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is a series of video games created by Sega. The ninja (''shinobi'') Joe Musashi is the protagonist of the original series of games (''Shinobi'' to ''Shinobi III''). The first ''Shinobi'' game debuted in the arcades in 1987 and has since featured in a dozen other official ''Shinobi'' titles. Along with Alex Kidd and Sonic the Hedgehog, Joe Musashi has long been one of Sega's flagship characters, acting as a mascot for a short time in the late 1980s when the ninja boom was in full force. The series' games are a showcase of Sega's technical accomplishment, noted for their high quality of graphics, gameplay and music, as well as their high level of difficulty.〔 ==Plot== The titular character of ''Shinobi'' (an old Japanese word for "ninja") is most commonly associated with that of Joe Musashi, the protagonist of the original arcade game and many of its sequels. His name is a combination of both an archetypical western first name and Japanese last name, Musashi likely being derived from the legendary Japanese swordsman Miyamoto Musashi. In the manual of ''The Revenge of Shinobi'', Musashi's backstory is told as that of a weak boy who first entered the dojo of the Oboro clan at a young age and gradually, through tireless practice and meditation, worked himself up to become the most skilled and respected ninja of his clan.〔 His peaceful existence in the mountains of Japan is shattered when the ninja crime syndicate Zeed rises to power and attempts to revert Japan into the Sengoku period of civil war when the ninja thrived. After being defeated by Musashi in the original ''Shinobi'', Zeed reforms three years later as Neo Zeed and attacks the Oboro clan directly. With his master assassinated and his girlfriend Naoko kidnapped by the enemy, Musashi swears revenge, and in the ensuing battles through a series of locations in Japan and America, as chronicled in ''The Revenge of Shinobi'', all but annihilates Neo Zeed. When Neo Zeed returns in ''Shinobi III: Return of the Ninja Master'', Musashi comes out of retirement one final time and destroys them for good.〔 In the Japanese ''Shadow Dancer'' plot, Musashi's title is passed down to his son Hayate, who now assumes the Shinobi identity and battle the ninja-led terrorist group Asian Down who attack Miami with plans to hijack a spacecraft armed with nuclear weapons and hold the nation of Earth hostage. The English localization of the Mega Drive game ''Shadow Dancer: The Secret of Shinobi'', however, identifies the character as being Joe Musashi himself rather than his son, fighting against the evil ninja cult Union Lizard who had destroyed and taken over New York City. In ''The Cyber Shinobi'', Zeed has resurfaced once more, this time under the name of Cyber Zeed. A grandson of Joe Musashi must prevent them from threatening the world again. ''Shinobi Legions'', however, presents an entirely different plotline. The titular shinobi is now played by Sho, the youngest of two brothers raised by a lone ninja master. The elder brother becomes corrupted and abducts the master's daughter in search of the ultimate ninjitsu technique, and Sho has to prevent him from destroying the world. Neither Joe Musashi nor the Oboro clan are mentioned.〔 Following a seven-year hiatus in the series, the lead archetype returns in ''Shinobi'' for PlayStation 2 as Hotsuma, another member of the Oboro clan. In a similar theme to ''Shinobi Legions'', the game starts with Hotsuma slaying his elder brother Moritsune during a full moon Oboro ritual. The main plot revolves around Hotsuma's battle to defeat a powerful sorcerer called Hiruko and put an end to anarchy in Tokyo. The game also featured Joe Musashi as a hidden character, as well as Moritsune himself (who appears in the game's storyline as an enemy named Aomizuchi).〔 In a complete break with tradition, ''Nightshade'' (''Kunoichi'' in Japan) featured a female shinobi named Hibana. Hotsuma himself appears as a hidden character, though it requires a completed ''Shinobi'' PS2 game save on the memory card to unlock him. Joe Musashi also returns as he did in the PS2 ''Shinobi'' by completing 88 missions in the game.〔 The protagonist of the 3DS ''Shinobi 3D'' is Jiro Musashi, Joe's father. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Shinobi (series)」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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