Going simply by the name Shadow Dancer in its original arcade format, Shadow Dancer: The Secret of Shinobi is the second game in the Shinobi series released on the Sega Genesis. It follows the first game in the series, Revenge of Shinobi, but is not canonically a sequel to the original game in the series. Instead, Shadow Dancer: The Secret of Shinobi takes the original Shadow Dancer arcade game and reworks it to fit within the style confines of Sega’s (at the time) new Shinobi series.
In addition to the arcade and Sega Genesis releases of Shadow Dancer, the game is also the recipient of several re-releases courtesy of online game collections and physical compilations. Shadow Dancer arrived on the Wii as part of the console’s Virtual Console service in 2010 as well as one of the titles included in the Sega Genesis Collection for PlayStation 2. The title also features as one of the trilogy of Shinobi games available on the Sega Genesis Classics compilation on modern consoles and PC.
Both the original release and the re-releases of Shadow Dancer have received significant critical praise, with some outlets even going so far as to claim it as the best of the Genesis Shinobi trilogy. The title received a sequel in the form of Shinobi III: Return of the Ninja Master just three years after its release and is the first title in the franchise to feature protagonist Joe Musashi’s dog.
Shadow Dancer: The Secret of Shinobi Premise
Like many other action-platformer games of the time, the Shinobi series sees players control the game’s protagonist using a third-person side-scrolling perspective. The series shares many characteristics with Tecmo’s Ninja Gaiden franchise in that players control an acrobatic ninja fighting against threats both natural and supernatural while using all manner of ninja weaponry and tools in their arsenal to do so. Regardless of which version of Shadow Dancer players refer to, the game also shares many of these same characteristics.
The biggest difference between the arcade and console versions of Shadow Dancer is the inclusion of a meter in the Genesis version for Joe Musashi’s dog. In order to call on the dog for help in battle, players must repeatedly press the attack button to fill the corresponding meter, allowing players to attack enemies using the dog while staying mobile. Players have only one hit point per life, but the game does a good job of providing bonus lives hidden throughout the stages.
Each stage sees the player progress through a series of screens moving horizontally, eliminating enemies along the way and eventually coming to a boss. In addition to the standard attack, players have shuriken that they can use to hit enemies from range, though the console version of Shadow Dancer allows this to be disabled for increased challenge. Each of the game’s 5 stages feature three areas, with a boss encounter awaiting players at the conclusion of the third area.
Shadow Dancer: The Secret of Shinobi Main Characters
Interestingly, the Japanese and North American releases of Shadow Dancer: The Secret of Shinobi identify the protagonist differently. While the Japanese manual refers to the protagonist as Hayate, the son of original protagonist Joe Musashi, the North American release identifies the main character as Joe Musashi himself, coming out of retirement. Outside this one difference, the main characters of Shadow Dancer remain the same across all versions:
- Joe Musashi: The hero of the Shinobi series and a legendary ninja warrior. Shadow Dancer‘s US release features a manual identifying the protagonist as Joe Musashi, coming out of retirement to stop the Union Lizard Cult after his adventure in Revenge of Shinobi.
- Hayate: The Japanese release of Shadow Dancer: The Secret of Shinobi places the protagonist as Joe Musashi’s son, Hayate. He uses the same fighting style and weaponry as his father, as well as donning the iconic silver and red shinobi shozoku.
- Sauros: Sauros is the evil reptilian demon who worshiped by the Union Lizard Cult. He is the game’s primary antagonist and the final boss of Shadow Dancer.
Games in the Shinobi Series
The Shinobi series is one of the longer-running side-scrolling action game franchises, having successfully made its transition to 3D on the PlayStation 2 before fellow ninja action game Ninja Gaiden. Though the series is best known for its trilogy of games on the Sega Genesis, there are several other later games in the series that are considered to be cult classics. The games in the Shinobi series include:
- Shinobi (Arcade, 1987)
- Shadow Dancer (Arcade, 1989)
- The Revenge of Shinobi (Sega Genesis, 1989)
- The Cyber Shinobi (Sega Master System, 1990)
- Shadow Dancer: The Secret of Shinobi (Sega Genesis, 1990)
- The G.G. Shinobi (Game Gear, 1991)
- The G.G. Shinobi II: The Silent Fury (Game Gear, 1992)
- Shinobi III: Return of the Ninja Master (Sega Genesis, 1993)
- Shinobi Legions (Sega Saturn, 1995)
- Shinobi (PS2, 2002)
- The Revenge of Shinobi (Game Boy Advance, 2002)
- Nightshade (PS2, 2003)
- Shinobi (3DS, 2011)
Shadow Dancer: The Secret of Shinobi Cheats and Cheat Codes
In addition to some clever cheats and a stage select code via the secret Practice Mode, there are several Game Genie codes available for Shadow Dancer: The Secret of Shinobi.
Game Genie Codes
| Effect | Code |
|---|---|
| Start with 2 Lives | AEBA-AAHW |
| Start with 10 Lives | BEBA-AAHW |
| Start with 16 Lives | B6BA-AAHW |
| Start with 41 Lives | JABA-AAHW |
| Start with 64 Lives | NNBA-AAHW |
| Gain Life After Each Hit | RYBA-C6ZA |
| Start Timer at 1:00 | AD7A-ACEY |
| Start Timer at 5:00 | AD7A-ALEY |
| Start Timer at 7:00 | AD7A-AREY |
| Start Timer at 9:00 | AD7A-AWEY |
| Infinite Time | RYHA-C61W |
| Enemy Aides are Easier to Kill (~2 hits) | AM8T-BA8A |
| Enemy Aides are Harder to Kill (~9 hits) | BH8T-BA8A |
| Infinite Ninjitsu Magic | RZFT-A61J |
Stage Select
At the SEGA logo, hold down A, B, and C and press Start. Repeat this sequence at the title screen. You can now practice any level using the third option, and nearly every screen has a Union Lizard Coin that awards free lives.
Infinite Continues
After dying and being given the choice to “Continue” or “End”, select “End”. Start the game again, beginning from the sub-level where you previously left off and have infinite lives.
Warp to Level 3-2
Watch the cutscene story and then, when “Demo Play” appears on the screen, press Start. It will take you to the beginning of Stage 3, Level 2.
Shadow Dancer: The Secret of Shinobi Cheat FAQ
Is Shadow Dancer Shinobi 2?
While Shadow Dancer is technically the second game to release in the Shinobi series, it is not a sequel to the Revenge of Shinobi on Genesis. However, the arcade version of Shadow Dancer is a sequel to the original 1987 arcade game Shinobi.
How many levels are in Shadow Dancer?
There are 4 full Stages in Shadow Dancer: The Secret of Shinobi, and each of these stages is sub-divided into 3 levels. The 5th Stage is a combat arena where the player simply defeats waves of enemies before progressing to the final boss battle against Sauros.