One genre of games that has gained a lot of popularity in the last few years is the roguelite, and we have seen many quality games of this type. One such game could be Mexican Ninja.
Mexican Ninja is a 2.5D retro roguelite title set in the so-called Nuevo Tokyo city that emerged during the war between Mexico and Japan. You play as a Mexican ninja, whose goal is to fight and put an end to the Narkuzas – a blend of the Japanese Yakuza and Mexican drug lords. As you might have concluded by now, atmospherically, Mexican Ninja does not take itself too seriously, and that is a good thing. Visually, the game has quite an interesting animated approach, as well as an excellent graphic style. It is important to note that the game mentions upon entry that much of what I had the opportunity to play is a placeholder version, so a lot will change before the actual game is released. The introduction to the story is brief but explains everything needed to understand the context of the plot, and the focus of the game is certainly not on the story, but on the combat. The humor of Mexican Ninja mostly comes from the game's comedic combination of English, quasi-Spanish, and Japanese culture, and I can say that it works quite solidly, with definitely a few good jokes that made me laugh quite a bit.
Before starting each attempt, you have your hub area where you choose which starting powers and perks you will take into battle, and you can use the coins you collect during the game to upgrade your abilities. You can also change the appearance of your character, although currently only a few skins are available. The combat consists of a solid beat 'em up system, which reminded me most of the old Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles games and is responsive and fast enough to be fun. You can dash, jump, and even "juggle" enemies in the air, and the combat requires precise reflexes, as it is very easy to die, especially at the beginning of the game when you have no upgrades. The special skills you choose and unlock are very diverse, ranging from a large fire circle, turning your ninja into a tornado, to even an explosive fart (yes, I am serious) - the selection is excellent and contributes to making the gameplay more dynamic each time. The levels are also solidly designed, although there is nothing particularly interesting to highlight about them.
As the first game from the MadBricks team, I can say that Mexican Ninja provided me with a quite fun and polished experience, and if you are a fan of the roguelite genre, or such retro beat 'em up games in general, this could be the game for you.
You can add Mexican Ninja to your wishlist on Steam and download a free demo, with the game's release planned for the first quarter of 2026.
