Shinobi: Art of Vengeance Review - Revenge Never Felt So Good

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As someone who is a massive fan of anything related to ninjas, I’ve always felt video game franchises tend to avoid these shadowy assassins in favor of other stereotypes. There’s nothing wrong with it, mind you, but I wish I could see more of these jutsu-wielders. Fortunately, SEGA answered my prayers because it revived one of the series I remember fondly from my childhood days, and it did so in the most gorgeous and addictive way ever. Shinobi: Art of Vengeance isn’t only the greatest entry in the Shinobi franchise, but it is also the best action platformer of the year due to its engaging combat accompanied by the most enthralling 2D art style I’ve seen in recent memory.

Down a Vengeful Path

Before you feel overwhelmed at the fact that the first Shinobi game launched back in 1987, don’t. Shinobi: Art of Vengeance does an excellent job of opening its doors to a new generation of ninjas. It has some callbacks to the series and some nods die-hard fans will appreciate, but overall, it is welcoming to new players. Take me, for example. I only played Shinobi and Nightshade on my PS2, and never felt confused by the new narrative.

Shinobi: Art of Vengeance puts us into the 2D shoes of the stoic Joe Musashi, once more. Now a leader of the Oboro clan, he spends his days training recruits when the ENE corporation attacks his village, burning it to the ground and turning almost everyone into stone. Fueled by revenge, he vows to dismantle this organization by any means necessary.

Typically, a platformer doesn’t focus too much on its plot, as it prefers to go all in on its gameplay, but Shinobi: Art of Vengeance tries to fall somewhere in the middle. The narrative isn’t groundbreaking, but it does an excellent job at presenting the new characters, factions, and giving our silent protagonist a reason to slice enemies mercilessly. Naturally, the gameplay does the heavy-lifting and does so flawlessly, but I was pleased to see that the plot justified our globe-trotting shenanigans in an easy-to-understand way.

Deadly Ninja Techniques

The true highlight of Shinobi: Art of Vengeance is its gameplay, which shines in every stage of the game. Since it is an action platformer, I’ll focus on the two parts separately, as both of them are intricate in their own way.

In terms of combat, it has all the staples of an action game. You can perform light and heavy attacks, jump to do some air combos, and throw kunai at enemies that are far away from you. Yet, saying that those are the only things in Shinobi: Art of Vengeance would be a disservice to the game because, in reality, it goes much deeper than that.

Initially, you only have the abovementioned moves that you can string combos together with, but as you progress, you start unlocking new skills that fit into four different categories: Ninjutsu, Ninpo, Ningi, and your Combat Moves.

Ninjutsu are the most powerful skills in the game that you can only perform once you fill up the respective bar, which in this case requires you to take damage or collect specific orbs. You get four of them in total that are active at all times, and all provide different effects. For instance, the Karyu, or fire Ninjutsu, damages all enemies onscreen, while the Shisui, or water Ninjutsu, heals you.

Ninpo are other skills you can cast once your Ninpo bar is full, which you can fill up by damaging foes. These abilities also have different uses, but most of them lean toward damaging foes or breaking shields. You can equip four at a time, but there are more you can unlock, giving you different build options for Musashi.

Then, you have Ningi, which are your traversal skills that let you reach new places and even use them in specific combat situations. For example, one of the first ones you get is the Cannon Punch, which breaks down walls that open new paths but also destroys an enemy’s armor.

Last but not least, you have your Combat Moves, which are new combos that you can chain to attack enemies. This category is the one that has the most abilities, and with good reasons, as punching and slicing enemies is what you’ll be doing the most. Some of the combos you can unlock include a few that let you chain attacks after dodging and some that let you throw a barrage of kunai after a melee hit. Contrary to the previous moves that you unlock by exploring, these skills are obtainable through the in-game shop.

On top of that, every enemy has a poise bar of sorts. Once you fill that bar up, you can perform an execution that kills them instantly and gives you more rewards. You can even chain executions if you manage to deplete the poise bar from many enemies at the same time, making Joe look like the actual killing machine he is.

The combat of Shinobi: Art of Vengeance is one of the most varied I’ve seen, and it hooks you the more you progress through the game. One thing I loved about it is how the game encourages you to play aggressively in the slickest possible way. You can start fighting a regular enemy and launch it into the air to kill it with an execution, and then start a new combo with an enemy on the ground.

Another excellent feature is that your combo meter never goes down unless you get hit. That means you can defeat a wave of enemies and end at a 30-hit combo, and start where you left off with the next wave. This is also important because your combo meter affects some of your skills. Musashi can equip amulets of two categories: passive and combo. The former gives you, as the name implies, a passive bonus that’s active at all times. Be it better healing or leeching attacks with your katana. The latter, however, only activates once your combo meter is at a certain number. For example, one amulet increases the power of your fire Ninpo if your meter is at 20, turning that skill into a more powerful version.

I could gush about the combat of Shinobi: Art of Vengeance for hours, but I would ruin many of the surprises for you. Yet, this game features one of the most in-depth systems of recent memory that offers a lot of customization, impactful moves, but doesn’t lose that arcade feel of just mashing buttons and chaining combos strategically. It is perfect for those who want to push their limits and reach the highest combo meter, but also excellent for those who wish to slice demons to shreds while looking super cool while doing so.

Enemy Variety is the Spice of an Action Game

While combat can make or break an action platformer, another key aspect of these games will always be the enemy variety, of which Shinobi: Art of Vengeance has a lot.

At first, you’ll get the usual foes that will die with one or two hits. But as you progress through the stages, you’ll encounter a variety of demons and ENE troops with different skills. While all of them can be beaten just by spamming your combos, a few of them will go down faster if you use specific skills. For instance, many enemies have an armor bar that makes them immune to most of your damage until you remove it. To do so, you can use certain Combat Moves or Ninpo to take that armor down. A few others, while lacking in armor, can only be hit from specific areas. One example is the ENE troops with riot shields, who require Musashi to attack them from behind.

Furthermore, as expected from any action game, there are bosses that, for the most part, are challenging. I won’t spoil all of them, but almost every encounter does an excellent job at combining traversal mechanics with combat. One of the early game bosses, for instance, requires you to use a set of claws that let you cling to a wall to avoid damage and then focus on it by mainly using aerial attacks. Mechanically speaking, all fights are great, but a few bosses lacked difficulty, making some of these encounters feel anticlimactic, but that’s just a minor gripe I have, and with only a handful of these foes.

Gorgeous and Intricate Stages

And now, we reach the platformer part, which deserves a standing ovation on two fronts: level design and art style. For the former, every stage has an intricate design with several hidden areas that you’ll likely have to return to once you get a new skill in a different stage. One thing I loved is how the game’s map shows a golden glow in the areas that take you through the stage’s critical path, while areas with a purple glow show you optional zones for you to explore.

Regardless of the area you visit, all of them have a top-notch design that varies in the more than a dozen levels you can play. One of the most memorable levels I played is the Lantern Festival one, which places you at the top of a city where you need to traverse by using ziplines and floating lanterns, but also features several combat sections on top of rooftops and inside buildings. Naturally, the art style and how it plays with its 2D perspective enhance each stage, creating some of the most stunning visuals I’ve seen.

The only minor complaint I have, and it only applies to some late-game levels, is that some exploration mechanics affect the game’s pacing. Halfway through my playthrough, I became accustomed to seeing Musashi dash, jump, and slam the ground in quick succession to defeat enemies or open new paths. Some levels, however, have many sections that require you to push heavy objects to solve puzzles, but this mechanic overstays its welcome. It isn’t bad per se, but it definitely affects the fast-paced action and puzzle-solving from earlier levels. Fortunately, it only happened in a couple of stages and never deterred me from enjoying this title.

In truth, my jaw dropped more than once, whether it was inside an ENE laboratory with dim lighting and mutated enemies or in a desert filled with tight corridors and wooden spikes on its walls. Lizardcube and SEGA did a terrific job at making the most beautiful 2D platformer of the year so far, with snappy movement, excellent two-dimensional animation, and a memorable color palette for each level. It is an outstanding artistic masterpiece that enhances the already excellent action platformer that this entry is.

A Mind-blowing 2D Platformer

While there have been many action-adventure games in recent memory and many platformers that lean more into a Metroidvania style but tend to miss the mark, Shinobi: Art of Vengeance stands out as one of the best of this year. It features the most addictive and impactful combat I’ve experienced this year, which is also brimming with customization options, allowing you to create your ideal ninja. Furthermore, its art style and level design are outstanding, offering a lot of replayability for those who want to reach that 100% completion rate.

We know that SEGA is on a revival spree, bringing back many of its old franchises. If Shinobi: Art of Vengeance is the standard we can expect from these revivals, then we’re in for some memorable and high-quality gaming moments, and I couldn’t be more excited. As someone who’s always been looking for the ultimate ninja experience, I’m happy to say that I have finally found it, in a unique, gorgeous, and highly addictive package.

Review copy provided by the Publisher.

Shinobi: Art of Vengeance (PC Reviewed)

9.5 Superb!

Shinobi: Art of Vengeance is the ultimate 2D ninja experience and one of the best action platformer experiences of recent memory due to its impactful combat with ample customization options and an unforgettable art style.