Ninja Gaiden Black
Perhaps you were one of the fortunate souls who had the opportunity to play this great game when it was first released, but found that it was just TOO hard for you. Well, let me tell you, you’re not alone. That’s why Team Ninja decided to take some humiliating mercy on us and include the Ninja Dog difficulty setting. After the game ribs you a bit and Ayane makes you wear a pretty purple ribbon that makes Ryu stronger, you’ll notice that the game is a little easier. Make no mistake though, even on this lesser setting the game is still no walk in the park.
Gameplay:
A new difficulty aside, Ninja Gaiden Black offers a few nice new touches to the original concept that may make it worth double dipping if you were a diehard fan. First of all there is a new Mission Mode that pops up once you’ve beaten the game. For those of you that already have save data from the original version of the game, or even the Hurricane Pack, then this option should be available to you from the start. This new mode plays out you’re in a location and have wave after wave of enemy tossed your way. It’s a lot of fun, challenging, and something that anyone who loves Ninja Gaiden will want to sink their teeth into.
This new mode expands upon the previous Hurricane Pack stuff and bumps the stage count up to fifty. Be warned though, if you thought the single player experience was difficult, you have to be a downright master in order to complete the Mission Modes. These can get so difficult at times that your blood pressure will rise, your controller will break, and you may just have to turn it off and walk away. The satisfaction of completing a mission is great though, and you’ll feel like you can truly take on the world afterwards.
So, what about the game itself? What has changed? Well, aside from the addition of Ninja Dog, not an awful lot. The biggest (and best) alteration that Black sees is the adjustment of the camera from stationed and sometimes painfully unfriendly, to being able to control it to some degree. It may not be completely without flaw, but the camera system is certainly much more manageable this time around compared to the original.
The same great gameplay is still present in Black, so if you have played the regular version of the game you will feel right at home. If by chance you haven’t (shame on you), get ready to run along walls, use a plethora of weaponry, block and dodge with the best of them, and use some ninja magic. The same great boss fights are here, the same enemies return, and the style is just as fresh as ever. This game remains, without a doubt, the pinnacle of action on the Xbox, or just about any other console on the market.
Black also keeps track of your Karma as well and gives you the ability to load it up to Xbox Live to see how you rank. As you progress through the game, you’ll notice that it keeps track of your score, but keep in mind that it can be very humbling once you realize that your Karma sucks compared to some of the others.
If you can’t tell, a lot of what’s been added to this version has come from Hurricane Packs. This is both a good thing and a bad thing, but even if you have beaten the original and acquired all of the extra content, there’re still some more subtle aspects to this game waiting for you. Minor things like some items being added that were previously unavailable outside of the Hurricane Pack, the new difficulty, camera adjustments, and Mission Mode all pull together with the great gameplay to craft a fresh experience that remains familiar, yet new-ish. Ninja Gaiden is still easily, one of the best Tecmo games to date and is a must own for anyone who has an Xbox.
Graphics:
You can’t really improve upon perfection, though you can add to it. The original Ninja Gaiden offered some of the most breathtaking cinematic and in game visuals to grace a console game, ever. Black is no exception, and while things haven’t really been “improved upon”, there are a couple of subtly changes afoot. If you played the original, then you will recognize new cut scenes toss into the mix. These flesh out some portions beyond where they were originally left off, and help lengthen the experience. I did notice a couple of points of slowdown, but they were very difficult to catch and even rarer in occurrence.
Audio:
An area where Black doesn’t really add to, or improve upon, is the sound department. The music for the game is easily forgettable with typical heavy metal tunes that befit the genre. The voice acting is laughable at times, though because the plot is pretty cheesy, it’s acceptable. This mostly seems due to some loose translations, and not with the actual acting itself. The sound effects are effective, yet feel as though they were pulled from other action titles.
Conclusion:
Whether you have played the original Ninja Gaiden or not, Black is an upgrade that is definitely worth your time. There’s enough subtle new content to make it even more enjoyable than the first time around, and for $30 the amount of quality you get with the game is a steal. The new difficulty makes the game much more manageable for weekend warriors who can’t devote countless hours to improve their skill. The new cut scenes add some nice background and flesh out the game even more, and the Hurricane Pack additions add plenty of depth to the gameplay. Videogame Talk Collector’s Series