Shadow Ninja Revenge

Shadow Ninja Revenge gives its ninja a small set of tools and then builds the whole game out of choosing between them. Swords and spears handle what is next to you, a thrown star handles what is not, and a flying kick closes the gap between the two.

The dash is what ties the first two together. It closes a gap faster than an enemy can react, which turns a bad position into a good one — but it commits you, and arriving next to two enemies instead of one is how a run usually ends.

Your lives are counted in the top left corner and there are not many of them. Enemies do not wait their turn, and the big spiders hanging among the bamboo are among the most awkward, so striking first is almost always cheaper than waiting to be struck.

Obstacles sit between the enemies, so a stretch is rarely only combat. Everything runs on the keyboard, and the moves are on separate keys rather than buried in combinations.