u/Competitive_Bee_1203

Yes I know this is a different kind of joker but still this could be the best Batman animation since BTAS and I have yet to hear a better Joker voice than the classic Mark Hamill. I think he’s still got a few good years left in him to voice Joker and I don’t want to waste it!

Maybe he’ll sound a little old, but given Absolute Joker IS an immortal demon that’s 1000 years old it wouldn’t be entirely unfitting. Mark can just talk calmly in his normal voice for human form Joker and then switch to his iconic Joker voice for his clown demon form. Or they can use 2 actors, a younger actor for the human form and Mark Hamill for the devil form.

I made a post earlier that did well calculating Ryu’s age but I want to correct some stuff and fix where I think I was wrong. The main change is the placement of Ninja Gaiden 3 and Ragebound/NES/OVA. After reading the bios in DOA 5 and 6 they imply Jo Hayabusa is in fact still alive in those games, and therefore Ninja Gaiden 3 can in fact take place between the DOA games and not before. This would be consistent with his outfit shift from DOA Dimensions to DOA 5. https://www.reddit.com/r/ninjagaiden/s/rMebGi1fij that was my original thread.

With these changes the timeline seems way more plausible with more space between many of the games that were originally crammed all into 2 years of Ryu being 22/23.

Anyway to start the timeline you have the Nioh games which are known to be in the ancient past of the Team Ninja world.

Nioh series (Ryu has not yet been born)

Ninja Gaiden Arcade is probably the beginning of the series, as it is referenced later in Yaiba and doesn’t have the caveats of the NES series that push it forward. I can’t say for sure when this takes place, there is a cult in it called the cult of 1999 that prophesies a king will come in 1999, but it doesn’t say the game itself takes place then. The NES series states it occurs in a retro-futuristic 1988, and placing this entry in 1999 would force it much later in the list and would only make sense if Ninja Gaiden 4 indeed takes place 20 years after NG2, which would make Ayane 35 and she does not look 35 in that game. So for now, this game is the start of the series.

Ninja Gaiden Shadow is not referenced in any other games and is supposed to be a prequel to the NES trilogy, set 3 years before. However the NES trilogy has been shuffled around the timeline multiple times by retcons. Still Ryu’s outfit in this game resembles the outfit he begins with in NG1/Black/Sigma moreso than the arcade game, so there’s that. So it would probably go here unless someone disagrees.

Ryu is 21. Judging by the trees in the first mission in Sigma this game begins in the Fall. Ryu dawns his Legendary Black Falcon Suit and encounters his most powerful enemies yet, the Fiends.

(fall) Ninja Gaiden Black/Sigma (Ryu is 21, Ayane is 14)

6 months later brings us to Ninja Gaiden: Dragon Sword, so logically Ryu would now be at least close to 22 given his birthday is June 15. This is also the first time Ryu defeats the Dark Dragon, which is mentioned in Ninja Gaiden 4.

(spring or summer) Ninja Gaiden DS (Ryu is ~22, could still be 21 if spring. Ayane is still 14 because her birthday is august 5th which probably hasn’t been passed yet)

6 months later yet again brings us to Ninja Gaiden 2. Ryu is still 22 but it is towards the end of the year again. Ryu also defeats the Dark Dragon a second time, also mentioned in Ninja Gaiden 4 (it says he defeated it a total of 3 times, the third when its husk would poison Tokyo before NG4). Since the Dark Dragon is only in Sigma 2 and 2 Black I’ll assume 2 Black is the canon now.

(fall) Ninja Gaiden 2 Black (Ryu is 22, Ayane is 15)

So now is where I break with orthodoxy and say the next chronological game is DOA Dimensions. DOA Dimensions combined the stories of DOA 1-4 but put Ryu in his Black Falcon Suit (the version he wears in the first 2 games but not 3). Ryu has established himself as a legendary fighter but Jo Hayabusa is not yet dead in Dimensions unlike the original first 4 DOA games which reference the NES games as his origin instead of the 3D games where he has his Black Falcon suit. Ryu is stated to be 23 in Dimensions and Ayane is stated to be 16, fitting our timeline perfectly.

(summer) DOA Dimensions (Ryu is 23, Ayane is 16)

Now is where I believe Ninja Gaiden 3: Razor’s Edge happens. While it could have happened after the next DOA games I’m going to assume the release order of the games would point to when they take place given they don’t contradict otherwise. Also in DOA 5 Ryu is 25, giving us age 24 to place Razor’s Edge.

(fall) Ninja Gaiden 3: Razor’s Edge (Ryu is 24, Ayane is 17)

After defeating the League of Alchemists and their schemes, in the process inadvertently destroying the Blade of the Archfiend, Ryu is dragged back into the world of DOA in DOA 5, where it is stated he is now 25 and Ayane is 18.

(summer) DOA 5 (Ryu is 25, Ayane is 18)

Next we have Ninja Gaiden Yaiba Z, which was released in between DOA 5 and 6. It fits fine in here as a side quest for Ryu in between those games. As Ryu is still 25 in DOA 6 he is still 25 here.

(fall) Ninja Gaiden Yaiba Z (Ryu is 25)

Next is DOA 6, the conclusion to the ongoing story threads from DOA 5. Ryu and Ayane are still the same age, so this year was just a busy year for everyone. It should be noted that in the character bios for Ryu in both DOA 5 and 6 it mentions Jo Hayabusa being alive training in the mountains, meaning this is still before Ragebound, where spoiler alert, Jo dies.

(winter) DOA 6 (Ryu is 25, Ayane is 18)

The next game chronologically is of course Ninja Gaiden Ragebound, where the events leading to Jo Hayabusa’s death finally arrive. As this game seems to begin in early summer we can assume Ryu is either approaching his next birthday or has passed it, but it’s unclear how long this would take place after DOA 6; however, since things seem to happen fast for this young ninja lets say it happens next year.

(spring or summer) Ninja Gaiden Ragebound (Ryu is ~26)

Now we have the NES games which seem to have already been partially retconned by Ragebound at least regarding Ryu’s outfit, so we can assume other aspects of it can be altered to fit the modern timeline, such as the ages of the characters, but the main thing here is Jo Hayabusa finally dies and Ryu, as a result, eventually becomes the head of his clan as we see later in Ninja Gaiden 4. Since there is a year time skip between NES 1 and NES 2, these games take place over the course of at least a whole year. So:

Ninja Gaiden NES trilogy (Ryu begins at ~26 and ends at 27)

Next we have the OVA series, again requiring some head canon to fit. But in it Ryu begins a shop with his new gf Irene in America. He must have realized eventually the world needed him though and returned to his duties and ended up back in Tokyo for NG4, but we just have to imagine about that.

Ninja Gaiden OVA (Ryu is 27 or 28)

Finally we have Ninja Gaiden 4, which tells us it takes place “multiple decades” after the Black Spider Clan attacked the Hayabusa Village, seemingly referring to Ninja Gaiden 2. But Ayane is in this game and she still looks relatively young. If it took place 20 years after NG2 that would make Ryu 42 and her 35. This is plausible but the designs of the characters suggest something more like 10 years, with Ryu being 32 and Ayane being 25. But we will probably have that question answered in DOA 7, which seems to take place around the same time.

But anyway there you go, if you want to play the games in chronological order with the full story it goes:

Nioh Series [ancient past]
Ninja Gaiden Arcade
Ninja Gaiden Shadow
Ninja Gaiden Sigma
Ninja Gaiden: Dragon Sword (DS)
Ninja Gaiden 2 Black
DOA Dimensions (DS)
Ninja Gaiden 3: Razor’s Edge
DOA 5
Ninja Gaiden Yaiba Z
DOA 6
Ninja Gaiden Ragebound
Ninja Gaiden NES trilogy
Ninja Gaiden OVA series
Ninja Gaiden 4
DOA 7?

Hope you enjoyed this.

I was almost done with it but forgot the Season was about to end. Would have grinded more if I remembered and not went to sleep. Will I get another chance to complete it? I like when games let you finish Seasons if you bought them…

I know I don’t NEED it but I don’t want to play the game without something that improves my experience. I’m too far in the game to go back for it but am I missing out? Is it the coolest item? 😭

Simply map item menu to LT, block to LB (like in the old games), bloodraven mode to RT, and bloodgear thing to RB. Now you have the classic block button and everything else feels natural in this layout. I customized it like this and now I feel like I’m playing Ninja Gaiden 2 Black/Razor’s Edge again! And it’s way easier! I’m on Xbox Series X.

Muscle memory with the RB block was throwing me off so I had to make the change, and it’s way better this way, at least for me who just binged the original trilogy, try it yourself!

So Pomni in digital world is left with insane blobified Jax that can no longer reciprocate any kind of feelings and has to watch her real self get with real Jax and probably have sex later. And to top it off Pomni is stuck in circus hell for eternity and will likely eventually become insane blob also and suffer eternally…

So I’ve taken it upon myself to try and calculate the most likely age of Ryu throughout the Ninja Gaiden/DOA timeline. All the games seem to be referenced at some point, even the arcade game, and there will have to be soft retcons to make everything fit, but here is the general timeline that makes sense to me. Yes Ninja Gaiden takes place in a very futuristic early 2000s for the most part:

(1996) Ninja Gaiden Shadow: Ryu is a young ninja only 18 years old. He has his first big mission to take down an evil cult. (based on official info)

(1999) Ninja Gaiden Arcade (OG): It’s 3 years after Shadow. Ryu is now 21. He is tasked with taking down another criminal syndicate. (based on official info)

(1999) Ninja Gaiden Sigma: A few months later, in the Fall, Ninja Gaiden 1 begins. Ryu dawns his legendary black falcon outfit and takes down his strongest foes yet, godlike fiends. Ryu is still 21 as this happens later the same year as arcade. (based on official info and the trees in mission 1 of Sigma)

(2000) Ninja Gaiden Dragon Sword: 6 months later, in early spring, Ninja Gaiden Dragon Sword begins. Ryu is either approaching his 22nd birthday on June 15th or has just turned 22. He defeats the Dark Dragon for the first time. (based on official info)

(2000) Ninja Gaiden 2 Black: 6 months after Dragon Sword it is once again Fall. Ryu battles the Black Spider Clan and stops the Fiends once again. (based on official info)

(2000-2001) Ninja Gaiden 3 Razor’s Edge: Beginning the following winter Ryu encounters the League of Alchemists. His battle with them spans into early spring of next year. He is 22 at the start and may or may not turn 23 during the events of the game depending on if it goes past June 15th. (extrapolated from other info)

(2001) Ragebound: During either Spring or Summer of 2001. (extrapolated)

(2001) NES 1: Same as Ragebound. Ryu dawns his traditional ninja attire, perhaps in respect for his father or something, shelving the black falcon outfit temporarily. (extrapolated)

(2002) NES 2: About a year passes since NES 1. We are now in the early spring of 2002. Ryu is 23 and has a few months before he is 24. Let’s say we are in February or March. (based on official info)

(2002) OVA: We are now in March or April of 2002. Ryu sets up his shop with his girlfriend Irene. (extrapolated)

(2002) DOA Dimensions: Next month in April or May Ryu joins the Dead or Alive fighting tournament kicking off the events of DOA Dimensions. The events of Dimensions span from early April or May through June. Also Ryu returns to wearing his black falcon outfit. (extrapolated)

(2002) Ninja Gaiden Yaiba: Ryu is now 24. He encounters his biggest hater. Stuff happens. (extrapolated and official info)

(2003) DOA 5-6: Ryu is now 25. (based on official info)

(2003-2019): At some point in this large timeskip Ryu defeats the Dark Dragon a 3rd time. (He defeated him twice in 2000, in Dragon Sword and 2 Black). He also becomes the official leader of his clan, replacing his father. (based on info from Ninja Gaiden 4)

(2020): Ryu is now 42, exactly 2 decades after Ninja Gaiden 2. The events of Ninja Gaiden 4 begin. (based on codex in NG4)