What do you associate with the term "ninja game"? Perhaps you think of speedy action and superhuman agility, crazy character maneuvers, intense swordplay, or sneaky stealth. Odds are, however, that you also associate video game ninjas with games that are really, really hard. You wouldn't be wrong; in the long history of ninja-themed games, a lot of the standout titles are known for the formidable challenges they present. Knowing that, you'd likely expect a retro-throwback 2D platformer starring a cyborg ninja to be a tough test of your skills. Enter Cyber Shadow, a game that delivers everything above, especially the difficulty.

Cyber Shadow puts you in the role of the titular Shadow, a cyborg ninja awakened from stasis in the ruins of a massive city. A mad scientist is on the rampage, having fashioned an army of robotic supersoldiers in a crazed quest to revive the dead, and it's up to you to foil his ambitions. It's a simple premise, but Cyber Shadow's story has a complexity that reveals itself as you progress. As you find the souls of your fallen comrades and discover records of the city's destruction and the lunatic doctor's experiments, you learn of a backstory far more interesting and tragic than a simple “mad scientist gone rogue” yarn.

Shadow starts the game quite weak, having simple jumping, slashing, and running capabilities. Thankfully, the first level is a merciful introduction, with plentiful health drops, relatively weak enemies, and lots of checkpoints. But it's not long before things start to ramp up considerably, with early bosses and their bullet-spewing, fast-moving patterns giving you a taste of what's to come very soon. By the second area, you start to feel the pressure--quite literally, as crushing factory debris and instant-kill compactors make it clear that your mission is not going to be a walk in the park.

Welcome to hell—a.k.a. Belle Reve, the prison with the highest mortality rate in the US of A. Where the worst Super-Villains are kept and where they will do anything to get out—even join the super-secret, super-shady Task Force X. Today’s do-or-die assignment? Assemble a collection of cons, including Bloodsport, Peacemaker, Captain Boomerang, Ratcatcher 2, Savant, King Shark, Blackguard, Javelin and everyone’s favorite psycho, Harley Quinn. Then arm them heavily and drop them (literally) on the remote, enemy-infused island of Corto Maltese. Trekking through a jungle teeming with militant adversaries and guerrilla forces at every turn, the Squad is on a search-and destroy mission with only Colonel Rick Flag on the ground to make them behave…and Amanda Waller’s government techies in their ears, tracking their every movement. And as always, one wrong move and they’re dead (whether at the hands of their opponents, a teammate, or Waller herself). If anyone’s laying down bets, the smart money is against them—all of them.

Welcome to hell—a.k.a. Belle Reve, the prison with the highest mortality rate in the US of A. Where the worst Super-Villains are kept and where they will do anything to get out—even join the super-secret, super-shady Task Force X. Today’s do-or-die assignment? Assemble a collection of cons, including Bloodsport, Peacemaker, Captain Boomerang, Ratcatcher 2, Savant, King Shark, Blackguard, Javelin and everyone’s favorite psycho, Harley Quinn. Then arm them heavily and drop them (literally) on the remote, enemy-infused island of Corto Maltese. Trekking through a jungle teeming with militant adversaries and guerrilla forces at every turn, the Squad is on a search-and destroy mission with only Colonel Rick Flag on the ground to make them behave…and Amanda Waller’s government techies in their ears, tracking their every movement. And as always, one wrong move and they’re dead (whether at the hands of their opponents, a teammate, or Waller herself). If anyone’s laying down bets, the smart money is against them—all of them.

Japan’s upcoming Studio Ghibli theme park, due to open in 2022, is building its own Howl’s Moving Castle, reports Tokyo Shimbun (via Kotaku).

Unfortunately, the whole “Moving” thing is a bit too fantastical for our world, and it’ll be a bit smaller than what we see in the movie.

Howl’s not-so-moving castle will stand at approximately four to five stories tall. An artist’s depiction can be seen in the image below.

The castle is part of the park’s Witch’s Valley area, one of five areas in the park themed after Ghibli movies. Construction has also been started on a Princess Mononoke village, a Dondoko forest from Totoro, a Springtime of Life area that features elements from The Cat Returns and Whispers of the Heart, while Witch Valley also contains Kiki’s Delivery Service.

The Ghibli theme park is scheduled to open in 2022, but the Witch Valley and Princess Mononoke areas will open one year later.

The Ghibli park is being codeveloped by the government of Japan’s Aichi prefecture and the Chunichi Shimbun newspaper. The park is located near Nagoya, a site that held a world’s fair in 2005, attracting 22 million visitors across 460 acres. Famed Ghibli film director Hayao Miyazaki is reportedly involved in the design of the parks, which won’t have “rides” in a traditional sense and won’t cut any trees down to make room for development.

Japan’s upcoming Studio Ghibli theme park, due to open in 2022, is building its own Howl’s Moving Castle, reports Tokyo Shimbun (via Kotaku).

Unfortunately, the whole “Moving” thing is a bit too fantastical for our world, and it’ll be a bit smaller than what we see in the movie.

Howl’s not-so-moving castle will stand at approximately four to five stories tall. An artist’s depiction can be seen in the image below.

The castle is part of the park’s Witch’s Valley area, one of five areas in the park themed after Ghibli movies. Construction has also been started on a Princess Mononoke village, a Dondoko forest from Totoro, a Springtime of Life area that features elements from The Cat Returns and Whispers of the Heart, while Witch Valley also contains Kiki’s Delivery Service.

The Ghibli theme park is scheduled to open in 2022, but the Witch Valley and Princess Mononoke areas will open one year later.

The Ghibli park is being codeveloped by the government of Japan’s Aichi prefecture and the Chunichi Shimbun newspaper. The park is located near Nagoya, a site that held a world’s fair in 2005, attracting 22 million visitors across 460 acres. Famed Ghibli film director Hayao Miyazaki is reportedly involved in the design of the parks, which won’t have “rides” in a traditional sense and won’t cut any trees down to make room for development.