The Good

The graphics and game play are awesome! There were many times that I lost focus on what I was supposed to be doing next due to simply exploring the game environment. The water effects are amazing, the video cut scenes are jaw dropping, and the in-game graphics are beautiful. The controls are easy to learn, but it will take a lot of practice if you truly want to master them. The are different sets of moves for each weapon, the weapons are upgradeable, and you can unlock even more moves as you play through the game. It\'s kind of like playing a fighting game as an adventure game. The variety of commands available to your character, such as wall running, wall jumping, running on water, etc., makes the platform puzzles challenging yet fun. Many of the moves are similar to Prince of Persia, but I\'d say that Ninja Gaiden does a better job. As for replay value, the game is very difficult on Normal mode, and there is Hard and Very Hard modes after completing Normal. There are also quite a few items to collect including golden scarabs, new weapons, and new moves,beating the game will unlock a new costume and sword, and can also unlock the original three Ninja Gaiden games by performing various tasks. Also, coming in May will be a tournament in which the content will be streamed directly through Xbox Live to the Xbox. I could be mistaken, however based upon my understanding; the tournament will be single player levels that you play through to get the best possible score. Your score will most likely then be compared with other player\'s scores around the world.

The Bad

One very minor complaint I had was the camera. It isn\'t too bad and it\'s better than in most 3rd person adventure games, but it still gets a little annoying in confined areas. As I said though, it is a very minor complaint. The camera really isn\'t too bad and it can be centered behind your character by simply pressing the right trigger button. One thing that I should also point out is that this game is bloody. VERYBLOODY! In defeating the enemies, they disappear in a bloody mess. Also, very often in defeating many of the opponents, you will see their heads flying off. Fortunately the blood doesn\'t hang around; otherwise the levels would quickly be bathed in red. The reason I decided to include this here rather than the section below is because consumers are clearly warned of the Violence and Blood & Gore content on the back of the case with the M rating.

The Ugly

This is the part where the \'From a Christian Perspective\' comes in. Ninja games tend to go hand in hand with Eastern religions. Ninja Gaiden is not an exception. Throughout the story, you will find many references to demons and gods and you will find a lot of symbols that tie in with paganistic beliefs. Another problem that needs to be noted which was not mentioned on the back of the box in the \'M\' rating is the fact that Team Ninja remained faithful in their tradition of having one or more female characters of unrealistic proportions wearing as little clothing as possible.

In Summation

The beautiful graphics and exciting game play makes Ninja Gaiden a very addictive game. However, due to the paganistic beliefs, scantily clad characters, and bloody graphics, I would recommend that Christians run away from the ninja.