Harder than sucking an apple through a straw, yet still compelling and with a fantastic art style
What is it with games related to ninjas that make them so difficult? The Xbox classic Ninja Gaiden was hard enough to make you bleed from the eyes. While the link between N+ and the ways of the ninja is slightly more tenuous, the skills needed to survive are no less. Survival in N+ comes from collecting golden boxes around each level to replenish your rapidly dwindling time limit. The twist is that time is carried across the five sub-stages in each level- something I didn't realise until four stages in, by which point it was too late- turning each level into a dramatic, adrenaline-soaked race against time.
N+ is one of those games that create random hilarity at every turn. It's the unpredictable nature of N+ that elevates it to the upper echelons of other 'one-more-round' games like Worms and Halo. Even death- which happens with frightening regularity- is always executed with perfect comedic timing. Although to be honest, if dying in N+ wasn't funny, you'd probably chew through your controller in frustration at some point.
Massive in scope, easy to grasp while fiendishly challenging, great value for money - N+ is everything an XBLA title should be. Sure, it's also available for free on the PC, but the 360 version adds some much-needed polish. This is minimalist platforming at its best.