Very few 16th century ninja games can surpass the legacy that the Tenchu series has forged. Other than maybe Shinobi and Ninja Gaiden, Tenchu is one of the largest ninja series to ever be created. Although unlike the few ninja franchises that do surpass Tenchu in popularity and years of existence, Tenchu games are known for being far a more realistic and accurate depiction of how real ninja operated. Shinobi, Ninja Gaiden, and most other games that portray ninja and their Sengoku-era counterparts would generally put the player face to face with their enemies, battling it out in full-on fights where everyone was aware of each other and had plenty of supplies and health. One quick glance at a history book on this topic will reveal that this was not really how it went down though. Sure, face-to-face fights would certainly happen, but ninja were often covert mercenaries, whose tactics were generally seen as beneath the strict rules of engagement that samurai lived by on the surface of warfare. Sneaking by opponents, sabotage, infiltration, and using disguises were all things that the ninja would be tasked with to serve the clan leaders and warlords with whom they were aligned.
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