Revenge of Shinobi

1989

Sega

From the very moment you see the intro cutscene you can tell that Sega put a lof effort into this one. Levels are longer and more complex than the previous arcade outings of Shinobi, levels will require you to climb up, venture down or even backtrack to progress. The music is composed by the legendary Yuzo Koshiro, you won't find anything as good as what the Streets of Rage series has to offer here, but what is here does the job well and sets the mood for your various surroundings. There are some cheap deaths, most of them will be from falling to your death after being hit in mid air and losing control of your character, so using your powers at the right moment to minimise these situations is a must. Some of Musashi's powers aren't as useful as others, but his throwing stars and sword for close quarters combat are always fun to use. One of the highlights of the game are the numerous pop culture references. Action heroes, martial artists and even comic book characters will appear as enemies or bosses, though they may differ depending on what version of the game you have. If you want to see them in their original glory, play the Japanese version if possible. The maze section towards the end is annoying and confusing to navigate, you could easily spend hours wandering around looking for the exit, so grab a pen and paper when you get there. Despite the cheap deaths and some confusing level design this is a great game, it was also proof that Sega was capable of creating a lengthy action platformer that was focused on a story driven objective, rather than simply reaching a high score.

7.5/10

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