Despite Ninja Gaiden 4 featuring some PlatinumGames-flavored action, it still retains Team Ninja’s penchant for punishing, brutal combat. Besides Master Ninja difficulty unlocking after completing the story (which should take 15-20 hours), Purgatory and challenge missions await those willing to test their skills.
But what about newcomers to the series or those who aren’t as skilled, at least at first? Hero Mode is the ticket, says Team Ninja director Masakazu Hirayama.
“If you enable Hero Mode, it’ll automatically enable auto-assist features, so there will be auto-guard and there will be auto-dodge,” he told Next-Play. However, he insists that it isn’t for making the game easy but to provide a tool to help players “level up and develop their skills.”
“So, once they feel like they’ve gotten a feel for the general flow of combat, they can actually go into the options, disable auto-guard, and then, once they feel like they leveled up, after that, they can switch the difficulty to normal and then to hard.
“Ninja Gaiden is a challenging game, and there are players who are worried that it might be too challenging. I want them to rest assured that there are tools present there for them to utilize to help them develop, as a player and really become a master ninja themselves.”
While the 3D Ninja Gaiden games have seen their fair share of commentary on difficulty, with Ninja Gaiden 3 considered a low point, this is an interesting approach. Those who want to play the game as intended can do so and push their limits further with higher difficulties. Meanwhile, newcomers can enjoy the story and gradually learn the finer points of the combat system.
Of course, we’ll see just how challenging Ninja Gaiden 4 is when it launches on October 21st for Xbox Series X/S, PS5, and PC. Check out over an hour of new gameplay here. Before that, Gamescom attendees can play the demo from August 20th to 24th at the Xbox booth alongside other titles.