Ninja Gaiden Black is the pinnacle of Action Games, and is my favorite game of all time.
Story:
Now the story isn't the main focus here, but it's shockingly not bad. Basically it's a revenge plot about Ryu trying to defeat a Samurai named Doku for burning down his village. It's nothing crazy, but it's surprisingly engaging for a game like this.
Game-Play:
The heart and soul of this game is it's game-play, and it's fantastic. You have what is arguably the best combat system in any game ever. The controls are incredibly responsive, and you feel in complete control of Ryu the entire game. On top of the fantastic combat are platforming and Adventure sections, which are surprising awesome as well. However, unlike some other games, it's not just straight level to level action. While it's split into chapters, in most of them you're opening more of the games world, so it's more like a "Legend of Zelda" then say "Dynasty Warriors". On top of the 10 hour long Story is the Mission Mode, which are basically extra combat sections. These can actually be quite challenging and are a lot of fun in there own right.
Graphics:
This is the best looking game on the original Xbox and of the previous Generation. The character models, environment, cutscenes, everything looks top notch.
Sound:
The music and sound effects are really good. The voice acting is passable with Ryu having the best voice in the game.
Overall:
Ninja Gaiden Black is my favorite game of all time. The game had me more interested than anything I've played before. If you haven't played some version of this game, you're doing yourself a disservice. Go out and play this game.