Name: BS Super Ninja Kun
Format: Super Famicom via the Satellaview system.
Developer: Jaleco
Publisher: Jaleco
Year: 1994
BS Super Ninja Kun is yet another BS ROM which was only released over the satellite download system in Japan. The game was never translated into English.
The game is a platform game, featuring, funnily enough, Ninjas. This means that it can be compared readily to others of it's genre - the Shinobi and Ninja Gaiden series most notably. The game is very different from these two - it is considerably more cartoony than any other Ninja game I've ever played. The characters are pleasingly chubby, and run about the levels (which are drawn in the same graphical style as the Kirby games. Well, almost) looking like they are having a great time. The plot appears to be something involving a bad guy who has kidnapped the nice girl, and is flying away at great speed. You naturally make after him, either in 1 player or 2 player modes. The levels you make your way through and the enemies you fight are all generic ninja / scary Japanese girl playing flute / crazy bouncing red ball type ideas. Some can be knocked out with any weapon, while some need to be jumped on (to be stunned) before hit. Shades of Mario Bros anyone?
The Ninja starts by wielding only an unlimited amount of shurikens, but after he beats each boss (they appear at the end of each set of levels, but none are particularly hard to beat) he gains an ability, until he has bombs and lightning bolts in addition to the Shurikens. Each weapon has roughly the same power (it usually only takes one hit to kill someone anyway), but bombs have a curving trajectory and so can be used to hit things above the player (there is no Super Metroid style adjustable aim).
As well as the weapons, there are (I don't know if this is the right word, but Shinobi uses it...) Ninjujitsus to play with as well. The player starts off with only one (which doubles the power of all weapons) but ends up with others, such as a spinning fire type thing™.
Overall, the game is quite fun, while it lasts (the graphics are quite nice, but it is a quite small file, so I reckon the game is short. I haven't finished it myself). There is one particular boss which I am stuck on - I can avoid dying, but have no idea how to damage him. Still, up until there the game is very good, with decent platform antics (including the obligatory minecart ride). I will maybe try to translate it some day (it's not well known on the Internet - there are no FAQs written about it on GameFAQs and no posts on the game's message board.). But then, I've said I will translate so many games already... Still, not being able to speak Japanese is almost no hindrance to playing the game, so I would recommend all fans of old fashioned good gameplay to pick it up.
And as for the name, according to this, the suffix Kun is like san, but used for people you are more familiar with. So with my twisted logic, the game is called BS Super Friendly Ninja. 1337 Japanese madness, as always.
Triften says "I think Super Ninja Boy might be a better translation. Kun usually implies youth. I'm no native speaker so take that with a grain of salt." I guess that makes a little more sense. Thanks for pointing it out.