Naruto: Ultimate Ninja Heroes Hands-On

No other handheld system has better fighting games than the PSP, and the next proof-filled serving of sweet pudding looks to be Namco Bandai's Naruto: Ultimate Ninja Heroes. Bursting with the same bracing speed, bright graphics, and accessible controls that made the series popular on the PS2, this smaller version looks to have a chip on its shoulder, and a serious Kung-Fu grip on your spare time.

In case you're new to Naruto, it's based on an anime cartoon series detailing the exploits of a young ninja and his encounters with a host of other colorful ninja characters. With so many badasses just waiting for a chance to prove their might, the episodes contain lots of awesome combat. But where the show is beholden to developing a plot and characters, Ultimate Ninja Heroes assumes you've already met your favorite characters and are ready to join them in kicking ninja butt.

Although the controls are simple, you won't be able to simply mash buttons and win in Ultimate Ninja Heroes. No, there are some things you have to know about before you can really flip out and kill people. For one thing, the jump button is also the teleport-right-into-your-opponent's-face button, when tapped twice. And teleporting right into peoples' faces is really the only way to travel. There's only one attack button, which sounds easy enough, but you'll need to master its surprisingly many nuances before walking (actually, flying) the path of the ninja.

You can break out a simple three-hit combo, execute a low, unblockable attack, or unleash a jaw-crunching uppercut, all with different direction presses, plus the one attack button. You can also charge up a super-duper attack for a thrilling cutscene in which your character, depending on who you've chosen, will do things like hit a foe in the balls--with a fist made of lightning.

Even though the controls are the same for each of the 20 characters, the game plays differently based on who you choose. For instance, Naruto is balanced and fairly strong in each area, while other characters are superfast, but vulnerable, or equipped with superstrong shuriken, but a weak special attack.

However, a character's starting attributes aren't set in stone. By completing challenges in hero mode, you win points that can be spent leveling up any fighter's many attributes. Hero mode is a sort of survival challenge where you pick three characters and fight through a gauntlet of several teams. It's a decent single-player challenge made even better by the fact that you can spend your winnings to make your preferred characters even stronger, then go back and kick more ass than ever before with your juiced-up superteam.

A big ingredient in every Naruto game is blazing speed, and this PSP version will be as fast as ever. You'll be able to teleport around, kicking faces and hyperpunching stomachs with no slowdown. And the stages are big, with multiple levels and all sorts of breakable objects. For example, one level takes place in a park, with two levels and even a tunnel. Such features not only add new strategic dynamics to your fight, they also add the sadistic appeal of being able to finish your opponent with a blow that literally knocks them six feet under. This game really brings the megahertz.

We're certain owners of Naruto: Ultimate Ninja Heroes will be able to battle each other wirelessly, as well as share the game with a friend. However you decide to play, this tiny fighter looks to add a bunch of new moves to every handheld ninja's arsenal this summer.