The only unfortunate part about this is that there never really feels like there’s a fail state. You’ll always end up in some form of the 3D battling for each level, whether that’s a boss fight, a one on one or tag team brawl, or in an instance where you’re mowing down enemy minions. You’ll go from the birth of the Hidden Leaf village, to the 4th Great Ninja War, on to the reuniting of Team 7, to the final showdown between Kaguya and the Ninja heroes. There are multiple chapters to explore here, in a branching story path that will have you controlling many different characters from the Naruto universe. A beautiful art-style is tied together with impressive stills, cutscenes, and voice over work that really form one of the most cohesive single player experiences for the series. While it’s main goal is to shepherd you from each gameplay encounter to the next, it’s as enjoyable as a watching some of the very best in Anime. The story mode of Naruto Ultimate Ninja Storm 4 is the crown jewel of this release. Fire Effect, on the other hand, can burn opponents over time, setting their clothes on fire until they can use the environment to extinguish the flames.
Armor Break can happen due to an overwhelming attack on a player, and when this occurs the player whose armor has been broken will take more damage. While it does seem a little superficial at first glance, Naruto does have some additional added depth in the Armor Break and Fire Effect aspects of the combat. Depending on the terrain, Earth Attacks, Lightning Attacks, and Water Attacks will either be stronger or weaker… so there’s that to keep track of as well. Characters can also use the battlefield to their advantage. Add that to the ability to switch between leader characters in 2v2 and 3v3 battles, and things can get real hectic, real quick.
Dynamic Environments is one thing that changes things up for the series, which has some levels featuring destructible elements. This has kind of been a problem in these games, and CyberConnect hasn’t made it much easier with some of the new additions for UNS4, but the core fighting of the game is still alot of fun to play and probably the most dynamic that it’s been in the series. While I’ve always thought that the Naruto games were fun to play, they’ve never had the balance or strategy of the Street Fighters or MKs of the fighting game genre. Beautiful and adherent to the source material as it may be, this is a fighting game, however.
There have been very few titles that have captured the essence of Manga source material the way that the Naruto Shippuden games have and as a result fans of the Naruto Manga have been incredibly pleased with the series of games.
The larger than life boss battles, free flowing combat, and visually stunning special moves for the 100+ characters of the game are a sight to behold. A combination of a beautiful art-style and the ability of new consoles to sharpen the visual fidelity is mind blowing at times. This is hands-down the best looking and best playing Naruto experience that we’ve seen to date. What you’ll find in Naruto Shippuden Ultimate Ninja Storm 4 is what you’ve come to know, love, and expect from this fighting series. However, if you’re expecting huge deviations from the popular formula, you won’t find it here. The last entry in a series that has spanned multiple console generations, Ninja Storm 4 says goodbye at the top of its game, with upgraded visuals due to the more powerful hardware of new-gen consoles (or PC) and a story that sees itself come to a conclusion that covers the final story arcs of the Naruto storyline. CyberConnect 2 is walking away from their Naruto Shippuden series of games with the release of Ultimate Ninja Storm 4.