What can you do: SHINOBI: Art of Vengeance is an absolutely brilliant action blast, oozing with style. Gamers in their thirties and forties will certainly notice various Sega references, but on the other hand Lizardcube has found such a timeless style for the game that even complete newcomers are bound to enjoy it.
Shinobi Art of Vengeance is the next big thing for modernized 2D games. Combat, platforming and visual style are top notch, but the game also manages to capture what made the Shinobi games of yesteryear remembered until today.
This is for me the best surprise of the year. After disappointments like Mario Kart World and other stuff, Shinobi has given me hope that some studios understand that a game can be beautiful, fun,full of action and not cost over 80 bucks to be amazing. For me, this is the game of the year!
Shinobi Art of Vengeance is a sumptuous game and it reflects LizardCube's talent. Its artistic direction and its nervous and juicy gameplay offer a masterful and extremely satisfying experience, Not to mention its music which perfectly fits the deeply 90s DNA of the cult license. A successful return!
While I can't speak for this game in comparison to its 16-bit heyday, Shinobi: Art of Vengeance is a thrill that stands on its own. It's a total master class in combat depth, level design, and story moments that leave enough to the imagination without completely halting the action. It's good enough that it'll make people wonder what took so long for this franchise to come back in the first place. It'll also make people wonder, between this and Streets of Rage 4, if there's another classic franchise that could use the Lizardcube touch, because this developer is clearly very good at what it does.
Shinobi: Art of Vengeance is very much a ‘what you see is what you get’ type of game, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing. The core experience is incredibly fun and the optional challenges can deliver a rush of adrenaline, even if they can feel a bit over-tuned. The biggest drawback is that once it’s over, you’ll wish there was more.
A successful relaunch of the Shinobi franchise that doesn’t attempt to do anything startlingly new but instead makes do with being a very well-constructed action adventure.
If Shinobi: Art of Vengeance was more challenging and had more depth to it, it would potentially be the best game in the franchise to date. As it stands, Shinobi: Art of Vengeance is still a mostly triumphant return that will keep genre fans thoroughly entertained while it lasts, and it would be great to see a follow-up that builds on its foundation to create something even bigger and better.
A user below me stated that the game looks "atrocious" on the Switch 2 and I just have to correct something here so misinformation does not spread. Initially, YES, the game indeed did look pretty rough on the Switch 2. However, a month ago SEGA released a resolution patch (patch 1.10 to be exact) and the game looks MUCH better, the difference is pretty huge to be honest and the resolution is much more crisp and HD. Maybe that user didn't update their game, but it looks fantastic on the Switch 2 and can now stand next to the other consoles (PS5, Xbox, PC). Again not trying to bash that user, I just don't like seeing misinformation being spread.
This is a tough one. It's a fun game. But I just played a game where you play as a bug that moves much better than this ninja. It is neither a good Metroidvania nor a good platformer, but tries to be both. It's an arcade that has worn out its welcome before the end. And frankly, it feels like it could be made by AI.
Half of the game which is the combat, is great, then half of the other game which is the platforming and level design, **** so freaking bad... I mean, the game doesn't even refill your double jump and dash charges when wall jumping, everything feels restrictive and unnatural and the platforming sections are mandatory to complete the game...
The game plays very well but on the Switch 2, it looks atrocious. If you’re planning on getting it, get it on the the other consoles if you can, as there, it’s an 8.
Shinobi: Art of Vengeance is a disappointing attempt at reviving the series. The hand-drawn visuals, while detailed, feel overly busy and lack cohesion, making the stages more confusing than enjoyable to navigate. The combat, though fast, is often clunky and unresponsive; strikes lack weight, and the difficulty curve feels unbalanced, leaning more toward frustrating than engaging. It fails to capture the precision the series is known for, with modernized mechanics that feel out of place and poorly implemented. The level design is uninspired, with repetitive layouts, poorly hidden secrets, and forgettable set pieces that make each stage feel monotonous. This game misses the mark as a tribute to classic Shinobi and falls short of being a standout action game. 3/10 at best.
SummaryThe iconic SHINOBI returns in an all-new 2D action platformer with a unique hand-drawn look created by the team behind the hit brawler Streets of Rage 4. Play as the legendary Shinobi Joe Musashi, master of the ninja arts. After finding your village burned to the ground and your clan turned into stone, you must set off on a quest for ven...