Classic Ninja Sprite Action
Considered the "Best in the Series" in my book, this volume of Joe's adventures crank up the volume in extremedy 10 fold. One minute your hacking away at assassins in a quaint windy forest, the next your raiding a military base to fight a large flying brain armed to the teeth, then its off across a marine harbor in your jet propelled surf board (seriously) to take out a secret clone research laboratory. Yeah, pretty epic as far as ninja games go.
The game isn't without it's frustrating moments, one of my personal "favorites" is a scene where you have to leap upwards on falling pieces of rock up a chasm by the light of the moon. If you manage to pass that then its into a foggy dojo where you get to play "Guess-the-Door", that game where you have to pick the right doors in order or its back to the start. The final stage is pretty nerve grating too, you have to be pretty precise with your wall jumps and clinging to pass each scene or its instant death for Joey.
Ramping difficulty aside the game's sprite work is fantastic. Killed enemies squirt a pinch of blood before exploding into fleeting smoke puffs. All the multi-scrolling back grounds are really slick as well, enemies will scope you out from the background before coming to fight you in the foreground. The music is also well done, a variety of mood setting beats and eerie sounds in certain levels shine with 16-bit excellence.
All in all, the game is short but not without challenge. For an added challenge try playing the game with no shurikens, this forces Joe to use his twin daggers and katana sword. I certainly recommend giving this game a go. It's a nice nostalgia for the veterans, and a good history lesson for the newbies.