In addition to asserting Ninja Gaiden 4, Koei Tecmo has introduced a remake of 2008 Xbox 360 motion recreation Ninja Gaiden 2 — and it’s out now.
Announced throughout Microsoft’s Xbox Developer Direct 2025, Ninja Gaiden 2 Black shadow-dropped throughout Xbox Sequence X and S, PlayStation 5, and Home windows PC by way of Steam and Microsoft Retailer, and with Recreation Move on console, PC and cloud right this moment, January 23. For extra, here is the whole lot introduced throughout Microsoft’s Xbox Developer Direct 2025.
Here is the official blurb on Ninja Gaiden 2 Black:
In Ninja Gaiden 2 Black, gamers assume the function of Ryu Hayabusa, a lethal ninja who wields the legendary Dragon Sword whereas embarking on a world battle in opposition to a sequence of formidable foes. The attractive and bloody remaster makes use of Unreal Engine 5 to considerably improve the graphic expression, elevating the whole lot from character visuals to environmental backgrounds. The truth is, the levels, characters, results, and lighting have all been utterly redesigned and remastered to totally immerse players into the story’s darkish ninja world.
Gore components equivalent to dismemberment and blood have additionally been remastered to reinforce the motion expertise. The high-speed, violent fights play out in sensible brutality, using a wide range of weapons and strategies together with Japanese swords, shurikens, Kusari-gamas, and tonfas. In the meantime, these in search of a extra toned-down expertise can merely toggle the dismemberment function on and off within the Choices menu.
As well as, Ninja Gaiden 2 Black contains further components from the spin-off titles launched after the unique recreation’s debut, together with the flexibility to manage three extra characters: Momiji, Ayane, and Rachel. The remaster additionally contains “HERO PLAY STYLE”, a mode for freshmen that gives automated assist in essentially the most troublesome conditions, making the notoriously difficult title extra accessible for many who is probably not so assured of their motion abilities.
In a publish on Xbox Wire, Group Ninja boss Fumihiko Yasuda defined the choice to remaster Ninja Gaiden 2.
“This simultaneous announcement and same-day launch alongside Ninja Gaiden 4 might need caught some folks without warning,” he stated. “The most important motive for growing Ninja Gaiden 2 Black was to deal with the considerations of core followers who may be questioning, ‘What’s going to occur to Ryu Hayabusa?’ We additionally needed to offer gamers one thing to get pleasure from as they await the discharge of Ninja Gaiden 4. We selected Ninja Gaiden 2 as a result of it stands as one of the vital stable motion video games within the sequence. We added ‘Black’ to the title to sign to followers that that is the definitive model, very similar to Ninja Gaiden Black was for the primary recreation.”
Yasuda continued: “This model is crafted to fulfill each those that performed the unique and newcomers discovering it as a current-generation motion recreation. We’ve meticulously integrated among the additions of Ninja Gaiden Sigma 2 whereas staying true to the problem and really feel of the unique 360 model, together with its signature gore and violence. We’ve additionally adjusted the weapon improve system to extra align with the unique launch.”
Group Ninja’s infamously difficult Ninja Gaiden sequence has a protracted affiliation with Xbox. The developer’s reboot of the motion sequence launched first on Xbox in 2004, propelling grasp ninja Ryu Hayabusa into the mainstream. Ninja Gaiden Black, thought of one of many biggest motion video games of all time, launched the next 12 months.
Ninja Gaiden 2 got here out in 2008 printed by Microsoft Recreation Studios for the Xbox 360. Ninja Gaiden 3 adopted in 2012 on the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. Since then, followers have had the critically panned spin-off Yaiba: Ninja Gaiden Z, and, extra just lately, Ninja Gaiden: Grasp Assortment, a compilation of Ninja Gaiden Sigma, Ninja Gaiden Sigma 2, and Ninja Gaiden 3: Razor’s Edge.
Writer Koei Tecmo revived curiosity in Ninja Gaiden with the announcement of Ninja Gaiden Ragebound, a brand-new side-scrolling spin-off due out later this 12 months. However the principle occasion is Ninja Gaiden 4, which lastly continues Ryu Hayabusa’s story 13 years after Ninja Gaiden 3 got here out.
Wesley is the UK Information Editor for IGN. Discover him on Twitter at @wyp100. You may attain Wesley at wesley_yinpoole@ign.com or confidentially at wyp100@proton.me.