Ludography
Ninja Princess cover

1985 · Arcade · Run and gun

Ninja Princess

Sega console exclusive

Sega Ninja, originally released as Ninja Princess in Japan, is a 1985 run and gun video game developed and published by Sega for arcades. The player controls Princess Kurumi, the titular female ninja, who battles enemies using throwing knives and shurikens. In contrast to most later games in the genre, Ninja Princess has a feudal Japan setting with a female ninja protagonist.

Released
1 March 1985
Platforms
ArcadeSG-1000
Genres
ArcadeRun and gunShooter
Developers
—
Publishers
—
Perspective
Bird view / Isometric
Themes
ActionHistorical
Country
Japan
Languages
English, Japanese

About

Sega Ninja, originally released as Ninja Princess in Japan, is a 1985 run and gun video game developed and published by Sega for arcades. The player controls Princess Kurumi (くるみ姫 Kurumi-Hime), the titular female ninja, who battles enemies using throwing knives and shurikens. In contrast to most later games in the genre, Ninja Princess has a feudal Japan setting with a female ninja protagonist.

A revised edition for the Mark III console, titled Ninja Princess 1 Mega Ban - Ninja (忍者プリンセス1メガ版 忍者), was released in 1986, replacing the female protagonist with a male ninja protagonist who has to rescue her. This version was later released as The Ninja for the Master System internationally.

›Story

The game is set during Japan's Edo period, in about the year 1630, in a province called Ohkami in the western region, where the power has been seized by an evil tyrant named Gyokuro. The goal is to end his oppressive rule and restore peace.

Keywords

  • martial arts
  • ninja
  • run and gun
  • edo era
  • hot-seat multiplayer

Media

The articlegameplay, story, development, reception

Gameplay

Ninja Princess is a run and gun video game. The gameplay involves the player shooting enemies and defeating bosses along the way. Enemies include samurai, ninja and dogs. The player's normal weapons are an unlimited supply of throwing knives, but power-ups to shurikens are available.

In addition, the player can also turn invisible for a short period of time. While most of the stages are vertically scrolling, a few of the levels add some variety including a level where the player must scale a wall.

Story

The game is set during Japan's Edo period, in about the year 1630, in a province called Ohkami in the western region, where the power has been seized by an evil tyrant named Gyokuro. The goal is to end his oppressive rule and restore peace.

Reception

In Japan, Game Machine listed Ninja Princess as the most successful table arcade cabinet of April 1985.

Computer Gaming World stated that the Master System version was the most entertaining of three martial arts games that Sega released together (the others being Black Belt and Kung Fu Kid), and approved of its unusual visual perspective.

Legacy

In 2017, Sam Derboo of Hardcore Gaming 101 noted that Ninja Princess predates Capcom's genre-popularizing run and gun shooter Commando (1985), and he considers Ninja Princess to be "in some ways the more advanced concept." While he considered Commando to be a refinement of Taito's Front Line (1982), he said that Ninja Princess brought "a fresh setting and interesting new elements." He also praises the female protagonist, but criticizes the console versions for making the protagonist a male ninja who has to rescue her instead. He nevertheless considers it "no doubt one of the better overhead run-n-gun shooters out in the mid-’80s."

Sega Ninja is a plot point in the novel Ready Player Two (2020).

Releases by platformdates and regions as published

PlatformReleasedRegions
Arcade1 March 1985Japan · North America 31 December 1985

Editions and related releases

Included in
Sega Astro City Mini
Ported as
Ninja PrincessThe Ninja
Built on it
The NinjaNinja Princess

Games like this

Collections1 collection

Publishers

Description adapted from its source, CC BY-SA 4.0.