Publisher Natsume Atari and developer Tengo Project have announced KAGE Shadow of the Ninja for PC and consoles.

The previously teased remake is launching in spring 2024 for Windows PC (via Steam), Xbox Series X|S, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, and PlayStation 5. As covered in our previous report, this is a remake of the Famicom title Shadow of the Ninja.

While a western release isn’t 100% confirmed, the game will reportedly support Japanese, English, Italian, German, French, Korean, and Chinese languages.

Here’s a rundown on the new game, plus the first art and screenshots:

Traditional two-player action

The highly acclaimed side-view ninja action with 2 players playing at the same time is still alive and well. Players can choose between two completely different characters, a man and a woman, and join forces to defeat powerful enemies.

The overwhelming quality of the detailed dot pictures

The 16-bit dot art that was highly acclaimed in the previous title “Kirakai Kai: The Mystery of the Black Cloak” is still alive and well in this title. The carefully executed dots color the game.

Super composer Iku Mizutani, who has supported the sound of Natsume’s works, will participate in this project

Mr. Mizutani, who created the Natsume sound for the original version of this game, “Shutter Hands” and the “Medarotto” series, is also working on this new version. The familiar guitar playing is still there.

As in the original version, Dynamic Pro is in charge of illustrations

The key visuals and character illustrations will be done by Dynamic Productions, known for their work on Mazinger Z and Grendizer, just as they did for the first version in 1990.

The game will be exhibited at Tokyo Game Show 2023

The show will be held at Makuhari Messe from September 23 to 24, 2023. The company will exhibit at Tokyo Game Show 2023, which will be held at Makuhari Messe from September 23 to 24, 2023. We plan to be one of the first to try out the game at the booth on the day of the show.

Playable characters

• Hayate – The “Ryuha Shippu,” a ninja clan that has been active in the shadows of history since long ago. Hayate is a young warrior who is considered to be the next head of the Shippu clan. He has perfected his skills as a ninja, but he has a short temper and makes mistakes when he loses his cool…
• Kaede – A young ninja of the same school as Hayate. He is Hayate’s senior and always rebukes Hayate’s hot temper due to his calm personality.

This is Niche Imports. In this column, we regularly cover games that haven’t been announced for western audiences yet.