If you've been missing a good 2D side-scroller platformer, then look no further than Ninja Gaiden: Ragebound, a story with some new and familiar faces. I've had the opportunity to play the demo, and I have to say, I cannot wait for the full release.
Ragebound's story is parallel to the original Ninja Gaiden series. While Ryu sets off to America, the demon army are attacking Hayabusa Village. It's up to us as Kenji Mozu to protect the village and destroy the demons.
Interesting story aside, the real meat of the game is the iconic gameplay. Ninja Gaiden: Ragebound feels like a blast from the past. While playing the game I could imagine myself sitting in front of a CRT TV for hours until my mom makes me shut it off and then listening to the satisfying crackle from the turned off screen. The beautiful pixel graphics definitely made it even more believable.
Side scrollers aren't rare but it's rare nowadays that they are as good as Ninja Gaiden: Ragebound. The few levels that we got to see were filled with swarms of enemies that force you into quickly learning how to go against them or perishing. While some keep repeating throughout, the game throws new ones at you often enough that any progress you think you've made will be erased quickly.
Once I died the first time and saw that ''Don't die in the level'' quest get removed, I knew I was going to keep playing until it became muscle memory. That's what these old-school style games are all about! Not just getting through the levels but mastering it and showing the demons who is boss!
On top of the regular demons, the demo allows you to fight one boss, and what a fight it is. After dying enough times to finally figure it out I really thought I had it in the bag. What a fool I was, as that's when the dragon unleashed a second stage attack and absolutely destroyed me. I wasn't even mad about it, it just became another fun challenge.
Since it's a side scroller platformer, of course my biggest enemy was making a jump across certain death (spoiler alert: I failed many, many times). Platformers haven't been a part of my regular gaming repertoire in years so I didn't really expect to get as hooked as I did on the game. Now I have to train if I want to take on the Hard mode levels as easily as I've learnt to do the regular mode.
Another favorite bit that I have to mention was the collectibles hiding across levels. Once I found my first and realized I skipped one before, I immediately restarted the level. It definitely adds to the replayability of the game, especially as it, yet again captures the feeling of old games and how their collectibles worked. This isn't a vast open world game where you can find collectibles in any nook and cranny, but it still challenges you, especially to look up or go back instead of forward (classic).
Overall, the game lives up to the hype. Ninja Gaiden: Ragebound fulfilled its promise of the retro feeling of a side scroller that you can still enjoy in this day and age, but with additional mechanics that I don't want to spoil. The part of the charm is figuring them out yourself! If all of this has got you interested, the game is slated to release on July 31, 2025. I know I'm grabbing it as soon as possible!
If you want to read our thoughts about more games, check out our Yasha: Legends of the Demon Blade review here on Pro Game Guides.
