Retro Review: Shadow Dancer the Secret of Shinobi

After taking down the Zeed empire, legendary ninja master Joe Musashi takes some time off to visit one of his students, Kato, in the United States. With a clear head and rested body, he returns to Japan and to his meditations. Not long after he hears that Kato was gravely injured while helping free hostages from an elementary school. Joe quickly returns to America to find that Kato has passed away in the hospital, leaving behind his faithful dog, Yamato. He learns that a criminal organization called the Union Lizard is responsible and vows to Kato's mother than he will avenge his death. It seems though that the Union Lizard's plan for world domination is already in motion as most of New York City has fallen under their control and its citizens taken hostage. It is time for the Shinobi to rise once again against evil.

Shadow Dancer is a Sega Genesis port of the 1998 sequel to Shinobi that bears the same name. Joining you on your quest is the Shinobi dog, Yamato, which acts as another attack available for Joe as well as sort of a warning beacon as he'll bark when enemies are near. Together you'll traverse the war torn streets of New York and even the Statue of Liberty on your way to the Union Lizard hideout. The backgrounds are colorful and detailed though since most of the game takes place on the streets there isn't as much variety as your typical Shinobi game. The character and enemy sprites are large, detailed and well animated, making you feel like you've brought the arcade game home.

Even though it was released after the Revenge of Shinobi on the Genesis, the developers opted for gameplay closer to the arcade version. This could be viewed as a step backwards for some as Shadow Dancer retains the single hit and your dead aspect rather than the life bar established in Revenge of Shinobi.

Joe has unlimited throwing stars at a distance and up close will use his sword for twice the damage (or you can opt for sword only mode if you're looking for a challenge). Yamato can be unleashed on an enemy by holding in the attack button until his attack gauge fills at the bottom of the screen. This is tremendously handy for bringing those enemies that like to hide behind boxes to shoot at you to a standing position so you can pick them off safely.

The controls are very precise and the hit detection is spot on so you only have yourself to blame when you die. The only exception being when the screen needs to scroll upwards or to the left. In those rare instances it seems that the camera doesn't want to shift until Joe is near the edge of the screen, which could lead you right into an enemy or stray bullet you couldn't see. It's important to pay attention to Yamato in these segments as he'll bark when enemies are near by.

The bosses appear quite menacing at first but once you've danced with them a time or two you'll have their patterns down. In my opinion, the enemies in the acts themselves are usually a greater threat, especially the ninjas as it becomes harder to tell if they're going to attack you head on or use their annoying air attack from above. They're definitely more dangerous in numbers.

A bonus stage follows each boss encounter where you can earn extra points and 1ups if you land enough hits.

Use your ninjitsu technique clear the screen of enemies during a stage or to do multiple hits of damage to a boss. Use sparingly though as you only get 1 per life.

The music is catchy and fits each situation perfectly as is to be expected with the Shinobi series. The sound effects are satisfying enough though they lack the oomph found in the other games.

The game is relatively short but has two other difficulty settings available if you're looking to take it on again with more of a challenge. I highly recommend the game if you're looking for some fast paced arcade platformer action. The tight controls, ninja theme, and not to mention Yamato make this game a blast to play.

Pros:

-Very much an arcade style experience.
-Controls beautifully.
-Awesome sound and graphics.
-Multiple difficulty levels and sword mode available to test your ninja skills.
-Yamato is awesome.

Cons:

-Some stages have scrolling issues limiting your vantage point.
-Game is relatively short.
-Boss patterns are pretty simple.

Note: Okay so I might be a little biased on Yamato as I'm the owner of a white dog myself, haha.

Lupe

Thanks for reading!