Become Sensei to a foolish martial arts trainee
Ever wondered if you've got what it takes to train a ninja? Even if you haven't, Clumsy Ninja is worth a try. It puts you in charge of the training of a hapless martial arts wannabe, and there's plenty of hilarity to be had.
Your flexible friend
Clumsy Ninja is a game with bags of personality. The main character is a loveable ninja-in-waiting who you can manipulate in any way possible, with amusing consequences.
You can lift any part of his body, throw him about, knock him over, walk him around, and make him fight. It's an interactive experience that's very engaging.
Although it's fun just to fling the hapless fighter around, there is a fixed gameplay element to Clumsy Ninja, too. The idea is that you train him up to upgrade his belts by setting the ninja on a course of different challenges, from hitting punch bags to bouncing on trampolines.
As you complete challenges and progress through your training, you'll pick up XP and coins, which can be exchanged for items, repairs and new skills in Clumsy Ninja.
Self defenseless
The touch controls in Clumsy Ninja are a delight. You can manipulate any part of the character with your fingers and the controls are sensitive enough to perform very accurate actions.
There's a walkthrough tutorial when you start the game, though this isn't particularly necessary, since it's very easy to pick up and play anyway.
Let's get physical
Physics in Clumsy Ninja are very accurate, thanks in no small part to the game's Euphoria simulation engine. All the movements that the ninja makes, from a simple wave to a roundhouse kick are very lifelike.
The graphics are strictly cartoonish, but the character has great personality. His face is generally obscured due to his mask, but he manages to convey his sense of fear, surprise and anger through clever use of eye expressions.
A kickin' gaming experience
Clumsy Ninja is a charming game with a loveable protagonist. The ragdoll game physics are excellent, although things can get a bit repetitive while you wait to train up your fighter and make repairs.
But as far as 'virtual pet' games go, Clumsy Ninja offers a more sophisticated and original experience than Pou or Talking Tom Cat, for example.
