The date is 2007 and a quick walk through Blockbuster would reveal a PS3 game called Ninja Gaiden: Sigma. Which unbeknownst to you, would soothe that search for a game with heavy music, flashy imagery, and a new high for that weekend. On the front is a Shinobi clad in black with several silver pendants adorning his cloth. It screams mid-2000s edginess and on the back is a promise of difficulty that would make oneself rent it for fortnights after that weekend. We have to look at how this enigma was created.

To understand both the contextualization and impact of the title we have to take a look at 2004 and the (at that time) leader of the Ninja Gaiden title. Tomonobu Itagaki and Team Ninja released Ninja Gaiden: Black, which was a resurrection of the series since its first installment in 1991 on the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) by Koei Tecmo. The first installment was an Xbox exclusive, which led to many broken controllers. Then nearly 3 years later, due to the indiscretion of Itagaki, they released it as the PS3 title Ninja Gaiden: Sigma. Which was a revamped and remastered version. 

The biggest selling point of the series has always been the combat and difficulty. Team Ninja has always been known to take formulas and genres and put a spin on them to keep the same vibe as the games they are going off of, but not fully plagiarize them. Now in this situation, it would be based on the hack-and-slash genre which includes power fantasies and hyper-sonic combat. The way they deter from this formula and present a new kind of difficulty is through animation locking and the enemies having a low knock-back. Longtime fan and moderator of the Ninja Gaiden Facebook page, Michael McKnight loves the diversity and array of weapons and movesets the game presents. 

“I like the different weapons, which really shows Ryu’s versatility,” Mcknight said, “He is not just a sword user.”

For most games in the 2000s, they relied on art style rather than graphical fidelity unlike nowadays. This game may or may not master this idea. By just looking at the character and demon designs we see this in full. Ryu’s redesign is one of the best evolutions of characters between generations and even the demons which takes on the Christian mythos, which then puts in the perfect mixtures of cultures and styles. Senior fan and user of the Ninja Gaiden Facebook page, Louis Heemi, believes the visuals help each section of the game. 

“Great realism visuals added with great storylines too and how his weapons are portrayed in the action,” Heemi said.

I think overall, the game itself has set a precedent of difficulty that I don’t necessarily agree with but is very addicting. But no matter what I say or even what Itagaki says, this game and its port wouldn’t have had the success and legacy it did without it. This legacy of the mere feather of the phoenix from the ashes.