Play Shinobi Online

Shinobi on the NES came out in 1989, a Sega game making the jump to Nintendo's console. It arrived during a time when side-scrolling action games were defining the platform, offering a different take on the ninja fantasy compared to its contemporaries.

You control Joe Musashi, a ninja fighting through five missions to rescue kidnapped children from a criminal syndicate. Each mission is a series of side-scrolling stages where you must eliminate all enemies and rescue every hostage before you can proceed. Your primary tools are a limitless supply of shurikens for ranged attacks and a close-range sword slash, but you also have a limited stock of screen-clearing ninja magic for desperate situations. The game is methodical; you advance screen by screen, often waiting for the right moment to throw a shuriken or jump over an attack. The difficulty is persistent, demanding precise jumps and quick reactions to enemy patterns, especially during the boss fights that cap off each mission. Playing Shinobi feels like a careful, deliberate test of your timing and patience.