Ninja Gaiden Ragebound: The 7 Coolest Things

I often get excited erstwhile I get to preview an upcoming game. Who wouldn’t? Getting to cheque retired a crippled pre-release, and past getting to stock that acquisition is 1 of the joys of this job. But erstwhile a codification for a caller physique of Ninja Gaiden Ragebound materialized successful my inbox, I’m beauteous definite I started drooling. It’s a Pavlovian response, really; see, america Ninja Gaiden sickos person been pining for the bully aged days for a portion now, but this twelvemonth has been similar stumbling into an oasis successful the desert, lone the oasis has aerial conditioning, a made-to-order paper from your favourite section joint, and an unfastened bar. Ninja Gaiden fans person been wandering these sands for a agelong time. But this year, it feels similar we’re coming home.

I hadn’t played the demo we previewed past time, truthful Ragebound was a caller acquisition for me. But it felt similar slipping into a brace of aged shoes. It took a 2nd to get backmost into the plaything of things — I haven’t played a 2D Ninja Gaiden successful a blistery 2nd — but erstwhile I did, it felt similar I’d ne'er left. There’s truthful overmuch to speech astir here, but we’ve already done a much accepted preview that looks astatine the nutrient and potatoes acquisition of playing Ragebound, truthful this time, let’s excavation into the nitty gritty. These are the 7 coolest things astir Ninja Gaiden Ragebound.

#1: The Guillotine Boost Lets You Bounce connected It (and “It” is Everything)

There are a ton of chill mechanics successful Ninja Gaiden Ragebound, but I’m starting with the guillotine boost due to the fact that everything other flows from it. Once you’re successful the air, you tin leap again erstwhile you’re astir to marque interaction with an force to some onslaught them and bounce disconnected of them for different jump. Cool, right?

But it’s not conscionable enemies. You tin bash this to projectiles, too, and adjacent immoderate force attacks. Obviously, you tin usage the guillotine boost to get to places you wouldn’t different beryllium capable to, but you tin besides usage it to bounce betwixt enemies and enactment connected the attack. I managed to bounce connected Gurthka, the brag of the demo’s 2nd level, for a coagulated fewer seconds portion helium was trying to onslaught me. And those weird samurai spirits with the spears? Just bounce disconnected their attacks and support going. Is the guillotine boost arsenic chill arsenic the Izuna Drop? No. Nothing is. But it’s beauteous close.

#2: Hypercharges Are One-Hit Kills with Style

Okay, truthful the guillotine boost lets you get to hard-to-reach places, enactment connected the attack, and benignant connected bosses. But what happens erstwhile you request to termination thing successful a azygous stroke? Well, that’s wherever the Hypercharge comes in. You tin get Hypercharge by sidesplitting enemies with auras. Do so, and you’ll summation a Hypercharge for a fewer seconds. When you person it , your adjacent onslaught volition termination enemies instantly. To beryllium fair, astir enemies successful Ragebound dice successful a azygous hit. But the ones that don’t? You don’t wanna spell toe-to-toe with those cats. In a pinch, you tin sacrifice immoderate wellness to manually Hypercharge, but you’ll privation to debar that if you can. When you’re truly cooking, you tin concatenation these unneurotic to chopped down enemies successful accelerated succession, oregon unleash them connected a brag to stun them and laic connected the hurt, and it feels great. Speaking of which, that brings maine to my adjacent point.

#3: Simon Says Is Cool Now

A batch of video games truly similar Simon Says combat design. You cognize what I mean; the force is simply a definite color, truthful you usage a circumstantial benignant of onslaught (I’m looking astatine you, DmC: Devil May Cry), oregon they’re wielding a circumstantial weapon, truthful you driblet successful a stance built to antagonistic that (don’t deliberation I didn’t notice, Ghost of Tsushima). Kinda boring, right?

Ninja Gaiden Ragebound flirts with Simon Says combat design, but it gets distant with it due to the fact that it does it successful a chill way. You tin inactive termination thing successful the Ragebound demo I played immoderate mode you want. But immoderate of those auras that springiness you Hypercharges? You gotta termination those enemies a definite mode if you privation that Hypercharge. A bluish aura means you gotta portion ‘em up with Kenji’s katana, portion a purple aura means you request to usage a kunai. Once you get that Hypercharge, you tin walk it nevertheless you want; but forcing you to lucifer the aura to the close limb connected the alert adds a invited constituent of challenge, particularly erstwhile enemies are lone on-screen for a fewer seconds and you person to respond quickly.

#4: Rollin’ with Kumori Rocks

At immoderate unspecified constituent successful Ragebound’s story, our lad Kenji fuses with Kumori. Like immoderate bully subordinate of the Hayabusa Clan, he’s beauteous upset astir cavorting astir with a ninja of the Spider Clan, but helium shouldn’t be. Palling astir with Kumori has a batch of benefits. First, she gives Kenji entree to a kunai to woody with enemies astatine scope (and teleport to definite objects successful the environment), but besides a Spider Weapon. In my demo, that took the signifier of a throwable sickle with an arc that reminds maine an atrocious lot of the throwing axes from Castlevania. And she gives you entree to the screen-clearing Ragebound Arts. When everything astir you absolutely, positively has to die, judge nary substitutes. So hey, much toys, right? But that’s not each Kumori brings to the table.

She tin besides commune with Demon Altars to navigate the otherworld. With her tone abstracted from Kenji’s assemblage and traipsing astir the otherworld, she tin spell places helium can’t, opening caller paths. She besides has entree to her kunai, adjacent without ki, thing Kenji doesn’t have. The downside? She needs to perpetually replenish a metre to enactment successful the otherworld. Otherwise, it’s backmost to Kenji, and you person to bash it again. Sometimes, that means you’ll repetition a conception a fewer times. It besides breaks up the enactment and gives you a caller mode to play. Pretty cool. Also, Kumori says “Good grief” a lot. I emotion her.

#5: Exploring is Worth Your Time

One of the things I truly admit astir Ragebound is its purity. It’s not different roguelite successful the endless oversea of roguelites (thank God); it’s a side-scrolling enactment game, successful the vein of the series’ archetypal trilogy. But that doesn’t mean there’s not worldly worthy going disconnected the beaten way for. There are scarabs and crystal skulls to find, and portion it was unclear what either of these bash (the scarabs service arsenic currency for Muramasa’s shop, which was not disposable successful my demo, truthful I tin lone conjecture astatine the goodies he’ll person connected offer), it decidedly gives you an excuse to explore. My favourite 1 of these “do an optional bit, get a chill thing” sections was 1 wherever I had to navigate a tricky, teleport-y platforming conception arsenic Kumori. It took maine respective tries to get it close (I kept messing up close astatine the end), but by the clip I nailed it, I knew that happening similar the backmost of my hand. And that feels good.

#6: It Rewards Mastery

Oh, and speaking of mastering something, Ninja Gaiden Ragebound wants you to play these levels implicit and implicit again arsenic overmuch arsenic you want. Once you’ve beaten one, you tin instantly entree it again from the map. And each clip you play, you’re scored connected time, collectibles, fig of enemies killed, and your champion combo. And if that’s not enough, determination are besides optional challenges that scope from completing levels without being deed to level-specific tasks similar sidesplitting truthful galore enemies with a lunge onslaught oregon beating Ryu Hayabusa himself successful the tutorial. I… did not bash that one. He Izuna Dropped my ass. It was rad arsenic hell. I’ll get you 1 day, Ryu.

#7: It Hurts So Good

I wouldn’t telephone Ninja Gaiden Ragebound easy, per se, but it’s besides not intolerable connected the regular difficulty, either. This bid has thing of a bequest to support erstwhile it comes to being hard, and you’ve gotta beryllium benignant of a masochist to spot the deepest levels of depravity it has to amusement you. What tin I say? I similar pain.

Good quality for me, then, due to the fact that beating the demo unlocked a hard mentation of 1 of the levels I’d conscionable played. And, uh… it’s a batch harder. There are caller enemies! Everything’s connected fire! Developer The Game Kitchen has enactment successful thing for the sickos, and I admit it.

I came retired of my clip with Ninja Gaiden Ragebound similar a antheral who has conscionable had a good repast with portions that were acold excessively small. Appreciative, but wanting more. What tin I say? I emotion enactment games, and this bid successful peculiar holds a peculiar spot successful my heart. I get the shakes erstwhile you’re not around, Ninja Gaiden. But it’s truthful damn bully to person you back.