The striking visuals and hard-hitting story in the lengthy mission mode make UNS2 arguably the best Naruto game yet.
(-) removed a few elements in the battle system that made its prequel fun / laggy online mode is a weak alternative for lasting value / the heart-wrenching piano music in the menus and game can be too much at first
Very few people exist today that really still need an introduction to the familiar spiky haired ninja. But those unaware of the series would be unaware that this installment in the Ultimate Ninja Storm series covers the second half of the anime's total reach, covering a time when the once preteen fighters have grown up a bit, changed their appearances and sometimes even their aspirations, and a lot of change has went in the air between eras. Its evident practically everywhere; Sasuke has left the village to execute his brother for the ultimate revenge, and Sakara has become better acquainted with Naruto as opposed to treating him like he's a nuisance.
And for the most part, the video game adaptations for the Naruto games haven't been able to change quite so much, even when making the move between parts one and two. Ultimate Ninja and Clash of Ninja are by no means bad games, but there's no denying that there's a certain level of copy-and-paste going on between the releases, often coming with very little proximity between each other. So only the truest of fans could find the need to pick them up, but even they may be a bit dissatisfied when they discover they paid for a mere roster update rather than a new game. Although the Naruto games have been good, as far as licensed games go, there's no forgetting that there just isn't enough changes made in the games.
Naruto Ultimate Ninja Storm 2, however, is very different than the game that preceded it. The first Ultimate Ninja Storm was certainly a good game, boasting great visuals that captured the look of the cartoon with mind-blowing accuracy, as well as a fun if mindless combat system. However, to unlock the many admirable characters for use in battle, this means sitting through the tedious Ultimate Mission mode, doing mostly mundane and useless tasks that seem as a way to extend empty hours in the gameplay.
Ultimate Ninja Storm 2 thankfully takes a very different approach than the last game. This time, you have a full-scale story that's been stripped of the filler and translated into video game form, spamming across at least 100 episodes from the manga. The story is told through various manners, mostly in-game cut-scenes which while they aren't pre-rendered or anything, the voice acting does its part in making the story have full impact. All your favorite Naruto characters make an appearance in some form, you'll really get a kick out of seeing the many different interactions between them, and it all moves at a very brisk, easy pace. Whether you carefully follow the storyline through the animations on television or you'd just casually have interest in what happens with your favorite characters, this game digs into the storyline at a shocking magnitude, but not so much that you'll know everything that happens through this game. It's more of a quick summary than an actual telling, but it's still an impressive length of great voice acting and slick, beautiful cut-scenes that reinforce the story. You might be interesting in looking into the anime if you really want to know more, but even on its own merits, the story is great. But longtime Naruto fans are ironically going to be the least pleased, since not only have they heard and seen everything before, they'll also often complain that there were some parts that were skipped or edited, which is understandable because a single Blu Ray disc wouldn't be able to capture over 150 episodes in its entirety.
Traditional Naruto games had a way of pulling on-lookers who perhaps hadn't watched the source material and are just looking for a fun game to play. Beware that this game is different. To have proper admission, you have to be at least a bit eager to look into the depth of the Naruto storyline, otherwise this game is not for you. You'll be skipping through a lot of unwanted text, rushing through the villages, and getting into battles, and the game won't hold your interest for long. You might also be turned off by the heart-breaking piano number that you'll hear in the menus and after battles, which personally threw me off at first before I got used to it. But if you are into Naruto, the story will be a very rewarding experience for you. Not only is it no contest that its superior to the Ultimate Mission mode in its prequel, you'll also learn a great deal of information that you might not have known before, and you'll have some great fun taking part of familiar parts of the animations. Even the time between battles isn't awful, you're just walking through still-frame towns that are nice to look at, not only the Hidden Leaf Village but lots of other locations as well. You'll mostly end up collecting items when you see a mark, which are seldom useful, but it gives you something to focus on. While there are some side-quests, they're thankfully completely optional and will in no way influence your progress. The wide spectrum of areas you travel in go to great lengths to make the adventure even more captivating, which makes the sometimes monotonous moving about excusable. Naruto's world really feels deep and alive.
You'll consistently switch characters during the story mode, which will give you different perspectives. At one point, you'll be playing as Naruto to prove his worth to Kakashi after not seeing him for so long. And there's more monumental events, like Sasuke finally confronting his brother. There's lots of moments, if you hadn't seen the show, that will emotionally grip you. Characters die in battle, and their loved ones mourn for them, and there's intense, exciting moments as well, like a close-call battle finally taking down an Akatsuki member with a large thud. Luckily, the occasional sense of humor was still kept in tact to lighten in the wake of the emotionally heavy moments, like when Naruto almost admits to Choji how fat he's gotten before a foe appears in close range.
Most of the brilliant story is powered through battles, which the same great if simple battle system has returned in Ultimate Ninja Storm 2. You have on button to use attack, another to activate jutsu, one to throw ninja tools, and one to jump. With advanced training, you can master assist attacks, where two often pre-determined characters will pop out and attack the enemy for you. The occasional special attack still makes its appearance, but the often dazzling cut-scenes have been briefed down significantly in comparison to the prequel. While this does improve the flow of the game, it was great watching those kinematics and over the top moves all in the PS3's slick graphics, which is all but reduced in the typical battles, which is a bit disappointing. But that's just a nit-pick. The competitors in battles are usually pre-chosen based on the storyline, and the wins end with an interactive quip from the character, for example when Naruto beats Deidara, you can feel the passion in his voice as he proclaims "I'll never lose to the Akatsuki". While these battles are on the shallow side, they're still often challenging, flashy, the camera still superbly frames the action and captures the feel of the cartoon, and you'll still look forward to each battle.
Especially the boss fights, which often have you going up against an enormous character, like Sasori and his thousands of puppets, and a particularly punishing Kakazu in his mutation form. These battles have you forced to think in more strategic ways, both to land attacks and avoid the enemy's advances, and always put up a good fight. After you damage them enough, you're allowed to watch a vivid, eye-pleasing cut-scene of the characters pulling off great attacks or avoiding the opponent skillfully, like a AAA budget action film, while doing quick time button presses to keep the action going. This shows off the best graphics the game has to offer, everything from reflection, refraction, particle effects, and shading has been applied to the seemingly simple art style, and it makes for stunning results, animating in almost dream-like quality, and even non-fans would take this time to stop and look in amazement.
The story mode flows at a really nice rhythm. You have the perfect amount of time divided among battles, story-clips, and navigation, and the whole thing is surprisingly lengthy, clocking in anywhere near ten to fifteen joyful hours. It's the perfect Naruto experience on any game console currently out, blending both gameplay interaction, fantastic looks, and intriguing storyline. But the story mode on its own won't be enough to sustain much lasting appeal. Other than some of the insignificant nameless tasks that might accumulate as you play, there isn't much to come back for after you've completed the lengthy journey. And only the most hardcore of Naurto fans are likely to care for repeating the whole experience again. The other modes on offer are free battle, which you'll steadily unlock a solid roster of 42 characters to play with. There's a good handful of them, like Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura as guaranteed classics, new additions from the earlier generation of the Shippuden storyline like Lady Chiyo, Sasori (I personally wished they would have included him playable in the Hiruko suit like in Clash of Ninja Revolution 3), and even all the way to the later Akatsuki members like Pain and Sasuke's new group that plots to destroy the hidden leaf village. All of this unlockable content is nice to have, but the free battle is really shallow, compared to both this game's story mode and the battle systems available on other Naruto games. The addition of an online mode was novel, but it's very laggy and there's no automatic match-making, and the fighting system doesn't lend itself well to a competition nature, so its little more than a nice extra.
Though in some tiny areas Ultimate Ninja Storm comes short, the lengthy story mode with the visually outstanding cut-scenes, thoroughly crafted story with compelling events full of action, emotion, and personality, this is hands down the best Naruto video game there is out there. It's last-ability is questionable, but while the mission mode lasts, it will likely have you addicted, mesmerized, at the edge of your seat, sympathetic, and having lots of fun. You'll experience the story in many different angles, see the diverse amount of friendly faces and rough enemies, as well as ever-so-welcome new characters, and the battles can get damn tough at times. The online mode might be static, but it's all but forgivable when the story mode in Ultimate Ninja Storm 2 is a strong as it is. However, you better have a decent idea of what you're getting into before hand. You'd better already like Naruto if you're going to try this one out, but if you do, you're going to absolutely love it.