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Ninja [Model ICD 0116]

Atari 800/C64 disk published 38 years ago by Mastertronic, Ltd.

Not listed in MAME yet

Ninja [Model ICD 0116] screenshot

Ninja © 1986 Mastertronic, Ltd.

"He walks alone: NINJA in the land of death. His timeless quest: to rescue the Princess Di-Di, pearl of the Orient, who is a prisoner in the Palace of Pearls. And he must gather idols she has dropped to prove his worth.

As well as fists of thunder and feet of iron, NINJA is granted weapons: a slashing Samurai sword, spinning death stars, and a throwing dagger. But these weapons are also given to his fierce opponents who guard the doorways and the idols.

As he rises through the levels, his opponents multiply, his strength drains, but his resolution grows.

NINJA: It blows the black belt off all other martial arts games!"

Ninja is a multi-screen action game that does not use scrolling; Once you walk off the screen, it features a very quick black & white transition screen telling you which room/area that you are entering into next. You must do battle with whomever you find on the next screen.

Navigate through the castle, fighting off Thugs, Karatekas, and Evil Ninjas. The latter are the most dangerous, as they not only wield samurai swords of their own, they can also use the shuriken and daggers that you throw at them. Grabbing the throwing weapons can be a slight pain, as you must be over them directly, then hold down on the joystick.

TECHNICAL

BARCODE: 0 52145 64710 7
GAME ID: ICD 0116

Released on cassette tape and 5 1/4" floppy disc. The floppy version featured the Atari version on one side, the Commodore 64 on the other.

It used the standard Atari joystick with one action button.

TRIVIA

While the cassette box mentions a kidnapped princess, she is never depicted nor mentioned within the game. She is also mentioned on the floppy version box, but is no longer a kidnapped princess - just as someone who is testing your worth by collecting idols.

The game randomizes the placement of all enemies, idols, and throwable weapons upon death or reset.

One example of a game on the Atari 800XL that used a full soundtrack.

A nicer looking, but slightly slower, version of this game was also released on the Atari ST and Commodore Amiga, renamed as "Ninja Master."

TIPS AND TRICKS

Idols restore your health to max.

Sometimes opponents are not triggered, just standing their posing instead of being ready to attack. If you see them doing this, don't wait for them to assume the attack position, start pummeling them, then back off if needed.

The dagger is the most effective throwing weapon, but there is an interesting catch. It only deals damage if the blade portion hits your opponent, not if the hilt does.

Your sword can deal a large amount of damage, however, it is risky to use, thanks to the joystick only having one button. To use it, you must hold the button down, then push in the upper diagonal direction that is away from your current opponent. This is a little awkward and the slow animation + reach of the sword is not very far, sometimes not colliding properly with your opponent. You must stand right next to an enemy to hit them with it, which opens you up to getting hit and possibly killed. One exception to this is if they are just standing there posing; then you can run up right next to them, use your sword, and usually have them down in 1-2 hits.

Assuming your are low on health, don't use the sword but your throwing weapons, then pummel your opponent with quick punches or land a kick.

Sometimes the jump kick can be effective, but it has some of the same issues the sword does, namely in the frames of animation that leave you open to attack and sometimes it doesn't seem to collide with your opponent like it should.

STAFF

Concept & programming: Steve Coleman
Sound: Ron Hubbard

SOURCES

Game's disk.