Ninja Gaiden 3 has 8-player online MP

Ninja Gaiden 3 will take the series competitively online in early 2012, Tecmo Koei has revealed.

Up to eight of you can fight either together or against each other online.

"A rich and challenging set of online modes are being implemented, giving players the option to play cooperatively or competitively," a fact sheet confirmed.

"New challenges, characters and missions await those who choose to join the Shadows of the World online!"

Eurogamer played Ninja Gaiden 3 at E3. Among the more contentious new mechanics was a QTE system for spectacular battle sequences.

"The overreliance on QTEs at this stage in the development will split the audience," Eurogamer previewer Simon Parkin wrote. "It may just be a result of the developer attempting to pack as many set pieces into the demo as possible, but following Simon Says button prompts will never be as fun as writing the interactive story oneself, and the balance currently seems off."

Ninja Gaiden 3 is in development for PS3 and 360. The series will also head to Nintendo's new Wii U console in a game titled Ninja Gaiden: Razor's Edge.