This is the first game in the Shinobi series. For other games in the series see the Shinobi category.
| Shinobi | |
|---|---|
| Developer(s) | Sega, Backbone Entertainment |
| Publisher(s) | Sega, Asmik, Tengen |
| Year released | 1987 |
| System(s) | Arcade, Sega Master System, Amstrad CPC, Atari ST, Commodore 64/128, Commodore Amiga, DOS, MSX, TurboGrafx-16, NES, Wii, Xbox 360 |
| Followed by | Shadow Dancer |
| Series | Shinobi, Sega Ages |
| Genre(s) | Platformer, Hack and slash |
|---|---|
| Modes | Single player, Multiplayer |
| Rating(s) |     |
| Sega Ages Shinobi | |
|---|---|
| Developer(s) | M2 |
| Publisher(s) | Sega |
| Year released | 2019 |
| System(s) | Nintendo Switch |
- For the Game Gear game released as Shinobi, see The GG Shinobi.
Shinobi (忍?) is a side-scrolling hack and slash video game produced by Sega, originally released for arcades on the Sega System 16 board in 1987. The player controls ninja Joe Musashi in his attempt to stop the Zeed terrorist organization from kidnapping students of his clan.
Shinobi was a commercial success in arcades; it topped the monthly Japanese table arcade charts in December 1987, and became a blockbuster arcade hit in the United States, where it was the highest-grossing conversion kit of 1988 and one of the top five conversion kits of 1989. It was adapted by Sega to its Master System game console, followed by conversions to the NES, PC Engine, and home computers. It was re-released as downloadable emulated versions of the original arcade game for the Wii and Xbox 360. The arcade game joined the Nintendo Switch in January 2020 through the Sega Ages series. Shinobi's success inspired various sequels and spin-offs of the Shinobi series.
Plot
Shinobi is about a ninja named Joe Musashi who has to stop a criminal organization called "Zeed" who are kidnapping the children of the Oboro clan. Through five missions of increasing difficulty, Musashi must make his way to Zeed's headquarters and free all the hostages before confronting Zeed's leaders known as "Ring of Five", which are formidable enemies on their own. "Ring of Five" are the bosses at the end of each level. Below is the list of them.
- Ken Oh - A gigantic samurai-like wizard who can throw fireballs.
- Black Turtle - A leader who is piloting or aboard an attack helicopter.
- Mandara - A Hinduistic guru who is, in fact, cyborg.
- Lobster - A large samurai with a V-shaped symbol on his head who wields a sword.
- Masked Ninja - The main leader of Zeed and the last boss, he is a powerful ninja with vast magical and physical powers. His true identity is revealed to be Nakahara, Joe Musashi's mentor. Nakahara's name is a reference to the Musashi-Nakahara Station. His name is meant to be a hint of his true identity as "Nakahara Musashi", Joe Musashi's father.