Yaiba: Ninja Gaiden Z - Xbox 360

Using Zombies As Weapons In Yaiba Ninja Gaiden Z

2013-06-13T22:42:00Z

Tecmo has been much-criticized for the last decade for releasing numerous versions of the same Ninja Gaiden games. With the wacky Yaiba Ninja Gaiden Z, gamers won’t have any reason to complain about re-using old ideas.

Series star Ryu Hayabusa is seen in the game’s first cutscene, as he violently kills a rival ninja named Yaiba. Two weeks later, the new character has been revived thanks to cyborg technology. Players then assume the role of Yaiba as he slashes his way through a zombie-infested world.

Sword attacks such as the ones typically seen in the series are still a part of this Ninja Gaiden spin-off, but ridiculous new attacks are possible after slaughtering enemies. Yaiba can chop off a zombie’s arms and use them as nunchuks, or grab the foe’s entire body with his mech arm and flail it around like a whip.

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Zombie bodies will sometimes be used to solve environmental puzzles, such as one I saw that involved a steamroller. A zombie sat behind the wheel of the vehicle, which I needed to move to progress through the level. By tossing a zombie in front of the steamroller, the driver becomes distracted and drives forward, clearing the way.

Another puzzle causes a zombie to drive a truck up a ramp, which then crashes directly into the crotch of giant leg props that sit above a lingerie store. After the truck explodes between the legs, a rain of panties begins falling from the sky. Yaiba looks up at the sky and spreads his arms, welcoming the falling underwear. His wacky sense of humor is surprising to see in the usually-serious Ninja Gaiden series, but it’s a nice change of pace. We’ll see if this new take on the series brings fans back after the disappointing Ninja Gaiden 3 when Yaiba releases in 2014.

Yaiba: Ninja Gaiden Z Developer Interview

2013-03-28T00:10:47Z

Team Ninja's Yosuke Hayashi and Comcept's Keiji Inafune met to discuss Yaiba: Ninja Gaiden Z and set up some cameras to record their conversation.

Yaiba: Ninja Gaiden Z has been a bit of a mystery since it was announced. In the video below, Hayashi and Inafune discuss details of the game, and answer questions about its development. There is also a teensy little bit of gameplay in the beginning.

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Check Out This Side-Story's Comic-Book Flair

2013-03-27T07:35:00Z

Today at the Game Developers Conference in San Francisco, California, Team Ninja and Comcept showed off Yaiba: Ninja Gaiden Z. Heading the discussion about the the cyborg ninja vs. zombie game were Mega Man/Onimusha/Dead Rising creator and Comcept boss Keiji Inafune and Team Ninja Lead Yasuke Hayashi. Spark Unlimited (Legendary, Lost Planet 3) is also working on the project. Inafune and Hayashida highlighted the game’s graphic novel story sequences, explained the character of Yaiba, and gave us an early look at a stylish trailer showing off gameplay.

“A lot of people know me for my zombies game Dead Rising,” says Inafune. “I believe Dead Rising has a comical element in it. It’s not just about killing zombies but it can make you laugh and smile. I think zombie games need that atmosphere, and you’ll see moments where you think it’s a little bit funny.”

To illustrate this point, Inafune and Hayashi showed off a comic book-style sequence from the game. Certain story segments are shown off via panels inspired by American graphic novels. Yaiba is a smart-mouthed zombie-slayer that rips off zombies’ arms and uses them as nunchucks. Inafune went into greater detail regarding Yaiba’s character.

Yaiba lost on of his eyes and an arm in an “epic battle”, which have since been replaced with cybernetic prosthetics. Yaiba appears to have a chip on his shoulder, and is hungry for a battle with Ninja Gaiden series protagonist Ryu Hayabusa. Could Ryu be responsible for Yaiba’s wounds? Inafune revealed that the relationship between Dragon Ball Z characters Goku and Vegeta inspired him for Yaiba and Ryu’s dynamic. “Goku is an ultimate fighter, and Vegeta thinks he can always beat him,” says Inafune. “But Vegeta always loses.” He wouldn’t say who Yaiba was in this example.

Finally, Team Ninja and Comcept showed off a trailer for the game. The art style of the in-game footage reminds me of Marvel vs. Capcom’s heavily inked style, and gels with the comic book story aesthetic. The action shows Yaiba leaping across rooftops, squeezing monster organs to cover enemies with noxious goo, and taking down huge swaths of zombies with his sword. The teaser was brief, but shows promise of a solid, stylish action game in the making.

Speaking of teases, Inafune ended the meeting by saying Yaiba: Ninja Gaiden Z will be playable at E3 2013. Along with the hands-on time, Team Ninja and Comcept will also be revealing more about the relationship between Yaiba and Ryu. Yaiba: Ninja Gaiden Z is currently set to arrive on the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 with no confirmed release date.

Yaiba Headed To Current Gen Consoles

2012-12-27T21:13:00Z

Mega Man creator Keiji Inafune announced that he was working with Tecmo on a zombie-themed Ninja Gaiden game, but at the time the company was cryptic about which console the new game would release for.

It seems that the bloody cat is out of the bag. As Siliconera recently reported, a bunch of new job listed for developer Spark Unlimited reveal that the game is being planning for release on the Xbox 360 and the PlayStation 3. This doesn’t necessarily rule out a port to next gen consoles, but it looks like you won’t have to upgrade your hardware to play this rotting take on Ninja Gaiden. For more on Yaiba check out the announce trailer here.