by Vladimir Vega 👾
◆ Whenever the legendary Shinobi series was brought up in a discussion, I’d be instantly overcome with an indescribable joy, while at the same time getting choked up. You see, original Shinobi <1987> was the very first game I ever played on my beloved Commodore C64 platform, specifically, on the C128 that my dear and, sadly, late cousin got from Germany back in 1989 as a gift from his parents. That C64 port was brilliantly made and immensely playable, so we would spend hours glued to the screen, snapping the infamous red QuickShot II Turbo joysticks in half, while our folks would keep yelling at us to have lunch.
I first crossed paths with the main protagonist, Joe Musashi in the late ’80s, right there in the arcades, exactly the way the gaming gods intended. To say I was blown away would be an understatement. And how could I not be? Back then, ninja fever was gripping the world <including my former Yugoslavia> while SEGA’s hit was captivating players with its exceptional quality and carving its path to the stars.
A few years ago, the Japanese giant <SEGA> boldly initiated its grand comeback to the video game scene. Alongside the SEGA Mega Drive/Genesis Mini I & II consoles, the SEGA Astro City Mini and the Game Gear Micro handheld, we also saw the release of new installments in popular SEGA franchises, such as Sonic Mania and Streets Of Rage 4. Heck, we even got movies featuring SEGA’s famous mascot, Sonic The Hedgehog, and the company recently opened its new SEGA Europe hub in London, UK. But that’s not all, we have LEGO Mega Drive sets to look forward to, new Jet Set Radio, Crazy Taxi, OutRun, Golden Axe, Nights into Dreams, Guardian Heroes, Fantasy Zone, and other games under the SEGA Universe project, as well as movies from the aforementioned Streets of Rage series, while film adaptations of Altered Beast and Shinobi were also announced a couple of years ago.
Shinobi – The Art Of Vengeance is the latest release fueling SEGA’s ongoing comeback, and I’d argue it already deserves a spot among the best modern-retro games out there. Conceived as a soft reboot of the Shinobi series for new generations of gamers, AOV still draws fully upon its brilliant predecessor, Shinobi III: Return Of The Ninja Master from 1993, which is considered one of the finest SEGA Mega Drive/Genesis classics, featuring exceptional graphics, animation, and sprites that push the hardware itself to its absolute limits. In its style, aesthetics, and mechanics, AOV directly builds upon Shinobi III, except that the classic pixel art has here been replaced by hand-drawn animation and sprites, much like in Streets Of Rage 4 <2020>, which was crafted by the development team LizardCube, who are also behind the entire design here and who can now safely be called a reliable SEGA partner. AOV is, in fact, Shinobi IV in everything but name.
Decades after the defeat of the evil criminal syndicate Neo-Zeed in Shinobi III: Return Of The Ninja Master, Joe Musashi finds peace in his native Oboro village. Living as an aging ninja master, he leads his clan and trains new followers at his ninja school, where one of his best and dearest students is a young woman named Tomoe. Joe also lives with Yamato, his loyal dog, and his wife Naoko.
One day, the Oboro clan is attacked by the ENE Corp. paramilitary organization, after they successfully conquer all the world’s armies through sheer, overwhelming power. The organization is led by Lord Ruse, whose primary objective is the destruction of the Oboro village, the last remaining stronghold in the world possessing the special ninja arts and “Ninpo” magic capable of resisting evil. During the assault, Lord Ruse slaughters everyone in the village, including the student Tomoe and Joe’s dog, Yamato. Yamato also serves as a wonderful homage to the Shadow Dancer spin-off, which is one of my favorite Shinobi games and a title I recommend to everyone – in certain sections, you even get to control Yamato, which adds an extra layer of charm to the game. Driven by a thirst for vengeance, you head out into action equipped with your trusty katana, with the ultimate goal of saving the world.
Unlike its predecessors, AOV relies heavily on exploration and incorporates traits of the so-called “Metroidvania” genre. In addition to the main path there are side areas that you can explore to find all sorts of hidden items and secrets. Once a stage is completed it can be replayed in Arcade Mode where you have to beat the level as fast as possible.
As I mentioned earlier, the core gameplay mechanics heavily resemble Shinobi III, except that here you have the ability to execute combo attacks for the first time <similar to Mortal Kombat 3>, along with a slightly larger offensive arsenal that you can expand through various upgrades. Musashi can also perform double-jumps, air slides, rolls, and similar maneuvers, which wasn’t the case in previous games. On the other hand, AOV is a true visual masterpiece featuring gorgeously drawn backgrounds and landscapes, complemented by brilliant hand-drawn sprites. This is the exact signature style that LizardCube has maintained from the very beginning, ever since their stunning Sega remake of the cult classic Wonder Boy III: The Dragon’s Trap. Furthermore, the level design itself is on a high creative level, which has always been a sort of trademark of all Shinobi games.
◆ If you love high quality action-hack’n-slash platformers, Art Of Vengeance is a game you simply must try, especially if you are a longtime fan of the Shinobi series and ninja movies <Sho Kosugi ftw!>.
◆ The game is available on all platforms, all you have to do is kick back in your chair, leave your worries behind, and dive right into the old/new ninja world!
DLC pack titled “SEGA Villains Stage” has also been released recently, giving you the chance to take on new bosses like Dr. Eggman <Sonic>, Death Adder <Golden Axe> and Goro Majima from the Yakuza series. It also brings new levels, as well as several fresh game modes, magic spells, costumes, and plenty of other goodies.
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