REVIEW: Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm 3

It's that time again, and you better BELIEVE IT! Naruto and his fellow Konoha ninja are back in a new adventure. The newest entry in the Naruto Shippuden series of games in the Naruto: Ultimate Ninja series of games has arrived on both PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360, thanks to our friends from CyberConnect2 and Namco Bandai, who are known for creating the Dragon Ball Z Budokai series, .hack// series, and more recently Capcom's Asura's Wrath.

Plot Details: 

If the players are fans of the manga and anime, then there is no doubt that they will not be surprised by the events covered in the game - especially if they have been keeping up to the series up to date.

The narrative starts with a flashback to the events prior to the beginning of the original Naruto anime, where the Nine-Tailed Fox attacks The Hidden Leaf, while the Fourth Hokage deals with a mysterious masked ninja. From here, the plot goes to cover the events of the Five Kage Summit meeting, Sasuke and Naruto's destined battle (again), up to the sparks of the Fourth Great Ninja War. The masked man that the Fourth Hokage dealt with in the past is at the center of all of these events and acts as the game's main protagonist. Some of these events are not entirely true to the anime nor the mangas but long-time Naruto fans will enjoy the ride from start to finish.

Gameplay: 

The game has 80 playable characters including several new, making it the largest cast in the Ultimate Ninja series. The fighting system has been modified, with the Awakening Mode, a state that gave each character enhanced abilities when their health was low, being possible to be used at anytime during a fight, for certain characters. As in the previous games, the player can choose two characters to assist the player character in battle. The assisting characters now can also aid the playable one through the use of thirteen different types of combos. Additionally, the assistants have health bars, losing health whenever they get hit, ultimately being unusable when their health bars deplete. Several arenas have become interactive, making the player automatically lose a fight if they leave a specific area, resulting in a loss via ring out.

The story mode is similar to the ones from Naruto: Ultimate Ninja Storm and Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm 2 rather than the previous game Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm Generations as it features boss battles that include quick time events and require the use of strategies to defeat the opponent. The plot starts off by following the ending of Ultimate Ninja Storm 2 but it first focuses on the Nine-Tailed Fox attack to Konohagakure (The Hidden Leaf) with the player first controlling the characters defending the village. From then the game also covers the events from the series' world war adapting most episodes aired on television by the time the game is released. It will also include the "Ultimate Decision Mode" which will give the option to change the result of the battles. These options come in two flavors - "Hero" and "Legend" choices, which

Additionally, the game has mob battles in which the player controls a single character that has to battle a series of enemies.

The Verdict: 

The game is split up into three core game modes:

Ultimate Adventure acts as the game's Story Mode, chronicling the events previously mentioned from the anime and manga. After clearing the main story, players are urged to explore the four nations of the Ninja Alliance, completing sidequests, strengthening relationships with other characters, and completing the Ninja Timeline that chronicles key events from Naruto (Boyhood era), Shippuden (First Half), and current. 

I personally had a blast with this mode and spent majority of the time I had the game rented out playing through all of the events and frantically looking for the means to unlock them all. I thought the boss fights were all really well-done, save for the final boss fight that's borderline frustrating if you are going for S ranks. CyberConnect2 really have refined their craft for these anime-based games, with their excellence from Asura's Wrath really shining through as this game weaves the story of Naruto's world. Be warned, if QTEs (Quick Time Events) aren't your thing, then you might be turned off from their excessive use across the board in this game's larger than life boss encounters. 

The first playthrough will definitely take most players roughly 15-20 hours, but sidequests and unlocking all of the events will take about 30+ hours of gameplay. Most of this gameplay time is spent sitting back watching cutscenes of events that most Naruto fans possibly have already seen the actual anime episodes of already.  Fortunately, these rather lengthy cutscenes can be skipped if you wish to do so. My only gripe with this mode is that the events prior to the current storyline that the game focuses on have NO cutscenes, just cards that let you read what happened in those events before completing a relevant battle to that event. 

Online Battle is where most fighting game players should feel at home the most. Battles are split between Ranked Matches and Player Matches, plus an Endless Battle-style lobby for fans of Street Fighter IV. 

I didn't play many battles online but the matches I did play had a strong and stable connection with no lag at all. For anyone who is looking to spend a lengthy amount of time playing against opponents online, that is a blessing to see that CyberConnect2 didn't skip a beat on this game's netcode. 

Free Battle is split into three additional modes: 

Versus Mode - This is what you would come to expect for your standard 2 Player local versus mode.  

Tournament Mode - Outside of Ultimate Adventure, this is players alternative to even more single player-oriented gameplay. There are several unlockable tournaments of various difficulties and features a multitude of opponents. 

Practice Mode - Nothing really special here, but die-hard fighting game purists will appreciate this means to hone their skills before taking their techniques online. 

Now, before I give my final opinion on this game, I must admit I have NOT played any Naruto-themed games since Naruto: Ultimate Ninja 3 and 4 back on PlayStation 2. That being said, I haven't seen much change here, but I'm sure there are plenty of die-hard fans out there that can point out the systematical differences and why this game is better than the previous iterations to date. One thing is certain though. Without a shadow of a doubt, if you are a Naruto fan in ANY way possible, you will love this game's presentation and the massive amount of playable characters on the roster. All of the Jinchuriki (wielders of the Tailed Beasts) are playable, as well as most of the Akatsuki members and even majority of core members of the Ninja Alliance. If you can't find at least one character to love in this game of 80 characters then something is clearly wrong.

For fighting game enthusiasts, there's some depth to be found here - from the insane amount of support/assist configurations to suit a variety of playstyles to the easy-to-grasp yet difficult to master fundamentals. If heavy execution-style combos aren't your strongest area in other fighters, such as Street Fighter or Mortal Kombat, that will not hinder you in the least here. Combos are very simplistic and basic for majority of the characters as the game's focus in combat is more on timing and positioning than fancy, high-execution combos. 

If you have been playing these games in every iteration to date, then it's a given you're going to buy and enjoy this. There's no reason for you to care what I have to say. Now for the casual Naruto fans or anime fans in general, I have to humbly suggest that they at least give this game a look. After the epic that was Asura's Wrath, it is truly a spectacle to see CyberConnect2 bring the world of anime to life in video games. I wish CyberConnect2 would present more anime-based games in this fashion, such as Bleach or One Piece (hell even Soul Eater...) - both two Shonen Jump properties that seem to get next to no love here in North America when it comes to video games, despite their strong followings. I'm giving this a solid 8 out of 10. 

***Bonus Content:***

Much like my Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance review, I'm going to provide a bit of gameplay of myself playing the game. I don't consider myself a pro or anything at this game. This footage is just me merely enjoying the game: 

This one features fan-favorite Rock Lee and Lady Tsunade. (Sighs) I know I blew it on that last round trying to do her Awakening, but oh well...

I got revenge for my fallen Tsunade in the previous video. For those wondering, yes, Darui is my main. I took a moment to pause at the character select screen for my fellow Naruto fans can see exactly how many characters are playable. As you can see, I'm still missing about 6-7 characters. Regardless, that's a MASSIVE playable roster. That's why I didn't record any matches with teams/supports (think MvC-style assists) as I have exactly NO idea how all of those function with the in-game relationships and pairings.

One thing I want to comment on that I'm doing to execute longer combos in these videos. When you see a yellow spark when I'm attacking that's a Chakra Dash Cancel (it immediately cancels my action and allows me to reset that combo while maintaining my position in front of my opponent). As long as I have meter, I can continuously keep extending my combos. It's also an excellent means to catch your opponent when they substitute out of your offense as well as you instantly turn around.