Shadow Dancer

For the upcoming film, see Shadow Dancer (film).

For the Mega Drive/Genesis game, see Shadow Dancer: The Secret of Shinobi.

Shadow Dancer
Developer(s)	Sega
Publisher(s)	Sega
Director(s)	Motoshige Hokoyama
Composer(s)	Keisuke Tsukahara (Tsukachan)
Series	Shinobi series
Platform(s)	Arcade, Amiga, Atari ST, Amstrad CPC, Commodore 64, Sega Master System, ZX Spectrum
Release date(s)	November, 1989
Genre(s)	Side-scroller
Mode(s)	Single-player or two-player (alternating turns)
Rating(s)	ESRB: E10+ PEGI: 12
Cabinet	Upright
Arcade system	Sega System 18

Shadow Dancer (シャドー・ダンサー) is a side-scrolling action game produced by Sega originally released as an arcade game in 1989. It is the second arcade game in the Shinobi series, following the original Shinobi itself. The game was developed on the Sega System 18 motherboard hardware. Home versions were released for the Master System and various home computers. A remake was also developed for the Mega Drive/Genesis titled Shadow Dancer: The Secret of Shinobi.

Plot

A terrorist group is planting numerous time bombs throughout the city. The player, a ninja master accompanied by a canine partner, sets out on a mission to dismantle the bombs and destroy the criminal syndicate behind these acts.

There are four different missions, consisting of three stages for the first mission and four stages each for the remaining three. In the first few stages of each mission, the player must collect a certain amount of time bombs scattered throughout the stage in order to proceed to the goal. The final stage in each mission is a confrontation between the player and the boss. The missions are as followed.

• Mission 1: "Obstruct the enemy's deadly mission!"
• Mission 2: "Disrupt the enemy's supply route!"
• Mission 3: "Raid the enemy's syndicate underground headquarters!"
• Mission 4: "Crush the enemy's evil plan!"

Gameplay

The play mechanics of Shadow Dancer are not much different from the arcade version of the original Shinobi. Like its predecessors, the controls of an eight-way joystick and three buttons (attack, jump, and "ninja magic") and almost all of the player's moves from the original Shinobi are present here as well. The biggest change to the play mechanic is the addition of a canine companion that follows the player around. When the dog barks towards an enemy, the player can sic the dog on the enemy by pressing the attack button while crouching, allowing the player an opportunity to attack the enemy while he's being bitten by the dog. However, if the player takes too long to attack the bitten enemy or the enemy has a strong defense, then the dog will be hurt and he will turn into a harmless pup and will remain in that form until the player gets his next time bomb or finishes the stage. The dog does not appear during boss battles.

The player's weapons consists of an unlimited supply of shurikens which he throws from a distance and a sword which he swings when an enemy is near him. When the player collects a certain time bomb in each stage, it will his replace his regular shurikens into stronger fiery versions, as well as his sword into powerful punches and kicks, for the remainder of the stage or current life. The player can also use from one of three random "Ninja Magic" spells that will clear the entire screen of enemies. Normally, these spells can only be used once per stage, but if the player loses all of his lives and gets a Game Over, he will restart the stage with two spells when he continues. Likewise, he will restart with three spells from the third continue and onward. If the player completes a stage without using shurikens or spells, he will be awarded with bonus points.

Between missions, the player will participate in a bonus stage where he must shoot down (from his character's perspective) an army of ninjas dropping down from a building. If the player successfully completes a bonus round, he will be awarded with an extra life.

Home versions

Master System

The Master System port of Shadow Dancer was released 1991 exclusively in Europe and Brazil. Although, this version is titled Shadow Dancer: The Secret of Shinobi on its packaging, that title does not actually appear in the game itself. While this port is much closer to the arcade game than the Mega Drive/Genesis version, it still has its share of differences as followed.

• Whereas the arcade version consisted of 15 stages, this version only has eight stages, two per mission. Besides the boss battles, the stages in this version are based on Stage 1-1, 2-2, 3-3, and 4-3 from the arcade version.
• The canine companion no longer follows the player around. However, the player can still summon the dog to attack enemy from a distance by crouching for a certain period and pressing the attack button. When the "Ninja Magic" icon changes into an icon of a dog and is placed on an enemy, then the attack can be performed. However, this attack only works on knife-wielders and gunmen.
• Collecting time bombs is now an optional task. Instead of being guarded, they are now dropped by certain enemies when killed. When the player collects all five bombs in a stage preceding a boss battle, he will acquire upgraded shurikens that can be used during the ensuing boss battle.
• The "Ninja Magic" attacks is now performed by pressing Up and Attack. Like in the arcade, these attacks can only be used once per stage. However, when every time the player loses a life, he will the restart with an additional quantity until completing the stage. Unlike the arcade game, "Ninja Magic" cannot be used during boss battles.
• The regular bonus stages from the arcade version are still present. However, the bonus stage after Mission 2 is a skydiving minigame similar to the one in the Mega Drive/Genesis version in which the player jumps down from a high-rise building and shoots towards an army of ninjas jumping between buildings.

Home computers

Shadow Dancer was released on various home computer formats in Europe during 1991. Versions released for the Commodore Amiga, Atari ST, Commodore 64, Amstrad CPC, and ZX Spectrum. These versions were published by U.S. Gold and developed by Images.

External links

• Shadow Dancer at the Killer List of Videogames
• Shadow Dancer at MobyGames
• Shadow Dancer at World of Spectrum
• Shadow Dancer brochure at the The Arcade Flyers Archive