Ninja Gaiden (Nintendo Entertainment System) - Reception

Reception

Ninja Gaiden received strong publicity in Nintendo Power in 1989 and 1990. It was featured on the cover of the magazine's March–April 1989 issue and was referenced in the following issue in a Howard and Nester comic strip. It was one of the featured games in both March–April and May–June 1989 issues of the magazine; both issues included a walkthrough up to the fifth Act, a review, and a plot overview. Underlining the game's difficulty, it appeared in several issues in the magazine's "Counselor's Corner" and "Classified Information" help sections. The game debuted at No. 3 on its "Top 30" list for July–August 1989, behind Zelda II: The Adventure of Link and Super Mario Bros. 2; it stayed at No. 3 in the following September–October 1989 issue. The game was featured in the "Nintendo Power Awards '89" as one of the top games that year. It was nominated for "Best Graphics and Sound", "Best Challenge", "Best Theme, Fun", "Best Character" (Ryu Hayabusa), "Best Ending", and "Best Overall"; and it won for "Best Challenge" and "Best Ending". In its preview of Ninja Gaiden II: The Dark Sword of Chaos, the magazine said that "the colorful, detailed and dynamic cinema scenes of the original Ninja Gaiden set a standard for action game narration that has since been widely emulated. These cinema scenes made Ninja Gaiden play almost like a movie."

The game received strong reviews and publicity from other video gaming magazines at the time. In a review from VideoGames & Computer Entertainment, the presentation and gameplay was compared to Castlevania, while the cinematic cutscenes were compared favorably to Karateka and other computer games by Cinemaware. The review praised the game's animation in these cutscenes and noted Tecmo's usage of close-ups and body movements. The reviewer said that while the cutscenes were not fluid, they were effective and entertaining and gave important information as to what the player was supposed to do. He appreciated that the game had unlimited continues which slightly offset its difficulty, but he criticized it for having overdetailed background graphics especially in the indoor levels, saying that some bottomless pits and items in these levels become slightly camouflaged. From July to October 1989, the game was listed at No. 1 on Electronic Gaming Monthly's "Top Ten Video Games" list; it fell to No. 2 on the list behind Mega Man 2 in the following November issue. In their "Best and Worst of 1989", it received awards for "Best Game of the Year" for the NES and "Best Ending in a Video Game" for all consoles. The staff said that Ninja Gaiden "proved to be an instant winner" with its cinematic cutscenes and unique gameplay. They added that the game's climax was better than some movies' climaxes at the time and that it established continuity for a sequel, which would be released the following year. Later in June 1994, the magazine ranked it at No. 4 in a special list of "Top Ten Most Difficult Games" of all time for all consoles.

Ninja Gaiden was featured on the cover of the pilot issue of UK magazine Mean Machines in July 1990; the magazine was distributed as part of the July 1990 issue of Computer and Video Games. In its review, Julian Rignall compared the game to its beat 'em up arcade counterpart, which was titled Shadow Warriors. He noted that the game has great graphics that feature diverse backgrounds and character sprites; he gave special praise to its usage of cartoon-like animation sequences between Acts in which the game's plot unfolds. He enjoyed the game's difficulty especially with the bosses, but he noted that the game will seem tough at first until players get accustomed to the controls. He criticized the game for its sound, which he said did not fit with the graphics and was "racy", but said that "what's there is atmospheric and suits the action". He highly recommended the game to fans of the beat 'em up and combat genres.

The game (the NES version now officially titled Shadow Warriors in Europe) was reviewed again in Mean Machines' July 1991 issue. In the review, Matt Regan and Paul Glancey praised the game's detailed and animated character sprites and its difficulty level. Regan was impressed with the game's high standards of gameplay, sound, and overall depth; he noted the game's frustrating difficulty but pointed out that it has unlimited continues. Glancey compared the game to the 1990 NES version of Batman with the similarities of wall-jumping mechanics; he said that its graphics were not as well-developed as Batman's but were still satisfactory. He praised its detailed sprites and their animations along with the "Tecmo Theater" concept, noting that the cutscenes "help supply a lot of atmosphere". He said that it is of the best arcade-style games on the NES as well as the best ninja-related game on the system.

The game received some praise and criticism in the August 1991 issue of German magazine Power Play. The review praised the game for its attention to detail and challenge and noted that players need to master certain gameplay skills to move on. Criticisms included a "lack of variety" and dullness in gameplay, in which it was compared to a "visit to the tax office". The PC Engine version was briefly mentioned in the December 1991 issue of Electronic Gaming Monthly as part of a review of games that have been released outside the U.S. They noted the faithful translation from the NES version as well as the revamped and more detailed graphics; they said that "PC Engine owners should not miss this one!"