Shinobi: Setting, gameplay & everything we know so far

A new Shinobi game was announced at the 2023 Game Awards. Here’s everything we know about this sequel/reboot.

Announced alongside new Streets of Rage and Golden Axe games, Sega is working on a new entry in the Shinobi series with a game that looks to be a faithful recreation of the Mega Drive/Genesis era games, but on modern systems. Shinobi is a long-running game series about the ninja Joe Musashi and his many adventures.

Since its origins, the Shinobi series has been released on multiple consoles such as the Nintendo DS and PS2. While primarily a 2D platforming/hack and slash series, some Shinobi games have flirted with 3D, even when keeping the core gameplay the same. Here’s everything we know about the next Shinobi game.

Contents

• Does Shinobi have a release date?
• What platforms will Shinobi be on?
• Gameplay & setting

Does Shinobi have a release date?

No release date has been revealed for Shinobi as of yet.

The only details we have so far came from the Power Surge trailer Sega released.

What platforms will Shinobi be on?

As we’re unsure of a release window, it’s hard to predict what systems Shinobi will be released on at this stage.

Gameplay & setting

The most exciting thing about the next Shinobi game is how similar it looks to the games on Sega Mega Drive/Genesis. While fully updated for modern hardware, the game looks to be a faithful recreation of the early art style, taking the series back to its roots in terms of gameplay and aesthetics.

So far, we don’t know if this is a reboot of the series or simply a sequel, chronicling the next adventure of Joe Musashi. However, in terms of setting, the game looks to be set in the wider Shinobi universe and will feature Joe as its protagonist once again. The brief snippets of gameplay we’ve seen so far strongly resemble the earlier entries, so this will be exciting for long-time fans of the series.

That’s all we know about Shinobi for now. For more of the biggest upcoming releases, check out these guides below:

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