Table of Contents[Hide][Show]
- #20 Naruto To Baruto: Shinobi Striker
- #19 The LEGO Ninjago Movie Video Game
- #18 Aragami Series
- #17 Skulls Of The Shogun
- #16 Strider
- #15 Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm 4
- #14 Onimusha Warlords
- #13 Shadow Warrior Series
- #12 Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder’s Revenge
- #11 Warframe
- #10 Ghostrunner
- #9 Cyber Shadow
- #8 Ninja Gaiden: Master Collection
- #7 Shadow Tactics: Battle Of Shogun
- #6 Sifu
- #5 Mark Of The Ninja Remastered
- #4 The Messenger
- #3 Nioh Series
- #2 Sekiro: Shadow’s Die Twice
- #1 Ghost Of Tsushima
Ninja’s never age, and in this modern day and age, the art of the ninja at work is as profoundly engaging as it has ever been.. The PS4 has played host to some truly exceptional ninja titles so join us as we recount 20 of the platform’s very best ninja titles.
#20 Naruto To Baruto: Shinobi Striker
- Developer: Soleil
- Platform: PS4
- Release Date: Aug 2018
Naruto To Baruto: Shinobi Striker might be one of the very few Naruto games to do something different, but the problem is, the MOBA elements of Shinobi Striker don’t at all come together as fans would have liked them to.
#19 The LEGO Ninjago Movie Video Game
- Developer: TT Games
- Platform: PS4
- Release Date: Sep 2017
Though absolutely one of the weakest LEGO titles that TT Games have put out, the core DNA of all of their other games is still here and ensures that despite being a weaker title, there is still plenty for players to pick up and enjoy should they give The LEGO Ninjago Movie Video Game a proper go. Collect studs, all 102 playable characters, and test your mettle in the Challenge Dojos to become the best LEGO ninja you can be.
#18 Aragami Series
- Developer: Lince Works
- Platform: PS4
- Release Date: 2016-2021
While neither Aragami title is necessarily going to blow you away, both titles have an incredible sense of style and blend stealth movement and puzzles together in a way that is always rewarding. Checkpointing is poor, penalising the less-versed stealth players among us, but take your time, immerse yourself, and you’ll soon be playing by all the rules and loving the world of Aragami.
#17 Skulls Of The Shogun
- Developer: 17-bit
- Platform: PS4
- Release Date: Jan 2013
You wouldn’t think that a turn-based tactical ninja game would be a nice pairing, and yet, Skulls Of The Shogun delivers in all facets. It has a brilliantly quirky visual style that shouldn’t work but does, the gameplay is a dream, despite it feeling like it tonally shouldn’t work in theory, and the game will constantly surprise at how accessible it is for new faces. Skulls Of The Shogun is a game that shouldn’t work by all rights, and yet, is an absolute gem.
#16 Strider
- Developer: Double Helix
- Platform: PS3, PS4
- Release Date: Feb 2014
Though never really reaching the great heights of the franchise’s past, the 2014 reboot of Strider from Double Helix and Capcom did a pretty great job of reworking systems beloved in the originals into function in this modern take. The 2D plane was still there, the visuals still look great, and the progression system made the game far more approachable for a new audience in ways that the original games never were.
#15 Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm 4
- Developer: CyberConnect2
- Platform: PS4
- Release Date: Feb 2016
The 3D arenas of Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm return with Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm 4, and the game lovingly recreates the style of the anime to perfection. The combat is overly extravagant despite its simplicity, and sometimes gets lost identifying whether it wants to be accessible to fans or there for fighting game players, but it’s still, overall, a very competent ninja title worthy of your time and attention.
#14 Onimusha Warlords
- Developer: Capcom
- Platform: PS4
- Release Date: Jan 2019
Onimusha was excellent when it first launched on the PS2 in 2001, but this 2019 remaster holds up incredibly well. The action still feels great, the combat as precise as ever, and the story, one which blends Japanese historical fact with fiction still appeals like few games have succeeded in doing.
#13 Shadow Warrior Series
- Developer: Flying Wild Hog
- Platform: PS4
- Release Date: 2013-2022
While the Shadow Warrior titles have never really hidden from the fact that they’re intentionally derivative of modern, fast-paced, push-forward FPS’ like DOOM, it is these comparisons that hold the game back in comparison to the incredible id shooters. Shadow Warrior certainly has a far more crass way about it, one that will either resonate with you instantly, or instantly push you away, and in many ways – that’s the beauty of the franchise. 3 entries in the modern reboot later, and I don’t think we’d have it any other way.
#12 Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder’s Revenge
- Developer: Tribute Games
- Platform: PS4, PS5
- Release Date: Jun 2022
It says more about the games deeper in this list that a game as brilliant as Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder’s Revenge could slide so low, but don’t let its positioning deter you. What Tribute Games created is a modern beat-em-up, that rivals the best that the genre has seen over its many decades. Add on an incredible sense of personality, addicting audio/visual design, and sublimely implemented multiplayer, and you’ve got an all-timer on your hands with this one.
#11 Warframe
- Developer: Digital Extremes
- Platform: PS4, PS5
- Release Date: Mar 2013
As the oldest game on this list you would expect it to be one of the most outdated and waning in life, but in reality, Warframe continues to thrive thanks in large part to the incredible long-term support provided by its developer Digital Extremes. A mixed response early has turned into critical and community acclaim as the devs listen and respond to feedback, while continuing to roll out expansive updates and new content to build the game out even further.
#10 Ghostrunner
- Developer: One More Level, Slipgate Ironworks
- Platform: PS4, PS5
- Release Date: Oct 2020
We never quite got the Mirror’s Edge experience with excellent combat – until Ghostrunner came along. Centimeter-perfect first-person free-running parkour platforming and superb combat makes Ghostrunner one of the most exhilarating gameplay experiences of the generation.
#9 Cyber Shadow
- Developer: Mechanical Head
- Platform: PS4, PS5
- Release Date: Jan 2021
Cyber Shadow harnesses many of the qualities that made SNES-era 2D sidescrollers like Ninja Gaiden, Mega Man, and Castlevania so appealing and applies an incredible cybernetic layer over it, which, along with modern accouterments, and a personality that’s all its own, makes Cyber Shadow a modern ninja classic.
#8 Ninja Gaiden: Master Collection
- Developer: Team Ninja
- Platform: PS4
- Release Date: June 2021
Despite being amongst the most brutally hard games of all time, there’s an impossible to quantify characteristic of the modern Ninja Gaiden games that makes them so constantly engaging despite their seeming hatred of the player. Now they’ve all been compiled in the brilliant Master Collection and even made more accessible for players of a wider range of ability level to finally appreciate as the rest of us have for decades.
#7 Shadow Tactics: Battle Of Shogun
- Developer: Mimimi Productions
- Platform: PS4
- Release Date: Dec 2016
In a day and age where Tactics games have been shunned, and fans have been longing for only one or two particular entries, Shadow Tactics came along and blew us all away with an incredible deep tactical title that puts the samurai skillset at the forefront, and implements all of the best elements of the samurai way of living into an excellent stealth, tactical experience.
#6 Sifu
- Developer: Sloclap
- Platform: PS4/5
- Release Date: Feb 2022
Even despite it still being one of the freshest games on this list, the team at Sloclap isn’t missing a beat in making Sifu, a game that is brutally hard, and uncompromising at its core, even more accessible for all allowing everyone to enjoy the fascinating story, and incredible audio/visual design that is also a key pillar of the title. It wasn’t to be missed in February, and it’s even better now.
#5 Mark Of The Ninja Remastered
- Developer: Klei Entertainment
- Platform: PS4
- Release Date: Feb 2012
Having established themselves as a premiere studio known for their brutal action titles Shank, we all assumed that the studio would continue down that path into the future. Enter the trajectory-changing Mark Of The Ninja, taking the style of all that came in Klei’s prior work, and blending it with side-scrolling stealth action.
#4 The Messenger
- Developer: Sabotage Studio
- Platform: PS4
- Release Date: Aug 2018
A game that subverts your expectations at multiple prominent moments, The Messenger draws upon the masterstrokes of early days Ninja Gaiden before hard pivoting into MetroidVania systems and nailing that too. Add to that an engaging plot, great moments of humour, and incredible production value and you’ve got one of the most enjoyable indies ever.
#3 Nioh Series
- Developer: Team Ninja
- Platform: PS4, PS5
- Release Date: 2017-2020
While the Nioh games wear their love of FromSoftware’s titles on their sleeve, they also present some fascinating elements that make both the original game, and its 2020 sequel, Nioh 2 shine in comparison. The game does a fantastic job of leaning into Japanese folklore, while the story is beloved for not being as abstract as what we’ve seen from FromSoft’s works. The action as you’d expect from Team Ninja is first class and made Nioh the one true rival to the genre champions.
#2 Sekiro: Shadow’s Die Twice
- Developer: FromSoftware
- Platform: PS4
- Release Date: Mar 2019
There’s no dedicated ninja title that comes even remotely close to the bar set by FromSoftware’s Sekiro: Shadow’s Die Twice. The game changed what people expected from FromSoft titles, and delivered one of the coolest, most stylish, mechanically perfect combat experiences that the last generation has seen.
#1 Ghost Of Tsushima
- Developer: SuckerPunch Productions
- Platform: PS4, PS5
- Release Date: Jul 2017
SuckerPunch subverted all player expectations with the announcement of Ghost Of Tsushima, a game that flew in the face of the tone that they’d established as a studio with their previous works on Sly Cooper and inFAMOUS, but for all that, Ghost may well be their best work yet. While a Samurai game at its core, you can embrace the way of the ninja as well to get the job done as required in one of the most beautiful open-worlds you’ll ever see, and one of the most enjoyable to explore.