By Super Asurada 77 – Retro Joy Lab

Hello, this is Super Asurada 77.

For gamers in their 40s and beyond, here’s a title that lets you finally beat that impossible childhood game — thanks to the magic of forced save/load tricks!

It’s The Revenge of SHINOBI, a legendary 1989 Sega title that helped define the 16-bit Mega Drive era.
Known in Korea as Super Shinobi, this classic ninja adventure is a true symbol of Sega’s golden age.

Basic Controls:

A Button: Ninja Magic
B Button: Attack or Throw Shuriken
C Button: Jump
Press Start, then use the D-pad to select your ninja spell.

Jump → Jump again: Double Jump
Attack at the peak of a double jump: Multi Shuriken Throw (only works if you have enough shuriken).

Ninja Magic:

Flame Technique – Summons a blazing dragon that fills the screen, burning all enemies.

Thunder Technique – Your body becomes surrounded by lightning, making you temporarily invincible. But take a few hits, and it wears off.

Clone Technique – Boosts your jump height slightly. Honestly, I rarely use it. Seems cool, but not essential for boss fights.

Suicide Technique – Sacrifice one life to damage nearby enemies. You’ll revive instantly with full health and one magic use restored. Extremely useful for boss battles if you have extra lives!

Now, let’s begin the game.

Middle-aged gamers have their pride — full 90 shuriken stock, difficulty set to NORMAL.
Hold that pride high! “Normal mode” is our badge of honor.

Round 1 begins. Wait, why are we fighting again?
Are we saving the world… or did someone kidnap our girlfriend?

Oops, pressed the wrong button? Yep — you just wasted your ninja magic on a random grunt.
Better restart.

A rock bridge? Step close and it starts moving — the arrow appears, and you go the opposite way.

Enemies swarm in waves, but we’ve got plenty of shuriken left. Fire away!

Here comes a boss in cool armor — I love that color scheme!

When he swings his sword from the wall, hit him midair with multi-shuriken. Perfect timing!

That armor’s gorgeous — changing colors like it’s AI-controlled. Man, I want one!

Round 2: The waterfall stage.

This is where most players hit their first wall.
Don’t worry — the mighty save/load trick will carry you through.

The waterfall is beautiful… but fall off, and you’ll lose a precious life.

Ugh, those falling logs! You’ll need perfect double-jump timing to land safely.
Trust your rhythm — if you can leave your office exactly at 6:00:00 PM, you’ve got this.

Make it across the logs, and you’ll see the exit.

Now the city stage begins. A nun turns into a ninja, and a guy straight out of a Jackie Chan movie attacks with flying kicks!

It’s total chaos — take them down one by one, calmly and precisely.
If they won’t listen, well… shuriken and sword it is.

Stop attacking me already! It hurts!

I’m exhausted… time to chill at the club.

Yep, it’s a club — but the boss shows up using Clone Magic!

Take down his clones first, one by one.

Then unleash your Flame Magic to burn off your stress!

On to Round 3. The difficulty spikes here.

Looks like an airfield. Japanese soldiers fire guns, toss grenades, and use flamethrowers.
Time to rely on our best friends: save and load.

Boarding an airship now.

Why does that door keep opening? The maintenance crew’s clearly slacking.
They need a 3 AM wake-up drill!

Exit ahead — wait for the door to close before passing.
Your life is precious!

Boss time: a machine boss. Aim for the glowing vacuum-tube parts.
Almost smashed my console, but held back — hardware is sacred!

Round 4: The Waste Disposal Plant.

Look at those neatly parked vehicles — way better than our lazy mechanics.
You guys deserve a bonus!

A tough industrial stage full of hazards.

Flames everywhere, constantly burning you. Brutal.

Boss fight — wait, is that… Schwarzenegger?!
No way… is this Terminator?

Yep. It’s definitely the Terminator.

Round 5: The Skyscraper Stage.

Fight your way through the building’s enemies…

Then head out to the city streets.
Wait — is that nun back again?

She’s no nun — she’s a kunoichi, a female ninja!

Enough already — stop attacking!

Time to make a run for the exit!

Another machine-type boss. Electric shocks, gas attacks, the works.

Hit the red button-like core. It’s all about rhythm — jump to dodge the electricity, and time your shuriken toss perfectly.

Round 6 begins.

Looks like Chinatown — fittingly, the BGM is called “China Town.”
I still love listening to it. The composer Yuzo Koshiro also did Streets of Rage!

That enemy blocks all shuriken. Dodge his attack, then strike up close.

Avoid the woman if you can — she takes multiple hits to go down.

I get it, you want to protect her. But survival first — retreat if needed!

Wait, are you her boyfriend? Sorry, man. My girlfriend’s kidnapped — I’ve got my own rescue mission!

Didn’t move aside? Fine, have some shuriken!
Exit’s up ahead.

Now you’re fighting on top of a speeding train.
Seriously? Yeah, definitely a kidnapped-girlfriend plot.

Still, the wind feels great up here!

Wait… Spider-Man?! Earlier we had Terminator — now this?
Guess licensing wasn’t a big deal back then!

Spider-Man transforms into a bat. I thought you were supposed to be a spider!
Anyway, hit and dodge, one strike at a time.
Finally defeated the bat!

Round 7 — almost there, stay strong!

At the docks, precision jumping is key.
Enemies always wait near landing spots, so throw shuriken preemptively.

Board the ship.

Wander through until you find the boss room.

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Whoa… a giant dinosaur?!
We’ve had Terminator, Spider-Man… and now Godzilla?

Dodge its fire breath and tail swipes — aim only for the head. You can do this!

Final Stage: Round 8. Are we rescuing our girlfriend or saving the world? Maybe both.

Epic waves crash in the background — true 16-bit power on display!

That cannon fire is infuriating.

Now entering the enemy base — ZEED Headquarters.

Careful — one wrong door and you’ll loop endlessly like a maze.

Each door has a kanji number. Door #4 on-screen is your target — pick wrong, and you’ll go in circles.

In the underground, crouch through tunnels to grab lots of power-ups.
You’ll need to max out before the final boss.
Activate Thunder Magic to stay powered up before entering.

Finally, the final boss chamber.

See the woman in the background? That’s your girlfriend.

Rocks start falling — it’s a timed battle!
Hit the boss only when his wig attack exposes him.

You defeated him… but your girlfriend got crushed by the falling rocks.

Our hero is devastated.

Ah… I couldn’t save her.

He stares silently into the distance.

A falling star crosses the sky — he remembers her.
The game ends in a sad ending.

But wait! We’ve got the power of save/load magic.

Reload before the final fight — make sure you’re fully powered up.

When he attacks with the wig, counter immediately with a powered shuriken.
Dodge with double jumps, maintain your power, and you’ll win in time.

This time, you save her — before the rocks fall!

She escapes the prison and runs toward you.

The lovers reunite in an embrace.

They hold each other close, comforting one another.

Now, they gaze at the horizon together — a true happy ending.

My hands and eyes are exhausted… but my heart is full.
Time to rest, shed a tear, and move on to the next retro adventure.

Have fun, and enjoy your retro gaming life!

✅ Retro Joy Lab – Your daily dose of nostalgic energy!
by Super Asurada 77

Original article in Korean: [link]