Path Of The Ninja 2 and Clash Of Ninja Revolution 2
Preview Of The Two Newest Naruto Games
By
Kenneth Holm
Senior Staff Writer

            Most of you already know that I have a well stated affinity for the anime and manga series Naruto. I love everything about the spiky haired ninja and his friends, as well as his foes. If you have been coming to Dorkgasm for any length of time, you know that I have to review every new Naruto game that comes out. So, when the opportunity came to have a conference call with two of the people instrumental with the creation of said games, well that is just something I could not turn down in one million years. The two gents I spoke with were Nobby Matsuo, who is a producer at TOMY, and Glenn Stotz, who is a product specialist at TOMY. After a brief introduction, we jumped into the meat of the conversation. The two newest games coming out are Clash of Ninja Revolution 2 for the Nintendo Wii, and Path of the Ninja 2 for the Nintendo DS. These games should be hitting shelves pretty soon, so I wanted to give you all a taste of what is in store for the fans. Let us get started, shall we?

Naruto: Clash Of Ninja Revolution 2

            This one is a fighting game for the Nintendo Wii. The player takes control of Naruto or other characters from the anime as they fight their way through several different modes in the game. The most obvious one is Story Mode. What really makes this game different is this mode’s storyline. For the first time in a Naruto video game, the story is completely original. Taking place after the Sasuke Retrieval arc, this is an ANBU-centric story. For those of you who are not familiar with the ANBU, picture a ninja version of any secret government agency. While scouting around, the ANBU find a village that is completely deserted. When Naruto and the rest of the squad go to investigate, they soon discover a plot to destroy Hidden Leaf Village. Another main draw is the new characters. Some of you might remember Yugao Uzuki, who was introduced in one or two episodes of the anime. Yugao is one of the new ANBU characters and is one of the fastest in the game. The other two characters are pretty spiffy, too. Towa is an ANBU soldier who can channel chakra through his distinctive tattoos to make chakra-weapons. He is more hand-to-hand fighting, while Komachi is more of a projectile fighter. Komachi is yet another ANBU member who uses her senpai-like hairpins to attack from a distance. All three of these new characters have been designed with thought to the Naruto universe, as have the new villains, one of whom may or may not have a bazooka.

            When it comes to gameplay, the game has a couple new elements involved. Paper bombs, a staple of the cartoon, have finally been added to the mix. Paper bombs are a sort of dagger (or kunai) with an explosive scroll attached to it. These can be used as proximity mines to scatter around the playing field, or they can be just thrown at your opponent for explosive damage. There are also a few new modes in the game. A new addition is the Tag-Team mode, where the player will pick two characters and switch out as the fight goes on. The really cool part about that is that you can switch characters out anytime, even in the middle of a combo! The destruction possibilities are endless for that one.

            Another cool feature is the Kumite or Survival Mode. You try to fight off as many enemies as once, with up to five opponents on the screen at the same time. Mission Mode has ten missions per character, so with over 30 characters available, this could be a pretty fun time for Wii owners. Also, there are new Team Jutsus available. Everyone has a generic team move, but there are some teams that have a specific moves, such as Itachi/Kisame, Guy/Lee, and Neji/Hinata. Now, what would a Wii game be without some movement? In Clash Of Ninja Revolution 2, the Wiimote and Nunchuk can be used to form hand signs. This was previously used in Naruto Shippuden: Gekitou Ninja Taisen! EX2, and is executed by moving the controller in certain ways to either regain chakra or health. There is a lot more than we have covered (you know, we like surprises too), so grab this one in October when it hits!!

Naruto: Path Of The Ninja 2

            The follow-up to the DS RPG will feature a lot of new features, as well. Most notably, it has over 35 different characters. The first POTN only gave us around seven (and only if you found Jiriya). The game itself will NOT be a port of an old GBA game, like the last one, but instead will be a remake of Naruto RPG 3: Reijuu vs. Kohona Shoutai, which was a DS game in Japan. Also coming out in October, this RPG tells the story of a mysterious village that has been destroyed and the three villains who are preparing to unleash a very nefarious plan upon our heroes.

            As far as what that plan is, I refuse to tell. Let me just say that the game should be enjoyed by all of you fans out there. Now, let's get into the new features of this game, and believe me, there are a lot of them. First up are the new WiFi capabilities. Yeah, you can actually battle other people from all over the US and Canada. This being an RPG, however, makes for some interesting battles. You fight each other with the tried and true method of standard pick-and-choose RPG battles. The cool thing is that every state has what is called a Region Tag. These tags (more on them in a second) can be collected and traded like Pokemon cards among your friends and enemies. Obviously, the object here is to pwn someone from each and every state including Canada. Yes, I know Canada is not a state. Now these tags, and other tags found in-game, are part of the Ninja Tag system. The Ninja Tags are able to apply some different effects and open up previously unavailable extras, like characters, equipment, abilities and so forth. These tags can be equipped on different people, so it will be possible for Kiba to use the Rasengan, or for Sakura to use Shadow Possession Jutsu. The possibilities are endless, and that is pretty damn cool. There are also some new characters available this time around, including playable versions of Shino, Hinata, and Choji; and new baddies in the form of Itachi, Kisame and more.

            All told, both games sound exceptional. I heartily approve of the new strides that TOMY is taking in their games, and anxiously await the new adventures. It sounds like Naruto fans and game fans in general have a lot to look forward to in October. Make sure to check these games out as soon as they become available!!