Shadow Dancer: The Secret of Shinobi Overview
Shadow Dancer: The Secret of Shinobi is a Sega Genesis and Mega Drive exclusive action game. The setting is New York City in 1997, where a massive reptilian creature has emerged, causing widespread panic and taking hostages.
The player controls a ninja master named Shinobi, who returns to confront this new threat. His primary methods are stealth and rapid strikes, utilizing ninja weapons and magic during the conflict. He is accompanied in this mission by a canine companion.
The game is structured into five distinct missions, each containing three stages. A key objective throughout these stages is the rescue of hostages. The conclusion of every mission involves a boss encounter. Upon defeating a boss, except for the final one, the player enters a bonus stage where the goal is to shoot down approaching ninja.
Certain enemies, like some lizards encountered in later missions, drop collectible items called "lizard coins" that grant extra lives. While the game shares its title and core concepts with a home computer release, it features different stage designs and alters primary objectives.