by hinotori
I've played both, and the analogy between Stone Age and Ninjato works. Ninjato is our group's current hot game. It requires a bit more planning, as there are only 21 actions (3 actions x 7 turns), so it feels very constrained, since there are no provisions to get any more. It feels more like Automobile, which only has 12 actions, and a few miscellaneous/optional actions.That said, as the OP mentioned, the production values are top-notch. As a Japanese-American, the immersion in the theme feels authentic--it feels very Japanese. (Compare this to what I feel is the mangling of theme present in Knizia's Samurai.) There seems to have been a lot of research in getting the Japanese terminology correct, for example, and we were all very impressed with the artwork--the characters on the cards are simply stunning.
Ninjato, is however, not without some minor quibbles. For example, the rules regarding alarms, sentries, and guards was confusing. It took several games to get it "right", and we still got it wrong. Still, this is a very good game, sufficiently different from Stone Age to deserve a place on the shelf.