Tenchu: Stealth Assassins
| Tenchu: Stealth Assassins | |
|---|---|
 |
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| Developer(s) | Acquire |
| Publisher(s) |
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| Director(s) | Takuma Endo |
| Composer(s) | Noriyuki Asakura |
| Series | Tenchu |
| Platform(s) | PlayStation |
| Release date(s) | |
| Genre(s) | Action-adventure, stealth |
| Mode(s) | Single-player |
| Aggregate score | |
|---|---|
| Aggregator | Score |
| Metacritic | 87/100 |
| Review scores | |
| Publication | Score |
| AllGame |   |
| Edge | 7/10 |
| EGM | 7.75/10 |
| Game Informer | 9/10 |
| GamePro | |
| Game Revolution | A |
| GameSpot | 8.3/10 |
| IGN | 9/10 |
| Play | 82% |
| PSM | |
Tenchu: Stealth Assassins is an action-adventure stealth game developed by Acquire and published by Sony Music Entertainment Japan in Japan and Activision worldwide for the PlayStation in 1998. Tenchu is known for its stealth gameplay and the eerie settings of feudal Japan. Tenchu was one of the first ninja games to incorporate stealth, a very crucial aspect of ninjutsu. However, aside from featuring traditional martial arts in battles, the game incorporates elements of historical fantasy and Japanese mythology.
The game begins with the protagonists Rikimaru and Ayame training to reach an honourable rank. In the training missions the performance of the character determines their rank; ranging from Thug, Novice, Ninja, Master Ninja to Grand Master. Lord Gohda himself gives his feedback on Rikimaru's performance while his daughter Princess Kiku speaks to Ayame instead. The playable characters Rikimaru and Ayame are only selectable as singular players and their storylines vary considerably, yet they experience the same levels and missions. Rikimaru, the oldest of the two, is the primary character in the game. Armed with a single ninjato, he is stronger than Ayame but relatively slower. Ayame carries a pair of tantō (although she does carry dual wakizashi in the second game) and is faster and has more combos than Rikimaru, but is the weaker of the two.
The game features 10 levels which are introduced in increasing difficulty: Punish the Evil Merchant, Deliver the Secret Message, Rescue the Captive Ninja, Cross the Checkpoint, Execute the Corrupt Minister, Infiltrate the Manji Cult, Destroy the Foreign Pirate, Cure the Princess, Reclaim the Castle and Free the Princess. All of the levels take place at night to compensate for the technical limitations of the PlayStation; the game's high rate of redraw is reduced by setting events at night and reducing the distance the player can see. Both characters are armed with a grappling hook which allows them to zip up to the tops of buildings and move freely across rooftops, which gave the game a sense of verticality that was rare among most action/adventure games of the time. Many bosses react differently to the two ninja based on their genders, highlighting the social attitudes at the time.
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Wikipedia