Character hacks tend to be iffy because many of them simply replace the sprites of an existing character, and that’s a novelty that wears itself out really quick (e.g. see Streets of Rage 2). The talented guys behind Techmoon went above and beyond, and transformed the original game to such a drastic degree that you’re not playing Ninja Gaiden featuring Deadpool; you’re playing Deadpool: The Video Game.

The bare bones of the game are still Ninja Gaiden, and you can clearly see it as you play, but literally every facet of the game has been changed. Deadpool looks and plays the part, and Ryu’s magic spells have been fully replaced with a slew of weapons that he has had his hands on over the years. He even has his healing factor that regenerates health over time. Cut scenes between levels now feature our Merc With A Mouth, along with dialog that fits his character like a glove. Even the soundtrack was entirely redone with all brand new tracks, including an outstanding 8-bit rendition of X Gon’ Give it To Ya.

All of the enemies and bosses themselves received face lifts as well, and you’ll get a good laugh at what some of them have become. What really took me by surprise was the new attack patterns that the bosses now have, many of which are surprisingly a lot more fair than in the original Ninja Gaiden.

The levels also got some significant changes as well, with Easter eggs thrown in here and there. Although they can feel a bit too similar to their original counterparts (the first level is still a stretch of streets), they’re different enough that it’s easy to look past that. My only gripe is that the color choices feel bizarrely otherworldly in a few places, but it doesn’t detract from the game’s appeal.

What especially impressed me was that the hack even throws in some really nice options, including difficulty settings, languages, and a tutorial mode that gets you acquainted with all of Deadpool’s weapons and abilities. All of that on top of all of the sprite work and music tracks really shows how much love went into this hack.

Overall, I love everything about this, and I highly recommend it. It isn’t just a hack; it’s a whole different game, and it’s a stellar job from a team that put a lot of time and effort into this project, and pushed through to the very end, even after the pacsnsacdave scandal. But that’s another story.