Mark of the Ninja - a 2D stealth platformer - Remastered!

[Mrowak]

Recently I've been gifted this little fun game called Mark of the Ninja. Since it came from Klei Entertainment - the creators of two superb 2D brawlers, Shank and Shank 2 - I expected little more than a beat'em up with interesting graphics and consoley gameplay I could burn a few hours with.

Being in the blind, it was sort of a shock to me that although Mark of the Ninja does share amazing art direction (slightly reminiscent of Samurai Jack cartoon series in this context) with the previous releases from that studio, and it's environments are all 2D as well, the similarities end there. Mark of the Ninja turned out to be a stealth game, and a quite excellent one at that.

Mark of the Ninja is the game when you don't want to face your opponents head on but lurk in the shadows, using items and enviornmental objects to turn the attention of enemies away from you into order to deliver swift death - or simply rush past them, being mindful to avoid beams of light which immediately reveal you position. It sounds simple on paper but the game introduces a varity of challenging situation that you can approach from a number of angles. The game stresses that there are many paths leading to your goals. There's also nice character progression system whereby for the points you are rewarded from completing objectives you can buy new abilities or equipment.

I am baffled at how from a straight brawler the devs could create a game that subverts all of the basic concepts of its predecesors and instead of being mindless fun throws some nice puzzle solving onto the table with impressive stealth mechanics, further augmented by surprisingly well done controls - considering that the game was released first on XBox it's quite an achievement (for some reason it didn't sell well on that platform - I wonder why).

I can easily say that Mark of the Ninja is the best stealth game I played since original Thief series (which the devs do pay homages to) and possibly the best port to PC ever made. It is surprising how such a simple game can have so much complexity and how it takes no compromise at what it does. It's definitely worth checking out.

 

[potatojohn]

I don't like the score system.

Stealth kill! +600 points!

Hid a body! +250 points!

Pressed left button! +20 points!

MY ENJOYMENT! -99999999 points.

 

[Mrowak]

I don't like the score system.

Stealth kill! +600 points!

Hid a body! +250 points!

Pressed left button! +20 points!

MY ENJOYMENT! -99999999 points.

It only looks bad, but it actually works quite spendindly, considering that you are rewarded with Ability Points based on your score - so the score is not just there as a gimmick but is a meaningful mechanic.

Besides I love how the game trolls you into believing that murdering people gives you better score, when it gives you massive rewards at the end of the mission for stealthy approach.

Almost shame that finding novel ways to kill people is so much fun.

 

[Mother Russia]

I liked the trailer for this a lot and really want to play it, but minimum reqs are 2GB ram. I only have 1GB.

 

[potatojohn]

Maybe it's good. I'm only basing this on youtube videos. I haven't tried it yet.

 

[circ]

Ok testing atm.

Shit art-style. Nothing wrong with going old school Shinobi. Animation's pretty unimpressive. There's also bloom, somewhere. I don't know why because nothing about the graphics is particularly impressive.

Still, could have been playable, but this is torture without a controller. Now before you point out NOOB GET A CONTROLARX - if games 20 years ago with the same complexity could be played perfectly well without one, I don't see how this isn't.

Plays like a live cartoon network ninja cartoon. Might impress the kids.

 

[J_C]

Shit art-style. Nothing wrong with going old school Shinobi. Animation's pretty unimpressive. There's also bloom, somewhere.

What? Bloom? You should come of the drugs you've been using. Do you know what bloom means at all?

Plays like a live cartoon network ninja cartoon. Might impress the kids.

You so edgy.

 

[Zewp]

Eh, I've gotten killed countless time due to the shitty controls doing something other than what I want it to do. It seems the mouse is basically just an emulated analogue stick. Trying to do something such as it out a light requires you not to click on the object, but to move your mouse in it's general direction until it 'selects' it. Pretty annoying when there are two things next to each other, such as a ledge with a light right below it.

Regardless, I can live with the bad controls, as it is an excellent stealth game. Much better than Dishonored, at any rate. And what's even better is that New Game+ is actually amazing. In NG+ you can only see in the direction your ninja is facing, with everything behind you disappearing into depth of field, noise indicators are removed and it doesn't show your last known position when enemies spot you, you can't see enemy's view cones and you can't see dogs' sniffing radius. It takes a lot more skill than the first playthrough, and I imagine I'm going to have a bitch of a time at later levels, seeing as I already had some issues on the normal playthrough in some areas.

 

[circ]

Shit art-style. Nothing wrong with going old school Shinobi. Animation's pretty unimpressive. There's also bloom, somewhere.

What? Bloom? You should come of the drugs you've been using. Do you know what bloom means at all?

Do you? There's not much bloom, pretty clear that's what I said.

Plays like a live cartoon network ninja cartoon. Might impress the kids.

You so edgy.

Sorry for raining on your new favorite game.

 

[Mrowak]

Shit art-style. Nothing wrong with going old school Shinobi. Animation's pretty unimpressive. There's also bloom, somewhere.

What? Bloom? You should come of the drugs you've been using. Do you know what bloom means at all?

Do you? There's not much bloom, pretty clear that's what I said.

Plays like a live cartoon network ninja cartoon. Might impress the kids.

You so edgy.

Sorry for raining on your new favorite game.

The problem with your criticism that it is insubstantial, not grounded or anything important, and outright misleading.

For example, how exactly it plays like Ninja live action game when there's huge emphasis on stealth. Can't say I've seen any show like that. Or the graphics being shit. Really? How exactly? Sure, the graphics is cartoony, but it is meant to be that way - that's art direction for you. No one expects photorealism in a 2D platformer. Animations are bad? How? They are smooth and pretty much perfect.

Torture without a controler. Ok, there are two opinions like that, but I fail to see how controls can be problematic. I actually have an XBox pad I used to play Shank 1 and 2, but for MotN it is left unplugged. The controls are better on keyboard than in many good platformers I played using that device.

I can't help but think you are trolling...

 

[J_C]

Plays like a live cartoon network ninja cartoon. Might impress the kids.

You so edgy.

Sorry for raining on your new favorite game.

Not my favourite by any means, but I think you were a little harsh.

 

[Metro]

I wasn't overly impressed by Shank -- decent mechanics but far too short and the bosses were mostly gimmicks versus straight up fighting. So, like that one, I'll probably just wait until this hits an indie bundle.

 

[Mrowak]

I wasn't overly impressed by Shank -- decent mechanics but far too short and the bosses were mostly gimmicks versus straight up fighting. So, like that one, I'll probably just wait until this hits an indie bundle.

I can only say that it is completely different experience.

 

[circ]

Just quick initial impressions, still playing. Tower level atm. Animations are jerky at times, not a latency or frame-rate issue. It plays like live-action ninja the game(tm), as every time there is a ninja on a show - cartoon or otherwise, he's stealthy or a heads-on rambo. Calling the graphics shit is subjective. Samurai Jack works in a cartoon for me, not in a game.

As for controllers. Yeah I'm giving up on this. Stealth games are about the utmost precision, this is like playing an arcade game with flippers.

 

[Unkillable Cat]

Still, could have been playable, but this is torture without a controller. Now before you point out NOOB GET A CONTROLARX - if games 20 years ago with the same complexity could be played perfectly well without one, I don't see how this isn't.

I think you need to revisit some of the titles from 20 years ago.

I'm not saying that you're totally wrong, there are some really complex games with an even simpler control scheme than this game, but for every 1 game that got it right, about 10-20 games got it wrong.

The best example I can give are two different games with the same name from the late 80s - Barbarian. For a game with such a simple name, you will automatically expect a hack 'n' slash title with loads of action and will be fun to play. You're right on that with one of them, the beat'em-up with the simple control scheme of one joystick + one button. The other Barbarian game was a puzzler of sorts, where the controls were a line of icons at the bottom of the screen that you had to click for such simple tasks as running, climbing stairs and jumping - and this on computers that never had a mouse.

Of the two, many remember the beat'em-up, because it was fun and easy to play.

(Then the beat'em-up got a sequel, Barbarian II, where the same "simple" control interface was used to try to navigate around a maze and jumping over pits. It was an absolute failure, a testament to the fact that simple isn't always better.)

An even better comparison (since this is a stealth game) is the evolution from Ultima Underworld to System Shock to Thief. Ultima Underworld has horrible (and non-customizable) controls. System Shock's are better, but because mouselook was not supported initally it's a bit of a clusterfuck, control-wise. Then you get Thief. Need I say more?

 

[circ]

Well, I'm right now playing Deadlight. Hating the protagonist and VO is pretty shit, and OH GAWD YOU CONTROL PIECE OF SHIT WHAT, but the atmosphere is keeping me from OH FUCK NOT TRYING TO GET FRIED FUCK YOU FUCK YOU FUCK FUCK

Stealth cartoon ninja, eeh, had it been Shinobi-like graphics wise, ie, had a realistic approach, I would have ignored controls, a little.

Yeah I just remember Barbarian from Palace Software(?), excellent music, all you had to do was roll,roll,roll,behead other guy all the way through. Well, that worked a lot of times.

 

[Crooked Bee]

I'm playing this on my laptop touchpad, and the controls are perfectly precise. Not once did my ninja not follow my input to a tee, and the timing and everything is perfect, so I don't know what there is to complain about as far as controls are concerned. I didn't even know it was originally an Xbox game until this thread.

I can't say I enjoy the game as much as Mrowak does, though. I dunno why; maybe because it's been a bit too easy so far (I'm about 3/4 through the game), even with the optional objectives. I should try a full pacifist run next time.

 

[Mrowak]

I'm playing this on my laptop touchpad, and the controls are perfectly precise. Not once did my ninja not follow my input to a tee, and the timing and everything is perfect, so I don't know what there is to complain about as far as controls are concerned. I didn't even know it was originally an Xbox game until this thread.

I can't say I enjoy the game as much as Mrowak does, though. I dunno why; maybe because it's been a bit too easy so far (I'm about 3/4 through the game), even with the optional objectives. I should try a full pacifist run next time.

To be honest initially I too thought that the game was too easy until I caught myself reloading just because I've been detected.

Having said that I think there should have been a harder mode available from the start. The normal difficulty is only hard if you are a dedicated completionist (such as myself) who absolutely has to make it to the other end completing all the goals undetected (as you get penalties if you raise the alarm) and (possibly) not killing anyone. Otherwise finishing missions is not that complicated, since under the good it is just a simple puzzle-solving game...

I like it a lot though - I dig the atmosphere and the gameplay is nigh perfect for me: simple, and yet I cannot say it's dumbed down in any way..

 

[Wirdschowerdn]

Bought this also today and played a bit. Excellent little gem indeed. Normally I don't like these indie-platformers, but this game is quite different. It's like a 2D Thief with Ninjas and great atmosphere.

Also it's Microsoft published and not using GFWL? Ja is zat even possible?

 

[Metro]

I'm playing this on my laptop touchpad...

 

[Reject_666_6]

I already spread the gospel to several of my friends, yes it's that good. I agree with Mrowak, it's the best stealth game since Thief 2. New game plus is also fucking awesome, you can't hear sounds anymore and you can't see behind you either!

 

[Darth Roxor]

Totally great game. Haven't finished it yet, I'm currently past the catacombs mission that ends in massive guard bumrush + gas flooding.

I love how the stealth kills are so creative and fun to perform, despite actually being simplistic as hell (left click + swipe an unsuspecting guy). Drop on a guy, dangle on a guy, drag a guy into a vent, hang a guy on a hook. Awesome.

Controls are fine, the only instance that made me 'hnngg' was riding the crate to evade lasers. NO YOU TARD, GRAB THE OTHER SIDE, DON'T DROP TO YOUR DEFF. It also gets wonky sometimes when there are multiple hooks to jump to.

Ghosting is pretty amusing and satisfying, but I don't like how it's mutually exclusive with some of the side objectives, especially since I'm always going for max humour in all missions as a matter of principle. The only missions that could be ghosted so far for maximum honour were 1 and 2, I think, which sucks because you can do some really gratifying moves to evade guards (like at the very end of mission 2 - one guard patrolling the lower floor, another one overlooking from a balcony + a hanging lamp. Now get to the vent in the ceiling without triggering an alarm.)

But still, 10/10, best stealth game since Alpha Protocol Thief 2.

Shit art-style.

This person should be put as a #1 argument for the support of eugenics.

 

[circ]

Ok gave cartoon ninja-guy another shot after experiencing the worst controls anyone has ever made - in Deadlight. And they obviously ran out of ideas even before the midway mark because the rat dungeon is a joke. And that's not even due to the repetitive, unavoidable deaths. All style, and no substance either.

Anyway, ninja-guy. I can't escape the art-style being shit, but taking on a completely stealthy approach and hunting level achievements made the game more fun. Plus after the hellish Deadlight, the controls suddenly weren't all that bad. Can't seem to time terror kills, but gave some of the upgrades a try and the kills and it was interesting. With Shinobi style art this could easily have been an 8 or so.

 

[Reject_666_6]

The fuck you smoking son? Who cares about Deadlight?

 

[Mrowak]

Ghosting is pretty amusing and satisfying, but I don't like how it's mutually exclusive with some of the side objectives, especially since I'm always going for max humour in all missions as a matter of principle.

I just started New Game+ campaign, and I have to say that ghosting is more gratifying than on normal level, with all the penalties the game puts on you. I love the Ninja armour that mutes your footsetps while running - it totally changes dynamics of the game.

Storywise, I also liked the bitter twist at the end. It was not unpredictable though quite well executed. I only wish that the ending was influenced by your playstyle throughout the game (mass-muderer vs. stealth) - it would fit the context perfectly.