Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm 4 is getting ready to hit PlayStation 4 and Xbox One tomorrow, and it’s bringing the latest great ninja war with it. The fourth, and final, entry in the series looks to be the biggest one yet. There are some new features that will transform how you battle it out with the other 100+ shinobi in the game.
World Interaction
Ultimate Ninja Storm 4 allows players to interact with stages now in ways they were never able to before. The biggest change is that you will be able to run on walls. This alters the way you fight by adding new Jutsu to your arsenal and just looking really cool.
The next is destruction. Previous Ultimate Ninja Storm games allowed for players to tear apart the world. Ultimate Ninja Storm 4, however, allows you to blow up background buildings, scorch the floor, cause tiny explosions, and more. This is solely an aesthetic addition, though, since none of these actions affect gameplay whatsoever.
Elemental Damage
The shinobi of Naruto Shippuden use elements to bolster their attacks. Blades made of pure electricity, fireballs, dragons made out of water, and more are part of your typical ninja’s repertoire. Before, they were just attacks that looked cool and did a decent amount of damage, but now they actually have extra mechanics.
In Ultimate Ninja Storm 4 they actually have added effects that you can use as part of your strategy. Fire will deal damage overtime, and your opponent will actually have to put out the flames in order to rid themselves of the threat. Lightning can be buffed by the presence of water and even add some range to your attack. These are subtle additions that really add to the intensity of the fight.
Everyone is Powerful Again
After the first game, only certain ninjas were able to pull off certain feats. Ultimate Jutsu, awakened states, and more were limited to people like Naruto and other major characters with everyone else having a pretty basic setup. In Ultimate Ninja Storm 4 all characters have Ultimate Jutsu, awakened states, and can even perform team links (although not all have a special team link).
This makes every single character a viable option while on the fighter select screen. That clear line of who to use and who not to use has been blurred in the best of ways. No more having to rely on the most popular shinobi, just choose your favorite and go to war.
Armor, Guarding, and Counter Attacks
Counter attacks and guarding have received some changes to keep players from taking advantage of them. They’re still quite useful for getting out of a pinch. Counter attacks will send your opponent flying after a perfect guard instead of locking them in a stun. This gives the aggressive player a chance to stay in the fight while still providing the defender a window of opportunity.
Armor is worked into the deal by being able to be broken now. Continue a physical onslaught and you’ll be able to tear through armor and clothing, drastically decreasing your opponent’s defense.
Best 2 Out of 3
Fights can be set to best out of 3 if you’d like, but they work a bit differently from how they do in most fighting games. After winning a round, the loser will receive a full health gauge and both parties’ Storm and Chakra gauges receive a top up.
The winner, however, stays at their health from when they won. That means if you destroyed your opponent with only a sliver of life left, that’s what you’re stuck with. It’s an interesting way of doing things, and it will certainly provide some bragging rights to those who can dominate without ever losing a round.
Leader System
This is easily the biggest addition to the series of all. The Leader system completely changes how you will choose your support characters. Just like in previous entries, Ultimate Ninja Storm 4 will ask you to choose your main fighter and up to two support characters. You’ll start the battle as you always would, able to call in support for a quick jutsu to get you out of a bad spot as you push for victory.
You don’t have to use them as support only, though. When they’re charged up you can instead use the right thumbstick to switch to one of them, swapping your main fighter to support and allowing you to fight with one of the other characters. This will allow players to build a balanced team that they can use to extend combos and prepare for any situation instead of relying on the strongest support jutsu.
These additions all add a bit more depth to Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm 4 and bring the final game to its full potential.
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