GameSpy writes: "One of the most over-used clichés in martial arts cinema is that of the aged instructor and the naïve pupil. Some memorable examples of this archetypal relationship include "The Karate Kid's" Mr. Miyagi and Daniel-san, or "Kill Bill's" Pai Mei and The Bride. This elderly master of the ancient arts puts his pupil through a series of torturous trials, usually of the sadistically challenging variety, in order to impart some grander wisdom or subtle technique. At first, the student will fail miserably, but with time and effort, mastery of the martial art will be gleaned, and with this knowledge comes enlightenment.
EA's Ninja Reflex employs this relationship as its physical counterpart to the mental fitness offered by Brain Age's Dr. Kawashima, giving players a hands-on instructor to guide them through the process of attaining faster reflexes, increased physical coordination, and spiritual health. Using the Wii remote controller as your interface method, you can catch flies with chopsticks; pluck a Koi fish from a stream, and master the deadly arts of the nunchaku, samurai sword, and shuriken."
Pros:
-Meditation feature is interesting
-Fun premise
Cons:
-Mini-games aren't very compelling
Wii Game Review Writes: "Ninja Reflex for Wii is a small budget release by Nunchuck Games and is published by Electronic Arts. It's labelled as a Ninja Skills trainer/simulator but really is just a collection of minigames. Nunchuck Games proudly display the photos of three martial arts experts on the Ninja Reflex mini-site who claim it is pretty good. We may not know our Xingyi from our Poomsae but we do know our Wii games so let's see if Ninja Skills Wii gets a lowly white belt or a high ranking black belt in our review of Ninja Reflex. Upon booting the game for the first time you must choose your Ninja title and name from the many combinations possible. They're all quite funny and if you ever dreamt of being that boy in the Karate Kid movies, you'll feel right at home here. There are six Ninja skills lessons to master in Ninja Reflex Wii, these are: Shuriken, Koi, Hotaru, Haish, Katana and Nunchaku."
Vooks writes: "The Wii is fast becoming the most elite personal trainer money can buy. From training your brain to making you fitter, the Wii has a range of software aimed at improving at least one aspect of the person. With Ninja Reflex in the fray, gamers now have the oppurtunity to improve their reflexes in terms of speed and accuracy. With Ninja Reflex, you'll soon be able to catch those pesky flies with chopsticks. But does the game actually improve your reflexes? And it is any good? Read on to find out.
Ninja Reflex is a compilation of 6 mini-games that aim to improve your reflexes. That wasn't a typo either, there is only 6 games including in Ninja Reflex, although there are several variations available on each game. As there are only 6 mini-games, I will take some time to explain each one of them."
Vooks writes: "Ninja Reflex is a noble attempt at trying to make a mini-game compilation that differentiates itself from the rest, through an integration of an interesting theme as well as an underlying common factor - that of reflexes. Unfortunately, although it does differentiate itself as a whole from other titles in the genre, it doesn't do a good job at differentiating it's contents to provide an interesting and compelling enough experience. It's hard to recommend Ninja Reflex to anyone, especially at the price point that it is currently available at. Perhaps if it were to be released at a budget price, it would be much more easier to recommend Ninja Reflex. It just doesn't offer enough substance to warrant it's hefty price tag."
