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TalkBack / RE:REVIEWS: Naruto: Clash of Ninja Revolution
« on: November 20, 2007, 05:20:30 AM »
The Clash of Ninja video game series in the U.S. ... ... A bittersweet story...
It started out well. Clash of Ninja and Clash of Ninja 2 were released on March 7, 2006 and September 26, 2006 respectively, following up the U.S. Naruto anime to where they were at those times. The first Clash, although quite simple and only containing 10 playable characters, was a still good overall introduction this games series and to the world of Naruto. The boring and repetetive six-month gap was finally broken with Clash of Ninja 2, which felt exponentially better than the first, containing 23 playable characters and the first 4-player mode in the series, just to name a few.
But all of it was suddenly cut short with the appearance of Nintendo's Wii console in November 2006. It seemed to have come from nowhere, as it was not very outwardly advertised all year, or the year before. Few would be able to accurately predict what dark times would befall the Clash of Ninja series next...
In February 2007, Japan released its Naruto Shippuden: Gekitou Ninja Taisen EX for the Wii in tribute to the premiere of the anime of Naruto Shippuden. D3 Publisher, the company that distributes the Clash of Ninja and Ninja Council series in the U.S., came up with the "revolutionary" *cough, cough* idea to take EX and rebuild it into the next Clash of Ninja game. Sure enough, later in the month, and a second time in mid-March, the news appeared on this very website announcing that there would be a third Clash of Ninja game, but it would not be for the GameCube and would be for the Wii instead...
This immediately sparked controversial outcries from many fans, hoping that Gekitou Ninja Taisen 3 and 4 would also be released in the U.S. . Several wrote to D3 Publisher trying to express their opinion and asking whether they would still be released in North America, but of to no avail. D3 only replied in subtle responses, cliffhangers, and cryptic messages, giving a sense of false hope and insincerity...
The months of 2007 dragged on, and more media and information was only appearing for the proposed game, Naruto: Clash of Ninja Revolution (formerly known earlier in the year by the working title, Naruto: Clash of Ninja MVZ). No public word from official sources ever came out concerning possibly bringing Clash of Ninja 3 to the U.S. . It was final when on October 23, 2007, only Naruto: Clash of Ninja Revolution was released.
This issue could very well be deemed as the worst anomaly of all the Naruto video games ever released in the U.S. . The entire Naruto fan community has both gained, and lost something this Autumn of 2007...
It started out well. Clash of Ninja and Clash of Ninja 2 were released on March 7, 2006 and September 26, 2006 respectively, following up the U.S. Naruto anime to where they were at those times. The first Clash, although quite simple and only containing 10 playable characters, was a still good overall introduction this games series and to the world of Naruto. The boring and repetetive six-month gap was finally broken with Clash of Ninja 2, which felt exponentially better than the first, containing 23 playable characters and the first 4-player mode in the series, just to name a few.
But all of it was suddenly cut short with the appearance of Nintendo's Wii console in November 2006. It seemed to have come from nowhere, as it was not very outwardly advertised all year, or the year before. Few would be able to accurately predict what dark times would befall the Clash of Ninja series next...
In February 2007, Japan released its Naruto Shippuden: Gekitou Ninja Taisen EX for the Wii in tribute to the premiere of the anime of Naruto Shippuden. D3 Publisher, the company that distributes the Clash of Ninja and Ninja Council series in the U.S., came up with the "revolutionary" *cough, cough* idea to take EX and rebuild it into the next Clash of Ninja game. Sure enough, later in the month, and a second time in mid-March, the news appeared on this very website announcing that there would be a third Clash of Ninja game, but it would not be for the GameCube and would be for the Wii instead...
This immediately sparked controversial outcries from many fans, hoping that Gekitou Ninja Taisen 3 and 4 would also be released in the U.S. . Several wrote to D3 Publisher trying to express their opinion and asking whether they would still be released in North America, but of to no avail. D3 only replied in subtle responses, cliffhangers, and cryptic messages, giving a sense of false hope and insincerity...
The months of 2007 dragged on, and more media and information was only appearing for the proposed game, Naruto: Clash of Ninja Revolution (formerly known earlier in the year by the working title, Naruto: Clash of Ninja MVZ). No public word from official sources ever came out concerning possibly bringing Clash of Ninja 3 to the U.S. . It was final when on October 23, 2007, only Naruto: Clash of Ninja Revolution was released.
This issue could very well be deemed as the worst anomaly of all the Naruto video games ever released in the U.S. . The entire Naruto fan community has both gained, and lost something this Autumn of 2007...