Mark of the Ninja, another entry on the very niche market of the Stealth Genre and a very underappreciated one.

In this game you play as a ninja in the modern age with supernatural power that heightens your perception and other natural abilities that are represented in game through various mechanics and powers. It takes place in a 2D side-scroller with a varying level design and different enemies that require different approaches to take down, these being the average grunts to snipers or shielded guards. You have your sword, tools and grappling hook all at your disposal to get through the levels with various collectibles and even challenge rooms present on every stage in the game that test your puzzle skills.

In terms of gameplay, Mark of the Ninja is a true stealth game in every sense of the genre where you possess multiple abilities that aid you in remaining unseen or help you silently dispose of your opposition. The controls are quite tight and are one of the strongest qualities the game has to offer, never did I feel like I could blame the movement to any mistake done that wasn't human error. The AI that control the guards are what you would expect from a stealth game, exploitable cues and ticks to make them react to what you do and ways to fool them as if they were a bit inept with the exception of a few guards who's special nature can catch you unaware. In the shadows you're unable to be seen until some form of light reveals you, be that from a guard's flashlight, a dangling lamp or even the flash of lightning. Getting seen just once will make a guard suspicious and make them investigate your last known position -- though if you throw a dart or they find a dead body they remain on a high alert and will raise alarm if they happen to see you. You're fully encouraged to go unseen and try to avoid open combat since these guards actually have keen aim and eyesight, it really doesn't take much to kill you either.

There are plenty of ways to play the game with the inclusion of various outfits that drastically alter how you can play the game, which is the second strongest factor of this game and only increases the replayability of the different playstyles introduced. For example, your starting outfit you get your sword and the ability to do stealth kills along with two tools; one offensive and one diversion. One other outfit you can get completely silences your footsteps, meaning you can sprint through an entire level without anyone every hearing you approach while giving you access to two diversion gadgets but no offensive ones, oh and you can't stealth kill enemies or even carry your sword -- but you can perform nonlethal CQC attacks.

Unfortunately the story of the game is probably where the game falls short in what's generally an impressive game, it's not too extravagant save for a few twists and turns that were actually surprising in the end. The story is worth following and can be enjoyable but it is not doing anything to reinvent the wheel either, expect the usual tropes and typical stealth game plots to show in the game. Both the DLC and the second half of the base game are probably the strongest points of its story that make a good twist but doesn't add too much other than that.

The art style is a bit cartoony which might remind some people of games like Sly Cooper, cell shading tends to age well and in this case the visuals are pretty spot on. Mark of the Ninja makes use of visual cues and colors to identify objectives, interactables, Field of Vision and of course, sound. These visual cues blend well with the game's background and usual art style that make you feel like your character's enhanced perception is accurately being portrayed here. Character models are a little clunky looking however and some of the facial expressions are almost a bit comical for such a mature game but they don't deter too much from the experience.

Overall, Mark of the Ninja is an excellent game that is able to proudly stand on its own among the Stealth Game Genre. Its strength in gameplay, level design and enemy variety make it a pleasant 7-10 hour playthrough with easy to earn collectibles, objectives and challenges that make the game easy to 100%. Though the incentive to collect the optional scrolls, objectives and such give you tokens which are used to gain upgrades to make the Main Character stronger, some upgrades actually can be a bit unbalanced though not by a lot. The story is pretty decent but it's not bringing anything new to the table outside a few nice twists and turns.