The Fall of Ninja Gaiden 2 Dark: A New Era in Gaming
By Unreal Engine 5 is regarded as one of the most demanding game engines available: achieving 60 frames per second while utilizing Lumen global illumination and Nanite micro-geometry presents a significant challenge for developers. With this in mind, it comes as no surprise that Group Ninja chose to take on the “master ninja challenge” when remaking Ninja Gaiden 2. Not only are the cutting-edge features of UE5 employed in Ninja Gaiden 2 Dark, but the developers are attempting to reach 120fps on a console. Did the studio meet its goal, or is it just a leap too far for modern hardware?
This is merely one aspect of Group Ninja’s latest endeavor. Ninja Gaiden 2 Dark marks the revival of the second original installment in the Ninja Gaiden series. As the final Group Ninja title overseen by Tomonobu Itagaki, the original Xbox 360 release challenged players fiercely and left them yearning for more. It’s a beloved but punishing action game that unfortunately has been plagued with technical and balancing issues. Still, its overwhelming enemy counts, brutal dismemberment system, and intense combat reward those who persevere. Nevertheless, things became unusual with Ninja Gaiden Sigma 2. Released at the outset for PlayStation 3, Sigma 2 served as a foundation for future releases. It’s a more refined title with additional content, but it also introduces its own set of problems: enemy counts are reduced, damage and HP statistics are adjusted, and the gratuitous blood effects were removed.
This leads us to Ninja Gaiden 2 Dark, which appeared unexpectedly after the Xbox Developer Showcase. Let’s just say it’s a unique release. Essentially, it’s akin to Bluepoint’s work on titles like Demon’s Souls and Shadow of the Colossus: a visual remake that retains the original mechanics, built using Unreal Engine 5. However, that is a rather simplistic overview of the matter. This isn’t just a prettier version of Ninja Gaiden Sigma 2. Instead, it feels as though the development team pulled elements from all iterations of Ninja Gaiden 2 to create an entirely new version of the game. One change is the return of the limb severing mechanics and the copious amounts of blood that were missing in Sigma. The new system is incredibly over-the-top, with each slash from the Dragon Sword filling the air with sprays of blood that eventually pool on the ground and, in the end, dry up.
The original iteration of this approach was connected to the combat – enemies in the Xbox 360 game appear in larger numbers but can generally be defeated quicker, or at the very least, have their limbs severed, presenting a different type of threat. In Sigma, enemies endure more damage but there are fewer of them at a time. It’s hard to say for certain, but it seems the new release finds a balance between the two: overall, there are fewer enemies than in Ninja Gaiden 2 on Xbox 360, yet considerably more than the counts in Sigma on PS3.
The new game also incorporates a more straightforward bow and arrow system and numerous changes to level designs. The extra stages present in Sigma 2 are included here, but not all of the bosses, such as the statue boss in the first stage. The key point is that the development team clearly put in the effort to rebalance the game according to their vision, which is commendable.
Visual comparisons with the Xbox 360 original are striking. Overall, I believe the new version of the game looks significantly better – although there are areas where the original Xbox 360 visuals remain strong. The opening cutscene’s skybox seems to be better in my opinion than the equivalent in the new game – even though Group Ninja has transformed a 2D texture into a true 3D environment. Other alterations include changing the ambiance of the second stage by adjusting the time of day, for example. That said, the majority of the rendering quality is significantly enhanced. Character models look far better, I think, aside from possibly the artifacts displayed in the hair. Overall geometry has been drastically improved, as you would expect with Nanite in play.
What makes this so intriguing is that, much like Namco’s Tekken 8, the gameplay itself is powered by a different underlying engine – in this case, Ninja Gaiden Sigma 2 – but all rendering is handled through Unreal Engine 5. What this implies in practical terms is that the game plays authentically but benefits from stunning new lighting thanks to Lumen, while Nanite ensures there is no visible LOD pop-in during gameplay.
All console versions of the game utilize both Lumen and Nanite, including Xbox Series S. When played on PS5, PS5 Pro, and Xbox Series X, players also have the option between 60fps and 120fps using dynamic resolution scaling and Sage’s TSR upscaler. PS5, PS5 Pro, and Xbox Series X all aim for a 4K upsampled output in the 60fps mode, although the internal resolution is notably lower. The 120fps mode, on the other hand, targets 1080p, which is likely optimal for Series S, which only has one mode – 1080p60.
The results are captivating, yet this is a game that, in many aspects, illustrates the limitations of modern upscaling and temporal anti-aliasing. With a high input resolution, the outcomes are very impressive – especially on PS5 Pro, which is noticeably clearer than any other version in motion. Issues arise with the lower resolution modes, particularly with Xbox Series S, which struggles due to having fewer frames available. Image fidelity on Series S is so poor that I might even say it’s worse than the Xbox 360 original. Clearly, there isn’t enough native pixel data to work with, and thus combined with fast movement, the results can verge on the unacceptable. The 120fps mode exhibits similar issues, but due to the higher frame resolution available for upsampling, the results are less egregious.
Otherwise, the visuals are quite similar – the 60fps modes on PS5, PS5 Pro, and Xbox Series X generally look the same. The 120fps mode and the Series S variant have a reduction in draw distance for non-Nanite geometry and certain elements such as shadows that draw too close to the camera. Can the game achieve 120fps? Well, in terms of resolution quality, just barely – the sacrifices needed here are significant, and image quality is quite poor on a large 4K display.