Six new Ninja Gaiden: Dragon Sword (DS) screens have been released, in much the same way we imagine blood spills out of sword cuts in the actual title.

Ninja Gaiden DS occurs straight after the original game on the Xbox, as Ryu rebuilds his peaceful home village. As you can see from the screenshots, it doesn't stay that way for long.

The game uses the 'Phantom Hourglass' method of moving the titular character around the screen, which is fast becoming common practice for any DS game worth its own weight in gold.

Die-hard Ninja Gaiden fans will be pleased to know that the portable version ties into the upcoming sequel on the 360, although exactly how is yet to be revealed.

In our exclusive interview with designer Tomonobu Itagaki, he said: "I am personally overseeing the development of everything from the story through to the gameplay elements for both games, so if you're observant you may be able to extrapolate some similarities between the two, yes, and not just in the area of story.