Shinobi: Art of Vengeance

Steam Reviews

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• Recommended Posted October 24, 2025 on Steam There are two ninjas, inside of Shinobi: Art of Vengeance, who want different things. One ninja wants to be Bayonetta, or Doom Eternal even. A series of battle arenas strung together, with a lot of expressive combat, incentivised and directed by its execution system and using different attacks as means to replenish gauges. The other ninja wants to be a Celeste or the hoppy bits of Hollow Knight. A (a little half hearted in this case) metroidva- ahem- search action game, with bouts of platforming gauntlets. They don't really get along for a lot of it. One wants to linger, lock in, grit teeth, hone skills, intensify. The other wants to move along, be sprawling and exploratory and snappy. That sounds like they could go together like coffee and ice cream, but they don't. They don't always alternate, they often try to occupy the same space, compromising both a little. You'll encounter enemies in the middle of a hoppy bit, which means that enemies must be trivial enough to take out during a hoppy bit. But the enemies are also meant for arena combat, so they can't just be little guys to slash at in the middle of an involved hoppy bit. This sort of flattens out both, making the level design resign to large forgiving chunks of geometry that isn't that fun to traverse, dotted with enemy encounters that are just sticky enough to kill momentum, but also can't blossom into a proper fight encounter. Shinobi is at its best when it keeps its two internal ninjas separated, letting them take turns. When a segment goes full hoppy bit, it's usually very engaging. When a segment locks you in an area and fills it with enemies, it's even better. It's actually really, really good as a pure combat action game. Doom Eternal and Bayonetta both understood this. They kept their- uh- ninjas separated. (This is such a lame framing but I'm so far in now) So where does that leave Shinobi? Well, the answer to that changes at different points. Whenever it fully commits to either one of its two halves, it shines, and the combat is sometimes nothing short of fantastic. I could go into the intricacies of what I love about the combat, but I think I'll stick to the most useful piece of information I can give you. There is purpose to the various attacks in this game. Don't mistake this for many 2D melee action games where there's sort of just a bucket of different attacks they give you to dole out, just to create some variety. Learn the characteristics of every attack, of the shuriken, of how moves build different kinds of meter. Explore the different skill equips and pay attention to what they do. Nothing about the combat is random. I've seen people say the combat is about "whittling down the enemies until you can execute them", and if that's your takeaway you are playing the game wrong - the same way you could play Doom Eternal wrong (which, granted, some people hated too). There are things to truly love about this game, but it is inarguably uneven. Unlike Streets of Rage 4 - which I thought was about as close to perfect as you'll get - I would like to see a direct sequel to this, because I think that could be a slam dunk. In the meantime, I definitely recommed checking this out.
• Recommended Posted August 29, 2025 on Steam All these Don't recommend reviews - They don't know what the heck they want. This game is amazing and it plays like a dream on the deck. Please support this game. We need more arcade fun like this and illDamage I like switches and infinite dash.
• Recommended Posted August 29, 2025 on Steam After playing for several hours, I can confidently say that Sega is back. I’ve completed The Revenge of Shinobi and Shinobi 3 on the Sega Mega Drive, as well as GG Shinobi 1 and 2 on the Sega Game Gear. This new version of Shinobi incorporates elements from all its predecessors. It features action, skill-based gameplay, and puzzles, much like the Game Gear version where you had to revisit levels after acquiring new skills to uncover hidden treasures. Thanks to Yuzo Koshiro, the music turned out quite well, though not quite as good as in the originals. Does anyone remember the Chinatown music from The Revenge of Shinobi? Unfortunately, I couldn’t find anything quite like it here. Still, it’s a fantastic game, and I hope it’s successful enough to encourage Sega to release more remakes. Imagine seeing classics like Nights into Dreams, Last Bronx, or Golden Axe get the same treatment. Let’s hope we get to experience those gems as well! EDIT: After finishing the game, I can confidently say that I really enjoyed it. All the combos, jumps, and mechanics are incredibly fluid and well-executed. The playability is smooth and exceptionally well done. I must also admit that I absolutely loved the music—my personal favorite is "Broken Hourglass." I highly recommend this game!
• Recommended Posted August 30, 2025 on Steam This is game is absolutely visually stunning. Playing in 4K, it looks just incredible. My username should tell you I like Ninjas and so any game that is in the spirit of Strider I am interested in. I have just completed Ninja Gaiden Ragebound to 100% so was looking forward to this dropping as well. This is not as difficult as Ninja Gaiden and that's OK, as it's nice to be able to enjoy a game and it's aesthetic without worrying about checkpoints and your health. I didn't realise this has a metroidvania theme to it, which was a nice surprise as I enjoy this style of game as well, so it's a nice blend. Well done Sega! All in all is a great package and it's being supported as there is future content planned which is great to hear.
• Recommended Posted September 2, 2025 on Steam Holy crap this game is awesome SEGA did it boys. Shiboni Art of Vengeance is a badass platforming experience with some of the best animations and combat I've seen yet. Lets talk pros and cons! Pros: Graphics - STUNNING. This game is genuinely stunning. The art is fantastic, unbelievably even. There are moments where you forget this is a drawn 2d style game. The way they overlay layers of the background together to create this experience of 3d with 2D art is wild. Some screenshots I took i was really blown away by how amazing this game looks. The effects are top tier as well and really bring it all together. Combat - This is where Shinobi shines, of course. The combat is evisceral, action packed, fluid and rewarding. Multiple unlocks can be acquired from coins found while exploring, multiple different ninpo abilities, melee abilitles, kunais, combos, its all here. This games combat will make you feel like a superstar once you nail it down. Boss Battles - The game features epic boss battles that are alot of fun. Pretty difficult too depending on which you fight. Theres even a boss rush mode in this game, which is awesome! Music - The music is top tier and brings you back to old school platformers like this. Every sound hits exactly when it needs to and fits whats on screen at the time. Value - For the price asked and the content offered, Shinobi definitely delivers. This is a game that can be replayed a few times, boss rush can keep you busy, secret levels and unlocks are fun to find. It's all here. Cons: Story - The story was okay. Thats really just it. You have your mission, its simple and its just a excuse to go destroy everyone till the end. There isnt too much here, but I will say the villain is pretty cool. Otherwise, simple and basic. Difficulty scaling - The game is pretty much a breeze for the most part, up until the last two levels, then all of a sudden someone flips a switch and it becomes insanity nonstop. I was taken back for a moment, but adapted fairly quickly. There needs to be smoother transition. This isnt a super bad con but still something i noticed. Voice Acting - The voice acting isnt TOO bad, but holy crap, there are moments where a certain character is talking over comms and it DESTROYS your ears if you are wearing headphones. Literally ear canal destruction wtf. ;_; Overall Shinobi Art of vengeance features very few cons, for a game that is super fun and a true action platformer bringing you back to the old days of fun gameplay and challenging levels. This is a must have for fans of this franchise or fans of games like this in general. You can watch my entire playthrough of Shinobi Art Of Vengeance on my youtube channel Hypnotic Gaming LIVE.
• Recommended Posted August 27, 2025 on Steam Great game so far. Massive combat depth, incredibly responsive controls, Yuzo Koshiro bangers, and stellar 2D art and animation. I grew up on the Genesis Shinobi games, and this is exactly what I want from a 2025 sequel. It retains the spirit of the original while making the moment to moment enemy encounters engaging. Oh, and importantly, unlike many 2D games (Shredder's Revenge, etc.), you can run it at an uncapped framerate. Moving around and slashing feels buttery smooth. Big props to the devs for that.