Naruto Ultimate Ninja Storm - Gen Discussion & Info

http://www.ps3fanboy.com/2008/07/18/ps3-fanboy-hands-on-naruto-ultimate-ninja-storm/
Namco Bandai's upcoming Naruto: Ultimate Ninja Storm is such a surprising treat. The PS3 exclusive has earned a lot of attention due to its fantastic graphics, but Ninja Storm features far more than just a pretty face. We had a chance to play a more expansive build at Namco Bandai's E3 booth, where we took a sneak peak at the game's elusive single player mode and got some hands-on time with the multiplayer.

Naruto's adventure begins just like it does in the manga. A cool treat for fans will be the inclusion of both Japanese and English audio for the story. From the looks of things, all the dialogue in the game may be spoken. While the lip-syncing was very off, we're hoping it can be fixed before Naruto's upcoming holiday release. The adventure will have Naruto exploring the Hidden Leaf village, much like in the Xbox 360 Naruto game. He'll have to talk to various villagers to progress the story, unlock missions and goals. Surprisingly, the first PS3 Naruto game covers a lot of territory: we were told that the game's story will go all the way up to the Sasuke Retrieval arc.

The build we got to play with had other characters, such as Sasuke and Gaara. However, we weren't allowed to take a glimpse at the entire roster. Undoubtedly, all the series favorites will be available. We played against a Namco PR representative in a battle: we played as Sasuke, he played as Naruto. Just like in the public demo, the graphics look rather lush. The stylized explosions in particular look rather nice. Our build had some unfortunate aliasing problems, which is blamed by this build's early state (the public demo looks much more polished). The delay after being knocked back is still a bit too significant -- hopefully, the Naruto team will be able to change that before the game's release.

One new thing we were able to do in this E3 build was enter Sasuke's second state. After charging enough chakra, we were able to transform into a much deadlier Sasuke -- we were shooting fireballs, and moved with lightning-fast speed. It wasn't long before the PR rep fell, defeated.

Naruto Ultimate Ninja Storm is a lot of fun, and with its beautiful graphics and extensive single player story, we're sure it'll appeal to both Naruto fans and non-fans alike. With just a few tweaks, we can see it becoming a great (offline) multiplayer addition to any PS3 collection.
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Hmm, I barely know what type of game this is, but regardless, I'll buy.
 
has anyone knocked the opponent against the mountain wall on the demo level and started fighting on the side of the wall... that was tight work.
 
[quote name='thelonepig']Anyone care to explain the controls a bit? I can't seem to get the hang of it as of yet...[/QUOTE]Use the left analog stuck to move Naruto, and be sure to read the controls before hand. Mostly press circle to attack. Press L1 and R1 to summon a teammate to do an attack.
 
[quote name='The Mana Knight']Use the left analog stuck to move Naruto, and be sure to read the controls before hand. Mostly press circle to attack. Press L1 and R1 to summon a teammate to do an attack.[/quote]

I got that part. I think I was mostly saying "Help, I'm terrible with the controls!"

I've been playing the demo a bit more and have found that it takes some getting used to. Thanks for the help!
 
At first, the only problem I had with the game concerning controls was executing special moves (chakra kunai/dash/special). I thought you had to simultaneously press the buttons (ex. triangle+triangle+circle). But after awhile, I finally figured you had to press them in accordance >.
 
I d/l the demo yesterday and was actually underwhelmed by the graphics. Maybe it's just me, but I guess I was expecting 3d realism from (originally) a 2d platform. Oh well.

As for the fighting, I think it's pretty easy to learn and get used to. I just wish that there were different ultimate jutsus to choose from. For example, what if I don't want to do Raikiri when I'm Kakashi? I also wish there were different jutsus besides kage bunshin for naruto.
 
I had my friend over the other day, and we played it for about 45 minutes, just switching off the controller between us. We had great fun, and I imagine it'll be even more fun for my step-brothers.

I really wish there was more variety in the movesets though. More movesets better not be the DLC though. >: (
 
The graphics are really good. And I had a lot of fun playing it (And I hate anime). There is a slim chance I may pick it up... scary. I hate naruto.
 
The graphics look awesome in motion but don't look as great as the screens when they're standing around. I can say I certainly had fun but I sure as hell won't be paying anything more than 1/3 the price. I would rather wait for a Ninja Storm 10 with characters that are actually up-to-date.
 
[quote name='Hostile'] I would rather wait for a Ninja Storm 10 with characters that are actually up-to-date.[/quote]

See you in 2015.
 
I've been watching Naruto online. Man that show has a lot of filler and draws things out way too much.

But, I still like the characters. Speaking of which, how many characters will be in this game?

The basic fighting is simplistic, just hit O, but I think there's variations in attacks depending on which direction you press along with distance. It's a bit like powerstone. A lot of the fun is dodging, using the environment and other skills/items.
 
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Is there a full character list posted somewhere? I assume the game goes up to the end of Naruto Part 1(based on Naruto's moves), manga-wise and skips all the anime filler.

Given how much I play the demo, I'm going to get this at some point. I just wish I knew how soon UNS2 is coming and if its just going to do the Part 2/Shippūden characters or something else.
 
All I know is, Sakura pre-Shippuden = kinda annoying but endearing. Post-shippuden Sakura = pure kick-ass hotness. Not to mention Naruto is so much more bearable now that he's grown up.

I'd definitely like to see a Shippuden version.

I think this game will fill the fighter niche on my shelf for a while.
 
From the screens and the wiki:

Naruto
Sakura
Sasuke
Kakashi
Jiraiya
Neji
Rock Lee
Ten Ten
Gai
Chouji
Ino
Shikamaru
Hinata
Kiba
Shino
Gaara
Temari
Kisame
Orochimaru
Third Hokage
 
hmm...how do you have Kisame but not Itachi? Haven't there been a lot more characters in previous Naruto games already? Just bust them all out...

Guess they gotta save some for ninja storm 2 lol
 
[quote name='panasonic']is there a character list? i want that guy who fought with water in the start of the series :)[/quote]

Zabuza? I doubt he'll be fighting in this one.
 
played more again tonight. If you guys want to see some sweet animation, do an ultimate jutsu when in tailed fox mode with naruto. You'll see the most amazing rasengan in the world.
 
Game looks hot! Naruto's creator even got some action with the game

Saiyan Island: Did Namco Bandai have a chance to work with Naruto creator Masashi Kishimoto and if so how much was he involved with the game creation?

Hiroshi Matsuyama: Of course, we have to work very closely with Mr. Kishimoto and his team to ensure that our content is up to his standards. We showed him the game several times during the development process to get his feedback and approval.
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http://www.saiyanisland.com/naruto/?n=games/UltimateNinjaStormInterview
 
http://ps3.ign.com/articles/901/901468p1.html
Not being much a fan of Naruto – or fighting games, for that matter – Naruto: Ultimate Ninja Storm was pretty far down on the list of potential GC excitements. Now we've seen an extended portion of the game in action though, we're well and truly on the other side of the fence.

You see, while we've already delved deep into Ninja Storm's basic fighting mechanics, it turns out it's not the simple fighter we were all expecting. Developer CyberConnect2 has apparently run with the basic battling conceit and turned it into a game with a surprisingly broad appeal. Sure, there's plenty to enjoy from a fan perspective and Ninja Storm features 25 playable characters from the Naruto universe, alongside a currently undisclosed number of assist fighters who'll join you in battle for some much needed respite against an enemy at the touch of a button.

However, it's the story mode mission structure CyberConnect2 has put in place that really has us intrigued by Ninja Storm. You see, the game features a large open world – dubbed the Hidden Village – which acts as a central hub between battles. Here, you can chat to townsfolk to unlock new objectives or simply explore in a bid to collect handy items for use in battle or bump up your abilities. What's particularly striking though is the amount of effort CyberConnect2 has put into this side of the game, with it practically being a platformer in its own right.


Outside of arena battles, Naruto has a massive array of moves to help him traverse and interact in the Hidden Village. Alongside your shuriken – which can be used to target objects in the game world, either individually or en masse with a hail of shuriken at once – Naruto can wall jump between buildings to access roof tops, swing from clothes lines high above the street and carry objects, which proves useful in solving the handful of simple switch based puzzles we saw around town. There's even a Naruto Cannon mechanic that enables our hero to propel himself through the air toward distant locations. As you level up through continued play, the cannon's reach increases, offering access to previously unreachable areas of the game world.

If that wasn't enough, it's even possible to collect ingredients around town to drop off at the ramen store. Here, the local chef will whip up a dish that grants Naruto with even more spectacular moves to use during battle. We suspect there's even more to see too, which goes some considerable way to alleviating early fears that the accessible combat set-up would prove too shallow to offer a lasting game experience.

In terms of mission structure too, Ninja Storm looks intriguing. As you progress through story mode you'll gradually unlock multi-episode mission arcs. These are based on the first five story arcs from the original anime and include the 'Genin Training Arc', 'Chunin Exam Arc' and 'Chasing Sasuke Arc', from what we had time to scrawl down during publisher Atari's demonstration of the game. Each arc consists of multiple missions, all ranked at different difficulty levels, to maintain the challenge throughout the game. From what we could tell, winning criteria range from fighting specific characters to defeating opponents using a certain number of lives. There's seems to be a little more variety than that though, with CyberConnect2 demonstrating a particularly spectacular boss battle to close the presentation.

Throughout story mode, you'll come across some superbly animated and directed cut-scenes, all created in-game using Ninja Storm's stunning cell-shaded graphics engine. In this instance, Naruto encounters Gaara in the forest – a meeting which ends with the summoning of Syukaka, a preposterously over-sized enemy. Towering above you, Syukaka alternates between ground-pounding and air bullet attacks. In a sequence weirdly reminiscent of Shadow of Colossus, thanks largely to the encounters grand scale, it's up to you to fell the beast using your standard fighting move set, either slowly grinding down its health meter by targeting anything remotely limb-like or knocking off big chunks of HP by working your way up toward Syukaka's head and pounding the life out of Gaara as he perches above. It's thrilling to watch and looks genuinely spectacular.


However, that's nothing compared to CyberConnect2's next trick. Clearly keen to incorporate some of Naruto's more kaleidoscopic set-pieces into Ninja Storm, certain sequences of the game feature God of War-like quick-time events. In this case, once Syukaka's health has been depleted by half, you're tasked with following the onscreen buttons prompts in order to clamber up your opponent and unleash a mass of expertly orchestrated, exhilarating pyrotechnics. It's certainly not what we were expecting and far removed from the generic fighter we were anticipating before the demonstration.

Elsewhere, CyberConnect2 dropped a few more hints about the game, showing off Ultimate Storm's Awaken mode. During battle, all playable characters undergo radical transformations if they meet certain specific criteria. Succeed and you'll gain entirely new animations and move sets, alongside a devastating finishing blow. For the demonstration, we witnessed Kimimaro wrench razor sharp rock spikes from the earth before growing tendrils and skewering Naruto below. Effectively, Awaken mode doubles the number of playable characters at your disposal and adds an extra layer of depth to proceedings.

Rounding off our demo, CyberConnect2 noted that Ultimate Storm features both original Japanese voice acting and the US dub, meaning fans of the series can enjoy the game whichever way they choose. Finally, although far from being actual confirmation of the fact, a question concerning downloadable characters and features in the future elicited nervous laughter and an intriguing "Wait and see". Frankly, despite our preconceptions, we came away from Ninja Storm impressed and eager to see more. Luckily though, the game's scheduled for release this November in Europe, even before Japanese punters get there mitts on it – that wait shouldn't be so unbearable, after all.
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That was a lengthy preview IGN had, talks about story mode a little. I'm quite excited for this. :D
 
Meh, not sure I really want to order from Gamestop for such a shitty DLC pack. Depends how much the DLC ends up costing I guess, but I think I could get enough value from the game itself. :X
 
im glad you can use japanese voices in it and the game seems like it will be fun i just with the moves were deeper of course maybe they will beef things up in the final version.
 
http://blog.us.playstation.com/2008/10/28/naruto-ultimate-ninja-storm-hits-next-week-only-on-ps3/
Hello, PlayStation.Blog readers, I’m Hiroshi Matsuyama from CyberConnect2, the developer of NARUTO: Ultimate Ninja STORM. I’m very excited to have this opportunity to speak with you all about the game. Since this is my first post, I’ll cover the basics today.

I’m sure some of you that have seen our trailers for the game have thought “I bet this is just a pre-rendered movie” – but it’s not! Everything from all of our trailers is 100% real-time footage from the game running on PLAYSTATION 3 hardware that you will all be able to experience when the game is released next week.

Naruto: Ultimate Ninja Storm features two main game modes for players to enjoy – “Free Battle Mode” and “Ultimate Mission Mode.” In Free Battle Mode, you can play as one of 25 characters from the animated series. The battles aren’t strictly one-on-one either - you can bring two support characters into every battle, who will help you out in short bursts. This is the same three person team structure as the TV series, but now you can create your own teams with all sorts of original combinations. We’ve put a lot of effort into our battles to make sure they match the look and feel of the animated series. You can perform all sorts of amazing moves with your favorite characters and even fight on walls and run over bodies of water.

Ultimate Mission Mode lets you take on 101 missions across Naruto’s Hidden Leaf Village, which acts as a hub for the game. Here, you can acquire new Jutsu moves, purchase items, and even chow down on a bowl of noodles at the Ichiraku Ramen shop! The game’s storyline covers episodes 1-135 of the Naruto animated series, so it’s incredibly comprehensive. In addition to the head-to-head battles, you’ll encounter huge boss battles, races through the forest and tree-climbing battles in this mode.

At the strong request of our fans in North America, the game offers full voicing in both English and Japanese with all the original actors from the animated series. We’re also going to be releasing downloadable content for the game well into next year. It will mostly focus on new support characters and missions and best of all, it will all be FREE!

These are just the basics of the game, but if you want to check it out for yourself, we have a playable demo that you can download from PSN right now. In my next post, I’m going to give you an exclusive look at how we made the game, so check back here soon!
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Awesome news and I'm really excited. :D
 
Thanks for the info Mana Knight. I pestered GameCrazy yesterday, and all the stores I called only had the non-LE version up for pre-order with no return policy. Ruined my "buy LE and DLC code 1 at Gamestop, return LE sans DLC code 1, buy LE and DLC code 2 at GameCrazy" plan. I thought I was SOL with the Second Hokage.
 
IGN gave the game an 8.4:
http://ps3.ign.com/articles/926/926220p1.html

Also, some bonus for ordering at GameStop
Pre-Order Bonuses for Ultimate Ninja Storm!
Can you believe it?! It's mid-October which means NARUTO: Ultimate Ninja Storm is just a mere few weeks away from release!

Not only is the release so close that you can almost feel the game in your hands but NAMCO BANDAI Games made an announcement today about a pre-order bonus for exclusive gameplay!

Gamers that pre-order the game at GameStop or EB Games stores or www.gamestop.com will receive a download card giving them access to The First Hokage support character and a new single-player mission, while those that pre-order at GameCrazy stores will receive download access to The Second Hokage support character and a different single-player mission. This bonus will be available for pre-orderers until the ship date of November 4th.

How neat is that? I personally think that's a pretty fun bonus =D
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http://www.hokagesroom.com/blog/vie...-bonuses-for-ultimate-ninja-storm/2008/10/15/

I also gave the OP an overhaul.
 
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Circle's still overpowered... ;_;

I hate that button. Even when I outperform my friend for the entire match, all he has to do is get lucky once with jamming on the circle button and he'll win.
 
[quote name='snakelda']Did you not expect it?Its more than likely to become a standard process.[/QUOTE]Pretty much. I'm not surprised at all. I still have over 130GB left on my HDD.
 
I am really excited for this game, For the first time I will admit I hope this game gets enough support so they can make a sequel. With me waiting every friday for the translated manga this should help the wait seem shorter every week.

By the way Rock Lee FTW. lol
 
[quote name='DarkKenpachi']I am really excited for this game, For the first time I will admit I hope this game gets enough support so they can make a sequel. With me waiting every friday for the translated manga this should help the wait seem shorter every week.

By the way Rock Lee FTW. lol[/quote]

Don't worry about a sequel. It's Naruto. What Naruto game doesn't get sequels?
 
Did anyone preorder the LE version of the game at gamestop.com? I preordered it almost a month ago and now it says it's backordered :(.

Do backorder games come back in stock? Not sure what to do, I wanted the preorder bonus from gamestop, but now I feel like kicking myself for not getting it at amazon when they had it for $60 if I decide to cancel my order.
 
[quote name='Rig']Don't worry about a sequel. It's Naruto. What Naruto game doesn't get sequels?[/quote]
This is the fourth game in this series, so I'm sure nobody expects another sequel.
 
All right, I'm going to say it (don't hit me!): Does anyone have an extra Storm Pack 2 code? Not having it and calling the Shizune pack on PSN Storm Pack 3 is like rubbing it in. And yes, I made a $5 offer in the trade forum!
 
let me start by saying, I have a hateful passion for anime based videogames
but I am very surprised how this turned out, its actually pretty fun
and not really that complex, maybe i'll pick it up later when it drops in price
 
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