Shinobi: Art of Vengeance Review (Switch)

With all the recent retro revivals and intense 2D nostalgic throwbacks recently it’s hard to believe that we haven’t had a proper Shinobi gave for a long time. There was of course a 3DS game that wasn’t the best and most of the back catalogue has been made available, but Art of Vengeance is a resounding return to form.

The thing that stands out straight away are the gorgeous visuals. The game has been designed to look like a Japanese style painting and the colour and detail present throughout are stunning. In motion, everything flows as well as it looks with the game moving at an intense speed without faltering, even in handheld mode. It allows for a flow and momentum that every ninja game is crying out for.

The combat is much more involved than previous games as well. Historically, Shinobi games have limited the player to a jump and attack button, with the occasional special move. Here, there’s a combo system in play with light and heavy attacks and constantly upgradable and changeable special moves that can be bought from an in-game shop. There’re also instant kills and a host of movement options such as dashes and wall slides that wouldn’t be out of place in the latest indie Metroidvania.

To clarify, Shinobi hasn’t gone the Metroidvania route. The game is set out as linear, platform, levels. These can be revisited later when new power ups are acquired which can in turn can then be used to access a few hidden areas, but generally you are going from left to right through large levels and then taking on an impressively large and difficult boss at the end. Between each of the main platform levels there are also further throw backs to the past such as more action-based stages riding on horses or other vehicles.

The general games difficulty is challenging but fair. There’s certainly nothing here to compare to the Mega Drive games in terms of difficulty. If you do die you start back at a checkpoint, and as the levels are vast this is a smart design choice. It also helps to lessen the frustration on the few occasions it’s difficult to tell between a pit and what is the legitimate way forward. The bosses though are tough. They are damage sponges which go through varying phases of attack patterns, and we often found ourselves zooming through a level, only to be stuck at the boss checkpoint for a considerable amount of time. While this can be frustrating it’s good to see some of the old Shinobi challenge remaining in the game’s DNA.

Overall, Shinobi: Art of Vengeance represents a stunning return for Sega’s much-loved franchise. The action is slick and frenetic, and the level design is both beautiful and creative. Enemies are varied and provide enough of a challenge to be interesting obstacles and getting through a level provides enough satisfaction to continually push on to the next. Sega has been slow to mine some of its formally popular IP’s so we hope this is a sign of things to come. This is a creative, fun and intense success that it’s hard to see anyone not liking it, especially those with nostalgia for the original games.

Overall 9/10

Shinobi Review (Master System)

One of Sega’s most loved franchises, Shinobi had you taking on the role of a deadly ninja trying to take out a high profile terrorist group who are the meanest ‘ever to take up guns and martial art’s weapons’. So what good are a sword, a bloke in a silly mask and a few throwing stars against a whole army of terrorists? Well you have that Ninja Magic!

Set across five missions, each split into smaller sections, you must engage in side scrolling platform action taking out enemies and rescuing hostages to gain power ups before fighting a boss character at the end of the stage. As well as the standard side scrolling action our hero can leap up and down levels of the playing area, something that becomes increasingly important as the levels move along. Rescuing hostages gives the player better weapons as well as increasing life and unlocking a bonus stage which has you throwing shuriken's at enemies moving towards you in a first person perspective. 

Graphically, Shinobi is small but well defined and levels contain a large amount of detail. Enemies are varied from level to level with a new type of terrorist appearing every few levels to keep things interesting. Boss characters are large and well animated, often taking up around half the screen and presenting a daunting opponent for our heroic ninja. When jumping up and down levels the playing field moves well with the game screen keeping integrity and moving without distorting. Slowdown is hardly ever apparent, though there is a touch of flickering at times due to the large amount of characters that appear on screen. 

Though Shinobi may appear to be a standard platform action game, it contains gameplay that really lifts it above the competition. The mixture of tactical screen jumping to try and get the hostages and the more standard action help create a truly memorable game. Controls are responsive, though turning on the spot does present a few problems but for a game that stacked its claim in 1988 we really have to forgive such things. 

The power up system is inspired with a wide range of projectile and hand weapons to be gained and the impressive bonus level always worth hunting out the last few captives for. The truly inspired touch though is the way you can increase your health giving a slight role-play feel to proceedings. 

Overall, Shinobi remains a classic game. Playing it today shows how impressive the game would have been when it first came out as it still remains fresh and fun to engage with. The learning curve is set about right with difficulty increasing in bearable steps the further in you get. Each time you play a little more progress will be made and you will find yourself pressing to see the next level which is the mark of all classic games. If nothing else Shinobi proves two things; that ninja’s are cool, and true classic games always date very well. 

Overall
8/10

Shinobi Review (Master System)

A review of the Sega Master System port of arcade game Shinobi.