Koei Tecmo has just unveiled a new gameplay trailer for Ninja Gaiden: Ragebound, an upcoming 2D side-scrolling action game that pays homage to Koei Tecmo's classic, 1980s-era Ninja Gaiden arcade and NES games.
This new trailer showcases a 2nd playable character, new gameplay mechanics, and more over-the-top combat against hordes of brutal enemies.
The new character in question is Kumori, a female ninja who fights for the Black Spider Clan, a faction that opposes the Hayabusa Clan and the game's main character, Kenji Mozu.
Unlike Kenji who prefers to fight enemies up close with his sword and ninja arts, Kumori is a ranged fighter who attacks by throwing kunai knives and employing demonic magic to dispatch her enemies.
Kenji and Kumori despise each other due to their clan's respective generational hatred for one another. However, after a disastrous fight with demons that leaves them on death's door, Kumori uses a forbidden power to merge her spirit with Kenji's in order to survive.
Now literally bound together, Kenji and Kumori must put aside their rivalry and use their newfound 'Ninja Fusion' powers to destroy the demon realm's forces looking to destroy both their clans.
Ninja Fusion is one of Ninja Gaiden: Ragebound's core gameplay mechanics, which allows the player to switch back and forth between controlling Kenji and Kumori at will. Careful use of Ninja Fusion and each ninja's unique abilities will be critical in traversing obstacles and taking down the game's gigantic, intimidating, and brutally challenging boss fights.
Ninja Gaiden's epic comeback tour continues to impress
When I first saw Ninja Gaiden: Ragebound announced during the 2024 Game Awards, my jaw hit the floor over how gorgeous the pixel-art animations were and how insane the combat looked.
After watching the second trailer, the hype I have for this game has grown to the point where I've put it on my wishlist for the most anticipated upcoming Xbox games/upcoming PC games of 2025, and I say this as someone who's never played a Ninja Gaiden game in my life.
Kenji and Kumori look awesome and fun to play, the combat system looks incredibly fast-paced and brutal, and the newly revealed Ninja Fusion mechanic opens up so many possibilities for creating mind-blowing combo attacks.
Koei Tecmo's Ninja Gaiden franchise is making an explosive comeback in 2025 with Ninja Gaiden: Ragebound, shadow-dropping Ninja Gaiden 2 Black onto Xbox Game Pass, and announcing Ninja Gaiden 4, the first new mainline Ninja Gaiden game since 2012's Ninja Gaiden 3: Razor's Edge.
Out of those three, Ninja Gaiden: Ragebound is the one I'm personally looking forward to the most for its retro-aesthetic and I can't wait to play it when it releases during the Summer of 2025 for Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Nintendo Switch, and PC via Steam.
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