Ninja Gaiden Ragebound is a 2D side-scrolling action game that pays tribute to the original NES Ninja Gaiden trilogy. While the retro graphics are appealing, the gameplay lacks meaningful depth. It feels like a concept-first project where ninjas were added after the fact, with the Ninja Gaiden name slapped on to sell it.

Before developer Tomonobu Itagaki brought the “Ninja Gaiden” franchise into the polygonal realm, the series had been an arcade mainstay and a classic Nintendo Entertainment System trilogy. The side-scrolling adventure was renowned for its difficulty and visuals that pushed the 8-bit system to its limits.

Games like Mega Man, Contra, and Ninja Gaiden felt unbeatable even for a kid with endless amounts of free time to beat my head against them. Home console games were still following the design philosophy of the arcade,