So I was lucky and fast enough to get my hands on the Ninja Gaiden II demo that was available for a short time on the Japanese Xbox Live Marketplace and after have played it for a couple of days I'm now ready to give you my impressions.

The Combat
The main strong point of previous installments and this game seems to be no different especially since it seems to be better than ever as it feels a lot faster and a lot more brutal than ever before. And thanks to the new obliberation techniques you can now finish your foe off almost instantly by slicing off a couple of limbs and it's very impressive to look at too.

The Camera
Feels pretty much the same as before meaning it certainly isn't perfect but it's not horrible either, but if you didn't like it before you won't like it now either.

The Weapons
You will get to try out 4 weapons in the demo. You start out with the trusty ol' Dragon Sword but also the Falcon's Talons which are Wolverine like claws you wield on both hands and feet and the Eclipse Scythe which is like a mix between the Warhammer and the Dabilarho from the last game but only faster and a lot more brutal to fit with the improved combat, and later in the demo you'll also find the Lunar Staff. All the weapons are incredibly fun to use and feel very balanced and there are also plently more combos you can pull off now than ever before.

The Graphics
It certainly doesn't push the 360 to it's limits like the original did and it's looks very much like Sigma for the Playstation 3...at first glance. When you actually start playing you'll notice a few enhancements most notiecable are the effects whenever you cut off an enemy limb, do a charged up ultimate attack or ninpo ( ninja magic ). The edges are smoother, the weapons and water surfaces look a lot more detailed and this game also features some of the best animations in the business. The draw distance seems to have been improved as well.
I have barely experienced any framerate issues and loading issues like mentioned in some reviews, only part where it slows down are when there is a lot of enemies or body parts on screen and the mid-game loading only appears when you backtrack trough the level and that loading takes about 1-3 seconds. What you will notice though if you choose to backtrack is that all the bodies you have left are still there lying on the ground which is very impressive.
What seems as a step backwards though compared to the original and Sigma is the artistic design, it seems unfortunately that they have focused to make everything look as bad-ass as possible rather than beautiful and eye pleasing.
The lighting is also a step backwards compared to Sigma on the PS3. Here it looks kinda flat while in Sigma the lightning model made everything look a bit more dynamic and realistic, at least when it didn't overdose on bloom effects.

The Difficulty
The demo can only be played on the easy setting dubbed Path of the Acolyte and the demo section certainly felt easier than a lot of of the levels in previous installments. Then again your weapons are all upgraded to level 3 but you seem to take a lot less damage from enemy attacks. Your charged up ultimate attacks can no longer be interrupted by weaker enemy attacks and the rebounding health meter along with more frequent save points that fully replenish your health definitely helps to ease some frustration off as well.

To sum it all up I think fans of the series will definitely love this game and others who also looking for an challenging action game to play during the summer should give this game a go as well. Others should probably stay away unless you think you're up for the challenge that awaits.