the fights can be won via simple button mashing, although later in the game some of the harder enemies can be a bit tougher to take down. You are also given the ability to block and jump in order to avoid attacks. An interesting method of defense allows you to put on a large hat which can deflect arrows; the tradeoff is that you cannot attack while wearing it, thus it’s best to use it sparingly. Although the combat is simplistic, you eventually gain access to five other characters you may switch to at any time, each with their individual own weapons and styles. These include Futo, armed with a large hammer, Suzume, who uses a flute, and an archer named Shun. Most characters play similarly to Hiro, although they may have different strengths and weaknesses to certain enemies. For instance, most characters have trouble damaging large enemies whilst Futo can damage them easily, and the archer Shun is able to fire arrows manually by holding the attack button, allowing you to pick off enemies from a distance.
Each character is also granted a ‘power attack’, performed by holding the guard-breaker button; these attacks are generally designed to take out large groups of enemies. In Hiro’s case, he can target multiple enemies for a quick dispatch attack whilst Shun is able to fire a rocket at opponents to obliterate them with an explosive display of fireworks. In a manner reminiscent of Sonic the Hedgehog, the enemies release a captive animal once defeated, giving the game a bit more of a child-friendly feel. Be warned though, there are limits on how many Power Attacks you can perform – they can be refilled by orbs which, unfortunately, are dropped randomly by defeated enemies.
The basic enemies of the game are mostly generic samurai; easy to defeat on their own but often spawning in large groups. Essentially they’re good cannon fodder for the armies of darkness when faced off against your bigger attacks, but can be a bit of a nuisance when you have other enemies to worry about. The less frequently-battled enemies include large samurai, ghosts that can only be defeated with magic, and fast moving speedsters. There’s also an enemy that can turn animals back into soldiers, and defeating them requires you to deflect their projectile back at them. It’s then that you can take the opportunity to mark these opponents as prime targets and attack; either that or you’ll find yourself swarmed by never-ending enemies.
Hiro is also granted access to various magic spells throughout the game; they’re hidden, but thankfully you have a spell that can help you locate the shrines that house them. Most of these spells are optional, though a few of them are not – they range from ‘Spirit Form’, which allows you to possess various animals for a limited time (smaller animals make it easier to find some items, larger ones can be used to fight) and elemental spells such as ‘Lightning Storm’ and ‘Fireball’ which allow you to inflict damage to multiple enemies. Magic is limited by a Ki gauge, so you can’t overdo it; nevertheless, it adds a bit more variety to the game – even if Hiro is the only character that can use it. Your characters share health and grow together through experience orbs dropped by fallen enemies. Like in most games with RPG elements, when you have collected enough experience you’ll level up and gain an upgrade – improving one of your stats like your health, your Ki gauge, or the amount of hearts you can carry. Sometimes you will also get an upgrade to your power attack, which will increase the amount of enemies you can target with it at once. You can also earn bonus EXP by rescuing caged animals strewn throughout stages.
As with almost every action game, Mini Ninjas offers some boss fights, although they’re generally more context-based than the regular enemies. Rather than whacking away at the enemy at every chance you get, the challenge is generally working out how to beat the boss – the first being a gigantic Samurai enemy wielding a massive katana. To damage him, you have to trick the swordsman into getting his blade stuck into a wooden beam; this allows you to initiate a (goreless) quick time event sequence that causes damage to him. Most of the bosses work in similar patterns, so the challenge usually boils down to finding the precise moment at which the boss is vulnerable.
While exploring, the game offers a fair range of different adventuring elements, such as general platform jumping and more advanced elements such as wall running, hanging from ledges, and balancing on beams and ropes, clearly drawing inspiration from parkour-focused games like Prince of Persia. Sadly, though, there’s nothing particularly complex, which is a shame since there was some potential for some good challenges if they were tied together – the only time I really remember having to do a horizontal wall run was when the game was explaining how to do so. However, sometimes higher routes can be used to avoid enemies in a more stealth-like fashion, such as running along the roofs of an enemy fortress to avoid detection – you can always attack head-on if you prefer a less ninja-like approach, though. If you’re feeling more ninja-ish, though, it’s possible to hide in bushes or walk silently by crouching, and if you manage to strike an enemy before they notice you, it will do bigger damage than a normal strike. One other thing worth mentioning, however, is that although the areas are often fairly large and open, it is possible to press a button in order to give you a quick reminder of your current objective; this also summons up a compass that shows you which direction to head in, meaning it’s fairly difficult to get lost. Also, you can sprint to help cover long distances a bit quicker, though the game uses a stamina gauge to limit prolonged usage of this ability.
Along the way, there are also some small ‘mini-game’ sections peppered in to add a little extra variety to the game. Hiro’s Tengu hat (which can be used to protect him from arrows) doubles as a mini-boat which he can use to float on the water; this results in some whitewater rafting-style minigames, allowing you to steer your hat through rushing rivers. However, the hat has a durability gauge, so it’s never wise to use it too much or it might be unusable when you need it most. Later on, it can also be used as a snowboard in the game’s colder areas. By equipping a fishing rod while in the water, you can also activate a small fishing minigame to earn extra healing items. Hiro and his friends also have access to various sub-weapons in their quest; throughout the game you will meet Tengu shopkeepers who allow you to trade coins that you find for items and recipes. Some of the items are weapons, such as bombs and shuriken, time bombs, and caltrops which can be dropped to slow down and damage pursuers. There are also other items to aid you outside of combat, such as potions to refill your health and your Ki/Power Attack credits, as well as the ever-popular ninja smoke bomb to aid hasty escapes. Recipes allow you to use ingredients found in the world (such as mushrooms and fruit) and turn them into more helpful items. There are also several types of collectible items within each stage, so if you have an interest for completion or achievements or trophies, it’s another thing for you to gather as you go.
The game’s soundtrack is very fitting, with a definite oriental sound that fits the Japanese setting perfectly. The smaller enemies make fairly cute noises and are quite funny, adding to the game’s childlike feel and relaxed atmosphere, with only the larger enemies sounding a bit more serious. The sound all fits together quite well with the style of the game and blends brilliantly. Sadly, the game offers no multiplayer, seeing as it could make a nice co-operative game with its hack and slash style gameplay and choice characters, but it’s not too big a flaw.
In the end, Mini-Ninjas is definitely a game made for “enjoying with the kids”; it’s a fairly laid-back game which children would be able to get into fairly easily, although some of the tougher parts would probably need a bit of help from an adult. For adults, the game is fairly easy, but not a breeze, it’s still possible to find yourself having a hard time once in a while. If you fancy something relaxing and casual this is worth a shot, but don’t expect something that’s going to last forever.
