Article by Pietro Gualano
“Senju and Uchiha, will of fire and hate, Naruto and Sasuke… you are the next two chosen by destiny. The Uchiha are a clan destined to seek revenge ... Sasuke has all the anger of the Uchiha clan in him and intends to unload the curse of hatred on the whole world. Hate is his most powerful weapon, his friend and his strength. Here's what Sasuke's ninja creed is "
The manga dedicated to Naruto has long since ended but the Ultimate Ninja Storm series is even more alive than ever: this time the guys from CyberConnect2 propose the fourth chapter and have the difficult task of improving a formula already appreciated by fans. Today, after hours of throwing jutsu, using martial arts and reaping old memories, we can give you our impressions of the game and tell you if, in our opinion, the development team managed to make the best Naruto game ever.
Fight in style
Let's start from the basics and immediately analyze the most important element for any fighting game: the gameplay. Also in this new chapter the basic mechanics have not been touched, the combat still revolves around the use of the chakra and not managing this precious resource properly is equivalent to a sure defeat. We can move freely in a three-dimensional scenario by attacking our opponent from all sides and we have many different approaches at our disposal: in addition to simple physical attacks and jutsu, in fact, we can use daggers from a distance, take a shot at the enemy to catch him by surprise. , use one of the many ninja objects to empower ourselves and more.
Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm 4 it is not a particularly complex game from the point of view of the combos, almost all the moves in the game can be performed with extremely simple keystrokes that are practically identical for all the characters, but we invite you not to be fooled: this aspect makes the title accessible and enjoyable for all, but it does not in any way affect the depth of the system if we consider it as a whole. Learning to master the combinations properly, understanding how to manage the chakra and understanding the strengths and weaknesses of the various characters is very difficult and just take a quick tour online to understand how complicated it is to play at high levels in this fighting game. Of course there are much more complex products on the market, but we are confident that the particular formula proposed by Ultimate Ninja Storm 4 will manage to capture many.
Let's get back to the actual gameplay now. Also this time we have a limited number of substitutions available to avoid enemy techniques and it is necessary to use them with a bit of criterion: being in front of an opponent who pulls out his finishing move without having any substitutions is not a particularly pleasant situation. The fights are as per tradition very fast and spectacular, with explosions, knives and much more.
Ultimate Ninja Storm 4 it is a chapter that takes the good things done in the past without renouncing to propose some very interesting innovations. Let's start immediately with what, in our opinion, is the most intriguing: the change of leader. In previous games in the series we were able to face team battles with one or two support fighters and also in Ultimate Ninja Storm 4 we can do it but now, finally, we can change the main fighter controlled by us directly in battle. The health at our disposal of course remains unchanged, but in this way we can suddenly exploit completely different fighting styles and thus disorient the opponent. It is a mechanic that can really overturn a game and that pushes the player to put a lot of attention in creating a balanced team with fighters to be used in any eventuality.
Another certainly appreciable novelty is linked to the game environment: by using certain jutsu in a place that is favorable to them, they will be more effective. An example? Using a lightning technique near water will have a greater extension, as will a fire technique activated near a fiery environment. We are talking about a mechanic that does not have a great impact on the gameplay however, in the event that the opponent tries to exploit it we can neutralize it without too many problems by predicting his moves and acting accordingly. However, we believe that the idea is interesting, maybe it could be deepened in the future.
Also in this new chapter the awakenings return and also this time some are tremendously more useful than others, but we will deal with the balance shortly: for now we will limit ourselves to underlining how CyberConnect2 has done an excellent job in transmitting the feeling of power and heaviness of the blows inflicted during the awakening even if, as in the previous games of the series, reversing a fight with an awakening is a rather rare undertaking (playing with an opponent capable of not being intimidated).
Speaking of content cut compared to the past, however, we must emphasize the disappearance of the styles, at the beginning of the game we still have the possibility to adjust the most powerful jutsu to use as desired.
To close the gameplay analysis and give an overall judgment we can say that Ultimate Ninja Storm 4 is definitely a step forward compared to the past: we are talking about a fast, simple and complex system at the same time and able to give truly spectacular sequences. . We would have liked CyberConnect2 to dare a little more by offering other really innovative mechanics such as the change of leader, but we were still satisfied.
A worthy conclusion?
Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm 4 offers four main modes: story, book confrontation, adventure and online battle. Let's start from the story that, as many will know, tells the final part of the manga with the conclusion of the fourth ninja world war. Assuming that this is not the place to discuss the Naruto ending from the narrative point of view, we still invite you not to play this mode in case you have not finished the manga yet. The development team, in fact, tells all the main events but many details are left out and, consequently, something is certainly lost. Instead, we advise those players who have already finished the story of Naruto not to ignore the story in absolutely Ultimate Ninja Storm 4: if you really don't want to review everything, skip the videos but the clashes recreated by CyberConnect2 are absolutely worth playing. Boss battles have never, EVER, been so spectacular and action packed, with this chapter we have reached levels of truly insane exaggeration with swords cutting mountains, giant toads riding huge snails on tentacles, attacks between multiple sizes and much more. The longevity is not very high (3-4 hours maximum watching the videos) but Naruto fans will not be able to help but smile as they relive certain scenes. Also this time the QTEs abound and we have an alternation between video sequences and battles with specific objectives, but despite this we recommend you to try it anyway. There are also some musou missions which, however, add practically nothing to the mode and in the long run they become boring and repetitive. By playing the story we then have the opportunity to unlock some extremely interesting unique characters.
Adventure mode, on the other hand, must be treated separately from the story. We are talking about a series of missions to be faced in a time period following the conclusion of the ninja war by moving around the world of Naruto. We can travel between villages and rive the most famous fights of the series, using many fighters and meeting all the most important characters of the manga. The game world recreated by CyberConnect2 is full of things to do, items to collect and missions (primary and secondary) to tackle. It is certainly an opportunity to deepen the relationships between the various characters and, in particular, that between Naruto and Hinata. We don't want to tell you too much about it, so we just point out how suitable this mode is for the most nostalgic fans, since it is a bit of a journey into memories faced without ever using overly dramatic tones (unlike the story).
The free fight mode also offers several possible options this time. We can play a normal VS match (in group or single), organize a tournament or a championship (in the end the player with the most points wins), or practice in the training mode. In this new chapter we have the possibility to choose to play a game with more rounds, the first one who wins two wins will have the better: we appreciated this feature as it makes the fights longer and allows the player to try more tactics over the course of the same meeting.
Now let's move on to what, in our opinion, is the most important component of the entire production: the online battle. Do the words “unable to connect to this session, this session is full” remind you of anything? The Ultimate Ninja Storm series has never had one hundred percent solid and functioning online multiplayer but this year that could change. During our tests we did not have any kind of problem, we entered immediately in all the selected sessions, we were never expelled and, above all, we never encountered any slowdowns during the matches. However, it is too early to give a judgment in this sense, when the game arrives on the market and the servers are full we will be able to get a precise idea of ​​the stability of the system. Also in this new chapter we can face simple or ranked matches, organizing tournaments and leagues with other players. The progression system has remained unchanged and we always have the option to customize our ninja card with images and titles.
Tenten vs Madara? Immediately!
When we talk about a fighting game we must necessarily take into account the balance between the various characters. Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm 4 it is not perfectly balanced, there are some characters with whom winning is much easier than others and also in this chapter the awakenings of some fighters are much more devastating than others. Characters like Deidara are still perfectly capable of winning games by always making a single move over and over, while winning a victory with Hidan without first practicing a little is really complex. Let's make it clear anyway: each character has their strengths and weaknesses, but online you often meet the same 10-15 fighters. This is not a real flaw, mastering more complicated characters also guarantees greater satisfaction but it really takes a lot of training.
Speaking instead of the difficulty we are not really there, in our opinion it is the most serious defect of the production. Normally the opponents are passive and have little initiative, to have a minimum of challenge we advise you to immediately set it to very difficult even if after a few matches you will get used to it and win easily. It is really a shame because due to the excessive simplicity of the clashes the offline modes become less exciting, during our test we only lost one match and (as if the game was not already simple enough) we were given the opportunity to restart with the opponent without energy and an enhanced attack. Due to this lack, the only real mode able to sustain the game in the long term is the online battle, playing against human opponents the challenge is not lacking and we have the possibility to really improve ourselves.
The roster offered by Ultimate Ninja Storm 4 it's practically every Naruto fan's dream - there are tons of characters with different variations and moves at their disposal. The lack of the quartet of sound (clearly resurrected), of Boruto and Sarada made us turn up our noses knowing that these characters will be introduced via DLC or pre-order bonuses. The available arenas have been well done and allow us to fight in the most famous places in the series. Also this time the interaction with the environment is rather reduced and, even if in some missions it is possible to fight on the walls, we would have liked to see something more from this point of view.
Also this chapter also offers a lot of content to collect. We have ninja cards to find, buy or exchange in the special store for in-game money, ninja items, characters, costumes ... to find everything you will need many hours and a lot of patience, but we are sure that fans will enjoy wandering around. the world of Naruto in search of hidden objects and secrets.
From a technical point of view, the game does not disappoint, the steps forward compared to the last chapter have been there and are also evident. Colors are brighter than ever, character costumes are destroyed in combat, and explosions have never looked so good. The soundtrack convinced us one hundred percent, with music perfect for the context and never repetitive that enter the player's head. Speaking of fluidity (fundamental in a fighting game) we found some slowdown in the most excited phases but we are talking about truly isolated cases.
Conclusion
Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm 4 it's not just a title designed for manga fans, it's a fun, accessible and complex fighting game. The fights are very fast and spectacular, we can use a lot of characters and there are some new mechanics that make it a better chapter than the previous ones. The flaws are not lacking, but we are still talking about a game that can keep you glued to the screen for many hours. The purchase is recommended to everyone, Naruto fans and not ... We assure you that this title can give you great satisfaction.
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