As far as preview venues go, the Ninjatown crew picked quite appropriately. What better place to get a sneak peek of the new DS game based on designer Shawnimals’ Ninja characters than a designer toy store? I hiked to Double Punch in San Francisco’s North Beach neighborhood to check it out.

 

The event took place in the gallery space (above all the blind-boxes, Blythe dolls, action figures, and other assorted shopping time goodness) which was decked out in Ninjatown concept art and merchandise. Somehow the temperature managed to rise probably 20 degrees upstairs, but the atmosphere was pleasant nonetheless, with demo stations, snacks, and the creators on hand for any fans wanting to talk shop.

 

After snapping pix, I got straight to business with a pink DS Lite. Ninjatown is a super accessible stylus-driven tower defense game—or should I say Ninja defense? When Ninjatown–nestled between the volcanic Mount Feroshi and the “mysterious•bCrLf Dark Forest–comes under attack by a near constant parade of Devils, the Ninja Consultants (with pie-charts) agree that something must be done. While the Ninja Mayor hides under his desk, Ol’ Master Ninja puts the forces of the town at your disposal, including not only a variety of battle-ready Ninjas, but also a few magical tricks.

 

Just as in the popular web game, Desktop Tower Defense, you’re tasked with protecting an area by throwing whatever arsenal you can muster at the road leading to it. You’ll start in the suburbs, protecting the outskirts of Ninjatown from Wee Devils with black Wee Ninjas (the default type) and yellow Anti Ninjas (a better match for the fat insulated Chubby Devils, but slower). As you progress, you unlock new upgradable Ninja huts like the one that houses Sniper Ninjas with wasabi pea shooters that attack flying enemies. Ol’ Master Ninja also teaches you some nifty moves, for example, the time honored “Get Off My Lawn!•bCrLf tactic of blowing into the DS microphone and using the D-pad to select a direction in which the player-created wind should whisk the enemies.

 

The simple character designs of the plushies translate well to a 2-D game, and the gameplay was pretty addicting even standing up in an overheated room. The well-written dialogue also serves particularly well, adding some geeky hipness to the cute story segments. Ninjatown will probably be one of those games proud to make you miss your bus stop when it arrives next month.

 

Incidentally, if you aren’t convinced and live in either New York City or Chicago, you’ll have the opportunity to check out the game for yourself as the preview tour continues to myplasticheart on October 5^th from 5-8 pm and then to Rotofugi October 11^th also from 5-8. For more info, check out the official site.

Publisher: SouthPeak Games
Developer: Venan Entertainment
System: Nintendo DS
Available: October 28, 2008
Rating: E