According to Team Ninja producer Fumihiko Yasuda, the studio has long harbored ambitions to create a new installment in the Ninja Gaiden series, but struggled to settle on a concrete concept. The project gained momentum when Koei Tecmo president Hisashi Koinuma and PlatinumGames head Atsushi Inaba discussed it, eventually bringing Phil Spencer into the fold. Spencer proposed a collaboration between the three companies to kickstart the development of the game.
Phil Spencer confirmed that these discussions had been ongoing since 2017, when he first engaged with Team Ninja about a potential sequel. After years of deliberation, they identified the ideal partner in PlatinumGames, renowned for their work on fast-paced action titles such as Bayonetta and NieR: Automata.
Last week saw the announcement of Ninja Gaiden 4, accompanied by a surprising re-release of Ninja Gaiden 2 Black—an enhanced version of the Xbox 360 classic—now available on Xbox, PS5, and PC.
The debut trailer indicates that the iconic ninja, Ryu Hayabusa, will take center stage in this action-packed slasher. The gameplay trailer reveals that Ninja Gaiden 4 will introduce several novel mechanics not seen in prior entries of the series, including swift traversal using wires and rails.
While DOOM: The Dark Ages was the main draw for many at Developer_Direct, Ninja Gaiden 4 also captured significant attention. This eagerly anticipated sequel to Koei Tecmo's beloved series is slated for release in the fall of 2025.
