Gamers demand that Tenchu: Stealth Assassins be brought back to life
Gamers have been listing their picks for much-needed gaming revivals, with some demanding the return of the stealth series Tenchu: Stealth Assassins.
Released in 1998 and developed by Acquire, Tenchu: Stealth Assassins was a stealth game for the PlayStation 1, and saw players attempt to move through 11 levels with little to no disturbances at all. It became a very successful series, leading to nine games in total being made, though the majority of new releases were only available in Japan.
The last game to date, Tenchu: Shadow Assassins, was released in 2008, with the series lying dormant since then.
Interestingly, FromSoftware, developers behind the beloved soul-like games Dark Souls, Bloodborne, and Elden Ring, originally set out to develop a sequel to Tenchu. Sometime during development though, the team reportedly changed direction and decided to turn the game into a brand new IP instead, which led to the highly-successful Sekiro: Shadow’s Die Twice.
Fans of the series haven’t given up hope though, as some are hoping for a revival, especially following Xbox’s acquisition of Activision, who published several Tenchu games. Reddit user Nellie shared a thread titled “My pick for an IP revival” leading to several comments expressing interest in bringing the series back.
“I forgot this was Activision. Heck yeah, this would be awesome.”
“Take my money!”
“Crazy i was just listening to the soundtrack on youtube… what a legend of a game. This and bushido blade were my favs.”
That being said, many aren’t optimistic it’ll happen, especially since Sekiro already fills the void for a stealth-oriented action game.
“Sekiro. Best Tenchu game I ever played.”
“I’d love it! But Sekiro and Nioh 2 can be played like they’re Tenchu games. At least we have alternatives until then.”
“Unfortunately we won’t be seeing any IP revivals. ABK will likely have Bethesda-like autonomy… but even Obsidian having more direct oversight from Microsoft hasn’t brought IP like Alpha Protocol back.”
While the future of the Tenchu series remains bleak, there’s still a slight chance it could return. Xbox are in desperate need of additional IPs to turn into console exclusives, and with the right developer, a Tenchu remake or revival could be a good choice.
