Ninja Gaiden 2 Black is like a time machine back to the halcyon days of PS3, featuring over-the-top violence, ridiculous action, and a globe-trotting campaign. Black sparkles up those graphics for PS5, and while fun, it isn’t quite enough to counter how much this hack-and-slash experience has aged.

With the threat of demonic Archfiends destroying the world, Dragon Ninja Ryu Hayabusa must chase down the Black Spider Clan to thwart their plans of resurrection. As you bounce from Russian-inspired cities to Mayan-tinged jungles, the game isn’t afraid of throwing everything including the kitchen sink at you.

One minute you’re facing hordes of ninjas in a burning village, the next enduring a gladiatorial battle in a colosseum filled with Lycans. Part of the charm of the violent adventure is that it’s pure action cheese, never quite sticking around anywhere for too long and constantly switching up the enemies you face.

At times the game looks fantastic on PS5, always running buttery smooth with not a single performance hiccup. Some levels you can see the age in the graphics, but others, especially those with atmospheric lighting, genuinely look great.

The hack-and-slash combat is initially a lot of fun, as you slice off limbs and perform executions. There’s combos galore for those that love to dig into that, more so once you start experimenting with the variety of weapons it throws your way.

However, the gameplay did leave us wanting more, especially since, with its multitude of enemies, our approach never really needed to change. It leaves the latter stages of the campaign feeling repetitive, not helped out at all by the lacklustre bosses. We played the game on Hard, and despite a couple of tougher moments, we breezed through its campaign, beating most bosses in one or two tries.

The biggest issue you’ll likely face, however, is the sluggish camera. Steered like a tank and often soft-locking onto any enemy, most deaths or awkward gameplay moments were entirely down to the camera. Platforming too had its moments of irritation, but nothing annoyed us quite as much as being forced to look at one enemy when others prepared to strike from behind, completely out of view.

Ninja Gaiden 2 Black reminds us of our younger years, essentially playing through a cheesy action movie with over-the-top violence, cool looking vistas, and a ridiculous story. In parts, it’s fun to play something you can just enjoy for what it is, without the need to delve into overly deep combat systems. Yet with eventually repetitive gameplay and irritating hangovers from the clunky PS3 era, Ninja Gaiden 2 Black may be fun, but it's showing its age.