Shinobi: Art Of Vengeance

When it comes to getting his own back, this isn’t Joe Musashi’s first rodeo.

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Back in 1989, the slaying of his master and kidnapping of his partner sent him around the globe in a quest for revenge. This time it’s worse: his village has been razed, his clan slaughtered, and anyone who knows Joe can be sure he won’t stand for that. Indeed, there’s a ferocity to him now. The arrogant, leisurely stride of his heyday is replaced by an arrowed charge. As an assassin, he’s less a doyen of scalpel sword strikes and bullseye kunai, more a tornado of violence.

If Musashi is wilder now, though, that grants us a greater range of moves with which to express his displeasure. For starters, there are light and heavy katana swings to link into combos, and kunai throws to interrupt foes. In addition to Joe’s signature tucked somersault double jump, there’s a dodge roll and an air dash and a vertical wall run. His ninja flip sees him dance behind an enemy after landing a blow, where he might launch a midair spin attack, then restart a combo.

Enemies have health bars, but also execution gauges, which you can max out for an instant kill, earning a shower of kunai and health refills for your trouble. There are other gauges too. One charges as you attack, enabling ninpo techniques, of which you can equip four at a time. A fire-breath ninpo is good for quick damage. The aquatic ninpo can deflect an attack. Another sees you lob a bomb that shatters enemy armour. A final gauge measures ‘rage’ and revs up as you take damage. Fill it and you can trigger Musashi’s ninjutsu magic — the classic example being a screen-clearing dragon-fire attack.