Naruto Clash of Ninja Revolution 2 News and Pics!

August 7, 2008 -Nintendo fans are no stranger to the Naruto: Clash of Ninja series, and neither are we. After covering the games since their debut on GameCube a couple years back, we've seen title after title come through this office, and have put each through the respective gauntlet to see what really has changed, and what ha stayed stagnant. We'd be lying if we said each Naruto game has felt completely fresh or mind-blowing over the years, and perhaps our first encounter with the series on Wii was the most melancholy of them all, as Clash of Ninja Revolution was more a "catch Wii gamers up to speed" title than an actual leap forward for the franchise. It was still one heck of a fighter, and ultimately turned out just as strong as its GCN counterparts, but it felt like just a small tip-toe forward in its jump to Wii. Luckily, that isn't the case with Clash of Ninja Revolution 2, as every time we go hands-on with the game it's looking better and better.

Like each of the Clash of Ninja games before it, Revolution 2 is a mix of fighting games like SoulCalibur, Bloody Roar, and something like a more streamlined Tekken or DOA. You've got up to four players on screen, can set up tag matches, no-tag four player fights, free for all play, or classic one on one. Each fighter has some pretty simple combos to string together, centered around one universal "attack" button or waggle motion, as well as one (or two, depending on the player) chakra special attacks, and some general specials attached to another main button for things like throwing stars, guard-counters, and larger critical. You don't need to be a fan of the anime to enjoy the game though, as the action is fluid, there's a good deal of strategy to be found, and it's both fast and slick presentation wise; it's simply a great fighting series, and it has been for a few years now.


http://wiimedia.ign.com/wii/image/ar...7040757060.jpgMore places to see, more people to fight, and more balance to it all. That's what it's all about with Clash of Ninja Revolution 2.


With Revolution 2, it's all about bulking up what's there, adding to the formula, and polishing things up. The game has become a pretty big favorite for tournaments around the anime community, so balancing the product as best as possible has been priority, as has adding 35 playable characters into the mix, including fan-requested fighters such as Ultimate Nin-Tailed Naruto, and Sasuke Second State. There's still no online, which is a shame, but balance is key, and this game is the most well rounded we've seen so far in the series, and it's got a laundry list of modes to boot.

Story Mode has been beefed up a bit more this year with on-field models and more of a cinematic overall telling of the script, but our main focus this time around was the different VS. Mode options. This is the first time we've gone hands-on with the game since E3 (where D3 and TOMY showed off a stronger Revolution 2 than we'd seen even in pre-E3 sit-downs) and it has shed the plain, black debug menu for the all new interface, among many other added modes and levels for us to check out.

In VS. Mode this year, you've got seven main areas to explore. There's a mission list including 10 different ranked bouts to play, a regular player vs. CPU mode, a score attack challenge, where you play 10 matches and try to destroy the competition with the highest score possible, a 10-fight time attack mode, which is similar, an infinite survival mode, where health is carried from fight to fight, Kumite mode, which has you battling against level after level of drop-in enemy waves, and a multi match mode similar to the regular player vs. CPU experience. Kumite is a blast to play through with someone like Ultimate Nine-Tail Naruto, since he can decimate the generic ninja fodder like nothing, and the addition of two man squads for each of the above modes means you can do some pretty sweet tag fighting.

If you've got a friend with you, the two player offering this year is pretty thick as well, with 2P match, a co-op score attack, time attack, and survival mode, as well as the multi match, which allows more computer players in the mix. We spent most of our time playing through the single player modes, but co-op is in there if you want it, and we'll be checking that out over the coming weeks.
here's the* Link for the Pics.
http://media.wii.ign.com/media/965/965447/imgs_1.html