The legendary Shinobi is about to take on one of his most mid foes to date, as a villain from the Sonic: The Hedgehog series is coming to Shinobi: Art of Vengeance as part of an upcoming DLC.

Shinobi: Art of Vengeance is an upcoming 2D action-platformer for modern platforms that brings Joe Musashi back to the gaming world. There was a time when Shinobi was one of Sega’s premier franchises, but it was left by the wayside. Now that Sega is looking at its back catalog for fresh ideas, the ninja is poised to return in a big way in 2025.

While Shinobi: Art of Vengeance features the usual foes a ninja will face, there is about to be a massive, egg-shaped scientist thrown into his path. In a post on the Tails Channel BlueSky page, it was revealed that Dr. Eggman (hereafter referred to as Dr. Robotnik) will appear in the game in early 2026 as part of the Sega Villains Stage DLC.

Shinobi Is Facing Multiple Sega Villains

There’s currently only a single piece of key art available for the Sega Villains DLC stage, so it’s unclear exactly how the Dr. Robotnik fight will go, but it’s likely that he’ll be using one of his iconic machines from the Sonic the Hedgehog games, possibly the one with the big orange ball from the first game.

The big question is who the other two villains are. Death Adder from Golden Axe feels like a natural fit, considering that series is from the same classic era as Shinobi, and his dark fantasy vibe matches the game’s aesthetic. The other candidate is unclear, but someone like Lan Di from Shenmue would make for a great ultra-difficult boss.

It’s great to see Sega not only embracing its classic library but mixing them together in fun ways for the old-school fans. Hopefully, this isn’t the last time Shinobi mixes with the Sonic universe, especially with Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds on the way.

Shinobi: Art Of Vengeance

Released

August 29, 2025

Number of Players

1