Next Generation Ninja Battles In Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm 4

Naruto finally hits the current gen consoles and its extra juice has allowed the game to look insanely fantastic. It truly is the next generation in ninja battles for Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm 4.

Naruto fans will know that for the manga side of things, the main series has already concluded and it was confirmed by the producer himself, Hiroshi Matsuyama that this will cover the finale, so could this truly be the final installment? If so they are definitely going out with a bang.

I was lucky enough to preview the upcoming game recently and had the chance to play through two different demos. One that involved a mind blowing battle between the first Hokage Hashirama and original Uchiha clan member, Madara. The second demo which takes places during the fourth great ninja war and sees you controlling the main characters summoning beasts.

Now before I get into the demo content itself, one thing I do want to mention is that the cell shaded style has always worked pretty well for the series looking solid even on the previous gen consoles, however now that I've seen what the game can look like on the PlayStation 4 (the console I previewed the game on), I don't think I can go back as the team has managed to bring it up to a completely new level. Colours are sharp, bold and pop with intensity. I'm sure they were talking about blurring the line between the game and anime with the previous releases, but I truly believe they've erased it completely this time.

Through the fire and the flames we carry on!

In terms of the gameplay, it's pretty much Naruto as you know it with the added addition of things running a lot more smoother this time around. Now I know the Naruto games are known for making those battles or moments look epic, and so the Hashirama vs. Madara battle didn't disappoint as it was (for lack of a better word) bat shit crazy. One moment I'm evading crazy fire tornado's being thrown at me by Madara in an attempt to get close to do some damage and the next I'm a giant wooden monster going up against Madara's final form in a battle that's causing lasting damage to the environment around me. Just give a general comparison and you can see that the team behind the game clearly put the time and effort into translating the source material over with great accuracy.

So that was the first demo, now the second involved a team summoning by our favourite main characters, Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura in which we use these monsters to cross the battlefield and reach the main body of the ten tails. This involved you playing as Naruto's summoning, frog boss Gamakichi as you find yourself taking down the ten tail's forces and avoiding its attacks. This part is a lot more full on action compared to the last, however it quickly switches to you grinding on the arms of the beast in an effort to reach the main. Once there we go into a beautifully animated quick time event which involves some careful teamwork from team 7 and Naruto and Sasuke combining their ultimate attacks to do some serious damage.

A frog wielding a sword and doing a flying kick?

Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm 4 is shaping up to be Cyber Connect's best installment yet and a true tribute to one of the best selling series in the world. The demo didn't really showcase the actual fighting gameplay in its usual arena based style, however all signs are looking positive and I personally can't wait to get my hands on it.

What did you think of Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm 4? Can't wait to duke it out? Let us know in the comments or hit me up on twitter - @TheLibanAli

Find us on the social networks:
http://www.facebook.com/weknowgamers
http://www.twitter.com/weknow_gamers