Review by Fabiano “Deimos” Backpack
Imagine the darkness of a stormy night, the wind that slams the windows closed badly and the cold that penetrates the bones. Now imagine you hear a sound coming from behind you, you turn around but you see nothing, in the room shrouded in darkness you are alone but something, you know, is hiding from your eyes. The presence you perceive is not malicious on the contrary, he is refining his ninja technique, that of hiding himself from the eyes of others. You are the ninja master and he is Hiro, one of six characters that you can control in Mini Ninjas, a new adventure from IO Interactive.
THE WAY OF THE NINJA
Personally, after last month's beautiful demo (and our juicy preview), I certainly wasn't expecting a fall in style. by IO Interactive and in fact there is a fun and immediate game on your hands, suitable both for the little ones but also for the older ones of us who want to face a beautiful adventure full of mysteries but also full of so much poetry .
Yes, Mini Ninjas captivates right from the start, not for its story that all in all could be trivial - the usual baddie conquering the world - but above all for the excellent success of some characters who really break the screen, I am obviously talking about the six protagonists of the adventure who will all be fully controllable by the user. ALT, don't think that Mini Ninjas is a tactical game, seen and considered the nature of the characters, some stealth sections are there but everything is more aimed at hitting everything that moves on the screen (or almost).
Even the use of the six characters does not take place in real time, let me explain better, six little heads will not be displayed on the screen but only one at a time while the others will be recalled via a simple pop-up menu.
The choice is perfect for two reasons, first of all we tend to focus on one character at a time (all with unique pros and cons and unique abilities) but always bearing in mind that we can change another hero at any time. Secondly, not all characters will be available immediately; history teaches us that four ninja were sent to fight evil but unfortunately did not return, captured by the opposing forces, our task will be to free them from slavery so that we can control them.
Here the first two controllable characters enter the scene, Hiro and Futo, speed and magic against strength and resistance: as I said above, each one has its own main and dominant characteristics so that for some sections of the game we will not be able to continue with the adventure if we do not use one or the other character wisely. Followed by the character of Suzume who has the ability to hypnotize opponents with her magic flute. Kunoichi who is the expert in archery and lastly, Toma and Shun who can… I won't tell you otherwise I'll spoil the whole surprise.
The nice thing about the characters that we still have to free is that along the way there will be scrolls attached to the trees that tell some pieces of their story such as the fact that Suzume discovered a temple nearby of a lake but which has not managed to enter it and possess the spell contained within it: this trick, as well as being well thought out, is used to give more details of the surrounding area in order to encourage the user to explore every corner.
THE BAD TURN
One of the things I liked most about the game is the bad guy on duty.
In recent months I have faced avalanches of more or less mythological beasts, technologically advanced soldiers, infernal demons and so on and so forth while in Mini Ninjas, evil is represented by a magician who has turned all the beasts of the surrounding woods into lethal soldiers. So we have little samurai on our hands who are nothing more than foxes or frogs or dogs but we will also be able to meet armored soldiers who, once defeated, turn back into mountain bears or giant pandas.
Obviously, the violence of the game is absolutely minimal and this is why enemies do not die but become wild animals again. In addition to the beautiful thought of the programmers, it is also a way like any other to add purely action sections to the game without focusing on the gratuitous violence of physical clashes with blood or limbs that flutter everywhere since Hiro, being a ninjas, will use his katana to hit opponents (Futo instead uses a large hammer to bang heavily on the head of the unfortunate on duty). Very last characters to point out that here we are back to fight also with the classic end-of-level bosses, however, do not expect anything really difficult: beyond finding out how to take down the villain, unfortunately the fights will be completed with the quick-time event, so we will have to press the on-screen buttons in time to defeat the menace. Personally I would have preferred real-time clashes but luckily, they're still fun.
OBLIVION o GTA???
As for the RPG sections of the game or the Free-roming ones, obviously the two games mentioned in the title have very little and almost nothing to do with Mini Ninjas also because we do not have either case but only a title that adds just a hint of character growth and another hint of freedom of movement in the schemes. As for character growth and magic, know that technically speaking the only one who level up is Hiro, the main, the others do not have special powers but can only count on the technique that differentiates them (the magic flute or the ability to hit opponents from a distance with the bow). Personally I do not agree with this choice but I understand that such a title must be immediate and therefore enough and advances the growth of even a single character of six - what remains unchanged in the others is life and resistance in the sense that when we reach four or five hearts of life (we start with three), the others will also have as many. As magic, the only one who can use it is Hiro and the powers will vary between the offensive ones (fireball, lightning etc), the defensive ones (magic shield, camouflage) and those of research and spirit (visualize magic temple or animal soul). All the powers will have to be learned along the way only after the discovery of certain magical temples capable of giving us the sacred scrolls of Kuji power. But be careful, although around the schemes there are one or two times of power, it is not said that we will be able to take the magic contained in them, this is because to activate the times we will always need of a flower (or two or three) that is found who knows where around the schemes and here the exploration comes into play.
The schemes are great but not a lot, they are really enough to entertain a half hour or even the good hour, if we really want to go and stick our heads in every bush. As we discover secret places or hidden places (the temple of the waterfall in the third level is beautiful ... you will understand how to reach it), we will be able to discover in turn some unique elements that we can reuse in the creation of potions or defensive objects (such as smoke bombs or explosives ). So you see that Mini Ninjas is therefore not a simple action but hides small variations of assorted fun so much so that even the manufacture of potions is a skill, which we must first learn well and then know how to use at will.
Again, as far as life or magic is concerned, the liberated animals will release spheres that will enhance our experience to increase the magical level or strength of all characters.
Le spheres could be yellow or red, the former for the level, the latter for special techniques and magic. As for life, on the screen it is represented by little hearts that every time we take a blow will divide into means or disappear completely, obviously the game over will also be touched if the character remains lifeless and we will have to start over from a previously saved checkpoint. Hearts can be recovered in two ways, the first is by drinking magical potions found or crafted along the way - the simple way is to eat the fruits that the surrounding forest or trees or bushes offer. Berries, apples, chestnuts etc totally restore the lost energy. This makes the character practically immortal, a fairly obvious choice for a game of the genre, classified for the little ones (but it will also amuse hardcore gamers, I'm sure).
LITTLE BIG HEROES
Last chapter to describe graphics, audio and final comment.
The game's graphics engine absolutely does not want to compete with the latest productions in the sectorSo don't expect super cool particle effects, bump mapping or full screen HDR. Here we are talking about a game focused more on visual beauty than on the arrogance of the graphic engine, so if the textures are flat it is because a cartoon style has been sought rather than something more serious. The characters are also displayed in cell shading, so spot colors and pastel colors. Having said that, however, and seeing some screenshots of the article, know that the game can really leave you speechless for some of its panoramas really rich in detail and visual distance.
Not to mention the modeling of the schemes, everything is in 3D and perfectly explorable (with the right limitations or the usual well-conceived invisible walls) ... beautiful, as I said above, a scheme with the waterfall that, seen from below, hides the lake and some houses but if you reach the top, it offers a breathtaking view of the nearby lands, of the clouds or of the general landscape that is limited and disappearing with pastel tones. Even the details of the characters or the schemes are there but they are synthesized and well blended with everything that surrounds us.
Gold medal for the reflections of the water, truly magnificent.
Audio is another poetic, magical and touching element of the game.
If I have to be honest there will not be great variety in the music but the few that there are they make the atmosphere perfectly first calm of the sections in the forest then exciting and compelling in the clashes and then become pressing and drumming in some pieces of pure warmongering style.
The music therefore changes according to the situations and this is beneficial and plays a lot in favor of a title that has already entered strongly in my personal ranking of the most beautiful games ever.
Mini Ninjas is therefore an excellent game to take with the right measure, so as to make it last as long as possible: this is because once completed, you will really miss it.
The game is passed with flying colors and I'm sure it will make you happy, I repeat myself, both for the little ones and for people who have lived on bread and videogames since their birth. Finally, there are no real defects, I have not encountered any kind of bugs or system crashes also because the game engine is so light that I hardly expected problems. On the negative side, I could only write that the game is unfortunately too short and hardly replayable - even the schemes, although they hide some secrets, are certainly not too difficult to discover at the first or at most the second play. However, it remains a truly exquisite and fun title, recommended for all those people who want to warm their hearts with a truly engaging story and characters from the very beginning. And if you are also fascinated by oriental atmospheres, this is the game for you.
