"Tenchu: Stealth Assassins" took the ninja genre a few steps further than "Ninja Gaiden" or "Sh
In "Tenchu: Stealth Assassins," the player controlled either a male or female ninja, both with unique advantages and disadvantages, in feudal Japan. The videogame was objective-based, assigning the player various tasks to accomplish before advancing to the next stage.
The male ninja was stronger than the female, utilized a single katana sword, and could carry more items (shuriken, throwing knives, explosives, etc.). The female ninja, on the other hand, carried twin short swords, and was far stealthier than her male counterpart. Both were equipped with a rope with a grappling hook, enabling the ninjas to climb onto rooftops from which to more effectively attack enemies.
As the title of the videogame suggests, stealth is the name of the game in "Tenchu: Stealth Assassins." The developer, Activision, wisely integrated some rather visceral killing moves, as a sort of reward for the player who patiently creeps up on an unawares enemy ninja. However, for the gamer who chooses to throw caution to the wind, and instead chooses to race in with guns blazing, so to speak, "Tenchu: Stealth Assassins" certainly delivers. Both ninjas are more than capable of holding their own in a skirmish, and carry sufficient secondary weapons, the aforementioned shurikens, etc., to dispatch most foes.
"Tenchu: Stealth Assassins" provided a nice mixture of stealth and brute brawling. Being able to play as either the male or female ninja essentially rendered "Tenchu: Stealth Assassins" two separate games, as the unique attributes of each character led to a different style of gameplay. The Japanese-esque music was a nice touch as well, and set the mood of the game rather well.