Ninjabread Man

Ninjabread Man

His special move is the asset flip.

Platforms:	Microsoft Windows PlayStation 2^AGW Nintendo Wii^AGW
Release Date:	PlayStation 2 EU: July 13, 2005 Microsoft Windows EU: July 23, 2005 Wii EU: September 21, 2007 AU: September 27, 2007 NA: October 3, 2007
Developer:	Data Design Interactive
Publisher:	EU: Metro3D Europe (PS2, PC) EU/AU: Data Design Interactive (Wii) NA: Conspiracy Entertainment (Wii)
Franchise:	Ninjabread Man
Next Game:	Ninjabread Man II Blades of Fury (Cancelled)

Ninjabread Man is a platform game developed by Data Design Interactive and released in July 2005 for the PlayStation 2 and PC in Europe, and later in 2007 for the Wii in North America, Europe and Australia. The game was originally going to be a third game in the long-defunct Zool series, but Data Design failed to acquire the rights, after pitching the game to Zoo Digital Publishing, who developed the Zool games.

Why It Sucks

There are only three levels, and the whole game can be completed in half an hour.
Extremely poor camera.
Poor controls. The Wii port is the worst offender, with almost unresponsive motion controls. (Who thought flicking the Nunchuk was for jumping? However, you can jump with the Z button, though the game never tells you that.)
Little-to-no challenge. You can effortlessly kill enemies from a distance with projectiles that are in infinite supply, and there's always an arrow telling you exactly where to go. The only challenge comes from the unresponsive controls.
Horrible gameplay.
Extremely bad graphics.
Almost non-existent story.
No ending. Once you complete the third level, you go right back to the title screen.
The additional game modes are terrible.
Most of the stuff explained in the manual for the game is not actually in the game.
The PC version uses Gingy from Shrek in the load file menu. We're not kidding, go to 0:30.
To save costs, Data Design recycled the source code and engine for this game to create Anubis II, Myth Makers: Trixie in Toyland and Rock 'N' Roll Adventures. Apart from having a different skin and graphics, the games feature identical gameplay, music, controls and the same level of quality.

Redeeming Qualities

The music, while repetitive, is fairly decent.
The cover art is quite cool.
The concept of a gingerbread man ninja was admittedly creative.
Clever name pun.

Reception

The game was widely panned by critics upon its release. It hold a 31% rating for PlayStation 2 on GameRankings, and IGN scored the Wii version 1.5/10, describing it as a "broken mess."

Thunderbolt scored the game as 1/10. Metacritic gives an aggregate rating of 20/100, indicating "generally unfavorable reviews."