Developer: CyberConnect2
Publisher: Bandai Namco
Platform: PC, Switch, PS4, PS5, Xbox Series S/X, Xbox One
Tested on: PS5
Naruto X Boruto Ultimate Ninja Storm Connections – Review
When you ask an anime fan what some of the most influential series of all time are, nine out of ten will include Naruto in this collection. This underdog story about a young ninja, cursed with a demon inside of him, and his dream to become the most respected person in his village has captured many people’s hearts in the past two decades. It’s only natural that such an iconic series has an extensive history of videogame adaptations, with the Naruto Ultimate Ninja Storm series being considered the ultimate anime fighter game. Now to celebrate the 20-year anniversary of the anime, cyberConnect2 brings all of the previous entries together in Naruto X Boruto Ultimate Ninja Storm Connections to tell the tale of Naruto Uzumaki.
Story
It’s a pretty classical formula for an anime game to adapt parts of its source material, giving you control of your favorite characters during some of the series’ best moments. This is exactly what the Naruto Ultimate Ninja Storm series has done in the past, telling the main character’s life story throughout four games, even including part of the sequel about Naruto’s son Boruto. But cyberConnect2’s flagship series stands out in the sheer quality they present these tales with, featuring a detailed retelling of events with beautiful animations and larger-than-life boss fights. Understandably, fans got hyped when Naruto X Boruto Ultimate Ninja Storm Connections got announced, bringing all the previous games together and even including a brand-new narrative featuring the next generation of ninjas seen in the Boruto: Naruto Next Generation series. Still, some dreams are too good to be true.
Naruto X Boruto Ultimate Ninja Storm Connections features two story modes, the first one being the collection of previous games to tell the complete story of the original series, dubbed History Mode. This story is split into different parts that can be started in any order, giving you the option to jump into your favorite moments without having to play everything that came before. But when you start one of these sections, be ready to be somewhat disappointed. Gone are the detailed retellings and cutscenes, which have been replaced by short PowerPoint presentations featuring screenshots from the anime and text. Not only have they removed these cutscenes and the free-roaming present in the previous games, but a ton of long story moments and battles have been reduced to a handful of pictures. By doing so, the developers turned the collection of four 10-hour games into just a handful of hours. While it is understandable they had to cut content for such a big project, removing this much and not offering anything in return just feels lazy. Especially since they haven’t brought over all the big cinematic boss fights that made the series famous.
The second story mode is the Special Story, which is a brand-new narrative that takes place years after the original series, featuring the grown-up cast and their children. After the disappointment that was History Mode, it’s a joy to see that this mode did get the original CyberConnect2 treatment, featuring animated cutscenes and larger-than-life battles. Boruto and his friends are enamored by a brand-new VR game that the entire world is playing, giving them the option to take on the role of famous people and duke it out. This is also where they meet a brand-new character who serves as a guide to the game. Sadly, not everything is as great as it seems, since many people are experiencing tiredness or even passing out after playing. While all this is going on, Naruto is occupied by rumors of a new war breaking out in the ninja world. This narrative is very entertaining and feels right at home in the Naruto universe, making it the biggest selling point of the game. The story features some nice twists and new characters, but also a section where you have to revisit Naruto’s memories, which would not be a problem if there wasn’t an entire other game mode dedicated to this.
Graphics
Naruto X Boruto Ultimate Ninja Storm Connections is a mixed bag on the graphical side. The Naruto Ultimate Ninja series has always been praised as a graphical marvel, especially with its boss fights and cinematic special moves. The same can be said this time around, with the combat looking spectacular and the cinematics looking as great as ever. The problem with this latest release is that they removed so many great-looking moments from the previous games and replaced them with screenshots. This makes the History Mode look uninteresting during these moments, especially considering some of these shots are 20 years old. The Special Story, on the other hand, looks great and features the detailed models we know and love.
Sound
The sound design of Naruto X Boruto Ultimate Ninja Storm Connections is probably one of its most consistent features. The soundtrack fits the series perfectly and will bring any fan straight into the experience. The same can be said for the voice acting, taking both the English and Japanese voices from the series and delivering great performances. It’s, once again, just a shame that so many of them have been cut in this entry.
Gameplay
Naruto X Boruto Ultimate Ninja Storm Connections is an arena fighter in which you take control of three characters and duke it out with a collection of special moves and flashy finishers. Throughout the years, CyberConnect2 has been optimizing this combat and now delivers the best iteration with a huge roster of characters.
People who are familiar with anime fighters, especially with the Naruto Ultimate Ninja Storm series, will feel right at home with the core fighting mechanics this entry offers. Take your opponent down by combining normal attacks, optimally timed dodges, and items to determine who is the strongest ninja of all time. Using these moves can build up chakra that can be used to unleash powerful special attacks and ultimate moves, which are often accompanied by some great cinematics. You won’t be fighting alone, however, as you have two support characters that can be summoned to unleash a special move. You can even switch out your active fighter for one of these supporters and activate special combo attacks if you pair up the right characters. This combat feels as great as ever and combines the best mechanics from the previous entries.
As we mentioned before, the two main modes you’ll be spending your time with are the campaign modes. The History mode is a bit of a disappointment due to the cut content and doesn’t offer anything exciting gameplay-wise aside from the battles and returning boss fights. Fights do offer some extra objectives to add a bit of replay value, and there are some extra things like giving a rating to a fight and comparing it to others online, but all in all, there’s nothing too mentionworthy. The Special Story also offers these extra objectives and includes some optional battles where you can pick whatever character you want to use.
Aside from these story modes are your classic fighting game modes. Free Battle lets you fight a friend or AI with any character you want, and modes like Tournament or Survival pit you against enemy after enemy to test your mettle. While these are mostly offline experiences, of course, there is also an online mode where you take on players from all around the world. These offer your usual ranked and casual matches that offer a ton of playtime to hone your skills.
One of the biggest selling points is the fact that all previously playable characters are here, accompanied by two brand-new ones. This means the roster offers dozens of fighters, most of them feeling pretty unique, while also offering a few repeating characters with original move-sets. This is why the game offers ten different Narutos, each with different special moves and forms. While this is an impressive roster, Naruto X Boruto Ultimate Ninja Storm Connections makes the same mistake so many games with dozens of playable characters make, there is hardly any incentive to try them all out. Each character does have a proficiency level that goes up every time you use it, but this only offers some minor cosmetic bonuses like titles or pictures that are displayed during special moves. There are other cosmetics like costumes and accessories, but these are unlocked with the in-game currency. The game lacks a mechanic like Super Smash Bros. Ultimate’s personalized arcade mode or a progression system like in One Piece Pirate Warriors where you need to use other characters to level up your favorites.
Conclusion
Naruto X Boruto Ultimate Ninja Storm Connections celebrates the anime’s 20th anniversary with a mixed bag, even though it delivers the best combat the series has ever seen. Sadly, this upgrade gets overshadowed by the disappointing History Mode and lack of extra modes, especially if you plan to spend most of your time playing offline. The Special Story Mode makes up for the underwhelming History Mode, but we do find the price of entry rather steep. Don’t get us wrong, the combat is amazing, but we feel like this celebration could have been more impressive. That being said, the game can be recommended to players who are deeply invested in the competitive scene, as they’ll be able to duke it out online for hours on end. Even so, there isn’t a reason to recommend this title to fans over the Naruto Ultimate Ninja Storm Legacy collection, which collects the previous games for a lower price.
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