Fast-paced games can be a problem. They can either be annoying or frustrating, thankfully, 10 Second Ninja is frustrating, but not annoying. It’s frustrating in a good way though, because you just want to keep on playing, no matter how much you fail.
The replayability of 10 Second Ninja is due to the fact that when you fail a level (you will fail, not if), you can replay it with just the click of a button. When I say button, I mean the one on the controller you should use, you can use the keyboard, but you’ll have better luck using a controller.
A protip before we go on; play in windowed mode. The main reason for this is because the screen won’t flash as much as it does when in full screen mode. Not sure if it’s because of my laptop or the game, but the way the screen refreshes makes it flicker in such a way, the warning on the home screen becomes so relevant.
My first impressions are that 10 Second Ninja is a lot of fun. Just jump straight in, no need for tutorials. Controls are simple, three buttons and the D-pad are all you need to become the master of this game and you will need to muster all your skills if you want to become the ultimate ninja master.
So, what do you have to do? You, a little ninja in a blue outfit have to eliminate all the Nazi robots scattered around each level. You do that by throwing shuriken at them or slicing them in half with your Katana as fast as you can. Sounds easy, jumping around smashing robots, doesn’t it?
Oh it’s easy alright, completing each level in the quickest time in order to get three stars is what’s not easy and that’s where the challenge lies. If you’re a player of mobile games such as Angry Birds, you’ll understand how that works. Not that 10 Second Ninja has anything else remotely similar with Angry Birds, it has actually been mostly compared to Super Meat Boy.
Spikes. Your worst enemy. The robots don’t actually kill you, you can stand right on top of them and they don’t do anything. Well until they eventually get weapons when Robot Hitler sees the Research and Development people… or do they? No spoilers, but you get to see some cutscenes which are more like comedy sketches.
It’s not the most visually striking game, but it doesn’t need to be because although it looks great, it doesn’t need the most amazing graphics to be an amazing game. It has so much gameplay, it reaches out of the screen and slaps you around the face. It falls victim to the one-more-go school of gaming, you fail a level, you have one more go.
While all this kick-ass action is going on, there’s an equally kicking beat going on in the background which you unfortunately don’t get to appreciate properly thanks to playing the game. In fact, there’s not a lot, if anything to find fault with. It’s a very polished game from the very talented Dan Pearce, he of Castles in the Sky fame.
10 Second Ninja Verdict
It’s that time where I suppose you need to know whether it’s worth buying 10 Second Ninja or not. Slightly casual, fast-paced action ninja games you can’t stop playing are a good thing. Jumping around destroying robots is always a favourable pastime and killing robot Hitler can never get old.
It may only be a small download, but there are 40 levels to challenge your ninja skills and compare times with your friends. No, not Facebook friends, Steam gaming friends. To put it in simple terms, it’s a great game. If you’re easily prone to temper tantrums and rage-quitting, it’s probably not the game for you.
Superb gameplay with good graphics, amazing sound and did I mention gameplay? 10 Second Ninja will have you going slowly insane while coming back for more. Just one more go, shave off those tenths of a second and rub little Jimmy’s face in it as you cackle maniacally and strap plasters around your thumbs.