The Revenge of Shinobi
Encyclopedia
The Revenge of Shinobi, published in Japan as is a video game developed and published by Sega
in 1989. It was the first Shinobi game developed for the Sega Mega Drive
, and was later released on the coin-operated version of that console, the Mega-Tech.
The game is a sequel to Shinobi
, a 1987 arcade game
, and features a soundtrack
by video game music composer Yuzo Koshiro
. The game was included in the compilations: Mega Games 2, Mega Drive 6 Pak, Sega Classics Arcade Collection
(for Mega-CD), and Sega Smash Pack (for the PC and Dreamcast). It was re-released for the Wii
Virtual Console
in 2009.
, the criminal organization Zeed from the original game has since reformed and have renamed themselves "Neo Zeed." Neo Zeed decide to have their revenge on the Oboro Ninja clan and Joe Musashi
by killing his master and kidnapping Joe's fiance, Naoko. Joe, having reached the clan too late, manages to learn about Neo Zeed's plot by his dying master. Joe decides to travel the world to gain his revenge on Neo Zeed as well as try to save his fiance before it's too late.
. The player controls Joe Musashi and must complete eight districts before the final confrontation with the head of Neo Zeed. Each district consists of three scenes, the last of which is a battle against a unique boss-character.
The D-pad moves Musashi around while the A, B and C buttons are used to perform a ninjitsu technique, attack and jump respectively. A key move in The Revenge of Shinobi is the somersault
, which maximizes Musashi's jumping height and enables him to throw eight shuriken
at once in mid-air. Additionally, some stages consist of multiple layers, such as the first scene of the Military Base and the freeway in Area Code 818. Switching between layer (outdoor/indoor, or on-the-highway/next-to-it) is also done with the somersault move.
Besides his regular assortment of moves and attacks, Musashi has the ability to perform four special ninjutsu
techniques. Only one can be used in each level, unless an additional bonus was picked up or the ninpo of Mijin was used to reset your life total. The four ninpo techniques employed by Joe Musashi are as follows:
A variety of bonus crates can be found in each level, some hidden in the scenery. These include simple power-ups such as extra shuriken or health packs, as well as special items to gain lives or extra ninpo attacks. Besides power-ups, some crates may contain time bombs: explosives that detonate when their fuse runs out or if Musashi comes too close (though he can walk out of the blast radius if the player is quick enough).
The game is divided into four difficulties. As difficulty increases, more enemies appear per stage; on Hardest, Musashi takes twice as much damage and the amount of starting lives decreases from 10 to 1. From the options menu, the player can also choose the amount of starting shuriken from 0 to 90 (though a technique does exist that allows infinite shuriken).
forest in the Ibaraki Prefecture
is where the game begins. Through these ancient ruins Musashi must make his way to The House of Confusion. At the end of this district, he is confronted by the mighty samurai
Blue Lobster.
Tokyo: Musashi begins this stage near a rocky canyon
. Winged ninja swoop down from the sky to attack Joe. Once he makes it past the waterfalls, the district moves on to the darkened roof tops of Tokyo
, and eventually into a blinding disco where Shinobi must battle with the Shadow Dancer.
The Military Base: This military complex of Neo Zeed is heavily guarded by armed soldiers. Musashi will encounter light infantry as well as flame throwers and attack dogs. The second scene takes Musashi on board an air carrier. If he touches one of the air lock
s, he dies. The aircraft is controlled by a powerful supercomputer
that houses a human brain
.
Detroit: Detroit is one big junkyard, heaps upon heaps of cars, running through conveyor belts and into a melting furnace. A tough Terminator-like android guards this wreckage.
Area code 818: Area code 818 takes Musashi past skyscraper
s and freeways. The final battle is fought on top of an armoured vehicle carrying a gigantic ballistic missile
.
Chinatown: After a showdown with the kung-fu gangs of Chinatown
, Musashi hops on board a speeding train. Eventually he finds himself in the clutches of characters resembling Spider-Man
and Batman
. Devilman
for the 1.01 version of the game instead of Batman.
New York: Ninja and machine gunners guard the breakwater of New York City
's dockside. Leaping from boat to boat, Joe infiltrates Neo Zeed's container ship and comes face to face with Godzilla
.
Neo Zeed Marine Stronghold: Here is where Musashi faces his final enemy, who appears to be the leader of Zeed himself. The beautiful Naoko is trapped somewhere beneath the cellar maze of this stronghold, and Joe must terminate Zeed quickly before the cell trap kills Naoko. There are two endings to the game, depending on whether Joe defeats the boss in time to save Naoko.
Because of copyright issues regarding certain enemy characters (many of which were based on cultural icons) there were at least four versions of the game in Japan and North America, with the later two also appearing in Europe.
(for the PC) contained buggy boss battles for The Military Base and New York stages, as well as Neo Zeed Marine Stronghold. The buggy levels self-complete, leading one to believe that the Smash Pack version is actually a development version of the game.
; the final boss battle was criticised, however, for being too difficult.
in 2006 at the Gewandhaus zu Leipzig, Germany. The arrangement was done by original composer Yuzo Koshiro himself. Music from The Revenge of Shinobi was also performed at two concerts of PLAY! A Video Game Symphony
in Stockholm, Sweden in 2007. It was also played during the encore as the most voted song when PLAY! A Video Game Symphony
was performing in Singapore (June 2007).
Sega
, usually styled as SEGA, is a multinational video game software developer and an arcade software and hardware development company headquartered in Ōta, Tokyo, Japan, with various offices around the world...
in 1989. It was the first Shinobi game developed for the Sega Mega Drive
Sega Mega Drive
The Sega Genesis is a fourth-generation video game console developed and produced by Sega. It was originally released in Japan in 1988 as , then in North America in 1989 as Sega Genesis, and in Europe, Australia and other PAL regions in 1990 as Mega Drive. The reason for the two names is that...
, and was later released on the coin-operated version of that console, the Mega-Tech.
The game is a sequel to Shinobi
Shinobi (arcade game)
is a side-scrolling action game produced by Sega originally released for the arcades in . In Shinobi, the player controls a modern day ninja named Joe Musashi who goes on a mission to rescue his kidnapped students from a group of terrorists...
, a 1987 arcade game
Arcade game
An arcade game is a coin-operated entertainment machine, usually installed in public businesses such as restaurants, bars, and amusement arcades. Most arcade games are video games, pinball machines, electro-mechanical games, redemption games, and merchandisers...
, and features a soundtrack
Soundtrack
A soundtrack can be recorded music accompanying and synchronized to the images of a motion picture, book, television program or video game; a commercially released soundtrack album of music as featured in the soundtrack of a film or TV show; or the physical area of a film that contains the...
by video game music composer Yuzo Koshiro
Yuzo Koshiro
is a Japanese video game music composer and audio programmer. He is regarded as one of the most influential innovators in chiptune music and video game sound design...
. The game was included in the compilations: Mega Games 2, Mega Drive 6 Pak, Sega Classics Arcade Collection
Sega Classics Arcade Collection
Sega Classics Arcade Collection is the name of two compilations released for the Sega Mega-CD. Despite their titles both versions of Sega Classics Arcade Collection include only the Sega Mega Drive ports of all the games included....
(for Mega-CD), and Sega Smash Pack (for the PC and Dreamcast). It was re-released for the Wii
Wii
The Wii is a home video game console released by Nintendo on November 19, 2006. As a seventh-generation console, the Wii primarily competes with Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Sony's PlayStation 3. Nintendo states that its console targets a broader demographic than that of the two others...
Virtual Console
Virtual console
A virtual console – also known as a virtual terminal – is a conceptual combination of the keyboard and display for a computer user interface. It is a feature of some operating systems such as UnixWare, Linux, and BSD, in which the system console of the computer can be used to switch between...
in 2009.
Story
Taking place three years after the first gameShinobi (arcade game)
is a side-scrolling action game produced by Sega originally released for the arcades in . In Shinobi, the player controls a modern day ninja named Joe Musashi who goes on a mission to rescue his kidnapped students from a group of terrorists...
, the criminal organization Zeed from the original game has since reformed and have renamed themselves "Neo Zeed." Neo Zeed decide to have their revenge on the Oboro Ninja clan and Joe Musashi
Joe Musashi
is a player character and main hero in Sega's Shinobi series of video games, first introduced in 1987.-Character design:When debuting in the Shinobi series, Musashi was designed with an outfit that would be described by IGN as "thoroughly traditional", whereas Sega would coordinate later characters...
by killing his master and kidnapping Joe's fiance, Naoko. Joe, having reached the clan too late, manages to learn about Neo Zeed's plot by his dying master. Joe decides to travel the world to gain his revenge on Neo Zeed as well as try to save his fiance before it's too late.
Gameplay
The game is a traditional side-scrolling platform gamePlatform game
A platform game is a video game characterized by requiring the player to jump to and from suspended platforms or over obstacles . It must be possible to control these jumps and to fall from platforms or miss jumps...
. The player controls Joe Musashi and must complete eight districts before the final confrontation with the head of Neo Zeed. Each district consists of three scenes, the last of which is a battle against a unique boss-character.
The D-pad moves Musashi around while the A, B and C buttons are used to perform a ninjitsu technique, attack and jump respectively. A key move in The Revenge of Shinobi is the somersault
Somersault
A somersault is an acrobatic exercise in which a person does a full 360° flip, moving the feet over the head. A somersault can be performed either forwards, backwards, or sideways and can be executed in the air or on the ground...
, which maximizes Musashi's jumping height and enables him to throw eight shuriken
Shuriken
A shuriken is a traditional Japanese concealed weapon that was generally used for throwing, and sometimes stabbing or slashing...
at once in mid-air. Additionally, some stages consist of multiple layers, such as the first scene of the Military Base and the freeway in Area Code 818. Switching between layer (outdoor/indoor, or on-the-highway/next-to-it) is also done with the somersault move.
Besides his regular assortment of moves and attacks, Musashi has the ability to perform four special ninjutsu
Ninjutsu
or may be:*the arts associated with espionage and assassination in feudal Japan, see Ninja*modern schools of martial arts claiming to be based in these traditions, see Modern Schools of Ninjutsu*fictional depictions, see Ninja in popular culture...
techniques. Only one can be used in each level, unless an additional bonus was picked up or the ninpo of Mijin was used to reset your life total. The four ninpo techniques employed by Joe Musashi are as follows:
- Ikazuchi (the art of thunder): Envelopes Musashi with a shield of lightning energy that sustains damage for four consecutive hits.
- Karyu (the art of fire): Summons four dragon-shaped columns of flame that move across the screen and damage all enemies in their path.
- Fushin (the art of floating): Improves Musashi's agility by heightening his jumping capability.
- Mijin (the art of pulverizing): The most powerful ninpo technique in the game. Musashi explodes, damaging all enemies on screen at the cost of one life. When Musashi uses Minjin, his health is fully restored, and he is also granted an extra ninpo attack when he recovers. Minjin will, like Karyu, destroy all normal enemies on screen, however with this ninpo, Musashi's power against boss enemies is much greater.
A variety of bonus crates can be found in each level, some hidden in the scenery. These include simple power-ups such as extra shuriken or health packs, as well as special items to gain lives or extra ninpo attacks. Besides power-ups, some crates may contain time bombs: explosives that detonate when their fuse runs out or if Musashi comes too close (though he can walk out of the blast radius if the player is quick enough).
The game is divided into four difficulties. As difficulty increases, more enemies appear per stage; on Hardest, Musashi takes twice as much damage and the amount of starting lives decreases from 10 to 1. From the options menu, the player can also choose the amount of starting shuriken from 0 to 90 (though a technique does exist that allows infinite shuriken).
Stages
Ibaraki Province, Japan: This bambooBamboo
Bamboo is a group of perennial evergreens in the true grass family Poaceae, subfamily Bambusoideae, tribe Bambuseae. Giant bamboos are the largest members of the grass family....
forest in the Ibaraki Prefecture
Ibaraki Prefecture
is a prefecture of Japan, located in the Kantō region on the main island of Honshu. The capital is Mito.-History:Ibaraki Prefecture was previously known as Hitachi Province...
is where the game begins. Through these ancient ruins Musashi must make his way to The House of Confusion. At the end of this district, he is confronted by the mighty samurai
Samurai
is the term for the military nobility of pre-industrial Japan. According to translator William Scott Wilson: "In Chinese, the character 侍 was originally a verb meaning to wait upon or accompany a person in the upper ranks of society, and this is also true of the original term in Japanese, saburau...
Blue Lobster.
Tokyo: Musashi begins this stage near a rocky canyon
Canyon
A canyon or gorge is a deep ravine between cliffs often carved from the landscape by a river. Rivers have a natural tendency to reach a baseline elevation, which is the same elevation as the body of water it will eventually drain into. This forms a canyon. Most canyons were formed by a process of...
. Winged ninja swoop down from the sky to attack Joe. Once he makes it past the waterfalls, the district moves on to the darkened roof tops of Tokyo
Tokyo
, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...
, and eventually into a blinding disco where Shinobi must battle with the Shadow Dancer.
The Military Base: This military complex of Neo Zeed is heavily guarded by armed soldiers. Musashi will encounter light infantry as well as flame throwers and attack dogs. The second scene takes Musashi on board an air carrier. If he touches one of the air lock
Air lock
An air lock is gas trapped in a high point of a liquid-filled pipe system. The gas, being lighter than the liquid, rises to the highest point and restricts the flow of liquid...
s, he dies. The aircraft is controlled by a powerful supercomputer
Supercomputer
A supercomputer is a computer at the frontline of current processing capacity, particularly speed of calculation.Supercomputers are used for highly calculation-intensive tasks such as problems including quantum physics, weather forecasting, climate research, molecular modeling A supercomputer is a...
that houses a human brain
Brain
The brain is the center of the nervous system in all vertebrate and most invertebrate animals—only a few primitive invertebrates such as sponges, jellyfish, sea squirts and starfishes do not have one. It is located in the head, usually close to primary sensory apparatus such as vision, hearing,...
.
Detroit: Detroit is one big junkyard, heaps upon heaps of cars, running through conveyor belts and into a melting furnace. A tough Terminator-like android guards this wreckage.
Area code 818: Area code 818 takes Musashi past skyscraper
Skyscraper
A skyscraper is a tall, continuously habitable building of many stories, often designed for office and commercial use. There is no official definition or height above which a building may be classified as a skyscraper...
s and freeways. The final battle is fought on top of an armoured vehicle carrying a gigantic ballistic missile
Ballistic missile
A ballistic missile is a missile that follows a sub-orbital ballistic flightpath with the objective of delivering one or more warheads to a predetermined target. The missile is only guided during the relatively brief initial powered phase of flight and its course is subsequently governed by the...
.
Chinatown: After a showdown with the kung-fu gangs of Chinatown
Chinatown
A Chinatown is an ethnic enclave of overseas Chinese people, although it is often generalized to include various Southeast Asian people. Chinatowns exist throughout the world, including East Asia, Southeast Asia, the Americas, Australasia, and Europe. Binondo's Chinatown located in Manila,...
, Musashi hops on board a speeding train. Eventually he finds himself in the clutches of characters resembling Spider-Man
Spider-Man
Spider-Man is a fictional Marvel Comics superhero. The character was created by writer-editor Stan Lee and writer-artist Steve Ditko. He first appeared in Amazing Fantasy #15...
and Batman
Batman
Batman is a fictional character created by the artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger. A comic book superhero, Batman first appeared in Detective Comics #27 , and since then has appeared primarily in publications by DC Comics...
. Devilman
Devilman
is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Go Nagai which originally started as an anime adaptation of the concept of Nagai's previous manga series, Demon Lord Dante. A 39 episode anime series was developed by Toei in 1972 and Nagai began Devilman as a manga in Kodansha's Weekly Shōnen...
for the 1.01 version of the game instead of Batman.
New York: Ninja and machine gunners guard the breakwater of New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
's dockside. Leaping from boat to boat, Joe infiltrates Neo Zeed's container ship and comes face to face with Godzilla
Godzilla
is a daikaijū, a Japanese movie monster, first appearing in Ishirō Honda's 1954 film Godzilla. Since then, Godzilla has gone on to become a worldwide pop culture icon starring in 28 films produced by Toho Co., Ltd. The monster has appeared in numerous other media incarnations including video games,...
.
Neo Zeed Marine Stronghold: Here is where Musashi faces his final enemy, who appears to be the leader of Zeed himself. The beautiful Naoko is trapped somewhere beneath the cellar maze of this stronghold, and Joe must terminate Zeed quickly before the cell trap kills Naoko. There are two endings to the game, depending on whether Joe defeats the boss in time to save Naoko.
Versions
- Software revision 1.00 (1989): Enemy characters resembling RamboJohn RamboJohn Rambo is an iconic fictional character and the basis of the Rambo saga. He first appeared in the 1972 novel First Blood by David Morrell, but later became more famous in the film series, played by Sylvester Stallone...
, The Terminator, Spider-ManSpider-ManSpider-Man is a fictional Marvel Comics superhero. The character was created by writer-editor Stan Lee and writer-artist Steve Ditko. He first appeared in Amazing Fantasy #15...
, BatmanBatmanBatman is a fictional character created by the artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger. A comic book superhero, Batman first appeared in Detective Comics #27 , and since then has appeared primarily in publications by DC Comics...
, and GodzillaGodzillais a daikaijū, a Japanese movie monster, first appearing in Ishirō Honda's 1954 film Godzilla. Since then, Godzilla has gone on to become a worldwide pop culture icon starring in 28 films produced by Toho Co., Ltd. The monster has appeared in numerous other media incarnations including video games,...
are present. Both Spider-Man and Batman are actually fake representations of the characters conducted by a shapeshifterShapeshiftingShapeshifting is a common theme in mythology, folklore, and fairy tales. It is also found in epic poems, science fiction literature, fantasy literature, children's literature, Shakespearean comedy, ballet, film, television, comics, and video games...
who alters his appearance after sustaining a certain amount of damage. Additionally, Joe Musashi's face on the title sequence resembled that of actor Sonny ChibaSonny Chiba, also known as Sonny Chiba, is a Japanese actor, singer, film producer, film director and martial artist.Chiba was one of the first actors to achieve stardom through his skills in martial arts, initially in Japan and later before an international audience.- Early life :Born in Fukuoka, Fukuoka,...
dressed as his character Hattori HanzōHattori Hanzo, also known as , was a famous samurai and ninja master of the Sengoku era, credited with saving the life of Tokugawa Ieyasu and then helping him to become the ruler of united Japan. Today, he is often a subject of modern popular culture.-Biography:...
from the Japanese TV series Kage no Gundan (Shadow Warriors). - Software revision 1.01 (1989): Batman is replaced by a winged DevilmanDevilmanis a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Go Nagai which originally started as an anime adaptation of the concept of Nagai's previous manga series, Demon Lord Dante. A 39 episode anime series was developed by Toei in 1972 and Nagai began Devilman as a manga in Kodansha's Weekly Shōnen...
-like creature. Godzilla and Spider-Man remain unmodified, the latter now morphs into the Devil when defeated. The "Gunner" enemy soldiers with flamethrowers are also changed to bald men with headbands, altering their original likeness to Rambo (although Sega had the license to the character for their Rambo IIIRambo IIIRambo III is an American Action film released on May 25, 1988. It is the third film in the Rambo series following First Blood and Rambo: First Blood Part II...
console games, they did not use it for this game). - Software revision 1.02 (1990): The fake Spider-Man is now redesigned into the licensed character from Marvel ComicsMarvel ComicsMarvel Worldwide, Inc., commonly referred to as Marvel Comics and formerly Marvel Publishing, Inc. and Marvel Comics Group, is an American company that publishes comic books and related media...
, acknowledged by a copyright notice (Sega already had the license to the character for their game The Amazing Spider-Man vs. The KingpinThe Amazing Spider-Man vs. The KingpinThe Amazing Spider-Man vs. The Kingpin is a video game produced by Sega of America and developed by Technopop...
). Since he is now the real Spider-Man, he doesn't morph into the Devil and actually leaves the battle when enough damage is inflicted, with the winged Devil entering to replace him. Godzilla still remain intact. - Software revision 1.03 (1990): Godzilla is replaced by a skeletal dinosaur. Everything else remains intact from the previous revision, including the licensed use of Spider-Man. This version was used in the Genesis 6-Pak cartridge.
- Software revision 1.04 (2009): Since the licensed use of the boss Spider-Man was for a limited period of time, the game was subsequently prevented from being re-released years later. The 2009 release for the Virtual Console features a new specific software revision (1.04) that omits the Marvel copyright notice and replaces Spider-Man with a pink palette swap of the character that still behaves the same as the licensed Spider-Man. Joe Musashi's design in the title screen was also altered to remove his likeness to Sonny Chiba.
Sega Smash Pack
A version of the game in the Sega compilation Sega Smash PackSega Smash Pack
Sega Smash Pack is a series of game compilations featuring mostly Sega Mega Drive games. Sega Smash Pack games have been released for the PC, Dreamcast, and the Game Boy Advance.-PC:The first Sega Smash Pack was released in 1999 for the PC...
(for the PC) contained buggy boss battles for The Military Base and New York stages, as well as Neo Zeed Marine Stronghold. The buggy levels self-complete, leading one to believe that the Smash Pack version is actually a development version of the game.
Reception
The game received 5 out of 5 stars in DragonDragon (magazine)
Dragon is one of the two official magazines for source material for the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game and associated products, the other being Dungeon. TSR, Inc. originally launched the monthly printed magazine in 1976 to succeed the company's earlier publication, The Strategic Review. The...
; the final boss battle was criticised, however, for being too difficult.
Legacy
A suite of music from the game was performed live by an orchestra at the Fourth Symphonic Game Music ConcertSymphonic Game Music Concert
The Symphonic Game Music Concerts are a series of award-winning, annual German video game music concerts initiated in 2003, notable for being the longest running and the first of their kind outside of Japan...
in 2006 at the Gewandhaus zu Leipzig, Germany. The arrangement was done by original composer Yuzo Koshiro himself. Music from The Revenge of Shinobi was also performed at two concerts of PLAY! A Video Game Symphony
Play! A Video Game Symphony
PLAY! A Video Game Symphony is a concert series that features music from video games performed by a live orchestra. The concerts from 2006 to 2010 were conducted by Arnie Roth...
in Stockholm, Sweden in 2007. It was also played during the encore as the most voted song when PLAY! A Video Game Symphony
Play! A Video Game Symphony
PLAY! A Video Game Symphony is a concert series that features music from video games performed by a live orchestra. The concerts from 2006 to 2010 were conducted by Arnie Roth...
was performing in Singapore (June 2007).