Mini Ninjas Hands-On Impression

I recently sat down and spent some time with the demo for  Minin Ninjas, the newest action game from Eidos. This game is coming out for all three major platforms, but I played it on PS3 so that’s the version I’ll be talking about in this preview.

To start, I want to make it perfectly clear, while this is a ninja action game, this is NOT Ninja Gaiden. You instantly know what you’re in for as soon as you load the game up. Long gone is the ultra violent manliness of Ninja Gaiden, instead we have cute and cuddly chibis(that’s super deformed for you non anime watching types) and you know what, it works just fine.

While it may not look like Ninja Gaiden, it does play like it. The square button controls your main sword attack, while the triangle button controls the physical attack.  Subsequently, your magic, Ki, and other special moves are all controlled with the shoulder buttons. The controls are fairly simplistic, and it doesn’t take long to get the hang of them.

The gameplay is fast paced and you’ll often find yourself taking on several bad guys at once. However, thanks to your ninja awesomeness, you’re never short of quick moves, fast swordplay and powerful magic. My only complaint about the controls would have to be the boat controls.  Despite being in water, the steering feels very mushy, almost like you’re paddling in mud and not water, still the controls work well.

The storyline is pretty basic. You are Hiro, a young rookie ninja. Your ninja friends have gone missing, and what’s worse, samurai seem to be attacking the village. It’s up to Hiro and his friends Futo and Suzume to rescue the other ninjas and uncover the secret behind the mysterious samurai who seem to be hunting the animals.
Everything in this game is top notch. The visuals are very well done and have a style all of their own. The music, ambient sounds, and hilarious grunts of the samurai bring you further into this wacky world.

Mini Ninjas is shaping up to be a great little action title.  I can’t wait to play the final game  when it releases next month. Look forward to our full review this September.