I got Mark of the Ninja last Thursday when it was on sale on Steam for £4. It was a game I had pretty high on my wishlist but didn't really know that much about. I mean, I knew it was a stealth game in 2D with visual style I liked but that's pretty much it. And woah, I got more than I expected
- the controls and movement is satisfying, reminded me of playing Prince of Persia (the Sands of Time trilogy) with being able to find a rhythm and flow and go with it. Although at several times some slightly awkward places would disrupt the flow of play but it's nothing big
- the visual style I really like. And the entire game uses it, yaaay!
- upgrades system is good - do well in levels and earn points to spend on upgrades. You also have optional objectives that might involve some challenge - from needing an upgrade through to not fitting with some playstyles. For example, you might have an objective to kill some people in particular way, however, you might want to sneak through the entire level. If you do kill somebody, you lose on a big bonus for not killing people...which might cost an upgrade point. Or you could just kill everybody (or most people) on the level - that should cover the no kill bonus. At any rate, it's worth sticking to an approach.
- dispatching enemies is a bit limited at first but sufficiently gory. Sneak up on somebody, press attack and follow the quick time event. Although it's not much of a quick time event - I found there is ple-e-e-enty of time to execute it and it's one of two patterns you need to do - hold down the left mouse button and swipe the mouse in either left or right. If you fail, they still die, you just get an imperfect kill so it's noisy and could attract others. With upgrades, the kills become more varied and fun - pull somebody through a door and kill them there, jump and kill them upon landing, etc.
- actually manipulating enemies is fun - make a sound and they'll go investigate it, which means you could sneak past them or maybe just use the opportunity for a kill. But what I found amazingly satisfying was terrorising enemies. See, you can leave a corpse for a guard to find - you can lure them in this way, but if you hang the corpse of a high point, for example, they'll be scared shitless upon seeing it. Terrorised enemies will shoot anything that moves...including their friends. And wow, just wow, there is even an upgrade that let's you terrorise enemies on whim (a dart covered with hallucinogenic poison) you can even improve it and the description says something along the lines of "the target becomes so afraid, they could even hurt themselves". And they can, all right - once hit with the dart they go through normal terrorise behaviour but also have a little timer - once that ends, the dread becomes too much for them to bear, so they just take their own life. I was left speechless when I first saw it.
- I also liked the shout outs. You get a Silent Assassin when you stealth kill somebody, one of the achievements is called "The Dark Project", another is "Deadly Shadows" and there are several more. They are pleasing.
- finally, story-wise it's not a shining beacon but it's also not terrible. For the most part - you're a ninja, and you bear that mark from the title - you're sort of a chosen warrior of the clan and you have to go do restore their honour. It's sufficient to keep the levels going. The end came as a slight surprise, though - I suppose I just wasn't expecting it
- and one more thing - you get a New Game Plus where things are harder but, of course, you get to keep your stuff.
Overall, pretty solid game, especially since I got it for £4, but it's easily worth the full price of £12. I think I got that amount of enjoyment out of it and I'll still continue to play it.
- the controls and movement is satisfying, reminded me of playing Prince of Persia (the Sands of Time trilogy) with being able to find a rhythm and flow and go with it. Although at several times some slightly awkward places would disrupt the flow of play but it's nothing big
- the visual style I really like. And the entire game uses it, yaaay!
- upgrades system is good - do well in levels and earn points to spend on upgrades. You also have optional objectives that might involve some challenge - from needing an upgrade through to not fitting with some playstyles. For example, you might have an objective to kill some people in particular way, however, you might want to sneak through the entire level. If you do kill somebody, you lose on a big bonus for not killing people...which might cost an upgrade point. Or you could just kill everybody (or most people) on the level - that should cover the no kill bonus. At any rate, it's worth sticking to an approach.
- dispatching enemies is a bit limited at first but sufficiently gory. Sneak up on somebody, press attack and follow the quick time event. Although it's not much of a quick time event - I found there is ple-e-e-enty of time to execute it and it's one of two patterns you need to do - hold down the left mouse button and swipe the mouse in either left or right. If you fail, they still die, you just get an imperfect kill so it's noisy and could attract others. With upgrades, the kills become more varied and fun - pull somebody through a door and kill them there, jump and kill them upon landing, etc.
- actually manipulating enemies is fun - make a sound and they'll go investigate it, which means you could sneak past them or maybe just use the opportunity for a kill. But what I found amazingly satisfying was terrorising enemies. See, you can leave a corpse for a guard to find - you can lure them in this way, but if you hang the corpse of a high point, for example, they'll be scared shitless upon seeing it. Terrorised enemies will shoot anything that moves...including their friends. And wow, just wow, there is even an upgrade that let's you terrorise enemies on whim (a dart covered with hallucinogenic poison) you can even improve it and the description says something along the lines of "the target becomes so afraid, they could even hurt themselves". And they can, all right - once hit with the dart they go through normal terrorise behaviour but also have a little timer - once that ends, the dread becomes too much for them to bear, so they just take their own life. I was left speechless when I first saw it.
- I also liked the shout outs. You get a Silent Assassin when you stealth kill somebody, one of the achievements is called "The Dark Project", another is "Deadly Shadows" and there are several more. They are pleasing.
- finally, story-wise it's not a shining beacon but it's also not terrible. For the most part - you're a ninja, and you bear that mark from the title - you're sort of a chosen warrior of the clan and you have to go do restore their honour. It's sufficient to keep the levels going. The end came as a slight surprise, though - I suppose I just wasn't expecting it
From the beginning of the game, you've been told that the mark on your body (which is a tattoo) is toxic and would drive you mad. Sort of the whole idea is that whoever receives the mark, does the job they are chosen to and take their life for that reason. And around the last levels you can actually spot some things that don't quite belong - the hallucinations getting to you - marks on the walls start shifting and transforming before your eyes. Harmless stuff. There is also imaginary people, though. But the one that I didn't see coming was the companion you had for the whole game - she was a hallucination, too. Then again, I did wander what the hell was she doing there - she didn't do anything during the missions just talked. And why the hell would the clan send the champion and also a random girl to do the deed? Yeah, a hallucination fits quite well
- and one more thing - you get a New Game Plus where things are harder but, of course, you get to keep your stuff.
Overall, pretty solid game, especially since I got it for £4, but it's easily worth the full price of £12. I think I got that amount of enjoyment out of it and I'll still continue to play it.
One of the best things I've done in a while.
