Taru Taro Legends

As the game starts, its young hero Taro encounters a white fox, who’s blindfolded and, thanks to some unknown curse, chained to an empty rice wine barrel. Determined to find his missing friends, Taro agrees to carry the barrel for the fox, and sets off on his side-scrolling adventure.

Wireframe: "Ninja Gaiden, Shinobi, Metal Slug, and Sonic the Hedgehog are all cited as influences"