Don't shoot the messenger. I'm just saying don't expect much from Ryu's playable story portion. Ninja Gaiden 4. Over the past week, I have been able to get through it and get through it. Ninja Gaiden 4And I'd say most of my expectations were topped by a flashy new action game. As Yakumo, it offers everything I wanted in terms of combat and more, but PlatinumGames confirmed that there will be two playable characters before launch: rookie Yakumo and veteran Ryu Hayabusa. I can easily point out the worst parts of the gameplay. Ninja Gaiden 4's story, that's the story you play as Ryu.
But I want to be clear: NG4 It's a good game and I would recommend it overall. I can only recommend this with the caveat that expectations for Ryu Hyun-jin should be low. Fortunately, the game is relatively short, taking up only a few chapters within the game. Ninja Gaiden 4. It's worth noting that at least there's more to Ryu than that chapter, but it still feels like Ryu is a secondary character in the franchise that bears his own name. A discussion of spoilers follows.
Ryu's role explained in the NG4 story
Without going deeper into spoiler territory than I have to, it becomes quite clear in the first hour. Ninja Gaiden 4 Ryu is Yakumo's true “major challenge and growth milestone” as suggested by PlatinumGames. Yakumo believes himself to be Ryu's equal from the start, and possesses the arrogance and self-righteousness one would expect from an inexperienced warrior. The conflict that emerges between the two is that of a seasoned veteran and a prestigious upstart, and the story very quickly pits them against each other. There are several reasons for this, but as Yakumo, players must complete four objectives as they progress through the story. In this process, the claim that Mrs. Seo-ri realized these four purposes with the help of Mr. Ryu was continuously raised and explicitly confirmed.
After spending the entire game accomplishing these four goals, Ryu's playable segment is a flashback that sets up these four goals. In other words, it repeats what has already been played. It will come as no surprise to gamers that each of these four objectives ends with a boss fight, and Ryu has the same boss fight. What's a bit worse is that it goes backwards, meaning that the last goal Yakumo completes is the first goal Ryu sets. The player will face one main boss in succession, first as Yakumo and then as Ryu, and then repeat the level to encounter another boss. One silver lining here is that each of Ryu's goals can be shortened, perhaps speaking to his power. However, players don't need to be convinced that Ryu is the better ninja. It's one of the shortest parts of the game overall, but the brevity, repetitive boss fights, and the fact that the actual narrative doesn't make any sense Ninja Gaiden 4 It would have been better if this level had been reduced..
How cutting a playable Ryu could have made Ninja Gaiden 4 better
First of all, you will see a huge increase in speed. These flashbacks occur right after one of the biggest story beats in . Ninja Gaiden 4It interferes with natural storytelling. Perhaps the goal is to distance yourself from that moment and what comes after. This is simple in itself compared to the rest of the game, but it doesn't really accomplish anything. It feels like repetitive content was crammed in between solving the four objectives and the final boss. Second, it adds nothing to the gravity of the story. If anything new had been revealed here, it would have been worth playing through the content, but that's not the case. Seo-ri's role in the four goals is clear early in the game, and Ryu Hyun-jin's involvement in it is implied throughout the game. Flashbacks serve no expository purpose other than to explain one detail that magnifies the need for explanation.
Story structure in Ninja Gaiden 4
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Prologue and setup
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Complete Objective 1
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Complete Objective 2
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Complete Objective 3
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Complete Objective 4
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Big story moment (cutscene)
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Repeat objectives 4, 3, 2, 1 with Ryu.
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last chapter of the game
Considering that nothing important or new happens during Ryu's boss fights or story chapters, it feels very much like an idea added to the game later for fan service. Now there is no problem with fan service and you can play Ryu. Ninja Gaiden 4 It only makes sense logically. But the fact remains that cutting his chapters could have made for a better game. As soon as you step into Hyunjin Ryu's shoes, the surge of excitement quickly turns into a worry that all feels very familiar: “Oh, that's what we do. All of this again.” The way the story unfolds, you'll be more curious about what Hyun-Jin Ryu has been doing for the rest of the current game, rather than these flashbacks. The story and pacing would have been more interesting if there had been Ryu's original present-day chapters instead of flashbacks after each of Yakumo's goals (about 3 chapters).
Without it, cutting out Ryu's chapter entirely would have worked, and his role as a playable character would have been merely an endgame unlock. Effectively it already is. But his story chapters aren't needed for that. As of now, it feels like arbitrary story rewards rather than actual story rewards as players begin the game. Ninja Gaiden 4Higher difficulty/endgame content.
Ryu endgame content in NG4
Again, I loved playing it and recommend it. Ninja Gaiden 4. For me it's a very good 8/10 game. I think this part of the story hurts the whole thing and keeps it from being a great or even amazing experience. The moment-to-moment combat is a lot of fun, the content on offer is pretty good, and the overall story, while not revolutionary, is more than serviceable. I don't think it's necessary. more ryu I would have fixed it, I wanted to. better kind Content rather than flashbacks. I think players deserve more than the flashbacks that are the main content of Super Ninja.
However, once the player passes and finishes the chapter, Ninja Gaiden 4You can select Ryu as a playable character in the story. Players can repeat chapters, perform purgatory, complete trials, and more. This means there are at least more Ryu than story chapters. However, during his playable portion of the story, it's hard not to be disappointed with the way he's treated.
- released
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October 21, 2025
- ESRB
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Ages 17 and older / Blood and gore, intense violence, strong language, obscene themes
- publisher
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Xbox Game Studios
