Update: The Sega AGES release Shinobi is out today (31st October) on the Japanese Switch eShop. To celebrate, the publisher has uploaded a clip. Check it out above.
Original Story (Thu 17th Oct, 2019 00:35 BST): The action side-scroller Shinobi has been confirmed for the Sega AGES line since March, so when is Joe Musashi showing up on the Switch eShop? While there's no still no solid release date, it's expected to be the next game made available in Sega's retro-inspired series over in Japan.
This modern iteration is based on the original arcade release dating back to 1987 and will come packed with overseas versions of the game as well. You can also change the difficulty of the title and play in a new cabinet mode. Here's a bit more information from the Japanese Sega Ages website, along with another screenshot:
This is an action game that depicts the battle between the modern-day ninja “Joe Musashi” and the crime syndicate “ZEED” that dominates the dark world. While helping out the child ninja taken away by ZEED, defeat the syndicate soldiers and head to the hideout.
Musashi uses martial arts and swords to attack nearby enemies and shuriken to distant enemies. Also, when pinching, you can use deadly ninjutsu to wipe out enemies on the screen. A huge boss appears at the end of the mission. There are also fantastic battles such as a helicopter carrying a ninja army and a giant computer protected by a Buddha statue.
To see what else is on the way, be sure to check out our previous post covering the Sega FES stage show and all the classic game announcements for Switch eShop. You can also view the Sega AGES website to find out about future releases.
Have you been looking forward to this particular game? Any others you would like to see added to the Sega Ages line? Share your thoughts below.
[source japanesenintendo.com]
Comments 66
I always had a soft spot for this game. Way more than I do with Altered Beast that’s for sure. I haven’t bought anything of the Sega Ages games on Switch yet but I might start with this.
Hoping they will get to Revenge of Shinobi.
Not to say this or the other Sega Ages games are bad or anything. It's just that Sega has such a lineup that, with the exception of Virtua Racing, the others were underwhelming.
Sega has very good arcade action games that have never seen home release. What’s it gonna take for those games to finally come out? It’s horrible that they just don’t acknowledge their full library, as if all we want is sonic and columns from them.
Ugh... This AGES line has been super disappointing... This continues the trend... Switch will be on its way out and we won't have any Saturn games.
Make sure to remaster it as well.
The good news is that the Sega Ages line has brought us perfectly emulated (in some cases actually better than the originals) games from Sega's glory days, ranging from the original Phantasy Star to Virtua Racing. The bad news is that most of these projects are bite-sized affairs compared to the meaty arcade experiences like SCUD Racer, Sega Rally Championship, or Super Star Wars Arcade, or the many beloved Saturn and Dreamcast titles such as Skies of Arcadia, Shining Force III, Dragon Force, and Panzer Dragoon Saga. The worst news is that what's being offered is coming at a trickle and we have no idea whether the line will ever see such epic releases before it's either discontinued or Nintendo goes to new hardware.
All we gamers can do is vote with our wallets for the games we want, as always, and hope it somehow helps steer things in the right direction. Hopefully Sega will announce something more ambitious for the Ages lineup in the near future.
Yeah, SCUD Racer, Sega Rally, Panzer Dragoon Saga, Jet Set Radio Future! Pretty please!
Man, alot of hate for Shinobi. It's an arcade classic, and one of the best games from Sega's golden age in the arcades.
I'm happy to see it come to the Switch.
I get that people want Saturn games and stuff, but no reason to ignore Sega' s legacy in the arcades.
Always good to see a classic like this available on another platform. Shinobi is a great game(if you like the style). It's my favorite Rolling Thunder game, but Rolling Thunder 2 is my favorite Shinobi game. I'm curious to see what they add to this release. I understand some of the frustration with this line and with Sega in general. The releases of their back catalog are coming too slowly. And there are games of all kinds that deserve a proper release, such as Golden Axe: Revenge of Death Adder. It would be good if they can make these releases multi-platform, so they can continue to be available even on future consoles. That would allow them to work on new things.
@LinktotheFuture Or you could just buy this Sega Genesis Classics Collection which already got The Revenge of Shinobi on it (well the one that doesn't featured Batman, Spider-Man, and Godzilla that is).
Where are the classics like Panzer Dragoon, Sonic the Hedgehog 2, Golden Axe, Streets of Rage 2, Crazy Taxi?
Hell, even Revenge of the Shinobi or Shinobi III would have been much better choices.
For crying out loud, where is Sonic 2? The first Sonic came ages (no pun intended) ago.
@retro_player_22 The poster probably wants the better emulation offered by M2 in the Ages collection than in the Classics Collection. Same as me.
I love Shinobi, and this is my favorite Shinobi game. I don’t feel like it holds up well these days though. I won’t be buying this, and I too would like to see some later classics.
I'm looking forward to get this, after Arcade Archives released Ninja Gaiden and people started to say the arcade version was garbage. I hope this is not the case.
Two things I'd love to see from Sega that would complement the Sega Ages line very well: Compilations of the greatest Saturn, Dreamcast, and Sega Arcade titles (spanning from Zaxxon to Out Run 2, Super Star Wars Arcade, Virtua Fighter, etc.) and/or a Saturn and Dreamcast Mini with tons of their best games. The Genesis may have been Sega's "high water mark" from a market share standpoint, but their later consoles...particularly the Saturn...deserve far better than to be ignored and forgotten. The sheer MOUNTAIN of incredible and beloved IPs Sega is just sitting on from their past is a tragedy for the entire hobby.
My guess Shinobi will be available Oct.24 or Oct.31 on the Japanese Eshop. (considering the Sega Ages dates )
What this news might have forgotten to mention : is there will be a "Super Shinobi" mode (play as full powered white Joe Musashi ) a Level Select and other Sega Ages exclusive features. ( the usual Japanese News channels do have pictures and more details posted earlier today ).
Now lets hope there will be also a Shadow Dancer in the near future.
I hope the Ages Line is selling well, I fear that there will not be anymore games announced after the existing line up. The below games are left after Shinobi
Herzog Zwei
Thunderforce AC
Sonic 2
GLOC
Fantasy Zone
Puyo Puyo 2
I am buying all the Ages games in hope they announce more games
I had high Hope's for the Sgae Ages line but have long since given up on it, now it seems any of the good games we'd want to see have been given to Forever Entertainment with the likes of Panzer Dragoon and House of the Dead
@retro_player_22 Already have that, I would like to have a superior Ages version.
I hope the SEGA AGES line continues. It sounded like it was doubtful a couple of months ago. Very glad to be wrong.
Yesssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssss finally.
@rushiosan Shinobi arcade, is the finest Shinobi game ever created.
I'd rather have all the Sega Ages Titles implemented in the Sega Classics Collection via DLC.
Except for Space Harrier and Gain Ground, I got all Sega Ages games available in the west so far (I'm not including here the ones that ate being released today. Maybe I'll get columns but I have no idea what Puzzle and Action is about). It's such a great collection with top emulation, a lot of features and for the people who like the era they're covering, there's absolutely no complaining. Shinobi was an arcade favorite for me when I was a kid, even though the game was some years old when I played it for the first time - the cabinet stood next to Final Fight and Street Fighter 2. I have fond memories of that hazy environment that sure was not for me
I lost track of the Sega Ages line, have they released a perfect port of the ARCADE version of Afterburner yet?
This was "The Cool Game" at the resort arcade when I was on vacation back at Rocking Horse Ranch in summer of 89'. Good times.
Great arcade game back in the 80s, fond but frustrating memories of playing this one. Small thing, but I'll guess this version will omit the iconic 'Marilyn' portraits from the wall just like the Wii version did. Good, challenging, game though, I also like the Master System version which adds a life bar.
@YANDMAN While I would say the Sega Genesis version of Shadow Dancer is the best game in the series because I love the dog and the strategy he adds to the game, I do agree that Shinobi is the second-best game in the series and a very underrated classic from Sega's arcade backlog.
While Revenge of Shinobi and Shinobi III are great games, and some of the best action-platformers on the Sega Genesis(and better then the Ninja Gaiden games), I prefer the gameplay style of Shinobi and Shadow Dancer.
This is why I'm a bit unhappy reading some of these comments. I get not being happy because you did not get Sonic 2 or Saturn games, but to crap all over a classic like Shinobi is sad, and ignores the fact that Sega was the best developer of arcade games in the 80s and 90s.
Yes, they had numerous home consoles with classic games, but Sega was the king of arcades. Capcom, Konami, Taito, Data East, Namco, and SNK? None of them could touch Sega when it came to their innovations in both gameplay and technology in the arcades.
Which is why more of their arcade backlog needs to come out.
Honestly, I would love to see a port of the Arcade version of Shadow Dancer make it to the Sega Ages series on the Switch. I have never had a chance to play that game.
@Caryslan People that don't love Shinobi are idiots. Simple fact.
@psoneboi ?????? This game holds up amazingly well, it's why its a classic and still loved by everyone. Ninja Gaiden nevber was a great game at any point in its life.
I loved the throwing ninja star section in Shinobi, it always made me laugh, as it looks like he is dealing out a pack of cards
There are only two certainties in life, Jesus and Shinobi.
@Gerald He's dealing out deadly Ninja death, literally nothing funny about that.
Not throwing any shade on Shinobi, or any other Sega Ages releases to date (or announced). That said, I have to agree with others who would love to (also!) see other, newer segments of Sega’s library released for current systems such as the Switch. So much good stuff there, much of which was never released outside the arcade, or not released outside of Japan, or unseen for many years.
Again, much respect for the earlier Sega titles, but many of us also would love to revisit other areas of Sega’s legacy as well.
I can only conclude that there is a fundamental disconnect between the Sega fan base (particularly in the West) and the decision-making at Sega and/or M2. Or they’re just determined to work on what they prefer, regardless of consumer interest.
Its one of the best arcade games of all times and a real classic. Much better than Shadow Dancer and all the sequels. Need more appreciation
Cool i will grab Shinobi but I have to say I’m a bit baffled as to the remaining Ages lineup and how Sega hasn’t yet expanded on it further with all the depth they have in their past history. There are sooo many Sega classics missing here and some of the choices thus far have been questionable and mediocre. Virtua Racing has been the shining star of the lineup so far and the newest game of the bunch! They were asking themselves recently how they can achieve better sales with the Ages line and the answer to that for me is more exciting titles to add to the Ages lineup!! Cmon Sega!!
Meh. That was fun in the arcades back in the 80s and 90s, but it hasn't aged well in my opinion. Of course I'm not much of a Shinobi fan to begin with. Personally, I want Golden Axe: The Duel, but we all know that's never gonna happen.
@retro_player_22 The lack of button-mapping options (aside from a few in-game ones) and the removal of two games on the Switch version that were included in the PS4 and Xbox One ports turned me off.
@Beatley82 The one in the collection plays fine to me, if you're experiencing lag, that means it's cause of your TV or the wireless controllers you use. Not because of the emulation of the game, the collection already got patch a long time ago. My brother had a 4K capable TV that tend to lag a lot of games even the M2 version of Sonic 1 so it's not always the game emulation that cause the lag.
Sega have said the sales of the Sega Ages line has dissapointed, and that's no surprise. With the Sega Genesis Classics Collection available why are they wasting time and resources releasing games like Shinobi? The game releases so far(excluding the amazing Virtua Racing) have all been available on other platforms(and switch) for years, so they're not going to sell as well as games like Jet Set Radio, Scud Race, etc, would. Up your game Sega and M2 or this will be a terrible wasted opportunity.
@nmanifold exactly my point! Except for virtua racing the rest of their choices with a few other exceptions have been odd at best. Where’s the good and rare arcade Sega goodness?? 🤦♂️
@retro_player_22 Its not my setup I can assure you of that. If you say its had a patch, thats interesting and I'll have to check that out.
@nmanifold Thats true, notwithstanding my desire to see Sonic 2 come along. Bu where are Sega Rally and Daytona USA, to add to the titles you mention. These woukd be huge hits I'm sure. I just don't understand what they are doing. Columns II?! My word....
@Beatley82 there might be licensing issues with Sega Rally, but not Daytona, Jet Set Radio or Scud Race. The only excuse I can think of they'd require a lot of time & effort to port over, so they're sticking to simplistic nonsense like Columns II.
@psoneboi Shinobi was breaking all kinds of boundaries when it released. It was graphically and musically superior to every other game of its type. The soundtrack is still to this day one of the best of any SEga arcade machine.
Yessssssssssssssssssss the finest Shinobi game ever made finally gets its release date.
@60frames-please
Yeah i'd like to see anything thats not 16 bit or megadrive based really
Daytona usa 2 is very high on my want list.
I love Shinobi. I have it on several platforms and look forward to this coming my way.
Solid enough game but I'm getting rather tired of the same old games being wheeled out time and time again.
Come on Sega, give us some classics which have never (or rarely) seen a home release. Golden Axe The Revenge of Death Adder is such a blatantly obvious one to do. No licensing to worry about and a sequel to one of the most popular Sega series which has never come home.
This is actually a bit more like it. An Arcade Classic that didn’t get a perfect con resign in the 16-bit era and If I remember rightly, lay dormant until the 360/Wii. And it’s still really fun.
People keep complaining about the lack of Saturn games, but didn't Sega trash the source code for all of their Saturn games?
They really need more releases like this; solid Sega arcade hits from the 80s and 90s. Golden Axe 1 and 2, Alien Storm and Altered Beast would be a joy (the arcade versions, not the home ports) to see make a comeback. Used to dig the Moonwalker cabinet back in the day, too.
@ramu-chan Been wanting GA2 for years! Such a solid arcade title they keep neglecting to port
@nmanifold Yeah, it cost more and is much more difficult to bring any of their classic 3D games to Switch. I read that Virtua Racing was a huge challenge. I wish they'd do a Kickstarter or something. Many of us would invest upfront in order to get Sega Rally, SCUD Racer, Jet Set Radio Future, Panzer Dragoon Saga, etc.
@KitsuneNight Daytona 2 on Switch would be dreamy for sure!
Earlier in the year, just before the Wii's Virtual Console closed up shop, I almost spent the last few remaining Wii points I had on Shinobi. Glad I didn't when it's going to be available as a SEGA AGES game!
@AllieKitsune
Saturn emulation has become fairly robust these days
And from what i recall Sega only lost the source code to Panzer Dragoon Saga
Course im hoping the Panzer Dragoon remake means there will be more Saturn remakes.
@60frames-please
Or just the original Daytona would do too.
@KitsuneNight Since it was ported to PS3 and 360 from the Arcade board Sega Classic Racing it would certainly be a breeze to get running on the Switch, however the Daytona license may have expired again.
@X68000
Figures
but Sega circumvented that once by renaming it i am sure they could do that again.
i'd be happy with that too, as long as that gameplay stays intact.
And the cheesy music too.
Brue brue skies i see.
ahem
Sega Rally 95 would be fine too
Yes, yes, yes. Want, want, want.
I hope Virtua Fighter 2 is next, we definitely need a fighting game in the Sega Ages lineup too.
It actually came out yesterday, so awesome to have it on Switch. Just need the Megadrive port to hurry up.
@retro_player_22 Virtua Fighter 2 isn't on their list.
The next game on the list is Thunder Force AC - assuming the Sega Ages website (link is in article) goes in the order that is listed.
I LOVE Sega Ages games! I thank them so much for Outrun and Columns I and II. May I humbly plead for Outrun 2?
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