Ninja Gaiden is one of the series that helped define the character action genre, with ridiculously bloody and frenetic combat. As a reboot of the classic franchise, then, the new Ninja Gaiden was much different.
It's been eight years since a new Ninja Gaiden, as Team Ninja moved on and focused on new projects. That means the franchise was completely absent from the life of the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One. With a new generation on the way, now is the time to re-evaluate the franchise. Although nothing is confirmed, Team Ninja is well aware that fans are clamoring for a new Ninja Gaiden.
With that in mind, there are some definite improvements a Ninja Gaiden 4 could make, and it should look to other recent action titles as an example.
Ninja Gaiden 4 Needs a Better Camera and Tighter Controls
Ninja Gaiden was always about fast-paced frenetic action, and because of that, the camera was constantly an obstacle to deal with. This was true in all three games but it was at its worst in Ninja Gaiden 3, where enemies would constantly attack from off-screen. The camera is the number one thing Ninja Gaiden 4 needs to work on, as it's vitally important to any modern action game. Many action titles, like Devil May Cry 5 or Astral Chain, use a dynamic camera system that helps keep track of the action while also giving players control to move it when they need to. Ninja Gaiden desperately needs a similar setup, one that constantly adjusts to the flow of battles and the number of enemies, keeping from getting too close up on Ryu Hayabusa.
Something that often compounded the camera issue was the imprecise control players had over Ryu. Devil May Cry 5 gives players absolute control over minuscule movements, being able to cancel out of attack animations, or in the case of Dante instantly swap weapons in the middle of combos. Ninja Gaiden needs to tighten up its gameplay and controls, make Ryu feel less floaty, and give players more control over his attack animations. This is especially true with weapons like the scythe, which have lengthy sweeping animations. Providing more complexity to Ryu's combos would also go a long way, and Team Ninja should focus on a quick system that lets you swap between multiple weapons and Ninpo in seconds.
Ninja Gaiden 4 Should Have a More Relatable Ryu
Story has never been a focal point in Ninja Gaiden, but Ninja Gaiden 3 suffered from a severely bland story that really dragged out the experience. Part of the problem is that Ryu is, and never has been, a relatable protagonist. He's the stoic action hero and a killing machine, but that's about it. Ryu rarely shows emotion, and although Team Ninja has detailed bits of his backstory it feels like players still don't know him. He has faced demonic monstrosities and world-ending cataclysms, and that needs to be represented in his character. Giving Ryu more emotion and more of an investment in the events of the story would go a long way to keeping players invested.
God of War successfully humanized Kratos by having him reflect on his violent past, and while Ninja Gaiden 4 doesn't need to ape that success, it could certainly take storytelling inspiration. Even something as goofy as Devil May Cry 5 gives players are reason to care about its protagonists and the antagonistic relationship between them.
Ninja Gaiden 4 Should Take Cues From Nioh
Nioh burst onto the scene in 2017 as a fascinating combination of Ninja Gaiden style combat and Souls-like design. Considering Nioh takes combat elements from Ninja Gaiden, it's only right that a Ninja Gaiden 4 continues that cycle. Nioh's combat stays varied by combining combos with a more thoughtful stance system, making players adapt to whatever stance an enemy is in. It still keeps a fast-pace but requires more thought on the part of the player than the hack-and-slash of Ninja Gaiden.
By looking at Nioh's combat, Ninja Gaiden 4 could implement some kind of guarding or parrying system that requires players to carefully approach enemies and evaluate how they're going to attack, rather than just charge in and unleash Ryu's fury.