Taking place after the events of Tenchu: Birth of the Stealth Assassins - An evil clan of ninjas, led by the mysterious Kurokaze, have attacked your clan princess Shizuhime and have placed a curse upon her. Rikimaru and Ayame – two of the best ninja’s from the Azuma Shinobi Ryu clan are dispatched to find these dark ninjas, uncover their sinister plot and find a way to cure the princess.
Tenchu: Dark Secret is an action game with a difference, disposing of the normal combat systems in favour of discretion and tactics. This game will very quickly separate the reckless from the shrewd, with those rushing headlong into danger being cut down very quickly by the force of the enemy. Tenchu is a stealth game where players must keep to the shadows and dispatch their foes as quickly and quietly as possible. Only by watching the patterns of enemy guards and anticipating the perfect opportunity to strike will you truly learn the way of the ninja.
Players are enabled to see exactly where their opponent’s are at all times due to the twin screens of the Nintendo DS. The top screen portrays in-game action from a bird’s eye perspective, as well as a visibility meter which lets players see how likely they are to be spotted. The bottom screen adds to this by not only displaying a map of the immediate area, but also the location of all enemies within that area and the direction in which they are facing. Sneaking up behind one for a silent kill has never been easier. Tenchu: Dark Secret features around 40 levels (and sub-levels) with bite sized play, making it ideal for the Nintendo DS handheld. Within these levels players can collect items which can be used to build new traps
As well as dispatching enemies up close and personal, Tenchu: Dark Secret allows ninjas to set booby traps, which can vanquish enemies that unwittingly stumble across them. Players can also find items during the course of the game, which can be combined using the game’s Ninja Gear menu to make all manner of ingenious and deadly traps. Villagers rescued during the game will unlock new recipes allowing more elaborate items to be created. Tenchu: Dark Secret also utilises the Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection service to allow Ninja Gear, such as shuriken’s or new bamboo trap’s to be sold or bought not only from friends, but also from any other owner of the game online at that time.
Fancy yourself as a master of stealth? Tenchu: Dark Secret includes a LAN multiplayer mode in which you can put your skills to the test. Players can opt to battle to the death in Annihilator mode, capture the flag in Glutton mode or take part in a tense game of hide and seek in Sneak mode with up to four other players.
Tenchu: Dark Secret emerges from the shadows on 24th November 2006 as it launches across Europe on the Nintendo DS for around £30.