Emily Balistrieri
October 20, 2008 
Critics may have complained that Revolution brought a bit less newness to the Clash of the Ninja series than the title should indicate, but this time it doesn’t seem like they’ll be able to find a fault there. NARUTO: Clash of Ninja Revolution 2 is full of new features, not the least of which is the original (and approved, obviously) storyline taking place among the fillers before Shippuden. So far, CON Revolution 2 is the only Naruto fighting game to go beyond the anime plot we’re familiar with.
The character roster is 35 strong, with some new additions like 9 Tails Naruto and Second State Sasuke, as well as characters from the original plot such as a pair of Anbu agents, Komachi and Towa, and the new villains who include Bando and his boss, an as-of-yet unrevealed white haired girl.
Besides the story mode, players can fulfill over 300 missions with various objectives from making sure to hit a certain combo number, or avoiding certain moves. Of course, 2-4 player vs. is still the main long term draw. There’s also a new mode, Kumite, which basically throws a never-ending supply of fodder ninjas at you to test your survival capabilities.
Being an exclusively Wii game, CON Revolution 2 has an exclusively Wii control system, but luckily they recognize that we may not all feel like shaking to attack or using hand signs to regain, so the GameCube and Classic controllers are also supported. On an unrelated “support” note, you can look forward to 16:9 widescreen.
One major change is the advent of two-man squads, giving players the ability to swap out (with a 50% chakra cost, unless you’re taking cover.) Your teammate will regain chakra while they’re on the sideline, though, so if you can use half the bar for a fancy move and then swap out to recharge. They’ve also added nifty paper bombs. These work like proximity mines, with remote detonation, but you can also throw them directly at your opponent.
NARUTO: Clash of Ninja Revolution 2 may not hold too much appeal for gamers beyond the already Naruto-crazed, but those fans will probably want to give it a spin, if not to take advantage of all the significant new features adding to what was already a popular Wii fighting game, then at least to experience the new story arc.
Publisher: D3 Publisher/Tomy
Developer: Eighting
System: Nintendo Wii
Available: October 21, 2008
Rating: T
