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Ninjatown Review

You seen it all before haven't you?  You walk into your local game store to check out the new DS games, glance at the box, see a bunch of cutesy, child-like images, put the box back on the shelf, and beat a hasty retreat.  And so it probably will go with Ninjatown.  But you'd be making a big mistake.  Because beneath that sickeningly sweet looking façade is a nice, deep tower defense game.

Won't you take me to... Ninjatown

Surely you've played one of the many tower defense games floating around the internet, right?  You place defense structures in order to intercept and destroy any and all nasty critter that have the gall to walk through your territory.  It's kind of a puzzley, arcadey, strategy game.

Well, Ninjatown is that... with Ninjas, which automatically makes it better than most tower defense games.  As you make your way through the roughly 30 levels, you'll meet up with the impossibly cute denizens of Ninjatown.  The story, told through still images and text, features genuinely snappy writing.  So much so, that you'll actually want to read it.  That and the bright, simple visuals suggest a game that's not concerned with taking itself seriously.

Where have all the Ninjas gone. Long Time Passing

Ninjatown has got it where it counts.  There's a game here and it's a good one.  There are a variety of ninjas, modifier buildings, and enemies which required you to think about the best way to handle each level.  Early levels are a walk in the park, but once you get a little further into the game, things open up and you've got some serious choices to make.  Like any good town defense game, the fun comes from adjusting your strategy during the assault. Like any good DS game, the developers have included special attack that you execute by doing things like blowing into the microphone.

Sadly, for lefties, like me, the game is a tad more difficult because scrolling around the playfield is mapped to the D-pad.  While you can use the stylus to scroll, it's not nearly as speedy.  And once the game ramps up, moving around the map becomes more and more important.

No Pirates Allowed

Ninjatown is not a particularly difficult game (unless you're going for a perfect score), but it's a fresh and engaging experience.  Do yourself a favor.  Don't judge this book by its cover.  Instead, judge it by its sweet, creamy, ninja-filled center.

Article by: Greg Bemis