<s>
Ninja	B-Application
Gaiden	I-Application
II	I-Application
:	I-Application
The	I-Application
Dark	I-Application
Sword	I-Application
of	I-Application
Chaos	I-Application
,	O
known	O
in	O
Europe	O
as	O
Shadow	B-Application
Warriors	I-Application
II	I-Application
:	O
The	O
Dark	O
Sword	O
of	O
Chaos	O
,	O
is	O
a	O
side-scrolling	O
platform	O
game	O
developed	O
and	O
published	O
by	O
Tecmo	O
for	O
the	O
Nintendo	O
Entertainment	O
System	O
(	O
NES	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
is	O
the	O
second	O
installment	O
in	O
the	O
Ninja	B-Application
Gaiden	I-Application
trilogy	O
for	O
the	O
NES	O
and	O
was	O
released	O
in	O
North	O
America	O
and	O
Japan	O
in	O
1990	O
,	O
and	O
in	O
Europe	O
in	O
1992	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
An	O
arcade	B-Application
video	I-Application
game	I-Application
version	O
was	O
also	O
introduced	O
by	O
Nintendo	O
for	O
their	O
PlayChoice-10	B-Device
system	O
in	O
1990	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
events	O
in	O
Ninja	B-Application
Gaiden	I-Application
II	O
take	O
place	O
one	O
year	O
after	O
the	O
events	O
in	O
the	O
first	O
Ninja	B-Application
Gaiden	I-Application
game	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
game	O
received	O
praise	O
in	O
previews	O
from	O
Electronic	O
Gaming	O
Monthly	O
and	O
Nintendo	B-Application
Power	I-Application
and	O
continued	O
to	O
receive	O
high	O
ratings	O
and	O
coverage	O
,	O
being	O
nominated	O
for	O
several	O
awards	O
from	O
Nintendo	B-Application
Power	I-Application
in	O
1991	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Reviewers	O
said	O
that	O
visuals	O
and	O
controls	O
of	O
Ninja	B-Application
Gaiden	I-Application
II	O
improved	O
over	O
its	O
predecessor	O
while	O
maintaining	O
a	O
high	O
level	O
of	O
difficulty	O
for	O
players	O
;	O
the	O
game	O
was	O
criticized	O
for	O
having	O
a	O
more	O
generic	O
and	O
predictable	O
plot	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
game	O
maintains	O
lasting	O
appeal	O
among	O
players	O
,	O
with	O
one	O
reviewer	O
saying	O
that	O
Ninja	B-Application
Gaiden	I-Application
II	O
is	O
"	O
a	O
challenging	O
experience	O
the	O
likes	O
of	O
which	O
gamers	O
in	O
the	O
8-bit	O
era	O
lived	O
and	O
died	O
for	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
After	O
the	O
events	O
of	O
the	O
first	O
Ninja	B-Application
Gaiden	I-Application
game	O
,	O
in	O
the	O
Realm	O
of	O
Darkness	O
,	O
Ashtar	O
,	O
the	O
evil	O
lord	O
who	O
controlled	O
Jaquio	O
,	O
is	O
informed	O
of	O
Jaquio	O
's	O
defeat	O
;	O
he	O
devises	O
a	O
plan	O
to	O
rule	O
over	O
Earth	O
by	O
opening	O
the	O
Gate	O
of	O
Darkness	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Meanwhile	O
,	O
after	O
defeating	O
Kelbeross	O
whom	O
he	O
noted	O
he	O
fought	O
in	O
his	O
fight	O
against	O
Jaquio	O
(	O
in	O
the	O
previous	O
Ninja	B-Application
Gaiden	I-Application
game	O
)	O
,	O
Ryu	O
finds	O
Robert	O
on	O
the	O
ground	O
and	O
mortally	O
wounded	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Ryu	O
eventually	O
makes	O
it	O
to	O
the	O
evil	O
altar	O
where	O
he	O
finds	O
Irene	O
and	O
the	O
shadowy	O
figure	O
who	O
captured	O
her	O
;	O
the	O
figure	O
reveals	O
himself	O
as	O
Jaquio	O
–	O
the	O
antagonist	O
from	O
the	O
first	O
Ninja	B-Application
Gaiden	I-Application
installment	O
–	O
who	O
was	O
reborn	O
after	O
his	O
first	O
battle	O
with	O
Ryu	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
As	O
with	O
the	O
previous	O
Ninja	B-Application
Gaiden	I-Application
game	O
,	O
the	O
player	O
controls	O
Ryu	O
Hayabusa	O
through	O
a	O
series	O
of	O
platforming	O
levels	O
called	O
"	O
Acts	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Two	O
new	O
abilities	O
that	O
Ryu	O
can	O
do	O
in	O
Ninja	B-Application
Gaiden	I-Application
II	O
are	O
climbing	O
up	O
and	O
down	O
walls	O
and	O
attacking	O
with	O
"	O
Power	O
Boosting	O
Items	O
"	O
while	O
on	O
walls	O
and	O
ladders	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Power	O
Boosting	O
Items	O
include	O
the	O
following	O
:	O
shurikens	O
;	O
"	O
Windmill	O
Throwing	O
Stars	O
"	O
that	O
move	O
back	O
and	O
forth	O
like	O
a	O
boomerang	B-General_Concept
;	O
"	O
The	O
Art	O
of	O
the	O
Fire	O
Wheel	O
"	O
which	O
hurls	O
fireballs	O
diagonally	O
upwards	O
;	O
"	O
Fire	O
Dragon	O
Balls	O
"	O
which	O
hurls	O
fireballs	O
diagonally	O
downwards	O
;	O
and	O
the	O
"	O
Invincible	O
Fire	O
Wheel	O
"	O
that	O
creates	O
a	O
barrier	O
of	O
three	O
fireballs	O
around	O
Ryu	O
,	O
destroying	O
any	O
enemy	O
that	O
touches	O
them	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Another	O
new	O
feature	O
in	O
Ninja	B-Application
Gaiden	I-Application
II	O
is	O
the	O
ability	O
for	O
Ryu	O
to	O
"	O
split	O
his	O
body	O
"	O
and	O
clone	O
himself	O
when	O
the	O
player	O
collects	O
an	O
orange	O
ninja	O
symbol	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Electronic	O
Gaming	O
Monthly	O
previewed	O
Ninja	B-Application
Gaiden	I-Application
II	O
in	O
late	O
1989	O
and	O
early	O
1990	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
game	O
was	O
shown	O
to	O
the	O
public	O
for	O
the	O
time	O
at	O
the	O
Winter	O
1990	O
Consumer	O
Electronics	O
Show	O
in	O
Las	O
Vegas	O
,	O
in	O
which	O
Nintendo	B-Application
Power	I-Application
gave	O
"	O
four	O
star	O
ratings	O
for	O
its	O
great	O
cinema	O
scenes	O
and	O
challenge	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
They	O
said	O
that	O
at	O
first	O
look	O
the	O
game	O
had	O
better	O
cutscenes	O
than	O
the	O
first	O
Ninja	B-Application
Gaiden	I-Application
game	O
,	O
and	O
they	O
noted	O
the	O
great	O
and	O
diverse	O
gameplay	O
and	O
high	O
level	O
of	O
challenge	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Nintendo	O
initially	O
introduced	O
Ninja	B-Application
Gaiden	I-Application
II	O
as	O
an	O
arcade	B-Application
video	I-Application
game	I-Application
for	O
their	O
PlayChoice-10	B-Device
system	O
at	O
Chicago	O
's	O
American	O
Coin	O
Machine	O
Exposition	O
(	O
ACME	O
)	O
in	O
March	O
1990	O
,	O
marketed	O
as	O
a	O
sequel	O
to	O
Tecmo	O
's	O
hit	O
Ninja	B-Application
Gaiden	I-Application
arcade	B-Application
game	O
(	O
1988	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Ports	O
were	O
published	O
for	O
the	O
Amiga	B-Device
and	O
MS-DOS	B-Application
by	O
GameTek	O
in	O
1991	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
was	O
then	O
released	O
for	O
the	O
Virtual	B-Application
Console	I-Application
North	O
America	O
service	O
on	O
for	O
the	B-Operating_System
Wii	I-Operating_System
,	O
on	O
for	O
the	O
Nintendo	B-Operating_System
3DS	I-Operating_System
and	O
on	O
for	O
the	B-Operating_System
Wii	I-Operating_System
U	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
After	O
the	O
game	O
's	O
release	O
,	O
it	O
debuted	O
at	O
#4	O
on	O
Nintendo	B-Application
Power	I-Application
magazine	O
's	O
"	O
Top	O
30	O
"	O
list	O
for	O
September	O
–	O
October	O
1990	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
March1991	O
,	O
the	O
game	O
was	O
nominated	O
for	O
the	O
"	O
Nintendo	B-Application
Power	I-Application
Awards'90	O
"	O
in	O
the	O
following	O
categories	O
:	O
"	O
Best	O
Theme	O
&	O
Fun	O
"	O
;	O
"	O
Best	O
Play	O
Control	O
"	O
;	O
"	O
Best	O
Hero	O
"	O
(	O
Ryu	O
Hayabusa	O
)	O
;	O
"	O
Best	O
Bad	O
Guy	O
"	O
(	O
Ashtar	O
)	O
;	O
and	O
"	O
Best	O
Overall	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
a	O
1991	O
issue	O
of	O
Game	B-Device
Players	I-Device
in	O
its	O
list	O
of	O
Annual	O
Awards	O
,	O
the	O
game	O
received	O
the	O
"	O
Game	B-Device
Player	I-Device
's	O
NES	O
Excellence	O
Award	O
"	O
as	O
one	O
of	O
the	O
best	O
NES	O
games	O
of	O
1990	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Electronic	O
Gaming	O
Monthly	O
founder	O
Steve	O
Harris	O
said	O
that	O
the	O
game	O
improved	O
on	O
its	O
predecessor	O
's	O
gameplay	O
,	O
graphics	O
,	O
and	O
cinematic	O
cutscenes	O
;	O
he	O
praised	O
the	O
diverse	O
level	O
environments	O
and	O
the	O
new	O
abilities	O
that	O
Ryu	O
has	O
received	O
,	O
but	O
he	O
noted	O
that	O
some	O
power-ups	O
from	O
the	O
first	O
Ninja	B-Application
Gaiden	I-Application
game	O
were	O
missing	O
in	O
this	O
one	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Ed	O
Semrad	O
called	O
Ninja	B-Application
Gaiden	I-Application
II	O
one	O
of	O
the	O
best	O
video	O
game	O
sequels	O
to	O
ever	O
be	O
released	O
;	O
he	O
referred	O
to	O
the	O
graphics	O
,	O
difficulty	O
,	O
gameplay	O
,	O
and	O
storyline	O
as	O
"	O
near-perfect	O
"	O
,	O
though	O
he	O
pointed	O
out	O
that	O
the	O
game	O
does	O
get	O
very	O
difficult	O
in	O
the	O
latter	O
levels	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
the	O
same	O
issue	O
,	O
Ninja	B-Application
Gaiden	I-Application
II	O
was	O
featured	O
on	O
the	O
front	O
cover	O
and	O
was	O
denoted	O
as	O
the	O
"	O
Game-of-the-Month	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
1997	O
Nintendo	B-Application
Power	I-Application
listed	O
Ninja	B-Application
Gaiden	I-Application
as	O
the	O
49th	O
on	O
its	O
"	O
100	O
Best	O
Games	O
of	O
All	O
Time	O
"	O
list	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
same	O
year	O
,	O
Electronic	O
Gaming	O
Monthly	O
listed	O
the	O
NES	O
version	O
as	O
88th	O
on	O
their	O
"	O
100	O
Best	O
Games	O
of	O
All	O
Time	O
"	O
,	O
saying	O
it	O
was	O
"	O
easily	O
the	O
best	O
"	O
of	O
the	O
three	O
Ninja	B-Application
Gaiden	I-Application
games	O
which	O
had	O
been	O
released	O
at	O
this	O
point	O
,	O
citing	O
its	O
gameplay	O
,	O
storyline	O
,	O
music	O
,	O
and	O
the	O
body-splitting	O
ability	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
They	O
said	O
they	O
were	O
not	O
including	O
the	O
SNES	B-Application
compilation	O
in	O
the	O
listing	O
because	O
they	O
felt	O
the	O
changes	O
it	O
made	O
to	O
the	O
gameplay	O
and	O
music	O
made	O
the	O
game	O
worse	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Ninja	B-Application
Gaiden	I-Application
II	O
was	O
reviewed	O
again	O
in	O
2007	O
when	O
the	O
game	O
was	O
released	O
for	O
the	O
Virtual	B-Application
Console	I-Application
and	O
received	O
some	O
praise	O
as	O
well	O
as	O
criticism	O
from	O
reviewers	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Austin	O
Shau	O
from	O
GameSpot	O
compared	O
the	O
game	O
with	O
the	O
first	O
Ninja	B-Application
Gaiden	I-Application
game	O
as	O
examples	O
of	O
"	O
mean-spirited	O
games	O
"	O
on	O
the	O
NES	O
with	O
high	O
,	O
unforgiving	O
difficulty	O
and	O
excellent	O
controls	O
and	O
gameplay	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Reviewers	O
said	O
that	O
the	O
game	O
's	O
difficulty	O
remains	O
high	O
for	O
players	O
as	O
with	O
the	O
previous	O
Ninja	B-Application
Gaiden	I-Application
game	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
He	O
noted	O
the	O
lasting	O
appeal	O
of	O
the	O
game	O
,	O
saying	O
that	O
Ninja	B-Application
Gaiden	I-Application
II	O
is	O
"	O
a	O
challenging	O
experience	O
the	O
likes	O
of	O
which	O
gamers	O
in	O
the	O
8-bit	O
era	O
lived	O
and	O
died	O
for	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
