by Robert Workman on Wednesday, March 19, 2008
Naruto: Ninja Destiny avoids the thankless free-roaming mission structure other games follow in favor of a straight-up 3-D fighting game, filled with a number of characters from the celebrated anime series. It's a mostly solid effort, although a few flaws keep it from achieving ninja glory.
Since its import release last year, the game shows signs of improvement The frame rate now runs acceptably smooth, rather than running into glitches and slowdown (like the import does). Characters look just like their anime counterparts, right down to Naruto's waving spiky hair. The cel-shaded animation is fun to watch, especially when a character vanishes in a puff of well-detailed smoke. The backgrounds are attractive, but not as detailed as they should be. As for sound, there are a few respectable background tunes, as well as several sound effects and brief voice samples. For once, the Naruto voice cast doesn't wear out its welcome.
Naruto gone wild!
As for the fighting controls, they work great to an extent. Pulling off punches, kicks and special jutsu attacks (like Naruto's Uzumaki Barrage) are simple with the digital pad and buttons, while you can also utilize the touch-screen to power up your chosen character in various ways. However, the game relies heavily on replacement chakra to survive. This leads to an overabundant amount of counter moves. Just when you have a character beaten down, they vanish, only to strike you cheaply from behind. And it's too easy to restock replacement chakra, making each match a crap shoot if both of the fighters know precisely how and when to use it. It doesn't get to the point that it's broken, but it stretches out each fight longer than needed.
Naruto: Ninja Destiny only offers three modes: Story, Battle Mode and Wireless Battle Mode. Story Mode is good, pitting you against enemies and colleagues alike. However, there's no place to save your progress after you fight each match. That means you have one of three options. Finish the Mode in one continuous play, pause your DS and return to it later or give up and try again. Finally, Wireless Battle Mode works well, but there's a noticeable lack of Wi-Fi support or Game Sharing. You'll need to track down a fellow gamer with a copy of the game or you're on your own.
One last thing worth noting are the unlockable characters. There are several favorites from the series available over the course of the game, pushing the count to 16. However, figuring out how to unlock them is a completely different story. Do we have to go through Wireless Battle mode so many times to get this guy or what? We're all in favor of unlockable content, but it would've been nice for D3 Publisher to let us know how to get this stuff.
In all, Naruto: Ninja Destiny is a likable brawler with a few flaws that keep it from being a great one. It's still more serviceable than most Naruto-licensed games on the market, with its responsive controls and mostly faithful presentation. Still, with a little more work, we could've really had something here. Believe it.
Naruto: Ninja Destiny Game Guide
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