Naruto: Clash of Ninja MVZ Announced for Wii

Wii

March 13, 2007, 8:46 am EDT
Total comments: 28

Set to release in fall 2007, this new fighter features interactive enviroments and new characters.

TOMY and D3Publisher of America Announce NARUTO Fighting Game for Nintendo’s Wii System; Game to Feature Original Content Created for North America

LOS ANGELES--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The rumors have been confirmed, but they were only the tip of the iceberg! TOMY Corporation and D3Publisher of America, Inc. (D3PA) today announced the upcoming release of NARUTO™: Clash of Ninja™ MVZ (working title) for Wii™ -- a head-to-head fighting game with content created exclusively for the North American market! Anticipated to ship in Fall 2007, NARUTO: Clash of Ninja™ MVZ is based on episodes from VIZ Media’s hit anime series SHONEN JUMP™ NARUTO and will include characters that have never been featured in the hit Clash of Ninja game series. The game will take advantage of the Wii Remote™ in fast-paced ninja action for up to four players in nine different gameplay modes.

“For some time we have wanted to give NARUTO fans in North America something they could not find anywhere else, and in NARUTO: Clash of Ninja MVZ we have a game with original, exclusive content that will amaze them," said Mark Shinohara, executive vice president, TOMY Corporation. “For TOMY, 2007 and the release of NARUTO: Clash of Ninja MVZ will mark a significant milestone in not only our relationship with D3PA, but in TOMY’s expansion in the video game industry."

“NARUTO proved to be a significant brand on the Nintendo GameCube™ in 2006 staying near the top of the sales charts from the release of the first Clash of Ninja in March 2006, to the release of the second Clash of Ninja game in September 2006 and through the holiday season," said Careen Yapp, vice president of licensing and business development, D3PA. “NARUTO: Clash of Ninja MVZ will take advantage of this exciting new entertainment platform and will reach out to a whole new audience for NARUTO."

The next generation in NARUTO games will include all new character animations, new special attack animations and for the first time new interactive environments. Developed by Eighting, NARUTO: Clash of Ninja MVZ takes advantage of the Wii system by allowing players to launch attacks with the Wii Remote using Ninja-like movements, and features special mini-games created exclusively for use with the Wii Remote.

NARUTO: Clash of Ninja MVZ will include 14 characters -- including some that have yet to be featured in the Clash of Ninja game series. The fast-paced ninja action for up to four players will have nine different gameplay modes including Story Mode, Single Player and Multiplayer modes.

Talkback

PaleMike Gamin, Contributing EditorMarch 13, 2007

I'm still pretty confused by this. Can someone with knowledge of the Japanese Clash of Ninja games (Blood, Ty, Karl, etc.) get in here and tell us if they still think this is just Clash of Ninja 3. Is it possible they skipped right to 4?

BloodworthDaniel Bloodworth, Staff AlumnusMarch 13, 2007

The number of characters is throwing me off. CON3 has 24 characters and CON4 has 30. This game has 14? That doesn't make sense to me at all.

that Baby guyMarch 13, 2007

That very strange. It actually looks like a new game exclusively for the US. I can't see what advantage this offers for them, when we don't have the last two CoN games here, though this could be a mix of the two, minus basically half the characters, which still doesn't make sense. There's no need to skip over CoN 3 or CoN 4 consider theres still over 100 episodes of filler before Shipuuden, right? Maybe this is an in-between game, to nail down some Wii features that will be involved in 3 and 4. Heck, there's more than 14 characters in CoN 2, so fourteen just makes no sense, unless they plan to make this a value game, and then use parts they developed for this on the other two titles.

KDR_11kMarch 13, 2007

Interactive environments weren't in 3 unless you mean "walls you can be comboed into" with that.

anubis6789March 13, 2007

To me it sounds like they are just porting EX and skipping 3 and 4, as weird as that sounds, because EX has 14 characters and obstacles littered about the ring.

I don't really follow Naruto (I just like the GCN games) but I did not think that the series, manga or anime, had gotten anywhere near Shipuuden yet, which makes this sound really strange. I wonder what is going on.

that Baby guyMarch 13, 2007

Well, knowing now that EX has 14 characters, it sounds to me like they are going to take EX, switch the characters around, modify the cutscenes, and make a new story up. I think that makes sense.

nickmitchMarch 13, 2007

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Originally posted by: thatguy
That very strange. It actually looks like a new game exclusively for the US. I can't see what advantage this offers for them, when we don't have the last two CoN games here, though this could be a mix of the two, minus basically half the characters, which still doesn't make sense. There's no need to skip over CoN 3 or CoN 4 consider theres still over 100 episodes of filler before Shipuuden, right? Maybe this is an in-between game, to nail down some Wii features that will be involved in 3 and 4. Heck, there's more than 14 characters in CoN 2, so fourteen just makes no sense, unless they plan to make this a value game, and then use parts they developed for this on the other two titles.

There are only 85 episodes of filler. (136-220) Get your facts straight.

BloodworthDaniel Bloodworth, Staff AlumnusMarch 13, 2007

lol, only

odifiendMarch 13, 2007

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Originally posted by: TVman
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Originally posted by: thatguy
That very strange. It actually looks like a new game exclusively for the US. I can't see what advantage this offers for them, when we don't have the last two CoN games here, though this could be a mix of the two, minus basically half the characters, which still doesn't make sense. There's no need to skip over CoN 3 or CoN 4 consider theres still over 100 episodes of filler before Shipuuden, right? Maybe this is an in-between game, to nail down some Wii features that will be involved in 3 and 4. Heck, there's more than 14 characters in CoN 2, so fourteen just makes no sense, unless they plan to make this a value game, and then use parts they developed for this on the other two titles.

There are only 85 episodes of filler. (136-220) Get your facts straight.

Not to mention that stupid race garbage... that's probably right around 100. 100 episodes of filler in an anime that lasts 220 episodes is so ridiculous. What does MVZ stand for anyway?

that Baby guyMarch 13, 2007

Sorry, I meant that there were over 100 episodes until we reached where Japan was, I didn't mean to put that they were all fillers.

blackfootstepsMarch 13, 2007

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Originally posted by: Bloodworth
The number of characters is throwing me off. CON3 has 24 characters and CON4 has 30. This game has 14? That doesn't make sense to me at all.

GNT 3 has 29 characters and GNT 4 has 39 characters. A drop to 14 is bizarre seeing as Naruto, Sakura, Sasuke and Kakashi are certainties, making the character list pretty boring I'd reckon. At least in EX the timeskip characters have changed a little (although 14 is still too few). In a game like Naruto as many characters as possible is the key, it helps the party game atmosphere. Take the number of characters in 4 with the selection screen of 3 and you have a winner.

It sounds like it is easier to rebadge EX with new characters than to port GNT 3 to Wii. The North American fans are either going to miss out on many new characters or are going to get milked badly. With maybe 6 CoN games to make up the original 4 GNTs.

BloodworthDaniel Bloodworth, Staff AlumnusMarch 13, 2007

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GNT 3 has 29 characters and GNT 4 has 39 characters.

Oh my bad. I just counted the ones on the back of the box. I forgot all the unlockables weren't listed.

nickmitchMarch 13, 2007

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Originally posted by: thatguy
Sorry, I meant that there were over 100 episodes until we reached where Japan was, I didn't mean to put that they were all fillers.

Thank you. I humbly accept your apology.

Karl Castaneda #2March 13, 2007

The worst thing about Naruto's huge filler arcs? They never translated the Kakashi Gaiden arc from the manga that serves as the intermediary between the timeskip. What a load of crap.

BloodworthDaniel Bloodworth, Staff AlumnusMarch 13, 2007

eh, I suspect that to come out as an ova or something. I'm sure they'll do it eventually. Remember one reason for the fillers and the new episodes being pitched as a new series is because of assets like character designs, key frames, and backgrounds. A lot of these elements are re-used over and over as much as possible and tweaked by the lower-level animators. Many of the assets in Kakashi Gaiden aren't shared with either series, so whoever's in charge probably wanted the lead artists to get the Shippuuden style locked before doing the side-story.

Jan-SuMarch 14, 2007

... Yeah, CON2 has 23 characters, so this game having only 14 doesn't make sense. I hope they meant to say 14 new characters.

So is this game supposed to be Naruto: Clash of Ninja 3? I hope they're not trying skip GNT3 and 4, or else fans here are gonna miss a lot. It's way too early to make CON: EX, as Naruto: Shippuden hasn't started here in North America yet. ... Naruto: Clash of Ninja MVZ; what is MVZ supposed to stand for anyway?

And just who is this News Posting Robot in the first place? Is it really a machine?

BloodworthDaniel Bloodworth, Staff AlumnusMarch 14, 2007

Yeah, it's just a program that automatically posts the articles from the site into the forums when we add them to the site. If you want to see who actually posted it or links to other information, you should view the article on the main page.

Jan-SuMarch 14, 2007

Anyway, I do have a Wii now, and even though they were thought to be put on the Wii, I was happy enough when it seemed they were going to bring GNT3 and 4 here. But I've looked around on a handful of other sites, and it seems more and more like GNT EX.

... I think I've just about lost all, if not, most of my hope and trust for Tomy and D3. Skipping GNT3 and 4? ... They've gone way too far. I'm now even thinking of returning my Wii (as I just bought it on Monday the 12th). I might as well get a Freeloader and skip ahead to GNT4...

nickmitchMarch 14, 2007

Doesn't Naruto have a new movie coming out this summer? That could be time for the Kakashi Gaiden arc.

KDR_11kMarch 14, 2007

It's not "too early" for GNT EX because they're not using Shipuuden content. I think it's good that they're making efforts to keep the game engines synced between Japan and the west because that means we don't get outdated gameplay. GNT's gameplay improves with every iteration and if we had to wait 2 years or so for each gameplay iteration to make it here we'd get a completely wrong image of the series, never mind importers will be encouraged to keep importing rather than buying locally.

Jan-SuMarch 17, 2007

The Taisen series never gets old, especially Taisen 4, which really kicks ass, lol! If I had it, I could play it all the time. I think it's probably even better than Smash Bros. Melee.

Does anyone here know where I can order a Freeloader and GNT4 by just money order? play-asia.com doesn't currently accept them, and even on ebay, you have to give some credit card information when starting up an account. My folks won't approve, but they do kind of have a point, you know, with all the identity theft, etc. going on...

BloodworthDaniel Bloodworth, Staff AlumnusMarch 17, 2007

You don't have to worry about identity theft from Play-Asia or NCSX. Ebay of course is user to user so you have to be smart about who you do business with and how you pay them.

KDR_11kMarch 17, 2007

You can use Play-Asia with Moneybookers, that's like Pay-Pal except regulated (i.e. safer).

Jan-SuMarch 27, 2007

I got it! I finally got a Taisen 4 and a Freeloader! I'm so glad now that I have one of the best GameCube games there ever is/was for myself!

And to think all the trouble this put me through. I was forced to buy a Wii, but after learning about this and how we might no longer be getting the original Taisen 3 and 4 here, I saw no need for it. And when I tried to return it to them, since I already opened it, they said they could only give me $150 worth of store credit. I lost more than $100 on that deal... but I'm not gonna make that same mistake again...

I actually read in an interview somewhere where they never said no to bringing the other GameCube titeles here, but that depends on whether our game stores will still stock 'Cube games. As that currently does not seem very likely, they're trying to focus on Nintendo's next system. So maybe it's not really the fault of Tomy and D3, it's our retailers. They probably think that nobody's buying 'Cube games as much anymore, and it'll cost them more to try to restock on them.

There has to be a way to get in touch with Tomy and D3; I can't be the only out there who's very displeased.

KDR_11kMarch 27, 2007

they said they could only give me $150 worth of store credit. I lost more than $100 on that deal... but I'm not gonna make that same mistake again...

Yeah, selling a console you just bought is probably the dumbest mistake you can do...

PaleMike Gamin, Contributing EditorMarch 27, 2007

The dumbest mistake may have been buying a console based on a confusing article in a single magazine that represented the ONLY reason you wanted the console.

BloodworthDaniel Bloodworth, Staff AlumnusMarch 27, 2007

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it's our retailers. They probably think that nobody's buying 'Cube games as much anymore, and it'll cost them more to try to restock on them.

I think retailers have a pretty good idea of what people are buying.

Jan-SuMarch 30, 2007

... Do you mean some consumers are still buying GameCube games? Personally, I don't think the GameCube will really be "dead" until by the end of 2008.

*sighs* Look, I actually have no problem with this game coming out. In fact, I think I might even have fun trying it, you know, with the Wii remote and all. It's just that I wish they'd still release the original Taisen 3 and 4 here.

Alright, I think I'm out of here for now, as to make sure anything doesn't cause any more "damage". I would've gone into a whole bunch of reasons why I think GNT3 and 4 should be brought to the U.S., and even why I think they should be for the 'Cube, not really the Wii (note: I'm actually still just as annoyed as I ever was), but it seems nothing I say or do is gonna make a difference. All I can do at this point is just hope that Tomy, D3, and our game stores come to their senses...

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