Master System Double Header: Shinobi and The Ninja Review

Game: Shinobi
Console: Sega Master System (also on NES, Atari ST, Commodore 64 etc.)
Developer: Sega
Release Date: 1987

Shinobi is a ninja themed platform game, which appeared on several platforms with almost undoubtedly the best version on the Master System. The player controls Joe Musashi, a ninja on a mission to rescue his kidnapped students from a criminal organisation called "Zeed", by collecting them from around the levels, on his way to the organisation's headquarters. The levels have different tiers, between which the player can jump to rescue all of the students. Standing in their way are many different types of enemy, who can be defeated by shuriken, gun, katana and magic (not all of which are available at the beginning).

Graphically, the game looks somewhat dated, with a lot of pale yellows and other almost offensive colours, however it's debatably the best looking version of the game on any console. Compared to other games of the time, its not horrifyingly bad, but the graphics were improved significantly for the sequel "Revenge of Shinobi" for Mega Drive. The bosses seem to have the most interesting character designs with most of the other enemies being reused around the game.

The gameplay is a distinguishing feature of Shinobi, and what makes it frequently voted as one of the best games for the console. The movement is smooth; ducking and jumping allow you to avoid enemy bullets and projectiles. There's a lot of strategy involved in being able to hit enemies with specific movement patterns, with your shuriken. The level design plays well into this, and an experienced player will know exactly when to jump and fire to speed through the level, yet it isn't difficult for a beginner to take it slow and still progress. 

There are bonus levels between stages (if the player collects enough of the students) which involve throwing  shuriken to hit ninjas who progress towards the player, ending the minigame when they reach the front of the screen. Although these don't need to be cleared to progress they're a good way to break up the platforming gameplay, and provide extra score and powerups for those who are able to beat them. 

Musically, the game has pretty standard 8-bit fare, its a little bit catchy and a little bit repetitive, my only complaint being that the main theme plays on every level (except for bosses) for the entire game. I understand that there may not have been room on the cartridge for a different theme on every level, but if you're going to play for long enough to master the game, it'd be nice to have even just 2 different level themes. Interestingly once the player completes the game, there's no congratulation or story-based ending, only a "Game Over".

Overall this is a fun, if a little dated ninja themed game with excellent gameplay and controls and a variety of weapons and powerups for the player. The bosses are well thought out and different, and there's a good variety of regular enemies too. One of the best games for Master System, its up there with Fantasy Zone and Castle Of Illusion, and definitely worth a play.

Rating: 72/100
Grade: C

Game: The Ninja 

Console: Sega Master System

Developer: Sega
Release Date: 1986

The Ninja (or Sega Ninja as it was originally known) is a top-down ninja action game released by Sega in 1986. The gameplay focuses on collecting scrolls which will detail a secret entrance to the final boss battle whilst making your way through castle grounds defeating enemies. There's a plot to the game involving saving a princess (which was changed from the arcade version in which you were a ninja princess yourself) but the plot itself isn't integral to the game. 

At first you're armed with kunai, an ancient weapon which are fairly underpowered. When the player finds a red scroll they can use shuriken which can kill multiple enemies and are bigger. There are other weapon upgrades but the ranged ones are most useful. Another skill "The Ninja" possesses is the ability to disappear and become invincible for a few seconds. This is often necessary in tight spots, and does make the game more playable despite still being almost too difficult. 

Graphically the game doesn't do much for me, the backdrops are often boring without many distinguishing features and the sprites are lacking in detail and not very well animated. Enemy sprites are often reused and although there's a lot of levels, a lot of them are repetitive design wise. This is a pretty early game in terms of the Master System but at a time when Fantasy Zone and Super Mario Bros were on the market, its not much of an excuse. 

The controls for the game are laid out oddly; Button 1 shoots in the direction you're moving, Button 2 shoots straight forward and holding both allows you to disappear. Although the controls are responsive it would have been a better move to reserve Button 1 for the disappearing ability, since holding both takes slightly longer and in a difficult game such as this it can be the difference between losing and life and not.

As previously touched upon, there's more levels in The Ninja than most games of the time (13 in total), featuring different methods of progressing. Pictured above is a level on water that the player must navigate using the logs provided whilst fighting off enemies, and another level sees the player dodging horses to get to the boss. The problem here is that the game is already difficult, and sometimes these level concepts make it even harder to progress.

Musically, the soundtrack is forgettable and even irritating at times, the song from the title screen is used throughout parts of the game, and begs to be muted after a while. If you can get past the various obstacles in the way of completing this game, you're told that you and the princess you've saved live happily ever after, but just like Shinobi it feels like a bit of a cop out, after all the story at the beginning. 

Rating: 50/100

Grade: D