SHINOBI: Art of Vengeance FAQ SHINOBI: Art of Vengeance Game Walkthrough Wiki

1 What is this game

An all new 2D action platformer with a hand drawn look, starring Joe Musashi. The setup is direct: your village is burned and your clan is turned to stone, so you set out for vengeance.

It is single player only, with no multiplayer of any kind listed. The store lists it purely under Action, and everything about the presentation confirms that: this is a game about moving well and hitting things precisely.

2 Who made it

SEGA and Lizardcube, and the store names the credential that matters: this is the team behind the brawler Streets of Rage 4.

Lizardcube brings a hand-drawn presentation to this entry. Judge the available movement and combat options from the game itself rather than assuming they reproduce the systems of a different title.

3 Do you need to know the series

No. Shinobi began in arcades in the 1980s and this is described as an all new entry, with a self contained revenge story that explains itself in the opening minutes.

Knowing the older games adds recognition, not comprehension. If the name means nothing to you, treat it as a new 2D action game and nothing will be missing.

4 What you actually do

SEGA describes three pillars, and they map cleanly onto how a session plays.

The presence of tools that uncover new paths is the detail worth noticing. It means stages are not purely linear runs, and that returning to an earlier area with a new tool is part of the design.

5 Price, platform and languages

Steam Cloud and full controller support are listed, along with a keyboard only option. A gamepad is recommended, which is the honest advice for a 2D action game of this type.

6 The Digital Deluxe Edition

The Deluxe Edition bundles the base game with a season pass containing a Starter Pack (the Ghost Outfit, the Medic Lite Amulet and 2000 Gold), a SEGA Villains Stage, and a digital art book with the soundtrack.

The villains stage features Majima from the Yakuza series, Dr. Eggman from Sonic the Hedgehog, and Death Adder from Golden Axe. It is a crossover extra rather than part of the main story.

7 System requirements

Unusually light for a 2025 release. The minimum targets 1080p at 30 frames per second with a Core 2 Quad Q9400 or Phenom II X3 720, 6 GB of memory and a GeForce GT 730 or Radeon R7 240, DirectX 11 and 20 GB of storage.

The recommended tier targets 1080p at 60 frames per second and asks only for a Core i5-2300 or FX-4350 with 8 GB of memory and a GTX 650 Ti. Both tiers state their frame rate target explicitly, which is a good deal more useful than most requirement lists.

8 Difficulty and accessibility

Adjustable difficulty is listed, as are colour alternatives, custom volume controls, a keyboard only option and playable without timed input. No content descriptors are declared by the developer.

Adjustable difficulty is available, but Hardcore is a distinct new-game choice: its enemy placement, healing and some boss patterns change. See the current update section before choosing a difficulty for a fresh run.

What the free update and paid DLC include

The SEGA Villains Stage DLC is available, rather than an unreleased season-pass promise. The 3 April 2026 launch announcement lists five stages, three bosses, three Ninpo, three skins, six music tracks and two Boss Rush modes featuring the new bosses. Majima, Dr. Eggman and Death Adder are the crossover opponents. Check the edition you own before buying the same extra again.

The accompanying update is free for all players and includes Hardcore mode, display settings, a larger map view and tutorial review. These free features are separate from owning the paid stages. Hardcore can only be selected when starting a new game.

The 13 July ESRB notice explains a purchase label change: patch 1.2 links to an in-game store for the paid stage DLC. A statement that there are no in-game purchases would miss that link, even though Gold is not sold separately. Sources: DLC release and free update and purchase-link clarification. Checked 27 October 2026.