Beaware Will make you a ninja
This is a remake of the original game, Ninja Gaiden, with a bunch of new content added! That content alone is worth the 30$ you pay for this game. It was made by Team Ninja, and the pompous ass Itagaki.
You are Ryu Hayabusa, a ninja who vows revenge for the merciless slaughter of his village. The Dark Dragon Blade was stolen, and you want to get it back. You have to fight your way through hordes of enemies in the Vigoorian Army, and you will eventually find the Vigoorian Emperor, and settle the feud and get the Dark Dragon Blade back once and for all.
Gameplay - 10/10
Possibly the best aspect of Ninja Gaiden Black (Hereby referred to as NGB). This game uses an excellent fighting system with a complex library of attacks and weapons, items, etc. This is one of the few games made this generation, that actually requires skill to play.
Like states above, this game forces you to play the right way, or the enemies will slaughter you like a hog. The enemy AI is swift, deadly, and accurate. One false move and you're dead. I can guarentee that. The enemy AI is nothing to mess around with. They will break your guard, slit your throat, kick you, stab you, anything so that they will win. They also attack in formations, most noteable the Black Spider Clan ninjas, who are hard to place a hit on and attack with eachother in lethal patterns that you must recognize and counter over time.
You find several weapons throughout the game, but your main weapon is the Dragon Sword, an ancient sword carved out of the fangs of a black dragon. You can get nunchakus, flails, swords, and enormous swords that pretty much cuts death into the face of your enemy.
You must be prepared to have your ass handed to you on several occasions, and please try not to break your controller if you die too much.
Graphics - 10/10
The graphics in this game are amazing. Be it the blood from a fresh wound, or the craggy rock of a wall you're about to run up. There is virtually no drop in framerate, ever, unless you're surrounded by 837296 enemies and you kill them all at once, which is rare. There are pretty much no grainy graphics at all, and the cutscenes are Godlike. This really shows off the capabilities of the XBOX.
Sound - 9/10
The sound in this game is pretty good as well. It usually fits the mood so well that you barely notice it when you're battling hordes of enemies. The slicing sounds of the sword sound amazing, the gunfire from few enemies is realistic, and you get a nice solid clang when your weapon collides with a rock wall. The game also plays some nice hard rock music when you're fighting big enemies, which is great, and makes you kick even more ass if you're like me, who listens to music while he plays. The reason this gets a 9/10 is because some people purposely listen to the music while they play, and they complain about it getting monotonous.
Difficulty - 10/10
The difficulty of this game is designed for all players, and that's what makes it great. There are 5 difficulties, listed from easiest to hardest. Ninja Dog, Normal, Hard, Very Hard, and Master Ninja. Ninja Dog is by far the easiest. You deal more damage, take more hits before dying, and items are so cheap a homeless person could buy them. This all toughens up until Master Ninja. Only 1 of the game's testers could beat this mode, and I think thus far only 20 or so players have. This is the hardest of the hard. Not for the weak at heart.
Replayability - 9/10
The replayability in this game is pretty damned good. You can unlock costumes by beating different difficulties. Also, you start out with normal difficulty only available to you. You must beat each difficulty to unlock the rest. Also, if you have a completed game save from the first Ninja Gaiden, it unlocks hard. You can also unlock Very Hard from the start with a completed Hurricane Pack 2 save from the original NG.
Buy Or Rent - BUY
This game is amazing, hands down. It will take you a good long time to beat, and has amazing replayability. You wont be done with this game for a LONG time. Buy it as soon as you can, or I will personally hunt you down.