‘WILL HELP YOU!’
Another Arcade Classic is now available for rose-tinted inspection on PS4 and Nintendo Switch, courtesy of retro-enthusiasts Hamster and their burgeoning ACA range.
Kid Niki Radical Ninja is a 1986 acton-platformer from IREM, creators of other classic arcades such as R-Type and Vigilante. Radical Ninja sees the titular Kid Niki, a young ninja in training, embark on a dangerous mission to save his kidnapped girlfriend Margot from the evil Stone Wizard.
Armed with his legendary “Spinning Sword,” Kid Niki must battle waves of enemies across seven stages, defeating boss characters en route to the final rooftop showdown with the Stone Wizard. The game saw multiple home ports, most famously the 1987 NES release. Though none of these releases truly answered the big question of what made Kid Niki particularly “radical”? I mean, at least Wonder Boy had a skateboard.
Well-remembered for its colourful graphics and jaunty music. Kid Niki’s gameplay is a little linear, and this is perhaps another case of a game in the ACA range that could be bundled with another older title in a two-pack, to make the price-tag a little more appealing.
Kid Niki Radical Ninja is available now on PS4 and Nintendo Switch, priced at $8.
