Ninjas are still quite cool, aren't they? Look at Ninja Gaiden or the here and there emerging movies with ice cool action scenes that bring me to the edge of my seat. Unfortunately the attraction of being dressed in black suit and blessed with a mysterious look while killing people ruthrlessly and whisper silently, can't save this game that falls short in just about everything.

The makers didn't go about things the easy way though. You get over 30 characters, the possibility to download levels from the PS2 and even some multiplayer possibilities. Even the idea behind the missions seems good at first: there's some relative freedom in what you want to do when and also the necessary variation is present in content. Now and then you get to safely bring someone past any dangers and you can also change your style going from Sam Fisher to Rambo. Positive is also that you get A LOT of game for your money.

Unfortunately, those same devs didn't spend enough time to the problems its bigger brother also had. If you want, you can read my here again, along with some more info on the storyline which I didn't feel like repeating due to not wanting to do that and been quite irrelevant. Onto the problems then!

The camera is bad. So bad even that now and then you won't even find your own sword back and will sway around helplessly hoping to get a glimpse of where your character ended up in now. The same goes for your enemies and you can imagine it's quite hard to beat them if you don't see them. Contrary to real ninjas, I don't have a fifth, sixth or seventh sense. Both inside and outside of buildings you'll get frustrated and smash your PSP against a wall. Just be sure to do it gently as you might damage the screen.

While forcing the camera into the right direction, you'll also notice that the game doesn't look good at all. Not only does the level design bring forth claustrophobic tendencies (something we might forgive on the PSP) but it does so also with uninspired graphics and hardly recognisable models, something that can hardly be called normal.

The gameplay? The gameplay! The PSP controls all but help you with progressing the game. Contrary to the PS2 you have to wrestle with your fingers and the fact that you often need to use the shoulder buttons doesn't help either when trying to sneak further. Also you shouldn't expect smooth combinations of moves like we've gotten used from God of War or Daxter and the fights don't even touch the enkles of the standards set by the forementioned games. And same goes for the storyline.

And to conclude: the AI is bad. Or let me put it differently; it's artificial but certainly not intelligent.