Kasumi Ninja is a fighting game developed by Hand Made Software and published by Atari Corporation for the Atari Jaguar. It was first released in North America and Europe on December 21, 1994, and was later released in Japan by Messe Sanoh in July 1995. It was the first fighting title to be released for the Jaguar, and unsuccessfully sought to capitalize on the trend of ultra violent fighting games started by Midway Games's Mortal Kombat in 1992.
When the elder ninja Gyaku kills two of his fellow elders through black magic and becomes possessed by a powerful demon after breaking the gate to the underworld, it is up to the player to assume the role of any of the playable characters in order to defeat other opponents before Lord Gyaku destroys the Earth. Being one of the first titles announced for the Jaguar before it was launched to the public in November 1993, Kasumi Ninja was created by the same company who previously developed Dracula the Undead for the Atari Lynx in 1991 and had a troubled development process, undergoing various changes before release. It was also one of the first games to feature a parental lockout system, allowing censorship and limiting the violence displayed during gameplay.
Kasumi Ninja received mixed to negative reception when it was released. While it received praise for its visuals, critics panned the controls, sound and slow gameplay, with many reviewers calling it a Mortal Kombat rip-off. By April 1, 1995, the game had sold more than 24,000 copies though it is unknown how many were sold in total during its lifetime. A sequel, Kasumi Ninja II, was in development for the Atari Jaguar CD but it was cancelled.
Gameplay
thumb|left|Senzo defeating Alaric through a roundhouse kick.
Kasumi Ninja is a fighting game featuring digitized graphics and sprites with pseudo-3D battlegrounds using parallax scrolling, where the player fights against other opponents in one-on-one matches. The fighter who manages to deplete the health bar of the opponent wins the first bout and the first to win two bouts becomes the winner of the match. Each round is timed, which can be adjusted at the options menu screen, and if both fighters still have health remaining when time is over, the one with more health wins that round. The game features four levels of difficulty that can be selected on both the main and options menu screen, while also featuring four levels of gore display to choose from on the options menu, with Gore Fest being the highest and the only mode where characters can trigger their respective death moves, among other settings. Kasumi Ninja was developed by UK-based developer Hand Made Software, who previously developed titles such as Dracula the Undead on the Atari Lynx and became one of the first titles announced for the then-upcoming Jaguar, featuring a completely different visual style compared to the one featured in the final version and was planned to have a roster of 20 playable characters instead of eight. The reason given in regards to the final character roster by former Hand Made Software producer Jim Gregory is due to meddling from Atari Corporation, removing much of the characters and other elements that were previously developed for the title, in addition of reducing memory size for the game cartridge. now sporting digitized graphics and sprites as with the final release. Kasumi Ninja was first released on December 21, 1994
|rev1 = AllGame
|rev1Score =
|rev2 = Atari Gaming Headquarters
|rev2Score = 2 / 10
|rev3 = Atari Inside
|rev3Score = 82%
|rev5 = Consoles +
|rev5Score = 73%
|rev6 = Excalibur
|rev6Score = 72%
|rev7 = Game Players
|rev7Score = 40%
|rev8 = GamePro
|rev8Score = 13 / 20
|rev9 = Games World
|rev9Score = 24 / 100
|rev10 = Jaguar
|rev10Score = 65%
|rev11 = Joypad
|rev11Score = 65%
|rev12 = MAN!AC
|rev12Score = 39%
|rev13 = Mega Fun
|rev13Score = 48%
|NGen =
|rev14 = Play Time
|rev14Score = 48%
|rev15 = ST-Computer
|rev15Score = 80%
|rev16 = ST Magazine
|rev16Score = 74 / 100
|rev17 = Super Game Power
|rev17Score = 3.5 / 5.0<br /> 3.8 / 5.0
|rev18 = Última Generación
|rev18Score = 25 / 100
|rev19 = Ultimate Future Games
|rev19Score = 38%
|rev20 = Video Games
|rev20Score = 69%
|rev21 = VideoGames
|rev21Score = 4 / 10
The game received a mixed-to-negative response from critics. It has been criticized for being a blatant rip-off of Mortal Kombat (including gameplay, digitized graphics and graphic violence) with poor controls. GamePro commented that the graphics are technically impressive, but often unpleasant to look at due to aesthetic choices such as the palette swapped characters, the massive blood drops, and Angus's kilt-lifting move. They also criticized the controls, the music, and the announcer's voice, and concluded "Kasumi's a 64-bit warrior destined to remain in the shadows of deeper 16-bit fighting games."
In 2009, Topless Robot ranked it as the fourth worst Mortal Kombat rip-off. In 2011, UGO.com included it in their list of the 102 worst games of all time. That same year, Complex called it "one of the worst Jaguar games ever released in a sea of awful Jaguar games." In 2012, Complex also ranked it as the fourth worst fighting game of all time, adding, "It was hard choosing amongst Ultra Vortek, Fight for Life, and Kasumi Ninja for the worst Jaguar fighting game, but we're going to go with the last one mentioned because it's probably the most famous. And also the worst." Kasumi Ninja is also listed in Digital Presss "50 Awful Games."
Cancelled Sequel
A sequel, Kasumi Ninja II, was in development for the Atari Jaguar CD after the first game was released but it was cancelled after Atari Corp. closed its doors, making Hand Made Software lose money in the process.