Mini Ninjas First Look Preview

Considering that its previous output includes the Hitman series and the blood-soaked Kane and Lynch: Dead Men, it’s fair to say that Mini Ninjas is something of a big departure for IO Interactive. No headshots, garrotting or baldy assassins here – just a selection of cute characters and bright, cel-shaded graphics.

Indeed, at a glance the game that Mini Ninjas most resembles is Mario 64 – not in terms of the art style, which looks in part like a traditional Japanese painting, but rather in the large characters and the broad use of colour. There’s something welcoming about this appearance, and along with the liberal use of amusing gibberish speak (or at least, I hope it’s gibberish; if not I’ve just been massively racist to the Japanese) this probably played a large part in the warm reception the game received at Eidos’ press event last week.

Mini Ninjas tells the story of Hiro, a diminutive warrior who has to help defeat a mysterious warlord who is conquering the land with an army of animals who’ve been magically turned into samurai. Hiro and his lumbering mate Futo are actually the scrapings of the barrel, as far as the good guys are concerned: their master has already sent out other ninjas to take on the warlord, but so far none have returned. Still, desperate times call for desperate measures – and now it’s up to you to help the pair save the world.

In gameplay terms, Mini Ninjas is an action adventure with minor RPG elements and a fair old lashing of stealth – perhaps the only true link to IO Interactive’s previous work. At the start of the story you’ll only have access to Hiro and Futo, but throughout your journey you’ll meet and free the fighters who were sent before you. Each ninja has a range of different strengths and abilities, and since you’re able to switch characters on the fly, you’ll be able to jump back and forth between them to suit the challenge at hand. Futo’s large presence and big hammer makes him a good choice for dealing with heavier enemies, while his roly-poly attack can be used to lay into crowds; meanwhile the flute-wielding Suzume, the first ally you unlock, can mesmerise her foes by playing a magical tune.

Then there’s Hiro himself – the character who seems closest to the classic depiction of a ninja. His small stature makes him ideally suited to hiding in long grass and behind bits of scenery, while his Katana will make short work of the rank and file samurai who come your way. It’s worth noting now that no-one ever dies in this game: take down an enemy, and they’ll disappear with a loud “POP!”, reverting to whatever creature they were before Mr Warlord came along. This twist feels vaguely reminiscent of the original Sonic the Hedgehog, and it has the added bonus of being quite funny: if you manage to take out a whole group of enemies in one go, the resulting kerfuffle is a bit like someone making Sylvanian Families Popcorn – foxes and pandas all over the place.

On the defensive side of things, Hiro can also whip out a big ninja hat to protect his bonce from incoming arrows. If he comes across a large body of water, he can also jump inside his oversized headgear and use it as a boat. Hiro also has the bonus of being the only character who can use kuji magic – a powerful force that was inadvertently released when the warlord returned from exile. As a result, Hiro has gained the knack of turning into a spirit that can possess any of the animals that wander the game world. As with the playable characters, the various beasties excel in different areas. Large critters like bears and boars are useful for taking on bands of enemies, while smaller creatures like chickens are better at spotting collectibles dotted around the map.

While it wasn’t particularly evident during the levels on display last week, our demonstrator promises that there will be a fair bit to be gained by venturing off the beaten track. There are valuable flowers to pick up, and additional spells that can be gained at hidden temple-like structures. Hiro can also upgrade his abilities using some form of XP system. It’s not entirely clear how this works yet, but our demonstrator was happy to show off what our little protagonist will be able to do at later levels. One allows you to freeze the action and highlight a set number of enemies; as soon as you un-pause, Hiro will rip through them like a hyperactive ninja bullet. When you initially gain this power you’ll only be able to highlight one or two enemies, but the number will increase as XP is invested in the skill.

While many of these mechanics may sound quite familiar, there’s a strong vein of charm running through Mini Ninjas that helps it to feel fresh. This seems to stem from a number of things: the simple but confident visual style, the wide range of moves and the appealing, silly audio design – like the way samurai dash into battle squealing “Ninni-ninni-ninjaaaaa!”. It also helps that the game seems to be running extremely smoothly, and to a lesser extent that it feels more like a Nintendo game than the average 360/PS3 release.

Last week’s demonstration concluded with a boss fight – a samurai so enormous that he filled the room in which he stood. Hiro’s only chance was to trick this behemoth into swinging his sword into one of four large columns; when this happened, the little ninja was able to use his opponent’s weapon as a ramp – running up and cutting through his trousers, causing him to stumble and fall. As you might have guessed, you pull off this attack through the use of a QTE. Again, this is exactly the kind of thing we’ve seen in a dozen action adventures – but here it’s pulled off with such flair and charisma that it seems to fit perfectly. Indeed this confident presentation is all the more surprising given that it’s a major departure to what IO has done before. Whatever motivated the change of direction, it seems that the studio is really having fun with its new less violent tone; let’s hope that we all enjoy it as much when we get to play the game for ourselves.

Mini Ninjas will be released later this year on PC, PS3, Xbox 360, Wii and DS.