Excellent gameplay and style make this a true comeback, even if the story doesn’t keep up.
2025 has officially become the year of the ninja. Between Shinobi Reborn, Ninja Gaiden: Ragebound, and now Ninja Gaiden 4, stealth assassins are back on the main stage. But this isn’t the Ninja Gaiden you remember. This time, Ryu Hayabusa steps out of the spotlight, and a new name takes center stage: Yakumo of the Raven Clan.
Within minutes, you’re carving through enemies and realizing how different this game feels. It’s still brutal, fast, and technical, but now it’s smoother, flashier, and more cinematic without losing the heart of what makes Ninja Gaiden special. I played primarily on PC, but we’ll get to that later.
You can feel PlatinumGames’ influence from the first encounter. The pacing, parry timing, and cinematic flair echo what made Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance stand out. Every swing has weight, and every dodge feels rewarding. The style is unmistakable, where flash meets finesse. Platinum doesn’t just add polish; it adds rhythm. That synergy between Team Ninja’s precision and Platinum’s flair for spectacle makes NG4 feel alive in motion.
The combat is everything fans hoped for. Ninja Gaiden 4 plays like the natural evolution of the series, faster, cleaner, and just as punishing. Yakumo controls like a nimbler Ryu, light on his feet and heavy on impact. His moveset balances speed and aggression, and his Bloodbind Gauge pushes you to stay in the fight. It fills as you deal damage and lets you activate Bloodraven Form, which temporarily transforms your weapon into a more powerful version, turning each strike into a devastating display of precision and style.
It’s not just for show. Managing your Bloodbind Gauge adds a layer of risk and reward that fits perfectly with the series’ DNA. Mess around too long and you’ll burn through it. Play smart and it turns you into a one-man boss fight.
The difficulty hits that sweet spot between challenging and fair. You’ll still die a lot, but the deaths feel earned. Enemies force you to learn, not guess. Boss fights are standouts again, demanding mastery instead of luck.
Ryu Hayabusa’s presence looms over the game, and that’s a good thing. He’s the living benchmark for what mastery means in this world. Yakumo, by contrast, feels like the raw talent still figuring it out: broody, determined, and fighting through uncertainty. Where Ryu walks in knowing he’s a legend, Yakumo’s journey is about proving he deserves to be mentioned in the same breath. That contrast adds weight without spoiling anything.
On console, NG4 looks and runs fantastic. The lighting, particle effects, and animation quality make every fight look like controlled chaos. On PC, though, it’s a different story. The game clearly favors console optimization. I struggled to hold full frames at 4K on a 3080 Ti, which shouldn’t happen in 2025. Other players have reported similar drops. It’s not a dealbreaker, but it’s noticeable and hopefully something Team Ninja patches soon.
The story gets the job done, but don’t expect surprises. It’s the usual mix of mysticism, revenge, and world-ending stakes. The plot beats feel familiar, and the dialogue rarely hits hard. What does keep you going is the enemy variety. The DDO and fiends give you real motivation to keep pressing forward. Even if the writing doesn’t inspire you, the next fight definitely will.
The soundtrack fits the tone: tense, cinematic, and polished, but it never reaches that epic level some past entries hit. It’s good, just not memorable. The real music is the rhythm of combat itself.
Unlike other ninja titles chasing nostalgia this year, NG4 feels like a true step forward. It’s not trying to be retro. It’s hard, beautiful, and modern. The difficulty curve is demanding but not punishing. If you get stuck, Tyran, your support character, will slowly feed you recovery items after repeated losses. It’s a subtle change, but it makes the game more approachable without sacrificing its identity. In NG I–III, if you ran out of healing items, you either had to backtrack or win through pure skill. NG4 respects your time while still testing your limits.
Ninja Gaiden 4 doesn’t reinvent the blade; it sharpens it. The combat is electric, the presentation is gorgeous, and Yakumo’s debut feels right. The story might not leave a mark, but the gameplay absolutely does. This is Team Ninja doing what they do best: giving players a reason to struggle, adapt, and finally overcome.
We don’t get many games like this anymore: hard and while it is available across different platforms it becomes a no brainer and benefit if you have Xbox Gamepass. It’s fast, and unapologetically focuses on gameplay which is what we love. Ninja Gaiden 4 isn’t just Team Ninja’s return; it’s proof the series still has life left. If they keep this energy, maybe we’ll finally see DOA7, another Ninja Gaiden, or even a Revengeance 2 down the line.
