The Ninja Saviors: Return of the Warriors | Switch Review

Super Cyborg Robot Ninjas, You Say? I’m In

Recently I’ve noticed quite a few beat-em-ups popping up on the Nintendo Switch, and as a big fan of the genre, you can bet I am pretty excited to dive into this review. Even though The Ninja Saviors: Return of the Warriors is a remastering of an older title, I feel there is plenty offered here to appeal to fans of the original. Lets get those circuits fired up; it’s time to kick it old-school!

Back to the Future!

The Ninja Saviors: Return of the Warriors is a faithful remaster of the SNES title Ninja Warriors. Originally released for the SNES in February 1994, Ninja Warriors was developed by Natsume and published by Taito in Japan and North America. It was also published in Europe by Titus Interactive the following year. 

The game takes place in the distant future during a time of political unrest. The world is overrun by a vast army of human and robot soldiers commanded by an evil Dictator named Banglar the Tyrant. The leader of the rebellion, Mulk, has made numerous unsuccessful attempts to overthrow his reign of terror. Enter our heroes – a small force of ninja cyborgs, each with their own specialized fighting style. Together they must defeat the seemingly endless forces of Banglar, and restore peace and order to the world. The story is fairly short, but that isn’t uncommon for beat-em-ups.

What’s Under the Hood?

Ninja Saviors is a traditional 2-D side-scrolling beat-em-up. Where other games of the genre adopt a system with vertical travel that allows enemies to walk around the character, Ninja Saviors utilizes a single-track style of movement. Instead of trying to line up throws, you will know that you are on the same vertical plane as other baddies. This is complemented by waves of enemies and background objects with which you can interact. You can pick up boxes, computers and large ocean mines and toss them with ease at groups of enemy soldiers.

From the get-go, you will see that the game has been revamped in a way that maintains the integrity of the original game. The combat has been smoothed out, and the character moves have a responsive and crisp feel to them. The original SNES version of the game only offers a single-player experience, but has been reworked in this remastering to offer a new multiplayer experience that is sure to please couch co-op enthusiasts. The main game also offers a time-trial mode with an online leaderboard – a fresh feature that adds an almost arcade-like feel.

Upon completion of the main game, you will unlock one of two additional characters and a hard mode. Each character has their own unique fighting style ranging from bulky and powerful to weak and agile. Your health sits below a power bar that reflects the player’s special move availability. In multiplayer mode, these bars are shared to add difficulty into an otherwise easy play through.

A Fresh Coat of Paint

The graphics have been polished, and character sprites are crisp amongst the beautiful background. The attack animations have been cleaned up, and the game seems to play faster as a result. The video options are well thought out, offering the player a choice of aspect ratio, scanlines, and the ability to change the “blood” color from green to red. This was a nice touch as the original SNES version was censored in North America.

The audio has been enhanced, and the soundtrack booms along with on-screen explosions and crashes. Punches and kicks have a satisfying crunch. There are multiple different music track packs to unlock adding something new for your next run.

The Ninja Saviors: Return of the Warriors Final Verdict

The Ninja Saviors: Return of the Warriors is a faithful, yet fresh remastering and offers something for both new and old fans of the original. Nothing additional was added to the story, and I would have liked to have seen more dynamic backgrounds and perhaps a few new levels. All-in-all, I enjoy the game. It is a great deal of fun to play, and it is something to sit down and play with a couple buddies. It has quite a few new features and modes, but I think it can be a limited experience for those looking to play through the game one time.

This review is based on a Nintendo Switch copy provided by PR Hound for coverage purposes, and it’s also available on PS4.