| Developer: | Act Japan |
| Publisher: | Natsume Inc. |
| Designer: | Tarō Sasahara |
| Producer: | Naoki Eriguchi Hiro Maekawa |
| Artist: | Reiko Hirota Kōichi Mashimo Masanori Kitsuta |
| Composer: | Kiyoshi Kusatsu Yoshio Watanabe |
| Programmer: | Kunihiro Takahashi Takanori Kuwana |
| Genre: | Platform, stealth |
| Modes: | Single-player |
| Platforms: | Game Boy Color |
Return of the Ninja is a platform game with stealth elements developed by Act Japan and published by Natsume Inc. for the Game Boy Color in 2001 as a spiritual successor to 1990's Shadow of the Ninja.
The player takes role of a ninja (either the male Tsukikage and or the female Saiyuri), using the D-pad to move and the buttons to jump and attack. Various special items called Shinobi Tools need be collected to master the five arts of ninjutsu (Earth, Wind, Fire, Water, and Heaven) and proceed through the game. Guards may alert the others and can be avoided. The player's rank at the end of each stage is determined by how fast the level was completed and how many times the protagonist has been spotted by human enemies, and cards can be awarded to the player.[1] [2]
Return of the Ninja received "average" reviews according to the review aggregation website GameRankings. Retro Gamer highlighted it as one of the most memorable games about Japanese warriors.[3] Nintendo Power gave it an average review nearly four months before the game was released.