> This version's story is a bit different than the arcade original.  After bringing down the Neo Zeed, Joe "Shinobi" Musashi went to New York to spend time with his former student, Kato, then retired to his native land.  Later, Kato was fatally injured while protecting local school children from a new gang of thugs.  Musashi rushed back to New York to find that Kato had died, and left only his faithful dog, Yamato.  A group called the Union Lizard (led by Sauros) killed Kato.  Musashi was enraged and promised Kato's mother that he would avenge her son's death...

     > If you're into collecting import games, then Shadow Dancer is a good one to get.  It's 100% importable, as long as you have a conversion cartridge.  The entire game is in English, so there's no language barrier.

     > The coolest enemies are certainly the deadly ninjas.  They don't just stand there, they jump around, almost unpredictably.  The bosses aren't really anything to write home about, although the final boss, Sauros, is sweet.  Finally, the Ninjitsu is pretty much been-there done-that Shinobi stuff.

     > Your main mission is to survive to the end of a level.  Along the way, there's hostages to save, and power-ups to be earned.  When you get to a boss, Musashi must fight him alone.  Some of the boss attacks are unpredictable and frustrating too.  The only other thing I didn't mention is the Bonus Rounds.  In the tradition of Shinobi, kill ninjas to earn bonuses.

     > There are 3 difficulty settings, and the option to play with unlimited shurikens, or none at all.  Even with the easiest settings, though, Shadow Dancer is no push over.  The last few stages can be quite frustrating -- believe me.  At any rate, there's lots of ninja-action fun to be had.