Ben Hopkins is the developer of the forthcoming iOS platformer, 1-Bit Ninja, and while ostensibly the aesthetic he’s going for is that of the Game & Watch titles of his youth, the effect is much closer to early Gameboy titles. For my money, that’s a good thing, and has made 1-Bit Ninja a title to watch out for, even if its Fez-like 3D effect — in which the game world is rotated by a multitouch gesture to reveal its depth — appears to be a cool but ultimately pointless gimmick.
1-Bit Ninja is due out later this month.
John Brownlee is a writer for Fast Company, and a contributing writer here at CoM. He has also written for Wired, Playboy, Boing Boing, Popular Mechanics, VentureBeat, and Gizmodo. He lives in Boston with his wife and two parakeets. You can follow him here on Twitter.
10 responses to “1-Bit Ninja Is A Vintage Gameboy Platformer With A Twist”
The 3D didn’t look pointless to me. Looks like you can use it to find secret passages. I saw an instance or two (@ :46, :57, and 1:12). Granted, the times it’s featured in the video to show an alternate path arn’t anything special, but hopefully it’s implemented in the released version to find stashed coins and goodies!
Will definitely be getting this old-school gameboy look-a-like!
Yeah, looks like the 3D thing lets you find the hidden passageways. Nice looking retro game, wonder if it has vertically scrolling sections too?
I’ve been looking for a good platformer, and this one seems to fit the bill. I’m looking forward to its release.
This looks great! I’ll keep an eye out for it.
Thanks for uncover
ing this little gem, mate.
It’s here!!!! http://itunes.apple.com/us/app…
Finally.