Shinobi III: Return of the Ninja Master is the sequel to The Revenge of Shinobi and the last installment of the series on the Genesis/Mega Drive. After defeating the Neo Zeed organization, the ninja Joe Musashi returns to Japan to recover from the battle. But while he's training, he senses that the Neo Zeed leaders are secretly rebuilding the organization, so he makes his way back to defeat them once again. The gameplay is very similar to the previous game, a side-scrolling game with platform elements. Musashi uses kunai (throwing knives) and a sword as weapons and can upgrade their power by picking up power-ups inside crates. Inside those crates he will also find extra lives, health, kunai (5 or 20), ninjitsu, and time bombs that will explode in 5 seconds or immediately if touched. The game features four difficulty levels. In normal difficulty, the player has 3 lives and 3 continues. The game rewards the player for different playing styles. Beating a level without using kunai or ninjitsu, for instance, grants extra points. An extra life is gained for each 50,000 points scored.
The gameplay includes new movements to Musashi's repertoire: he can block enemy projectiles after shooting a kunai, he can drop-kick enemies while jumping (after which he will bounce, allowing for connecting more drop kicks), he can dash and slash enemies with his sword, and he can perform wall jumps. Besides the physical attacks, four ninjitsu are available: Ikazuchi (temporary invincibility), Kariu (whole screen fire attack), Fushin (higher jumps) and Mijin (self-destruction that costs one life but deals high damage to all enemies on screen).
The game is divided into seven rounds, each subdivided in two parts with a boss at the end of each part (except for the last round, with only one final boss). Most levels feature horizontal scrolling from left to right, but some levels will also feature vertical scrolling. There are three forced scrolling levels: two horizontal and one vertical.
Most levels are straightforward, with Musashi going from left to right and finding the exit. However, many levels feature hidden items in less obvious paths, and one entire part of a round is a maze divided into several smaller sections separated by doors; entering the wrong door leads you back to a previous section.
