I was a big fan of Ninja Gaiden. As a result, I was happy to hear Itagaki was testing the series on the Nintendo DS with Ninja Gaiden: Dragon Sword (huh; look at that, another DS game with "DS" in its acronym). Dragon Sword is a game that mixes a lot of Ninja Gaiden with a lot of Nintendo DS. Fundamentally, it is a smooth transition. Ninja Gaiden was taken from its original succes on the Xbox and made to a cohesive DS version.

Ninja Gaiden: Dragon Sword is one of the few games to use the stylus control mechanics effectively, at least for the most part. Ryu Hayabusa is controlled almost completely with the stylus, and this results in some interesting gameplay situations. Although the feeling is a little different, it is clear that you are playing Ninja Gaiden when you turn your DS sideways to play Dragon Sword.

Beware, however: Dragon Sword can be an awkward game, and its stylus-only/sideways-DS design should be a clear indicator of that. Not all Ninja Gaiden fans are going to enjoy playing this game, but some of its mechanics are definitely solid attempts at bringing the series to the DS, and that counts for a lot.

Learn the ways of a handheld ninja after the jump.

Except for using any face button to block (and, with that, a direction to dodge), Dragon Sword is controlled only with the stylus. This means Ryu moves, attacks, jumps, and interacts with simple motions on the touch screen. For the most part, this style works pretty well. Playing Dragon Sword is a lot like playing Zelda: Phantom Hourglass, in that Ryu attacks enemies when lines are drawn over them. Dragon Sword is effective at creating a feeling of "slashing", that's for sure.

Unfortunately, some of the other stylus mechanics fail to work so well. It is obnoxiously annoying to jump up the tall, thin pits that litter most of the game's 13 levels. Jumping in general is awkward, so the effective aerial attacks can require some extra effort to use. To use the Ultimate Techniques, which dispach waves of enemies with ease, you have to scribble rapidly over Ryu's on-screen model. This is annoying and silly, period. Just getting used to holding the DS sideways and holding it well while slashing relentlessly with the stylus takes some getting used to, so like the other Ninja Gaiden games, this is a game that is hard to pick up and play well.

The stylus is also used to draw up Ninpo, but I will say that Ninpo is nowhere near as useful as it was in the Xbox Ninja Gaiden. Ninpo is frequently used to burn down spider webs that block paths, or light torches, or blow up parts of the environment. It is not very effective in combat, and the only Ninpo I frequently used while battling enemies was the Ninpo that generates blue orbs, which are used to restore Ryu's health.

The game's biggest problem is that there are waves of enemies that almost never seem to end. Let's just say that this is one of the many DS games that you can keep playing while slashing with the stylus with one hand, and do anything else with the other. At times, during some of the most tiring and repeptitive fights, I sat down my DS and continued to scribble randomly over the screen while I carried on conversations, ate and drank at the same time. This makes the combat seem pretty mindless, and that's too bad. Some of the boss fights require a lot more skill with dodging, blocking, and using Ryu's different attacks. Against bosses, Ninpo was more useful than for just environmental puzzles, but only because the spells suck down the boss's health bar quicker.

The story takes place six months after the events of the original Ninja Gaiden, after Ryu restored peace to the land, as well as his hometown of Hayabusa Village. Now Ryu's female ninja friend Momiji is kidnapped by the Black Spider Clan (who else?), and he has to save her. The story involves other characters from Ninja Gaiden as well as several fresh faces, but I will admit that I was not nearly as interested or immersed by this story as I was the original.

Dragon Sword takes an acceptable visual shortcut that is only made acceptable because it helps maintain a perfect frame rate and silky-smooth animations. Almost every environment is pre-rendered, like the original Resident Evil games. They are quite stoic and sometimes boring, but Ryu and his enemies look wonderful. The models are detailed and move so well that it is hard to care about anything but the vivid movement that is going on. I did not dig the still-frame cut-scenes, but it is better to sit through those than try to play through a chuggy game because of a loaded-down cartridge.

It is also acceptable that Dragon Sword does not feature online multiplayer options. Ninja Gaiden would be strange to play cooperatively or competitively, so the Nintendo Wi-Fi Connectivity found here is actually just leaderboard support for Karma earned in the single-player. The game is not very long, clocking in at about seven or eight hours to beat the 13 levels, even considering deaths and re-played levels.

Although it is hard to recommend Dragon Sword for everyone, I think it is an interesting game that Ninja Gaiden fans should look at. It keeps a lot of the Ninja Gaiden style fresh on the modest DS, and that fact is impressive on its own. Still, the mechanics did not mix well with me, and I think that playing Dragon Sword with buttons and traditional controls would have been more effective. Also, if the endless waves of enemies did not bog down and stretch the combat to death, the game would be a lot more fun to play through. Itagaki did not fail in his handheld Ninja Gaiden attempt, he just did not put together the same success as before.

Final Score: 6/10 

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