Developer: Team Ninja
Publisher: Tecmo
Genre: Action/Adventure
Players: 1
Memory: 8 block unit
ESRB Rating: M for Mature: Blood and Gore, Intense Violence

Introduction:

A remake to the original Ninja Gaiden title, Ninja Gaiden: Black takes Ryu through the same adventure as the previous game. The catch? The entire game has been redone. Everything from weapons, to attacks, to enemies has all been upgraded. If you thought Ninja Gaiden was hard, wait until you have a play at this brilliant game. Also, for less experienced players, a new game version has been included. Ninja Dog mode, though the enemies are not any easier, makes the game a bit light-hearted so that anyone can pick up the controller and learn. Accessible by dying three consecutive times on the first level, many new players will be dying three times right off. Even more important than the easier modes, the harder modes. Ninja Gaiden Black has 5 total difficulties: Ninja Dog, Normal, Hard, Very Hard, and Master Ninja. Only one member of Team Ninja was even able to beat Master Ninja, so if you get to it, congratulations. If you beat it, you are a true gamer.

The story:

You begin the game as young ninja, Ryu Hayabusa outside of a, seemingly, rival ninja fortress. As you make your way towards the inter-sanction of the ninja fortress, rival ninjas make their way out to attack you. Using the sheer power of the Dragon Sword, Ryu easily dispatches them. You continue on, accomplishing many minor tasks eventually leading to your one on one (or multiple on one if you’re playing on Hard or above) fight against a heavily muscled man. If you manage to defeat him, you’ll learn the rest about him.

You soon after learn that a clan of Samurai have taken control of your village, and have seized a destructive force, dubbed the Dark Dragon Blade. Ryu fights through the masses of samurai, eventually making it to the thief of this incredible force, there Ryu is damaged and left for dead.

Overhead, a falcon flies, unbeknownst to Ryu. When Ryu wakes up, he wants but one thing. Revenge.

Gameplay:

Although at first, this game may seem like your typical hack’n slash title, you will soon learn that you will not be able to beat this game without some sort of tactic and finesse. The enemies have excellent AI and will find ways to penetrate your strongest defenses.

As you go through the game, you will uncover many weapons ranging from the wide ranged but slow War Hammer to the short ranged but mercilessly fast Vigorian Flails. These weapons will assist you in this game like no other, especially when you find that the Dragon Sword just isn't cutting it. There are also many different types of Secondary weapons; one of them which were added to the game was the Smoke Bomb. Just drop one of these, roll away, and leave your enemies confused and dumbfounded for a couple seconds. Aside from this, there are secondary weapons which actually assist in battle ranging from the original shurikens you get at the beginning, all the way to the Explosive-Tipped Arrows you will obtain later in the game.

Another major highlight of this game is the ability to face not only a boss, but also numerous henchmen at the same time. If you played the original, you may re-call fighting Ghost Doku. Was he hard? Not really? Slightly challenging? Well, you may also remember the annoyance of the ghost fish. That’s right, those blood sucking fish that knock you down and don’t let you back up. In Ninja Gaiden Black, Ghost Doku fights alongside them. That’s right, it’s just that annoying.

Another excellent feature that was added to the game was the Mission Modes. Here players are challenged to fight for their lives, or their honor, against the odds to defeat difficult challenges such as taking out all of a type of enemy to Defeating a Boss in a time limit. Sound fun? Sound easy? No way. Because, besides these smaller missions, there are harder ones. Ever wondered what it would be like to face Alma and Doku at the same time? That’s an option.

Sound:

The smallest part of my review, but still a major part in it. The music is excellent. Some of the tracks will send chills up your spine when combined with the enemies you face. Some of the music will keep your heart pumping, keeping you in rhythm with the enemies around you. And some of the music may just make you feel like you accomplished something great.

The audio in this game, voice-wise, is excellent as well. The characters sound crisp and clear, you can understand them and get their tone of voice. When Ryu is pissed, you’ll know it. When he’s about to do a huge attack, you’ll know it. When you’re charging your ki attacks to smack into and enemy and hopefully kill him, aw hell, you better know it!

Graphics:

Possibly one of the best features in the game. The graphics are flawless. You may actually believe you are in the world of Ryu Hayabusa. The cut scenes are absolutely beautiful and create a feeling of excitement. The only real problem with the graphics that people seem to have, doesn’t really lie with the graphics, but with the games camera. It is difficult to control and can be rather off-putting when you are killed by an enemey you could not see. Other then this though, the graphics are fine.

The ending:

All in all, this is a great game. No wonder it was put into the Xbox original games and put straight at the top of the list. Many have played, many have died, and many have picked up the controller again to give it another round. I highly recommend this game to any who love the action/adventure genre.

Score: 98/100 (2 points off for ONLY the camera, everything else is perfect)

Great review!

I would buy this game if I had a xbox. I like action type games and playing a ninja is always fun!
One of the better games on the xbox!

i have to disagree with your rating (its more 70/100).

i also have the game and was quite disapointed with the gamplay and deffinetly te camera! id prefer playin tenchu:return from darkness over ninja gaiden.

Learn some grammar before you start. You know caps and full stops ain't hard to do now is it.

Good review bad game. I prefer roleplaying games and strategy games, also some shooter games like Halo 2. But yeah your review is good, i think it'd make some more people buy the game, blah blah blah. Hope to see more, especially about Halo 2.

I've played the first Ninja Gaiden and that was a good game. Mostly due to the difficulty. Most games are too easy to beat, this one was actually a bit of a challenge. I was surprised too because I'm more of a fan of RPG, strategy, and shooting games. I recommend you try playing this game a bit because you might be surprised to find that it's good.

Hmmmm... yes.... a very good review, makes me quite mad however, simply because i settled for the normal "Ninja Gaiden" because E.B games was having a sale and "Ninja Gaiden: Black" was not part of it, however i am still quite happy with my version and may even go so far as to buy Black as well