Crafting a Dekonstruer #2 Mark Of The Ninja

I have passed the second gate and now it is time to get my blog on. Let the button mashing begin!

To start this blog we are going to be looking at the side scrolling stealth game Mark of the Ninja and breaking it down to its bits and pieces. I am going to talk about the game design atoms and tell you why I think this game is the benchmark for all stealth games.

Players:

Mark of the Ninja is a single player game that follows a nameless ninja in the modern era. The game starts off with an armed assault on the ninja’s dojo. This is where the player comes in as the nameless ninja on his assignment. As this game is exclusively single player with no multiplayer at all players play against the game system. This type of player interaction pattern would fall under “Single player vs. game”. The game consists of levels or mission objectives and your progress in the game is saved when you complete the level. There are checkpoints if you die in the level but you can’t save your progress mid-level and come back to it. Some players will not like this but I find that the levels are just the right size so that this is not a problem.

Objectives and Goals:

Mark of the Ninja is set in the modern era but where clans of ninja still exist. As the assault on the dojo is going on the nameless ninja protagonist was resting after receiving a tattoo. The tattoo that was given to him has power and a legend attached to it. The ink comes from special flowers that increase his senses and reflexes. The tattoo is a double edged sword, as the ninja will slowly descent into madness and ultimately committing seppuku. (Suicide by self-disembowelment with a small blade known as the Tanto) (Side note I am also very interested in Japanese history, another reason why I like this game) The goal of the game is to investigate your attackers and deal with them before you suffer from madness. The player is trying to race against madness while gathering information and then outwitting the enemy.

Rules and Mechanics:

Mark of the Ninja is a 2D side scrolling stealth game with a lot of interesting and innovative game mechanics that makes it the best stealth game I have played. First off the stealth part of the game hinders on two things, not being seen and not being heard. When you are going through the level there will be bright and dark areas. To be stealthy you want to stay in the shadows as much as possible so that the enemies can’t see you. Sometimes it is too bright and no shadows to hide in, then you can break the light sources to make it darker. When you break lights it makes a loud sound that will alert enemies. You have to mix not being seen and not being heard. 

When moving throughout the level you have to make sure that you are also quite as it will alert the enemies that you are near.  To help traverse through the level you are also given offensive items and distraction items. You can use offensive items to kill enemies from a distance or use the distraction items to distract them while you move past them. An example of an offensive item would be a swarm of locust that eat and devour an enemy so that there is no evidence. A distraction item would be a smoke boom so the enemy cannot see you while you move past them. Now for combat and assassinating enemies you have your trusty sword. When you are close enough to an enemy you press the left mouse button and a direction will appear near the enemy. If you move your mouse in the right direction you will complete a silent assassination. If you go the other way the enemy will make loud death sounds and others will be alerted to you. The game mechanics makes it the best stealth game that I have played.

Resources:

While you are in a level you have side missions that you can complete. If you complete them you will get tokens or honor to unlock skills and upgrades. The player resives points for using tatics throughout the level such as silent assassinations, hiding bodies and not being spotted. At the end of the level the score is added up and get honor for passing a certain number. Players can then spend their honor in three sections: skills, distraction items, and attack items. By progressing thought the level and collecting as many points as possible you can upgrade all the aspects of your character. With the side missions in each level they also have a type associated with them. If you complete three missions of a certain type you unlock a ninja suit. These suits change the way you can play the game. One suit lets you instantly kill an enemy when you click with your mouse and you can’t have distraction items. Another suit does not let you carry swords so you cannot kill enemies. Instead you are given two distraction items and when you run you don’t make noise. The different suits provide a new and interesting way to play the levels adding replay value.

Game States:

There are two states that Mark of the Ninja can be in. The first state is when you are selecting a level. When you select the level that you are going to play then it will bring you to the upgrade screen. Here is where you can spend you honor that you have collected from playing other levels and select the load out that you are going to play the level with. From here the level starts normaly with an opening cut scene to set the setting of the level.

Sequencing:

Mark of the Ninja is played in real time with no time limits within it. As for upgrades you have to unlock the base upgrade before you can unlock the upgrade to it.

Player Interaction:

Mark of the Ninja is primarily a single player game and as such there is not a lot of player interaction. The most interaction that the player has is with the game system. There is no players for to interact with.

Theme and Setting:

Mark of the Ninja is set in the modern era with a clan of ninjas called haiku. There is not a lot of stealth game out there that use ninjas. Ninjas are interesting and compelling characters as they are well known for their legends and mystery. It is this mystery that makes people so interested in ninjas. This helps to the player get emotionally connected to the character. Since you are a ninja it is fun to act like one and the way the players play the game changes to reflect this.

Mark of the ninja is my benchmark for stealth games with its great mechanics and art style. This is what draws the players in and then makes them interested in the story of the game.