Naruto - Uzumaki Chronicles

Most Naruto games on the PS2 were versus fighters built around the Clash of Ninja template. Uzumaki Chronicles went another way, and that choice is the reason to look at it today. It is a third-person action game in which Naruto moves through 3D stages and hub areas, fights groups of enemies, and works through the early story in order.

The design leans on the anime's rhythms. Between missions you walk around Konoha, talk to characters, and pick up side tasks, which gives the village a sense of place that a menu-driven fighter never could. In the field, combat is built on light and heavy attacks, thrown kunai, and jutsu fed by chakra. Boss encounters bring in the series' bigger set pieces, and the game uses them to break up the routine of mob fighting.

It was made by Cavia and published by Namco Bandai, and you can see the budget in places. The environments are fairly plain, the camera can lose track of a fight, and the enemy variety runs thin over a long session. The combat is serviceable rather than deep. Mashing gets you most of the way through, and the more interesting options go underused because little demands them.

What it does have is fidelity to the source material. The cel-shaded look is close to the show, the story beats are recognisable, and the cast is voiced in a way fans of the time would have expected. Players who wanted to feel like they were inside the series, rather than picking a character for a duel, had few better options on the console.

It is a modest game with a clear idea, and it carries that idea further than its mechanics deserve. A fan of the early arcs will forgive the repetition, and everyone else will notice it quickly.