Black Ninja Pirates coming to Xbox Live Originals

Despite this week’s rumours claiming that Xbox classics Conker: Live and Reloaded and Jade Empire are being positioned for inclusion to Microsoft’s burgeoning Xbox Originals service, a new trio of incoming titles have been confirmed - and will likely deflect attention from the rumoured arrivals. Ninja Gaiden Black, Sid Meier's Pirates, and Black coming to Xbox Originals. Credit: Tecmo.

Ninja Gaiden Black, Sid Meier's Pirates, and Black coming to Xbox Originals. Credit: Tecmo.Specifically, gamers who enjoy buckling their swash will be able to set sail on a mission of romance and skulduggery in Sid Meier’s Pirates!, while the unveiling of Tecmo’s sword-slashing adventure Ninja Gaiden Black (recently re-released on the PlayStation 3 as Ninja Gaiden Sigma) will sate the bloodlust of hack-and-slash fans.The pick of the bunch however -- at least for this writer -- is the inclusion of EA and Criterion’s criminally underappreciated first-person shooter Black, which slipped beneath the quality radar in 2005 when its powers of destruction and relentless action should have seen it garnered with considerably more acclaim and retail success.

The three new additions to the Xbox Originals service are pencilled in for arrival on February 11 and are expected to cost interested gamers around 1200 Microsoft Points each.Sure, picking up the games through eBay might get you a second hand copy for the same price -- or perhaps cheaper -- but if your HDD is big enough (i.e., more than the basic 20GB) then considering a convenient download is certainly a temptation that shouldn’t be swiftly quashed before evaluating the appeal of pirate raiding, savage ninja killing, and explosions Michael Bay would be proud of.Other games on the Originals service include Halo, Psychonauts, Fable, Fusion Frenzy, and Indigo Prophecy.