Ninja Gaiden 4 Review: Slashing back to the ’00s

2025 sure does love pumping out brutally difficult games, with Ninja Gaiden 4 joining the ranks of Hollow Knight: Silksong and Hades 2 as one of the most punishing titles of the year. “Difficult” doesn’t always mean “Bad,” but in the case of Ninja Gaiden 4, the question to ask is whether the game is hard in a fun way. 

Unlike the other hard games of 2025, Ninja Gaiden 4 is all about greasy-fast speed. Anyone who wants to tackle it will have to get used to playing on fast forward, at least compared to most modern titles, if they want to get the most out of its gameplay. Make no mistake – this is a brutally hard game, and anyone who wants to squeeze fun out of it will have to meet it at its own level. 

The Escapist recaps

• Ninja Gaiden 4 is coming to PS5, PC, and Xbox Series X/S on October 21, 2025.
• Like its predecessors, Ninja Gaiden 4 is a fast-paced action hack ‘n slash game, where you carve your way through hordes of enemies.
• The game is a continuation of the previous Ninja Gaiden titles, but you don’t need to have played the earlier entries to understand the new one. 
• Ninja Gaiden 4 has a day one launch on Xbox Game Pass, seeing as it’s published by Xbox Game Studios. 
• The game has two protagonists, with a new ninja, named Yakumo, being playable for for most of the story. 

Ninja Gaiden 4 is a nu-metal fan’s dream

Ninja Gaiden 4 stars Yakumo, a ninja of the Raven clan. Yakumo seeks the destruction of the Dark Dragon, a colossal beast that is terrorizing Tokyo. He seeks out a priestess named Seori, who is connected to the great wyrm, and the two begin a mission to vanquish the Dark Dragon once and for all. 

Yakumo is a brand-new protagonist for the Ninja Gaiden series, and has a much more abrasive attitude than his predecessor, Ryu Hayabusa. Anyone who likes angsty teens who sound like Noctis from Final Fantasy 15 will adore Yakumo, especially as he’s always accompanied by rock tunes whenever it’s time for battle. 

The long-time Ninja Gaiden fans needn’t despair, as Ryu does show up as a playable character and is a major character throughout the story. In Ninja Gaiden 4, Ryu’s role is diminished compared to Yakumo, and it feels like the developers are setting up for a change of protagonist. Yakumo isn’t that interesting a hero to supplant Ryu as the face of the franchise, but he’s a serviceable protagonist for what is a fairly standard fantasy/martial arts plot. 

Ninja Gaiden 4 Gameplay

But let’s be real here, people don’t tune into a Ninja Gaiden game for the plot. This isn’t a Telltale Games epic about man’s inhumanity to man, it’s a blood-soaked action game, where you cut your way through countless foes while looking as stylish as possible. Feel free to leave your brain at the door for Ninja Gaiden 4.

Then, when you start playing, bring your brain back into the house, because this is a brutal game. While Ninja Gaiden 4 does offer an easier mode for people who just care about the story, even the regular difficulty mode is punishing, despite the countless gameplay options available to the player. 

Ninja Gaiden 4 usually throws Yakumo/Ryu against a variety of enemies, and you have to fight them all at once. You have a ton of options at your disposal, with a parry that activates if you strike an enemy at just the right time, a chain of blocks, multiple dodges with i-frames, special attacks that can be used to stagger the enemy if used at the correct time, and an ultimate move that can outright slay weaker foes. 

And you’re going to need every single one of these moves, because enemies don’t let up for a second in Ninja Gaiden 4. They will strike you at the worst times, especially when coming out of a cutscene, meaning you have to be ready to use the correct defensive option at any time.

When Ninja Gaiden 4 clicks, it’s an absolutely incredible experience. The sensation of slicing through enemies, performing combos, seamlessly entering cutscenes where you chop foes to pieces, and throwing out special moves to break a foe’s guard. Once you learn the moves and enter the rhythm, it makes you feel like a badass ninja.

The only problem is that the game isn’t exactly fair in its difficulty, which leads me to the biggest problem with Ninja Gaiden 4 – ranged enemies. There are tons of enemies who fight with guns, missiles, cannons, or from afar on kites. Even with the camera pulled out all the way,  it can be tough to react to ranged attacks, as they move so fast, can fly out your blind spot, and can occur while you’ve already committed to a combo, which you can’t cancel out of. 

Most of the group encounters require you to run around the arena and take out the ranged enemies, which does kill the flow of battle somewhat. The fact that it’s so hard to dodge ranged attacks, even when you’re aware of them, makes them even more frustrating to deal with.

On the plus side, the difficulty in Ninja Gaiden 4 can be made a lot less punishing, even on the standard difficulty, thanks to items. It’s possible to purchase a variety of healing and buff items from the shops seen throughout missions, as well as an auto-revive item. These can be used instantly from a menu that slows down time, so it’s not an Estus Flask situation, where you can be punished for stopping to heal.

The ability to use healing items means you can brute force your way through most encounters in Ninja Gaiden 4, including boss fights. If it weren’t for these options, then I might still be stuck on the first boss, as the protagonist’s health bar doesn’t last long, and healing is what allowed me to persevere during the trickier fights. 

The boss encounters in Ninja Gaiden 4 fare a lot better, with stylish affairs against one foe that you can concentrate on. The big problem here is one of content, as when you finally get to play as Ryu, you’re stuck fighting all the same bosses you’ve already defeated as Yakumo, which feels like a cheap way of recycling content. 

It wouldn’t be so bad if Yakumo and Ryu had drastically different playstyles, but they’re quite similar. The Ninja Gaiden 4 characters are a bit too alike, even sharing several moves. Yakumo is faster and has different special attacks, with his Bloodbind arts allowing him to transform his weapons on the fly, but anyone who has just played as him for tons of missions won’t struggle to adapt to Ryu, as he’s extremely similar. 

Ninja Gaiden 4 is more than just hacking and slashing

The combat in Ninja Gaiden 4 carries the game, but there’s more to the experience. There are optional missions and collectibles to find that make the game easier when completed, as well as tons of hidden secrets to find. 

Ninja Gaiden 4 loves on-rails sections, where the protagonist is riding a rail/flying a glider/running across water, with the player needing to avoid obstacles as they come. These provide a refreshing break from the fights, though they have their fair share of cheap death moments. 

And that kind of sums up Ninja Gaiden 4 for me. The game expects mastery of things that you can’t predict. Anyone who dedicates a ton of time to memorizing every stage and hazard will look like an awesome badass when playing the game, but the road to get there is rough and paved with frustrating moments.

When Ninja Gaiden 4 focuses on what it’s good at – fights against lots of sword-wielding enemies in melee combat or a single big boss, it excels. Few games feel as satisfying as Ninja Gaiden 4, when you’re seamlessly blocking attacks and going straight into flashy, instant-kill death combos, with red rivers of blood soaking every surface. It’s just the moments outside of these that can test your patience, as the game can feel unfair, especially during a first playthrough when you’re learning the ropes. 

Anyone who wants to be a master shinobi has to meet Ninja Gaiden 4 at its own level, especially on the harder difficulty settings. The rewards are there for those who wish to walk that path, but be aware that it’s a very rocky road. 

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