Yasai Ninja

Yasai Ninja for PS4, XONE and PC is a 3D action game in which the players play the part of a pair of intelligent vegetables that embark on a difficult and heroic mission. The game was developed by RECO Technology, an independent Spanish studio responsible for a few titles for consoles and PCs. Among them, the most notable is Toro – an unusual sports simulator, attempting to create a playable version of corrida.

Plot

The plot is not especially complicated, and is inspired by numerous martial arts movies. The story takes place in a world inhabited by intelligent, anthropomorphic vegetables. The two protagonists: Broccoli Joe, using a nunchaku as his weapon of choice, and Kaoru Tamanegui, an onion who is a samurai, embark on a dangerous adventure. Its objective is to stop Kaoru’s former master, who has lost his ways and fell to the dark side.

Mechanics

The action is seen from the third person perspective, but lagging camera work makes our task much more difficult. The game offers 10 levels inhabited by minions commanded by Kaoru’s former master. Sometimes, the player has to solve a simple puzzle involving finding the button necessary for opening a door, or both heroes have to jump between platforms and banks of canals filled with water.

Combat system is very simple and not demanding. Both heroes take part in every mission. One is controlled by the player, while the second one, by not-so-clever AI. We can switch between both characters at will. Using rather unspectacular attacks and special abilities acquired over time, we fight through numerous but uniform enemies. The monotony of repeating sequences is sometimes diversified by a boss encounter.

Technical Aspects

Visuals aren’t very spectacular. The levels are dimly lit, while clunky animations and coarse 3D models have a negative impact on overall fun factor. The sound effects are also unappealing, with the soundtrack employing classical Asian motifs being the only highlight.

Last updated on 04 August 2015