When we posted our review of Ninja JaJaMaru-kun earlier this month for our 80s August event, we had no idea that we’d be seeing breaking news about this dormant franchise anytime soon.
Well, it’s fair to say that we are pleasantly surprised, as ININ Games recently announced that three compilations of Jaleco’s classic Ninja JaJaMaru games will be coming to the West in 2023.
These collections are being developed by City Connection for both Nintendo Switch and PS4, with preorders starting on 21 August via Strictly Limited.
Here’s the official breakdown of each collection from ININ Games:
Back in the 80s, Jaleco first released one of their most-known franchises Ninja JaJaMaru-kun in Japan, spanning several sequels over the coming decades, some of them never released in the West!
Ninja JaJaMaru: The Great Yokai Battle – Deluxe Edition is the must-have for everyone who loves the iconic Jump & Run franchise or wants to dive into it for the first time ever. Adding to the amazing collection from City Connection, which has only been released in Japan, this compilation consists of six classics of the franchise spanning over multiple decades and platforms.
Starting with the original “Ninja JaJaMaru-kun” (1985, NES), on to “Super Ninja-Kid” (1994, SNES), and culminating in the brand-new 2022 game “Ninja JaJaMaru: The Great Yokai Battle”, players in the West can finally experience some of these classics for the first time ever, restored to new glory and including additional features. On top of that, ININ Games includes something completely new in this collection: A colorization of the 1990 Game Boy title “Oira JaJaMaru! Sekai Daibouken” that you can play on modern consoles.
Ninja JaJaMaru: The Great Yokai Battle – Deluxe Edition will be available digitally and boxed, featuring the following titles:
Besides this collection of Jump & Run classics, ININ Games will also publish Ninja JaJaMaru: The Lost RPGs, a bundle of two RPG entries of this franchise that have never been released outside Japan before. For the first time ever, fans in the West will get the chance to play “Ninja JaJaMaru: Ninpouchou” and “Ninja JaJaMaru: Gekimaden – Maboroshi no Kinmajou” – fully localized in English! Ninja JaJaMaru: The Lost RPGs will be available as digital download.
Ninja JaJaMaru: The Lost RPGs is comprised of the following titles:
Ninja JaJaMaru: Ninpouchou (1989, Famicom/NES)
Ninja JaJaMaru: Gekimaden – Maboroshi no Kinmajou (1990, Famicom/NES)
The third and last collection will be available digitally-only and is the best bet for all fans of the franchise out there who want to get the full picture. JaJaMaru: Legendary Ninja Collection includes all titles of the previously mentioned collections and will be released for PS4 and Nintendo Switch.
The following games are included in the JaJaMaru: Legendary Ninja Collection:
For physical copy purists, Strictly Limited Games is planning to create exclusive, limited editions of the JaJaMaru: Legendary Ninja Collection that includes not just all of the games, but several collectible tchotchkes, too. For the retro game collectors, there are there are also plans for retro console-compatible cartridges. Keen!
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