Shinobi: Old-school meets the new era.
LastSamurai
80% score
I've enjoyed the past Shinobi games on the very beloved Sega Genesis. This new Shinobi is his usual badass self, but he's missing his past spark. First of all, I'm not purposely trying to point out Shinobi's flaws, but some of them are so noticeable they're unbearable. The sometimes- unresponsive controls are solid, but the camera sometimes strays out of view, making you a sitting duck for killer ninjas and vicious dogs. The graphics are PS2 material, but it doesn't quite exceed the graphical limits the PS2 currently offers. Other games that have taken advantage of the PS2's graphic capabilities are Final Fantasy X and Time Crisis 2; take some notes Shinobi. One more thing to complain about is the insanely irritating difficulty. Even the dumbest ninjas you fight are as smart as Einstein, and the bosses make you want to throw your PS2 across the room and smash it with a sledgehammer. Fixing these problems before its release could've made Shinobi the best installment since The Revenge of Shinobi. Now, onto the pros of this flexible game. The special effects of this game is very good to the eye, and the blur effects when Shinobi leaves his shadow behind looks good enough to eat. The slice-and-dice action never stops, and the different ways of cutting up your enemies into a gajillion pieces is very, very fun. I was almost convinced I could walk on the ceiling myself after seeing a demonstration from the master assassin himself. The sometimes repetitive platform jumping could have been limited and replaced with more sword-fighting. Shinobi is a classic, and while it's not an outstanding game, it's still a worthy weekend play with your friends over with some pizza and Pepsi. Warning: this game is for players with ultra-long patience and a flair for the 1990's.
