This looks like someone remade the Ninja Gaiden arcade game using the Streets of Rage 1 engine. That's not a bad thing as it seemed a little more development and it could have been a very good Genesis beat 'em up had they released it. Maybe a talented hacker will take what's there and make something more complete one day.
I remember actually seeing this game in a Brazilian video game magazine when I was a kid. They allegedly played through the whole prototype. It was on Revista Ação Games issue 31, from March of 1993. You can find scans of it online.
Ninja Gaiden on Master System is still my favorite of the bunch; so I would’ve LOVED to get my hands on a Genesis Ninja Gaiden! By the way, iirc it was your review of Ninja Gaiden Shadow that made me aware of it’s existence and got me to finally play through it! So thank you for that.
Haha, my pleasure. Ninja Gaiden Shadow is one of my favorite Game Boy games. And Master System Ninja Gaiden is pretty underrated too. But that might be because of not too many people being aware of that game also. Tecmo really needs to release an old school Ninja Gaiden collection already. lol
There actually is a romhack that fixes the diagonal movement. I hope one day someone "finishes" the game, adds new content, improves the gameplay, and finishes the cinematics and what not. With the Genesis SDK, it's possible!
That would be epic if they did. Hell, maybe some day Tecmo will release an old school Ninja Gaiden Collection and a finished version of this game could be on there. Wishful thinking of course lol
That's the thing about these prototypes, wish fan hacks and patches were made for them. fixing whatever issues game have, then later improve the gameplay hacks.
Great video, thanks for taking the time to make it! The comments are always interesting to read as well, some good conversation! The genesis version, to me, is more of a "proof of concept" than something that should have ever been released. The NES version is fondly remembered, but there are more than a few of us that have equally fond memories of the arcade version, which the Genesis version is inspired by. Many remember it for the gory "continue ?" screen, I personally remember it because I want to know what happens to the sword on the Ninja's back when he kicks or hangs on the pole. Probably removed due to time constraints. I always thought it was hysterical that the NES box art for Ninja Gaiden 1 and 2 emphasized "Biggest arcade hit!" and "Sequel to Ninja Gaiden, the arcade and Nintendo bestseller". Stinks that Ninja Gaiden 2 the arcade game was lost. It was supposed to be on the Neo Geo, there's even a flyer with pictures floating on the internet, that could have been interesting.
This is the Ninja Gaiden I thought my pops bought me on Christmas for NES. I played the arcade so much and loved it. When I opened the gift and saw Ninja Gaiden my heart dropped and I was excited. Popped it in my NES hit the power button and then *cutscene* even more excited. Started the game, dropped into stage 1...."WTF is this?". Not the arcade game, but of course now it's a classic in it's own right and besides the 2000 era reboot it's a definitive version old heads hold dear. My childhood friend got an Atari Lynx and he told me he had Ninja Gaiden on it. I asked if I could play and when I booted into stage 1 I was blown away "IT'S THE ARCADE GAME!!!" I was a Sega kid so had this actually released I'd have been stoked.
The Genesis takes the bottle over it's sound, but there is something about it that I loved...it was just different from other systems and you could tell a Genesis game was being played based strictly on sound, most of the time...
Haha, yeah the Genesis definitely has a unique sound to it. Even for games that are on both the Genesis and SNES, you can still tell which is the Genesis. lol
First I appreciated the effort on the Genesis as opposed to the lazy Trilogy offering on the SNES. Next, to mention Shinobi 3 and not Revenge Of Shinobi and Shadow Dancer is criminal. List them all if you're going to list it. Also there was Ninja Ryukenden on TG 16 which was actually damn good. Ryu has jumped out of many planes dating back to the NES and the reboots. Lastly the 3 wolverine characters were in the arcade Ninja Gaiden.
The original release of Ninja Gaiden was an arcade button mash brawler which I think Tecmo had enough self-awareness to realize they simply could not port such a title faithfully to the 8bit home consoles of the era so they instead chose to reinvent the title as a story driven platformer which in my opinion, I liked better than the arcade version. Given that Sega was all about bringing the arcade experience home, I suspect this Genesis prototype was an attempt to try and do as faithful of a port as possible but having watched your video, I agree that canceling this project was likely for the better. We've even seen this approach carried forward all the way to the Xbox generation with the remake being a 3D metroidvania style game but the sequels went back to the button mash brawler style which I didn't like as much as the 1st remake.
No use of weapons😒 no use of his signature sword nor ninja stars. You would think in a beat em up he would be able to pick up drop weapons like in double dragon and Punisher...yeah it needed more seems bland.
Sega Genesis is the most overhyped system of all time! It has some good games but it was not nearly as good as it was hyped up to be and no where the quality of Nintendo! 😂
Dude, just speak normal. Why do you have to speak with the weirdo voice? We’re not all kids here. Sad, I literally made it 20 seconds in and now I’m gone. I’ll watch a more normal review elsewhere.
This looks like someone remade the Ninja Gaiden arcade game using the Streets of Rage 1 engine. That's not a bad thing as it seemed a little more development and it could have been a very good Genesis beat 'em up had they released it. Maybe a talented hacker will take what's there and make something more complete one day.
That's what I thought too
Streets of Gaiden? 😂
_Gaiden Axe_
Toe Jam & Gaiden
There is a pc engine version. Typing this early in the video so I'm not sure if it's mentioned or not.
Getting ready to for Ninja Gaiden Ragebound
Oh yes it can't get here soon enough
Hell freakin’ yeah! 🙌
I remember actually seeing this game in a Brazilian video game magazine when I was a kid. They allegedly played through the whole prototype. It was on Revista Ação Games issue 31, from March of 1993. You can find scans of it online.
More than likely shelved because of Shinobi 3, which NG had little chance of besting.
I love Ninja Gaiden Arcade. I would've played the shit out of this if it ever came out polished! Cool find.
It also kind of reminds me of the first Streets Of Rage game
The way the homebrew community is, this will make a fine beat em up with enough hacks. Fix that soundtrack too. Hopefully
Ninja Gaiden on Master System is still my favorite of the bunch; so I would’ve LOVED to get my hands on a Genesis Ninja Gaiden!
By the way, iirc it was your review of Ninja Gaiden Shadow that made me aware of it’s existence and got me to finally play through it! So thank you for that.
Haha, my pleasure. Ninja Gaiden Shadow is one of my favorite Game Boy games. And Master System Ninja Gaiden is pretty underrated too. But that might be because of not too many people being aware of that game also. Tecmo really needs to release an old school Ninja Gaiden collection already. lol
@ Oh man, that would be awesome!
Let's face it, this is far enough along that someone in the genesis homebrew community is almost certainly gonna finish and release it at some point.
Agreed. The diagonal movement has already been fixed in a romhack as well.
You actually didn't say this game would be better on the snes for once, are you changing your ways?
I get the feeling Abobo from Double Dragon or Thrasher from Final Fight will suddenly appear on the screen!!
There actually is a romhack that fixes the diagonal movement. I hope one day someone "finishes" the game, adds new content, improves the gameplay, and finishes the cinematics and what not. With the Genesis SDK, it's possible!
That would be epic if they did. Hell, maybe some day Tecmo will release an old school Ninja Gaiden Collection and a finished version of this game could be on there. Wishful thinking of course lol
I guess because it was the 80s and 90s so we got dominatrix types in our video games😎
Haha, no complaints here. I’m all for it. 😂
Wholly sh*t! Ryu just Super kicked that poor guy Shawn Michaels style! At 2:06. 😂🤣
That's the thing about these prototypes,
wish fan hacks and patches were made for them.
fixing whatever issues game have, then later improve the gameplay hacks.
They said they were going to do that with Sim City on the NES when it surfaced. Five years later and nothing happened.
Nobody supports the creators but want people to spend hrs making a game lol@@caseystrange
Thanks for the video broski because i learned something new about the unreleased Ninja Gaiden game for Sega Genesis and it looks awesome🤘🤘😎😎
I’m glad you found it interesting. It’s a damn shame it never officially came out! 😔
Happy New Year, bro! Shame we didn't get a finished version for Sega.
Its a real shame. Hopefully some day though. Happy new years to you as well jaBROni!! 🤘🏼
Is like the Arcade fighting more with Punches than the Dragon 🐉 sword
Great video, thanks for taking the time to make it!
The comments are always interesting to read as well, some good conversation!
The genesis version, to me, is more of a "proof of concept" than something that should have ever been released.
The NES version is fondly remembered, but there are more than a few of us that have equally fond memories of the arcade version, which the Genesis version is inspired by. Many remember it for the gory "continue ?" screen, I personally remember it because I want to know what happens to the sword on the Ninja's back when he kicks or hangs on the pole. Probably removed due to time constraints.
I always thought it was hysterical that the NES box art for Ninja Gaiden 1 and 2 emphasized "Biggest arcade hit!" and "Sequel to Ninja Gaiden, the arcade and Nintendo bestseller".
Stinks that Ninja Gaiden 2 the arcade game was lost. It was supposed to be on the Neo Geo, there's even a flyer with pictures floating on the internet, that could have been interesting.
Good video, Id definitely like to play this version eventually. Awesome Karloff T-shirt, just subbed!
Haha, thanks. Big fan of those old school horror movies. Boris Karloff is the freakin’ man. lol. And thanks for subbing! 🤘🏼😁🤘🏼
This is the Ninja Gaiden I thought my pops bought me on Christmas for NES. I played the arcade so much and loved it. When I opened the gift and saw Ninja Gaiden my heart dropped and I was excited. Popped it in my NES hit the power button and then *cutscene* even more excited. Started the game, dropped into stage 1...."WTF is this?". Not the arcade game, but of course now it's a classic in it's own right and besides the 2000 era reboot it's a definitive version old heads hold dear.
My childhood friend got an Atari Lynx and he told me he had Ninja Gaiden on it. I asked if I could play and when I booted into stage 1 I was blown away "IT'S THE ARCADE GAME!!!"
I was a Sega kid so had this actually released I'd have been stoked.
Played this in the 90s on Genecyst. Great game.
I genuinely enjoyed this game, but im a stoner, so everything gets better.
When are you gonna review Ninja Gaiden Sigma my brotha? I just beat it last night coincidentally. 😎
Hello there,where did you buy that console furniture you have on your wall?
Gotta love the Sega Genesis farts noises at the beginning. 🤣
I've played it back in the day. Didn't know it was an unfinished game.
Wherw do you get the rom from
So, so weird .
It’s as if the stages from Ninja Gaiden NES were made to fit into Streets of Rage combined with the Arcade Ninja Gaiden.
The Genesis takes the bottle over it's sound, but there is something about it that I loved...it was just different from other systems and you could tell a Genesis game was being played based strictly on sound, most of the time...
Haha, yeah the Genesis definitely has a unique sound to it. Even for games that are on both the Genesis and SNES, you can still tell which is the Genesis. lol
Im a major ninja fan but i love ninja gaiden. Cant wait till shinobi reboot
First I appreciated the effort on the Genesis as opposed to the lazy Trilogy offering on the SNES. Next, to mention Shinobi 3 and not Revenge Of Shinobi and Shadow Dancer is criminal. List them all if you're going to list it. Also there was Ninja Ryukenden on TG 16 which was actually damn good. Ryu has jumped out of many planes dating back to the NES and the reboots. Lastly the 3 wolverine characters were in the arcade Ninja Gaiden.
What! Awesome I need to download this game
I thought it would be like the Ninja Gaiden on the Master System.
Reminds me of a Streets of Rage clone with Ryu Haybusa as the main hero. Could've been really cool, just wasn't meant to be.
The original release of Ninja Gaiden was an arcade button mash brawler which I think Tecmo had enough self-awareness to realize they simply could not port such a title faithfully to the 8bit home consoles of the era so they instead chose to reinvent the title as a story driven platformer which in my opinion, I liked better than the arcade version. Given that Sega was all about bringing the arcade experience home, I suspect this Genesis prototype was an attempt to try and do as faithful of a port as possible but having watched your video, I agree that canceling this project was likely for the better. We've even seen this approach carried forward all the way to the Xbox generation with the remake being a 3D metroidvania style game but the sequels went back to the button mash brawler style which I didn't like as much as the 1st remake.
I wish fans would mod it and fix the game
Anyone played? Opinions?
No use of weapons😒 no use of his signature sword nor ninja stars. You would think in a beat em up he would be able to pick up drop weapons like in double dragon and Punisher...yeah it needed more seems bland.
No wonder Sega decided to unreleased it 😂😂😂😂😂
I would’ve like this better than than tht stupid nes crap
Sega Genesis is the most overhyped system of all time! It has some good games but it was not nearly as good as it was hyped up to be and no where the quality of Nintendo! 😂
A wise decision not to release this game. It's overwhelming subpar, especially in comparison to the beat em ups that were out in 1992.
Ive got a megadrive version of shadow warriors on my everdrive but its rubbish.
Oh i played this meh
Looks horrible. Glad they didn't waste everyone's money.
Dude, just speak normal. Why do you have to speak with the weirdo voice? We’re not all kids here. Sad, I literally made it 20 seconds in and now I’m gone. I’ll watch a more normal review elsewhere.
Twas phony....typical Genesis fighting game
This is stupid and I hate it.