Sometimes the hardest games are the most simplistic, because let's face it; if all you have to do is get a ball from one side of a screen to a hole on the other - whacking something like a great big rectangle in your way is going to make that pursuit a living hell. N+ takes a super-simplistic concept - get your stick-ninja from point A to B - and chucks all manner of stick-frying weaponry and obstacles in your way. The reason it hasn't been relegated to a sour punchline the likes of the SNES Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles game though, is through in-game physics and a sense of movement that provide a very tactile and precise sense of control. If you undershoot a jump or drift across a wall just that little bit too much, you always know it's your own fault - which remains the linchpin in keeping titles on the right side of the "Eff this game!" response. However, when you've got a level that features electrified drones tracking your floor movements, homing missiles following your jumps and laser-guided turrets one-shot'ing you if you stand still for a second, a whole plethora of curse-word-filled phrases are always on your lips.
