‘Ninja Gaiden 4’ Director Confirms Sequel Will Focus On New Hero Yakumo, But Still Respect Ryu Hayabusa’s “Super Ninja” Reputation: “Our Intention Is Not To Replace Him, But To Have People Enjoy The Story Of A Very Strong Ninja And A New Ninja”
In an era where ‘destroying a previous character in order to boost up a new one’ has become almost standard operating procedure for media franchises – just look at Star Wars, Doctor Who, or any book from Marvel Comics or DC centered around a legacy character – Ninja Gaiden 4 director Yuji Nakao has assured players that while the series’ upcoming fourth entry will be shifting its narrative focus to a new protagonist, the PlatinumGames-developed title will still treat former lead Ryu Hayabusa with all the respect his “super ninja” status deserves.
Nakao, who in his thus far eight-year career with PlantinumGames has served as a co-producer on the studio’s vertical SHMUP Sol Cresta and a producer on both The Wonderful 101: Remastered and Bayonetta 3, provided this clarification as to Ninja Gaiden 4‘s treatment of its two protagonists during a recent, post-announcement interview given alongside Team Ninja President Fumihiko Yasuda to Japanese video game news outlet Game-Watch.
Per a machine translation of the interview provided by DeepL, asked as to how the plans for a fourth Ninja Gaiden actually came to fruition, Yasuda, who prior to being appointed to his current Team Ninja position in 2022 provided his design and directorial talents to such studio releases as Ninja Gaiden 2, Stranger of Paradise: Final Fantasy, and the Nioh duology, recalled that one of the first ideas thrown out in the concept phase was the introduction of a new lead.
“First of all, there was the question of how to plan the project, and we started with the idea of working together to create a numbered title that would convey the value of the series,” said the Team Ninja president. “Platinum Games suggested a new main character. Ryu Hayabusa had the aspect of being a completed character as a ‘super ninja’. So for this title, they suggested a new character, ‘Yakumo,’ that would be easier for everyone to get to know, and so he became the new main character, even though he is in the numbered series. Naturally, we were pleased that they understood our decision that Ryu Hayabusa should appear in the game, and he does appear in the trailer.”
To this end, Yasuda then confirmed that both Yakumo, who stars front in center in the game’s first trailer, and Ryu will be “playable characters”, with Nakao offering a further tease of both character’s narrative roles.
“We will have to wait for further information, but they will have their own objectives and stories to tell as they fight,” said the PlatinumGames dev. “As you can see in the video, Ryu and Yakumo, the new main character, will be facing off against each other, so you can look forward to more information on why this is happening.”
Pressed by their host as to whether or not the two ninja would begin their quest “at odds”, Nakao further confirmed, “Yes, they are,” explaining “Ryu is a member of the Hayabusa clan, but Yakumo is not a member of the Hayabusa clan. Yakumo is still young and is about to grow up, and he is in conflict with Ryu Hayabusa, the top of the super ninja, and he crosses over to become a new super ninja himself.”
Met with a question as to whether or not Yakumo and Ryu would be considered the “two main characters” of Ninja Gaiden 4, Yasuda noted, “Since Yakumo is the main character this time, there is more of Yakumo in terms of the balance of the game. However, it is not so much that there is less Ryu, but I think we have enough time for people to get a good sense of how strong Ryu is.”
Turning to the differences between the two, the Team Ninja President detailed, “Ryu Hayabusa has the same feel and action style as in the series. He is a character that is very good at one-on-one combat, which includes many masterful techniques.”
“Yakumo has the [sense of] ‘growth’ that I mentioned earlier, and of course he is capable of one-on-one combat as well,” he continued. “In the midst of this, Yakumo devises his own ways to fight many enemies, and through a new system called ‘Nue’ (鵺の型), which allows him to fight large enemies, we have created a character that is both dynamic and subtle.”
[A bit of cultural context: In Japanese folklore, a ‘Nue’ is a Chimeric monster that boasts the face of a monkey, the legs of a tiger, the tail of a snake, and the body of a racoon. Known for its eerie and inhuman cry, the creature’s name has since been adopted into Japanese culture as a sort of slang term for an ‘unknown and mysterious’ individual/group. In this sense, Yakumo’s fighting style is meant to be evocative of the idea that his true capabilities are unknown to his enemies until the second his blade comes down upon their head.]
From there, the pair were asked whether they had any concerns regarding the introduction of a new protagonist, to which Nakao took the lead and asserted, “It’s not that we don’t have any. However, what we would like to convey as a message this time is that Ryu Hayabusa is an iconic figure in the Ninja Gaiden IP, and we at Platinum Games respect him a great deal.”
“Our intention is not to replace him with a new protagonist named Yakumo, but to have people enjoy the story of Ryu Hayabusa, a very strong ninja, and a new ninja who comes out and weaves a story between the two of them,” he concluded. “In a way, the game is designed to stand on both sides, so we hope that fans of the previous games will be able to enjoy it as well.”
At current, Ninja Gaiden 4 is scheduled to begin slicing its way through waves of demons, ninjas, and demon ninjas sometime in Fall 2025.
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