It’s been more than a decade since we got a new Ninja Gaiden game, but that is about to change this year as publisher Koei Tecmo announced Ninja Gaiden 4 during the Xbox Developer Direct. The sequel will see Team Ninja and PlatinumGames team up to develop the direct sequel, launching in Fall 2025 and will also be available on Game Pass day one.
“Fans have long been asking us for a new Ninja Gaiden game. Koei Tecmo‘s President, Hisashi Koinuma, and PlatinumGames’ CEO, Atsushi Inaba, share a close relationship, which led us to explore a collaborative development effort. PlatinumGames had the expertise we felt was ideal for working on Ninja Gaiden, and with support from Microsoft’s Phil-san [Phil Spencer, CEO of Microsoft Gaming], the three companies were able to take the next step towards creating a brand-new Ninja Gaiden,” Team Ninja head and Ninja Gaiden 4 producer, Fumihiko Yasuda said in a statement via Gematsu.
Taking place sometime after Ninja Gaiden 3 which saw the game’s Tokyo transformed into a gruesome version of Japan’s capital. In this direct sequel, the twisted city is now under the Dark Dragon’s spell of a storm that never ends known as the Rain of Darkrot. This Ninja Gaiden story looks too big for Ryu Hayabusa to take on alone, as the game will feature a new protagonist with the introduction of Yakumo, a ninja from a rival clan that honestly doesn’t seem to like Ryu that much.
From the trailer, it looks like Ninja Gaiden 4 will see players control Yakumo and Ryu at some point in the game as they confront each other. It looks like Yakumo will have to put aside his differences and team up with Ryu to take on the Dark Dragon. The game sees the dual protagonist take on a horde of demons that look to protect the Dark Dragon. We got a preview of Yakumo’s gameplay which sees him use two different fighting styles, Raven Style and Nue Style.
“Since it’s been a while since the last game, we wanted a new hero to make the series more approachable for new players. Of course, we also wanted long-time fans to enjoy the game, so Ryu Hayabusa plays a significant role in the story, serving as a major challenge and growth milestone for Yakumo. Ryu will appear throughout the game and be playable, ensuring his prowess and presence is deeply felt in Ninja Gaiden 4,” the game’s director Yuji Nakao explained.
Alongside the new game announcement, Koey Tecmo also announced Ninja Gaiden 2 Black, a remake of Ninja Gaiden 2. The remake didn’t just get a visual upgrade from being developed in Unreal Engine 5 but also added three new playable characters. Ninja Gaiden 4 might be quite a long way from release, Ninja Gaiden 2 Black isn’t however as Koei Tecmo shadow-dropped the remake and is currently available to play through Game Pass.
Ninja Gaiden 4 is set to launch for PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X|S later in Fall 2025.
