It’s a setup that’s extremely simple and easy to understand, enforcing the pickup-and-play approach that became a staple for the series, allowing new players to get down the controls easily and letting old pros rack up combos without frustration. Unlike the original, however, this has a balance bar for grinding and manuals, an inclusion that’s greatly appreciated. For series vets it should only take a few runs to shake off the dust… after that it’s like you never stopped playing.

Ninjas have to be precise, lethal and above all, coordinated — something that isn’t exactly easy to pull off on the Kinect in the first place. Moving left or right moves your character on screen, dodging attacks and also lining up your own. Using a few simple hand gestures changes weapons — for example, reaching over your right shoulder pulls out your sword, left takes out your bow and putting both hands out to the sides switches to ninja stars. Each weapon is used to take out enemies at different distances, utilized by mimicking the real-life action for each one.