Shinobi III: Return of the Ninja Master

As good as a 2D action platformer can get. Leagues above previous series entries and anything other systems had to offer. The variety of moves and smoothness of movement lends itself well to the stages that confront you in new and challenging ways.

7.5

I'm not positive what the consensus is nowadays, but back in the day this was always considered the pinnacle of the series. You can definitely see why with the beautiful graphics, the more intuitive gameplay and awesome set pieces on a surfboard or horse... Yet, the more primitive Revenge of Shinobi is my pick for best in show. It's a lot more difficult, yet I found myself way more frustrated in Shinobi 3. Especially the last two levels were unbearable, and the first half of the game is a lot easier, but also less memorable. It all mixes together to make an enjoyable game that is easy to play through, but not as impactful as the first one.

This is one of my favourite Sega genesis games, although what stops this from being a perfect game for me is how brutally difficult the game is as I doubt many people finished this game when it first came out as a result of it.

This is mainly due to how enemies tend to attack our hero off screen which wouldn't be too big of a deal were it not for the level design which usually requires precise platforming to overcome. Were it not for these cheap attacks from the enemies, this game would be flawless as you really do feel like a ninja traversing these levels thanks to the tight controls and authentic Japanese feel of the locations. Obviously, emulation can overcome the difficulty, however I don't think it would've been too much to ask for the difficulty to be more balanced as there's a ton of great mechanics to retain the feeling of being a ninja this game has to offer. These include the ability to use ninjitsu to create a barrier to protect our hero (which is limited and not an excuse for the cheap deaths) surfing stages to fight aquatic enemies and the ability to traverse pipelines by climbing across them. The level design is gorgeous thanks to the colour scheme and Japanese architecture, it's very noticeable in the forests and gardens but I also like the industrial levels as well. The controls are good, you have a sword for mele combat and shuriken for ranged weapons. They're quite useful for the bosses who put up a decent challenge for our hero as any boss should, said boss battles adding to the authentic Japanese experience the game continuously strives for throughout the campaign.

Had the difficulty not been so cheap, this would be a flawless game. As is, it's merely a great game that's not for the faint of heart.

This was one of the best [dare I say THE best?] games for the Sega Genesis. The variability in gameplay across various stages, the spot on balance between difficulty and complexity, the slick maneuverability, the engrossing soundtrack, the diversity of attacks...the list goes on. Probably the best side-scroller I've ever played, only rivaled by the Mario's and Donkey Kong Country.