Follow TV Tropes

Following

Context Trivia / NinjaGaiden

Go To

1* BannedInChina: The second Xbox game was not released in Germany because of… [[BloodierAndGorier well]], [[LudicrousGibs you]] [[YourHeadASplode know]]. That's one the reasons the gore was slightly [[BloodlessCarnage toned down]] in the [=PS3=] remake.
2** Curiously enough, the game had German subtitles anyway (although they were for other German speaking countries like Austria). That was pretty convenient for German fans of the game, that could import it relatively easily.
3* DisownedAdaptation: Itagaki did not like ''[[UpdatedRerelease Ninja Gaiden Sigma]]'', going as far as to refuse to sign copies of it. This probably has something to do with the fact that he wasn't involved with this particular version of the game (since, objectively, it's not very different from ''Black''). However, he did admit that it gave Platform/{{PS3}} owners a shot at the game. And all of the new features in ''Sigma'' were carried over to ''Ninja Gaiden II'' at the end.
4* DuelingGames: ''Ninja Gaiden 3: Razor's Edge'' came out in January 2013 in Europe, just a month before [[VideoGame/MetalGearRisingRevengeance another action game featuring a super-ninja who dismembers his way through a super-equipped military force.]] It's mostly a coincidence though, as Atsushi Inaba denies any inspiration from ''Ninja Gaiden 3'' (even calling the third episode an "unsalvageable crappy game").
5* GeniusBonus: If the name Jaquio is read as if it were Spanish (Ja-''ki''-o) as opposed to English (Ja-''kwi''-o) then it strongly resembles the Japanese term "Jaki Ou" meaning "King of Demons."
6* KeepCirculatingTheTapes: While the First game in the NES trilogy made it to Switch Online, the other two are as of March 2023, gone with the Wii U and 3DS Eshops.
7* KillerApp: The 2004 game and its UpdatedRerelease, ''Ninja Gaiden Black'', were this for the original Platform/{{Xbox}}, as was ''Ninja Gaiden II'' for the Platform/Xbox360. Meanwhile, the original NES game has been rereleased on the SNES, three times through Platform/VirtualConsole (for the Platform/{{Wii}}, Platform/Nintendo3DS, and Platform/WiiU), on the NES Classic, and through the Platform/NintendoSwitch Online service.
8* NoExportForYou: The OriginalVideoAnimation was never licensed to outside Japan, the only way to watch it is through fansubbing.
9** ''Master Collection'' is digital-only in most of the world, but the [=PS4=] and Switch versions received a Japan-exclusive physical release.
10* TheOtherDarrin: English localization just can't get a hold of a voice actor for too long. As of ''Ninja Gaiden III'', there are three different actors for each main release. Creator/TroyBaker reprises his role, having provided his voice in ''Dead or Alive Dimensions''. Compare and contrast to Creator/HideyukiHori, who has been voicing Ryu for ''24 years'', the first of which was ''the original'' ''Dead or Alive'' back in 1996. But on the other hand, he was actually replacing Creator/KeiichiNanba, who voiced Hayabusa in the earlier OVA.
11* RoleReprise: English-wise, Kasumi is once again voiced by her [=DOA5=] voice actress Creator/LaurenLanda. Meanwhile, Creator/JaniceKawaye returns to reprise Ayane from ''[=NG2=]''
12* WordOfGod:
13** According to a roundtable interview in ''Ninja Gaiden: The Definitive Soundtrack Vol. 1'', the original Japanese title of the game was actually ''Ninja Gaiden'', and was changed on extremely short notice to ''Ninja Ryukenden'':
14--->Yoshizawa: After the project got off the ground, we received word that Namco was also going to release a ninja game. That game ended up being Cyber Ninja, and it was supposed to feature movie scenes. When we heard this news, the team's spirits were lifted as we were determined not to let Namco beat us! The President told us at this time to provide the first pieces of information to Famitsu Weekly, who ended up writing an article about the game. That's when the President suggested the name Ninja Gaiden.
15
16--->Yamagishi: So the original name was actually Ninja Gaiden? I didn't know that.
17
18--->Yoshizawa: That's the case, yes. But we then wondered, how can there be "side story" when there isn't even a main story? But that's what the President asked for, and he wasn't going to change his mind even if we mentioned that to him, so that was the named used in the published Famitsu article. That morning, the President called me on the phone and said, "I saw the name in printed letters, but its impact is lacking. Think of an alternative! I'm going over there [the development team's building] right now, so think of something by the time I arrive!"
19
20--->Uh oh! The President would arrive in 10 minutes or so. At that instant, the Kanji (Chinese character) for "ryu" (龍 - "dragon") popped into my head. And since the President needed the name to have impact, I thought a name with a lot of kanji was a good idea. I told the staff right away, "We should have the game feature a setting in which the protagonist confronts a mysterious organization using the power of the dragon sword (龍剣 - ryuken)... wait, the protagonist's name is Ryu! Ryu Hayabusa, who has traveled to America to avenge the murder of his father! How does that sound? Maybe we should call the game Ninja Ryukenden?" And then the President arrived just as I said those words.
21
22--->"So Yoshizawa, have you thought of a name?" he asked. I told him what I had come up with. "That sounds good. Let's go with that!" And so it was decided, and that's why the name changed. It's a name that was hastily thought of, but even after I calmed down and thought about it carefully, I think it ended up being a pretty cool name. I then came up with the story involving the Dragon Sword and the evil demon, Jashin, as well as the mysterious organization and the CIA.
23
24--->For the release in North America, we went with the title "NINJA外伝" and wrote out "GAIDEN" in English below the kanji. This was also the President's idea. He said, "Americans love kanji!" (laughs)
25
26** According to [[http://www.hardcoregaming101.net/ninjagaiden/ninjagaiden9.htm this interview]], the folks at Tecmo were quite unsure on how to translate the video game's title ("Ninja Ryūkenden", which means "Ninja Dragon Sword Legend") for the foreign players, so they opted for RuleOfCool even if it didn't make much sense.

Top