Naruto: Ultimate Ninja Storm

Naruto: Ultimate Ninja Storm, known in Japan as is a game for the PlayStation 3. The game was first unveiled in 2007, under the code name Naruto PS3 Project. Later the game was named Naruto: Ultimate Ninja Storm. Its sequel, Naruto Shippūden: Ultimate Ninja Storm 2 was released in October of 2010.

An enhanced re-release was bundled in Naruto Shippūden: Ultimate Ninja Storm Trilogy/Legacy, for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Microsoft Windows. The game was once again re-released for the Nintendo Switch on April 26, 2018.

Gameplay
Naruto: Ultimate Ninja Storm retains many of the gameplay elements from earlier instalments of the Ultimate Ninja series. The game features cel-shaded graphics that "will break the barrier between anime and video game". Although there is no online play, downloadable content is available in the form of extra support characters, alternative costumes, and new missions. Unlike previous games, where players fight on a two-dimensional background, Ultimate Ninja Storm allows players to fight in a completely three-dimensional setting. The story mode loosely covers the events of the anime up to episode 135.

The outline of the game's controls are roughly the same as the prior 2D-plane-movement-based titles, only with notable differences:
 * All characters now move in complete omni-directional movement as aforementioned, but it is added with a revolutionized camera that covers a majority of angles that also can centre behind either character.
 * Characters can now dodge via a Ninja Move by fast-double-tapping the jump button while also choosing any direction, and holding the jump button down while doing so allows for continuous dodging while also being able to change directions each time. Ninja moving can only be done when at a certain early-frame-threshold that the user is considered to have left the ground, allowing this mechanic to be done during most short-hops.
 * However, to balance out the versatility of the ninja move, a victim getting attacked during its animation prevents them from using their Body Replacement Technique for that one attack connected upon them, as well as ninja moves having no invincibility frames of any sort in the first place.
 * Ninja moves if performed neutral without a thumbstick movement involved, will have the user automatically track towards their opponent.
 * In the air however, they can still perform the original midair lock-on dash towards their foe like in the original 2D-plane games, which is dubbed as a Ninja Dash. Ninja Dashes like their 2D-plane counterparts bounces the user off their foe upon connecting on either block or hit with no damage but the ability to followup with all other air actions.
 * Characters can now fight on walls if sent flying to them, and can fall off walls if hit with specific attacks that send them flying at certain angles. Standing on surfaces such as water is now visualised with blue chakra visuals on the characters' feet, and it no longer drains chakra slowly to maintain.
 * Attacks that send the victim airborne in a way will cause it so that the said victim now receives fall damage if they fail to tech/recover on time. Chakra spheres are dropped from the victim once this happens.
 * Characters now all have unique ninja tools done by using the D-Pad. In the normal battle modes, all characters have preset tools, while in the main story mode purchases at shops can be made to edit different ones onto the load. Each of the tools like in the 2D games, can have various effects.
 * Guards can now be broken if too much attacks are blocked, indicated by the guard circle aura going from blue to red, especially since the only action possible is to escape with a Body Replacement Technique or a Chakra Load-based action.
 * Upon being guard crushed, the victim is instantly stunned into a dizzied state where the only action is to call a support. For the duration of the stars circling around the victim's head, they cannot perform any other actions to escape at the opposition's mercy.
 * Characters can now assign one or two support ninja to the support buttons (L1 and R1 by default) to summon them for a brief attack before the warp off of the field which causes a cooldown period. For each support, the player can assign them to perform either a preset-basic attack combo or any of their array of jutsu to choose from (the latter is customise-able for both on-point characters and for supports).
 * Despite support characters having no HP, they can still be hit by incoming attacks to interrupt their actions, forming a meta of sorts around knowing when to call them in neutral, when under attack, or during offence.

And in regards to attacks, which no matter where they are performed from, will always lock-back onto their opposition (though they can still be dodged/whiffed):
 * Attack combos/strings are now reduced to 7 from 12 total (Circle button by default), via only having one combo/string done neutral with branching inputs (dubbed as "close-range attack"), one directional-tilt combo/string (dubbed as a "mid-range attack") and one midair combo/string. These moves also all have their own changes aside from most having new names different from the original 2D-plane titles to better fit their users' motifs:
 * Each character now has various inputs for their close-range attack strings that branch off into directional inputs from there, just like the prior title. However, the total button inputs normally now range to around 10 button inputs (with more or less depending on the character), with the basic forward combo being done with all neutral inputs, an upward launching combo done with up, and a downward combo with down (that can prevent the victim from teching/recovering). An example of this is Attack x6, then up + Attack x4 for a character's upward close-range attack finisher.
 * An expansion to this is now characters having a left-to-right base-string finisher that instead launches the opponent in a spiralling takeoff. During this time, pressing either respective support button allows for the support character to appear with a followup dunking attack for extra damage. However, the victim is able to use their support character to safely catch them from falling to the ground with a quick recovery if their support button input overrides the attacker's.
 * One direction/tilt combo is added which as aforementioned is dubbed as the "mid-range attack". These often have more various inputs, ranging from either 1 to 6 depending on the character. How this is actually performed is by simply first tap-tilting a direction on the left control stick, then pressing the attack button upon returning the thumbstick to neutral (as opposed to doing it while simultaneously full-tilting the stick).
 * One aerial combo/string for each character as opposed to 3 like in the 2D-plane titles. However, each character has a different finisher that sends the victim in various directions. However, aerial strings if inputted (regardless if part-way or fully) will disable all aerial actions until the user lands, making them risky to commit to if one attempts full aerial combat with landing lag taken into consideration.
 * Even then, all close-range string finishers save for the upward grounded one are all effectively combo-enders, making them ill-advised for offensive extension as more intricate cancel options described below are used on non-finisher string inputs.
 * A nod to the downward directional guard-break inputs in the 2D-titles is the OTG (On The Ground) attack, where it is an attack solely for hitting downed opponents next to the attacker whenever possible, though it can be rolled away from.
 * Throws are now done by holding down a guard button then combining it with the attack button. Throws are now indicated by an orange circle appearing on the character executing them, and they have fairly slow startup. Air throws are removed.
 * Each character also has an "Ultimate Impact", where if the player holds down the attack button, the character controlled will charge up a very powerful strike. If it hits, it zooms in on the opponent's face taking a heavy blow in a short, cinematic close-up, and also allows for more chakra spheres than usual to be dropped upon them hitting the ground if they fail to tech/recover (though it is a rather slow attack).
 * Ninja tool throws mapped to Square by default make a return, once more being able to hit downed foes. Most of them have somewhat faster startup than the original ninja tool throws back in the 2D-plane titles.

Characters can now hold the chakra button (Triangle by default) to charge up their chakra just like the prior manual chakra charge, which now also draws in nearby-dropped chakra spheres unlike in the 2D-plane games. A Chakra Load where the user dons a blue flaming aura is performed with a single button tap for a variety of followup input mechanics (and can be performed during any action of the user):
 * Pressing it with jump (X button default) while grounded enables the "Chakra Dash" function, which is a lock-on high speed dash that travels a set distance that costs some chakra but is able to dash through projectiles to hit the opposition for no damage-flinching/hitstun that opens up free combos if not blocked. Essentially, it is a chakra-cost-ground-based version of the original midair lock-on dash/ninja dash from the previous titles.
 * Pressing it with the attack button (Circle button default) allows for the character to perform their selected Jutsu (dubbed as a "U1" by the communities), akin to the up/down x2 + attack and/or secret techniques done in the original 2D-plane titles.
 * Using it with the ninja tool throw button (again, Square by default) performs a chakra-cost powered-up ninja tool throw, which varies for each character.
 * Pressing it with Triangle again would instead load up the character's "Ultimate Jutsu" (which is the series' version of the Secret Techniques from the original titles, and dubbed as a "U2" by the communities), and while in that state the attack button must be pressed again to unleash it. If it hits, both players either input button commands, mash a certain button, or spin the analogue stick the fastest during the time limit (again, akin to the button events of the original Secret Techniques). If the attacking character wins, the ultimate will hit, typically taking away around a third to a full bar of the opponent's health. If the defending character/victim wins, they will escape without major damage.

One of the new features introduced to the series in Ultimate Ninja Storm is "Awakening Mode", a transformation mode akin to the prior instalments but is instead activated on its own outside of Secret Techniques. It is done when a player loses a certain amount of health during a match, and starts to charge their chakra for a certain amount of time. The health requirement for each character differs based on how powerful the transformation is. Once activated, the character gains new abilities, speed, and stronger attacks. A few of the characters in the game gain entirely new movesets after transforming like in the 2D-titles, such as Naruto Uzumaki.

Another new powerup mechanic is the Storm Gauge, which is a gauge next to the portrait of the character that is filled up upon hitting the opponent with consecutive-unblocked-combos. Upon being full, attributes are increased for both the on-point character and their supports if they have any, while also refilling their chakra gauge instantly. As a throwback to the Level 1-to-3 Secret Techniques in the 2D-titles, a filled Storm Gauge also can increase the power of a connected Ultimate Jutsu.

Returning to the game from previous instalments is the "jutsu clash" mechanic, which is initiated if both players activate their special attack at the same time. During this mode, both players have to press the corresponding button as fast as possible in order to override their respective opposition's jutsu in the clash.

The game includes 25 playable characters, each of which can also be used as a support character during battle. Ten additional support-only characters were made available as free downloadable content. A new costume for Naruto is unlocked when all support characters are unlocked.

Other intricate mechanics include the ability to:
 * Cancel a basic combo/string via any of its grounded inputs into either:
 * A ninja dash at the lowest possible jump height (as the quick-double-tapping of the jump button must still be used, and single tapping the jump button does nothing).
 * Into a basic ninja tool throw, working as a slight lag cancel of sorts for some string inputs.
 * Using a chakra load during attacks as aforementioned can also allow one to cancel into chakra ninja tool throw and their Jutsu/U1 (but not into a Chakra Dash).
 * Cancelling a ninja move into a chakra-ninja-tool-throw, a standard Jutsu/U1, a grab (without the guarding animation occurring) or Ultimate Jutsu/U2. In some rare situations, this can allow them to likely cancel their ninja move state into either a frame-trap, or into a state where they can properly perform a Body Replacement Technique.

With these cancel mechanics in mind, at higher level play, the main focus normally comes to cancelling into and making full use of movement options as opposed to attempting an offence whenever possible; with how the Body Replacement carried over from the 2D titles works via low chakra cost, it becomes rather difficult to even fully be able to form more intricate combos let alone commit to a basic string without depleting the foe's escape resources.

Ninja tools thrown with Square in general can be used during short hops (which have a higher emphasis of use compared to the 2D-plane titles) for a form of movement-based zoning for all characters in the neutral (since stationary throws on the ground are considered to be risky and ninja moves have endlag), and as a way to extend blockstrings by cancelling them off of specific string inputs. Characters with more-lockdown-heavy chakra tool throws can make further use of this type of tactic to mixup into either a guard crush or a throw.

Short-hops like with all jumps, actually have 1 frame landing lag, albeit there are situations such as getting hit in midair without a knockdown state occurring, causes forced landing lag frames upon the victim in order to setup mixups and frame traps.

Support-Only Characters

 * Asuma Sarutobi
 * Kurenai Yūhi
 * Shizune
 * Anko Mitarashi
 * First Hokage
 * Second Hokage
 * Sakon
 * Tayuya
 * Kidōmaru
 * Jirōbō

Bosses

 * Gamabunta
 * Shukaku
 * Manda

Story Mode Support Characters

 * Katsuyu
 * Gamabunta

Playable Stages

 * Training Field
 * Forest of Death
 * Chūnin Exams Preliminary Arena
 * Chūnin Exams Stadium
 * Lookout Tower
 * Konohagakure Forest
 * Grassy Waves Prairie
 * Dusk Sky Prairie
 * Valley of the End

Reception
Naruto: Ultimate Ninja Storm recieved generally positive reviews. IGN awarded it a rating of 8.4/10 meaning "great", praising the fluidity of its graphics and describing the visuals as "phenomenal. Gamespot gave it a 7.5/10, meaning "good", praising its boss battles calling them the highlight of Ultimate Mission Mode and criticising it saying that the village sequences are boring and online play is absent. GameStop awarded the game an 8.1/10.

Trivia

 * The following characters can do jutsu clashes if customised with the right jutsu: Naruto (including his awakening), Sasuke (including his awakening), Kakashi, Neji, Guy, Chōji, Kiba, Jiraiya, and Tsunade.
 * In the game, Sakura's tight shorts are the wrong colour. In the anime and manga, they are blue, yet in the game, they're black. Also, the short colours are never fixed to the proper colour at all whenever Part I Sakura reappears in any Storm sequel she's in.
 * Despite that their different outfits have the same Ultimate Jutsu, the visuals of Naruto and Sasuke change depending on what outfit they have. When Naruto uses his Ultimate Jutsu, all his clones are awake and rush at the opponent, but if he uses his Pyjama outfit, the clones look sleepy and one clone actually lays on the ground snoring. When Sasuke uses his Ultimate Jutsu, the curse mark slowly appears on the left side of his face and changes his left eye, reverting back at the end, but if he wears his Chūnin Exams outfit, the curse mark doesn't appear.
 * Out of all the DLC support characters, only Anko, Kurenai, and Shizune would go on to stay as support-only characters in future Storm sequels. Asuma would become playable in Storm 2, the First Hokage and Second Hokage in Generations, and the Sound 4 as DLC in Storm 4.
 * The story mode is very similar to that of Naruto: Ultimate Ninja 3. It allows players to freely roam around Konoha, it has the ability to throw shuriken, and players track down characters for missions.
 * In the story mode, Naruto can use "Naruto Cannon", a technique that lets Naruto to summon a clone and send him far distances without having to run. This ability is able to be used everywhere except for two areas; when you are on a wall-climbable part of a building or on the Hokage Residence, on the wooden roof level where the kanji symbol for is. Although the option of Naruto Cannon is available, it won't work for some odd reason. However, unlike the climbable wall, Naruto can still glow blue with chakra when on the roof.
 * An interesting fact about Naruto Cannon, however, is that when it's executed, the real Naruto is the one throwing the clone far distances, yet the camera follows the clone's perspective once he lands. So in a sense, once performed, the player would therefore be following a shadow clone of Naruto around the village instead of the real one. This becomes more jarring, as if the technique is performed again, it would be a shadow clone creating another clone, and repeating the process.
 * When roaming around Konoha, there are tiny little gumball machines that are located as background designs all around the village. On the machines, despite the blurry quality, they show various artworks of Naruto merchandise, such as from video games, trading cards, and movie posters.
 * When Naruto hits his opponent with his ultimate jutsu, the opponent falls back and lands slouched, looking at Naruto. However, this does not happen if this ultimate jutsu hits Temari. Because she is the only female who is wearing a skirt, it shows her facing a different direction so players don't see underneath her clothing. This also continues on as she is the only one facing a different direction at the end where the opponent is slammed into the ground.
 * In the Strategy Guide for the game, in Kabuto's bio, it references his participation in the plot of the Naruto Wii game, Naruto: Clash of Ninja Revolution 2, and mentions the game original characters Kagura and Bando. This may be because Revolution 2 came out a little more than two weeks before Storm.
 * Despite a lot of it being cut from the final release, the trailers of the game showed that many different features were presented, such as characters having different animations for combos and jutsus, the ability to wall jump off walls during a match, and different possible stages like the streets of Konoha and near the body of water at the bottom of the Valley of the End.
 * One of the biggest complaints against the campaign of the game was that part of Prologue — Land of Waves was completely skipped, and that Zabuza and Haku were not added into the game, despite having a big role in the Part I series. They and their story would be added to Naruto Shippūden: Ultimate Ninja Storm Generations.
 * Naruto's sideways/left-or-right combo finisher during one of its portions references the four punch-into-kick combo performed on Sasuke in their first Valley of the End fight in the anime, which was referenced beforehand in Sasuke's Secret Technique cinematic for the Peregrine Falcon Drop back in Ultimate Ninja 3.
 * Similarly, part of the beginning portion of Sasuke's combos where he executes a spinning back kick into a sweeping crouch kick references what he does in the first anime opening of Naruto when he and Squad 7 are fighting a group of bandits.
 * Kakashi's sideways/left-or-right combo finisher in this game coincidentally is the same name of the famed "Tsubame Gaeshi" (Swallow Return/Reversal) technique done by the famed historical samurai, Sasaki Kojirō.