On HG101 there's a very in-depth article discussing the series (minus the reboot) and its spiritual successors.
I love ninjas, especially in games. The fun thing about ninjas is that they fit in wildly different settings: historical, modern or futuristic. And, if I would rank my favourite ninja series ever, It would go like: 1. Ninja Gaiden; 2.
Strider; 3. Shinobi. Yes, I prefer Strider over Shinobi.
The first
Strider (ARC/MD) has a very methodical approach to platforming: with huge sprites and somewhat slow movement, you really have to know the level layout to not be hit. But, while the movement is slow, Strider is a very acrobatic character and has a vast array of movement options, so you really need to know what you're doing. It's impressive how, for an arcade game, it never really feels cheap: after learning the level layout and enemy positions, I could complete entire levels without being hit even once when I played it through MAME a few years ago.
It must also be said that the game is just beautiful when compared to almost any other platformer at the time - this is a 1989 game! And it's not just the graphical capabilities, but, as
Spirit Bomb said, the art design itself: the "sci-fi communist dystopia" is not an usual setting in games, especially when it mixes chinese elements, lush jungles and airships.
The Mega Drive port is impressive, as it keeps the game mostly intact (except for using a few less colors and no voices due to limitations of the console).
Strider 2 (ARC/PS1) has more of an emphasis on action: the sprites are smaller and much faster; it plays closer to a Mega Man X game (a lot like Mega Man X4 when playing through Zero's campaign). I also like this one, but not as much as the first: the sprites-over-3d graphics are appealing and well made, but not as detailed as the first game scenarios; also, there are too many loading screens interrupting the action and gone is the methodical approach from the first game (some moments in Strider 2 are definitely cheap). Also, it reuses a lot of moments and bosses from the first game, so even if they appear to be different here, I would still have preferred to see new bosses and scenes. In general, the game is still great (and I guess most people would prefer its faster approach to combat), but I personally prefer the first one.
But my real favourite here is, suprisingly,
Strider 2014. The 2.5D graphics were done really well, which, as
stratogustav pointed out, is a very rare thing. The movement is very fast like in Strider 2 but still methodical, so it combines the qualities of both 1&2. The story is again a retelling of the previous games, but it introduces completely new bosses and setpieces, so it feels both nostalgic and fresh. I didn't think a Metroid-style approach would work for this series, but it definitely does, and I must say this is probably my favourite Metroid-style game ever. It must also be said that the game remains focused: there's absolutely no padding, the reason why it's relatively short. No long cutscenes, no gratuitous exploration (you always get something nice for exploring a new area), no rpg elements (so, no grinding). It's very close in spirit to both the original Striders and to Super Metroid. When I bought it, I played through it twice in a single weekend so I could get all the achievements. The new elements introduced to the combat, with the different ciphers, are great, especially when it gives you the ability to parry enemy lasers.
It's too bad, then, that the main developer,
Double Helix, was acquired by Amazon and is working on (another) MOBA game. I really wish to see what they would do with a new Strider. If Capcom hasn't abandoned the series again, I hope they either produce a sequel internally or look for a competent developer. Strider definitely deserves to have good games.
About the other entires: I only played a bit of
Strider (NES) through emulation, and it looked nice, albeit severely toned down by the limitations of the NES: Hiryu's movements weren't as acrobatic as expected due to the sprite limitations, and its jumping felt really floaty. But the level design seemed to be very open to exploration, which was cool (this shows the series were going for exploratory levels well before the reboot). Also, it had more of a story, with more characters and dialog, so it's a good chance to know more about Strider's setting.
The outsourced Mega Drive sequel,
Strider Returns, is abysmal and doesn't deserve to be mentioned along the other games. It was neither published nor developed by Capcom, so I don't know why the hell it uses the name Strider.
On the other hand, the director of the arcade Strider, Kouichi Yotsui, developed an arcade-exclusive spiritual successor called
Osman/Cannon Dancer. This is a seriously awesome game and plays pretty much like the first Strider - except that Osman uses no weapon, only his feet (!). The sceneries are again very creative, detailed and colorful, the story makes absolutely no sense and the movement is very acrobatic and methodical - so, this is pretty much another Strider game minus the IP. Sadly, it was never ported to any console, so you either have to be very lucky to find an arcade cabinet or play through MAME, which was what I did. Recommended.
