WARNING: This review contains graphic imagery from the gameplay that may not be suitable for some readers. Please be aware of the violence level of Ninja Gaiden II before reading this review.
Recently, Tecmo announced that Ninja Gaiden II for the Xbox 360 was suddenly backwards compatible on the Xbox One and Xbox One X. This was a pleasant surprise, as I don’t think anyone was really expecting it, even after the re-release of Ninja Gaiden Black in 2017. Even more surprising was the announcement that if you happened to own an Xbox One X (and sadly, only an Xbox One X), the graphics for Ninja Gaiden II would be enhanced. But how enhanced? Well, I took a spin with Ninja Gaiden II on the Xbox One X to find out!
It’s been quite some time since I fired up Ninja Gaiden II. I’d forgotten how interesting of a game it really is. Even rumble support has been integrated into this re-release of the game, and the opening cinema still wouldn’t be entirely out of place in Blade Runner. The world of Ninja Gaiden has always been gorgeous, but it seemed like everything was so crisp and vibrant that it was hard to believe that it dates all the way back to 2008. That’s right, Tecmo and Team Ninja released a game that’s over a decade old. That’s some serious fan service! Anyway, the game looked good. Spectacularly good, in fact, and it plays smoother than silk!
The last Team Ninja game I’ve had the pleasure of playing was Nioh. Nioh is, of course, fantastic, but it simply doesn’t feel like the Ninja Gaiden series. It’s not as crisp and fluid. It focuses more on the precision and timing of your attacks, and it’s challenging as hell. Ninja Gaiden II on the other hand, manages to create a combat system that’s more akin to a zen meditation, at least once you get a grasp on the control scheme. Sure, you still have to be precise, but it’s more like art than combat in a lot of ways. You flow from one enemy to the next in a brutal dance, dismembering and slaughtering your way across the techno-temples of Tokyo in the opening sequences of the game. It’s such a masterful control design that it’s hard to remember you’re even fighting, and the game feels almost dance-like in its execution.
Suffice it to say that Ninja Gaiden II is an utter masterpiece in every way. From the detail oriented combat to the static camera angles to the fantastic character design, the game is simply beautiful. But how much had it changed? It was time to boot up the old Xbox 360 (Model 3, because they’re the only ones that last). Once Ninja Gaiden II was installed and up and running, it was time to get down to business.
The Xbox 360 is a fantastic machine with a library of great games. However, it definitely has not aged as well as could be hoped. After the delight that was Ninja Gaiden II on the Xbox One controller, it was downright awkward to drop back to the original 360 controller. The buttons aren’t as clean, the lines aren’t as ergonomic, and the whole interface suffers for it. Moving on to the game, the rumble precision is much lower than on the Xbox One and it seemed almost unnecessary. As you look at the graphics on the 360, you really start to notice the difference. Everything is fuzzier and less crisp. Detail levels are lower. Metals don’t shine as cleanly. The details on faces are lost somewhat, making the game look lower tech. The gameplay is just as spectacular, but still somehow fall short due to the controller issues.
Honestly, the game is functionally identical between the Xbox One X and the Xbox 360. However, that added clean crispness from the upgrade really makes Ninja Gaiden II stand out in a way I hadn’t expected and the game became more fun because of it. For Tecmo to have simply done this out of the blue is beyond any expectation that I might have had of them. As an owner and fan of all the Ninja Gaiden games, it’s hard for me to even hope for things like this to happen. And when a week later, they announced Ninja Gaiden 3 would also be available and backwards compatible, I nearly fainted!
If you own an Xbox One X, you owe it to yourself to pick up Ninja Gaiden II either digitally or physically at a used game store (since it’s long out of print). Honestly, it’s possibly one of the best Team Ninja games and the newly revamped HD version for the Xbox One X is not only the definitive release of the title, but a must-have for any gamer that loves platform action titles, even one that’s already played through Ninja Gaiden II. I know I have, and I know I’ll be playing it yet again!
This review was based on a physical copy of Ninja Gaiden II for the Xbox 360 running on an Xbox One X and is entirely unsolicited by Tecmo or Team Ninja. It was played on a 55” 1080p Sony LED TV. Most ninjas were hiding in shadows during the writing of this review. Please note that while these images are taken from a 1080p TV, Ninja Gaiden II will run on a 4k TV at 60 frames per second on an Xbox One X! Oh yeah. It’s that awesome.