shinobi 3 Sega Genesis - Megadrive

Ninja games during the 16-bit era were far better than today’s new gaming technology, and Shinobi series was the best in the genre.

Back in the days during the 16-bit era, I was extremely hooked in Shinobi 3: Return of the Ninja Master on my shiny black Sega Megadrive. Shinobi 3: Return of the Ninja Master is a Ninja side-scrolling action platformer that conquered the genre for a long time. Released in 1993, Shinobi 3 was highly praised by gamers and game critics.

A Ninja Surfer... Literally

Shinobi Riding a Horse

Shinobi in attack form

Graphics were superb for a 16-bit machine. Shinobi 3 used a semi 3-D textures on the background and well detailed characters. The Main Ninja charater was pretty awesome and the enemy designs were outstanding especially the Bosses. Sound mixes were pretty impressive as well. But Shinobi 3’s crown is in the Gameplay.

The Gameplay is extremely fun and challenging. There are only 8 missions in the game but saving the game is non-existent during the Sega 16-bit era, some stages are quite hard to finish and some bosses are impossible to defeat. You’ll get to run and slash your enemies in half, ride horses and ride a surf board while you vanquish ninja enemies and robots. If you are not quite into sidescroller action games, you may spend weeks or even a month to master all Shinobi 3 levels.

Return of the Ninja Master has a high replay value, no matter how many times you finish the game, you will still play it again and again. Even though I own an Xbox 360, PSP, Nintendo DS and an upgraded PC…. I’m still playing Shinobi 3: Return of the Ninja Master on my Sega Genesis Emulator.

Castlevania: SOTN - Remembering the true nature of games

If you like RPG, Action and side-scrollers then Castlevania: Symphony of the Night ( SOTN ) is the game for you. Upon it’s release, This instant classic Castlevania title ruled the Playstation console for years. Castlevania: Symphony of the Night is a hybrid of RPG-Action-Sidescroller. You’ll get to use Richter Belmont as your intro character in the game and then Alucard all throughout. Alucard’s equipment roster is fully customizable, you can change your stats by changing and mixing weapon attributes. Just like any RPG’s Alucard’s level go up as you progress through the game, you can reach as high as level 70 – 90 although it will be tedious and dragging as at that level state, you will be ultra strong and indestructable. Castlevania: SOTN is somewhat Open-Ended in a sense that you don’t need to follow quest or linear instructions. You can go anywhere you want in the castle as long as your transformation skills and equipment are complete.

Stop looking at my genitals!!!

You get to battle hundreds of monsters and bosses, some of the enemies came from other Castlevania titles such as medusa heads, skeletons, flea, werewolves, etc….

More stylish vampire than Twilight cast eh? suck that Edward!

The story starts with Richter Belmont – The youngest in the Belmont clan. You are on the hunt for Dracula, and then you’ll get to slay him and then the first story comes to an end. Then you will run off to the Castle as Alucard, Dracula’s son. Your main mission is to destroy the castle but there will be a lot of twist along the way.

Now that's a true artwork

Soundtracks of Castlevania: SOTN are epic and catchy, arrangements are very well orchestrated and elegant. Although Voice acting are overly ugly and cheesy, don’t get me wrong, Alucard really does have that big manly voice, but the script is a piece of crap. Dialogues are ugly.
Despite the short comings on the voice acting, Castlevania: Symphony of the Night is still one of the best games out there. The Graphics, Gameplay, and Soundtrack are all close to perfection. If you haven’t played Castlevania: Symphony of the Night, then you’re missing half of your life as a gamer. Castlevania: SOTN is now available on Xbox Live Marketplace and Playstation Store. You can play it too on that Castlevania: Dracula X Chronicles title for the PSP as a bonus/unlockable game.