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Naruto: Ultimate Ninja 2

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Naruto: Ultimate Ninja 2
73
8.0 User Score:

Mixed or average reviews

Based on 27 critic reviews
How did we calculate this?

Based on 17 votes
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Game Info

Publisher: Namco Bandai Games

Developer: CyberConnect2

Genre(s): Fighting

Players: 2

ESRB Rating: T (Teen)

Release Date: June 12, 2007

Summary

In Naruto: Ultimate Ninja 2 gamers can play through monumental events in the NARUTO storyline all while earning points toward upgrading their character's strength, defense, agility, chakra and special abilities. Players can walk the path of NARUTO in the new all-new mode, Ultimate Road, that will allow them to play through all of the pivotal events in the storyline, as well as unlock an original story, as more and more pieces of the NARUTO saga unfold. More than 60 exciting missions and seven challenging mini games push potential ninja to their limit. Players can assume the role of Naruto, Sasake, Kakashi, Rock Lee, Gara, Kiba and other favorites while taking on daunting tasks like battling the sand ninja and working their way through the Chunin exam, the test to move up in the ninja ranks. Ninja in training can perfect their skills in Practice mode then put their training to the test against a friend in the VS mode. With a vast amount of unlockable features such as playable characters, movies, music, collectible cards and more NARUTO fans will be busy. [Namco Bandai Games]

What The Critics Said

All critic scores are converted to a 100-point scale. If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review. Learn more...

92

Cheat Code Central

My advice is that if you pick up just one Naruto title this year, Naruto: Ultimate Ninja 2 will be your best bet.

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83

Worth Playing

Even months after its release, Naruto Ultimate Ninja 2 remains one of the best Naruto fighting games. It's got lots to satisfy solitary players, and versus mode matches are both fun to play and watch.

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82

3DJuegos

Naruto: Ultimate Ninja 3 mixes adventure, fighting and minigames with an exclusive Naruto's story, a big group of playable characters and interesting customization posibilities about them. It's a must-have for fans and a correct closure for the Ultimate Ninja series on PlayStation 2.

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80

PSM Magazine

Ultimate Ninja 2 is still undeniably fun so all that other stuff is just ancillary. [July 2007, p.82]

80

1UP

If the first game was a mere starter pack -- and it was -- then fans of Naruto will be very pleased with the selection of fighters and features found here.

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80

GameSpy

Naruto fans will most definitely not be disappointed by this sequel, and even fighting game fans who can't tell a Hokage from a Dragon Ball could do worse than to check it out.

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80

AceGamez

If you haven't seen the TV series then the value of Naruto: Ultimate Ninja 2 might become lost in translation, whereas fans of Naruto will relish running around the areas lifted straight out of the animé show and spotting many locations and characters that are instantly recognisable.

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78

Gaming Horizon

Despite serving up a retread with one new mode and but adding a load of new characters, I still say itfs worth a buy from fans of the series that already have Ultimate Ninja in their libraries.

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78

PSM3 Magazine UK

You'll be hard pressed to find a beat-'em-up that feels as frenetic as this. [Dec 2007, p.82]

75

Game Revolution

Naruto probably isn’t going to satisfy hardcore gamers, but we gamers are getting older, accumulating not just wives but children. And for those little nerds-in-training, Naruto is a pretty and pleasant introduction to the physical violence they will spend the rest of their lives avoiding.

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75

GameShark

Ultimate Ninja 2 is more of the same but with a fresh coat of paint. In my opinion it's got enough meat on its bones to recommend to fans of the original and beat 'em up fans in general. But while the action is pretty easy to get into, the game's victory conditions might prove frustrating to some.

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74

IGN

The story of trying to protect Leaf Village is engaging (albeit confusing at times), the fights look cool, and there's tons of stuff to unlock...However, I thought the implementation of controls and combos took away from the fun.

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73

WHAM! Gaming

The main problem with the story mode, though, is that's simply too hard.

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72

GameSpot

Ultimate Ninja 2 still values style over substance, but a bigger cast of fighters and a better-realized story mode will certainly make it a hit with Naruto fans.

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72

GameZone

The learning curve is high but don’t let that discourage you from picking up Ultimate Ninja 2. My favorite portion of the game is the Ultimate Road story mode; it provided a real purpose to finish the game.

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70

GamerNode

Decent as far as fighting games go, but one of the better Naruto-based titles. Certainly better than the last outing.

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70

GamePro

At the least, it'll keep you entertained while you wait for Smash Bros. Brawl to hit the Wii. And you never know: you might just find yourself tuning in to see what the television show is all about as well.

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70

GameDaily

The presentation, plentiful modes and mostly pleasant fighting engine should keep fans of the comic and anime show happily content throughout the summer. Those in search of something more involving, however, will find an Ultimate rush elsewhere.

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70

Games Radar (in-house)

By, far, the most notable edition to Naruto: Ultimate Ninja 2 is the plethora of new characters. If that sounds like it won’t float your boat, odds are the other minor features aren’t going to be the life preservers.

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70

PALGN

If you're a fan of Naruto, then Naruto: Ultimate Ninja 2 will float your boat. Non fans need not apply.

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70

Official Playstation 2 Magazine UK

It's difficult not to find this fighter charming - even if the hero is a squaky-voiced brat. [Nov 2007, p.92]

70

Maxi Consolas (Portugal)

If you like fast paced beat ‘em ups and you’re familiar with the anime, you can find some fun here. But some of the combats with very specific victory conditions can be quite frustrating and the exploring before the fights could have been better. [Dec 2007]

64

Jolt Online Gaming UK

Only time will tell whether Naruto will become a gaming joke or not, but for now Naruto fans in the UK could do a lot worse than Naruto: Ultimate Ninja 2, though they could also do better.

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60

Eurogamer

it's an enjoyable plug in the market until number three, and perfectly acceptable for Naruto fans, albeit not absolutely essential for those happy with what they've got, or what they'll get in the future.

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60

Thunderbolt

Naruto: Ultimate Ninja 2 is a fairly enjoyable game, with a really attractive and striking visual style and presentation. It’s brought down by undeveloped town sections and cheap fighting tactics, but if you are a fan of the animé then this is worth a look.

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60

G4 TV

If you are a fan, you’ll find this a lot more impressive than last year’s Ultimate Ninja. It’s a better job of making a fighting game and a better job of bringing the TV show to life, with more characters, better graphics, and a deeper single-player game.

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45

Play.tm

The chakra move sequences are by far the best part of the game. It's a fun novelty for a while, but the single player is not satisfying enough and the multiplayer simply not fun enough for me to be able to recommend this title. Fans of the show will absolutely lap it up, but anyone else will quite frankly be a little bit baffled.

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What Our Users Said

The average user rating for this game is 8.0 (out of 10) based on 17 User Votes

Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.

Immune gave it an8:
For Naruto fans this will be a must buy. Ultimate Ninja 2 includes 32 playable characters and includes a story mode. In Story mode you will be playing through the Tsunade Decision arc and the Sasuke Retrieval arc. For those who are not fans of the series I would give this game a rent if not stay away from it.

Jarred C. gave it a10:
It is sooooo cool, the chakra attacks really give the game a good flavor.

Stephen C. gave it a9:
The game has an excellent story though some of the battles tended to be too dificult.

Troy T. gave it a10:
Awesome...just a fantastic game! its as simple as that. Believe me, you want to go and pick this one up! Enjoy!

Ceruse gave it a10:
(More of a review than a comment XD) For those of you who don’t know who or what Naruto is, you are missing out on a great character and a great series! Based on Masashi Kishimoto’s manga, the story has become an anime, a card playing game, and yes, you guessed it: a game. So let’s discuss about Ultimate Ninja 2. This is a relatively easy fighting game to get the grasp. Jump, attack, special, dash, area switch, kawamiri… All these will become quite easy to perform after the first half hour. Also available is Iruka’s training which will help you figure out the basics thanks to his explanations. Also, the game has 3D graphics but the fights happen on 2 horizontal planes. You start out with 18 characters and as you play through you’ll be able to unlock a bundle of characters (32 characters total). Each one of them being unique and fun in their own way, they come with different techniques and different specials. All of them still respect’s the series and it really shines on the game’s results. The fighting can become quite intense at times, because the speed is always fast-paced. When you start doing combos with the circle button, unleash techniques that will give mini cinematics with the up+up+circle buttons or the down+down+circle combo. You go and pound the enemy until his life drops. Though everyone can block and do kawamiri no jutsu (replacement technique) which starts a timing sequence between the two opponents to land the blow first. Another interesting thing is the special attack (Also called Ougi attacks in Japanese). This puts both attacking and defending character into a situation of duel to follow a sequence in order to: stop the special attack, half the damage or increase the damage. Sometimes, the blow can be quite deadly. Let’s not forget the possibility to customize your characters techniques! You can make Rock Lee’s Konoha whirlwind be used by Naruto for example! So be creative with these! Both techniques and specials require some chakra (spiritual power if you want to call it that way) in order to be used. The more chakra being used, the more a special can become deadly. Different cinematic sequences will be shown depending on the amount of energy used. Chakra can be gained with items or by charging it. Let’s not overlook the stages! You can battle it out on rooftops, inside towns, in the forest, in an assassin’s lair or even a swamp. All these stages come with 2 areas: the front area and the one behind. You can switch from one to another quite easily so the action can go different ways quite fast. The stages can often interact with the characters (and holes are not a good place to wind up XD). Support characters will pop-up once in a while to lend a hand with useful items, but you got to go to your support character or else it won’t give you anything. Items can vary from the recovery of your health or your chakra to status change items to attack items. Try experimenting with each of them to see their benefits and their potential. Also forgot to mention that items can be found in objects in the stage like crates or scarecrows! Besides duel mode, there’s also Ultimate campaign, where you take part as the characters from the series and you follow a storyline. Since it’s an RPG, it is possible to upgrade your characters stats with fighting experience. Though be careful, 9999 is the max experience you can have with one character. What? You level a stat you didn’t want? Have no worries! Since the Yondaime (Tsunade) will be able to re-allocate your points (for a small fee of course). Back to the main subject, through out the campaign, you will encounter friends and foes, walk in around town, talk to people and get missions. As you pass this mode, you will unlock all the characters. Some missions can be harder then others, so be prepared! Something I really like when I feel like goofing off are the mini-games. From climbing the tree for chakra training to racing against Gai on your hands to doing a push-up competition, it can get really fun and enjoyable. All that can be done versus a computer or a friend. With duels and the RPG mode, you will get Ryo that you can spend in Tenzaku’s market on videos, character figurines, audio content and character profiles. A fun addition to the game. Now for the graphics! I must say they do have a nice appeal to game and it fits with the series and the genre of the game. Sure, it won't look as outstanding as final fantasy or zelda (or insert name of game using amasing graphics), but it has a nice appeal. All the characters have their voices done by the english voiceactor crew of the Naruto series. Those who know and like the japanese voiceactors will probably despise the english dubs, but generally, people will be okay with the voices. (Though I can find some screams to be a bit agressives...) That aside, the voices are well done. I must also warn all of you… When you select an option, a “YOOOO” sound will play.... which will eventually annoy you. So try to laugh it off with some friends! As they say, the more the merrier. To finish up, I enjoyed Naruto Ultimate Ninja 2 a lot and it has given me hours of addicting fun while playing with my friends. I strongly recommend it to any fighter lover, anime lover, or just plain gamer. So remember, you got to believe it before you can beat your opponents –dattebayo! Recommended: Yes

Kevin R. gave it an8:
A worthy sequel that adds a ton of characters, and other features to an already solid fighter. Unfortunately, the speed of the game seems to go a little too fast.

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