Ninja Gaiden

So insanely difficult that in thirty years I've only beaten it once without save states, but an iconic classic I go back to frequently all the same. The wall-jumping play control stands as fairly unique on the NES and the snappy combat is fun (though getting knocked back into pits can be maddening). And I just loved the twisty over-the-top anime plot of revenge and demons and backstabbing and government conspiracies it told in the cutscenes back in the day!

Cut-scenes in a NES game???

The stars of the show here are the famous difficulty, pinpoint control and famous cutscene innovation and rightfully so because they are so spot on. However, it must be stated that the levels, music and enemies seem like complete throwaways with none being memorable at all. Also, the story is batshit insane. But none of those negatives can overtake what it does right. A shining jewel of the early mid-life NES prime.

A ninja can't climb two inches without a ladder? Pfft. Difficulty is largely down to memorizing every cheap re-spawning "Gotcha!" about to come in the moment you advance the screen. As those things go, it's more generous than some with letting you practice with all those continues, checkpoints, and hit points (though it does kick you back further if you die on the boss). Meaning the end is doable if you have the desire and patience. Does that mean I have to like it? Eh. Nifty cut-scene panels.

For story it's a great NES game. For a survival-platformer it can be very challenging. But people have good memories of it despite the torment it inflicts.

The early levels are kind of dull but it picks up around the 3rd act. The game is really good at mixing together various elements to create challenging situations, such as forcing you to make a tight jump while timing an attack on an airborne enemy. The enemy respawning can be annoying at times, but the game never forces you in one spot so enemy respawns rarely botch your momentum. It also amazes me how this game can make one note bosses as challenging as they are.

Good game but way too hard. They should make these games beatable.

kinda good. like tmnt. jumping from wall to wall etc. bosses. too hard