For the Shinobi 3 Heads
Games that feel like, reference, or are often compared to the Genesis classic. Suggestions welcome
24 Games
Mega Man Zero with a grappling hook and a focus on melee combat - three hit combos, divekicks, very crunchy. Feels like a counterpart to Moonrider - where that game was Shinobi 3 with a bit of Mega Man, this is Mega Man with a bit of Shinobi 3.
The predecessor. Slower, more deliberate, with a much more limited moveset. The origin of the much-maligned "Shinobi double-jump," which is good, actually.
Despite using an old Visco game license, even the game's storefront description references Shinobi 3, and you can feel it.
An ugly, derivative follow-up with hideous digitized graphics, clunkier controls and boring level design. Worse in every way.
Often called "The Shinobi 3 of SNES," on paper this game hits all the marks, but the result plays significantly differently. If Shinobi 3 used Revenge of Shinobi as a jumping-off point, Hagane started with Strider. An interesting game, but very much its own thing.
Not all that much like Shinobi 3, but it's a fluid ninja action platformer with a relatively varied moveset and level of quality that belies its mobile game roots.
Feels much more like an NES ninja game, but there's a specific reference to Shinobi 3's horseback autoscroller stage.
A solid, more approachable take on Ninja Spirit by way of Alien Soldier, with short levels punctuated by frequent boss fights.
A decent western-developed successor, hampered by middling visuals, bland music and a lack of new ideas.
We'll see...
The gameplay is Shinobi 3 at its core - running slashes and divekicks - but the full game brings in a host of other influences, from Hagane and Mega Man X to Contra and Super Hang-On. The result is fresh but familiar. A good time, if a little too easy for my tastes.
Stealthier, craftier ninja action platformer, but the variety of playstyles supported scratches the itch.
