Naruto: The Broken Bond
Encyclopedia
Naruto: The Broken Bond is an adventure
game developed by Ubisoft Montreal
and published by Ubisoft
for the Xbox 360
. It was released on November 18, 2008 in North America.
The Broken Bond picks up where Naruto: Rise of a Ninja left off, taking place between episodes 81-135 of the anime. It contains the Return of Itachi, Search for Tsunade, and the Sasuke Retrieval story arcs. There are 30 playable characters, a new tag-team system and original voice acting and music from the original Naruto
anime.
The environments were a big part of the first game and one of the things they wanted to make sure was that the environments in The Broken Bond would support the exploration factor by being very “rich and dense.” The lighting of the game was improved to complement the dynamic story, adding a new casting system, allowing the creation of maps with a more watercolor feel. Unlike the previous game, where the cutscenes were 2D, The Broken Bond now has 3D cinematics. There are also a lot more NPCs. Within the adventure mode, there are now over 70 unique character models.
The developers for The Broken Bond have also decided to keep the multiplayer system like Rise of a Ninja, but have improved upon it in several ways. The online format has been overhauled with a new ranking system, the fighting system has been greatly tweaked, and there are now 30 characters to choose from, 28 different characters and 3 bonus variations of Naruto, Sasuke and one for Itachi.
awarded the game 7.0 out 10 and said "The saving grace of this package is the fighting modes".http://uk.gamespot.com/xbox360/action/narutothebrokenbond/review.html?om_act=convert&om_clk=gssummary&tag=summary%3Bread-review IGN
awarded the game 8.3 out of ten and said "Much of Broken Bond improves on Rise of a Ninja, but there are a few areas that seem worse."http://uk.xbox360.ign.com/articles/931/931363p2.html
The website Total Video Games awarded it 9 out of ten.http://www.totalvideogames.com/Naruto-Broken-Bond/review-13487.html
Games Master UK awarded the game 81% and said that the game is "Not great for newcomers, but the ideal follow up to "Rise of a Ninja's" abrupt finish". X360 Magazine UK and Official Xbox Magazine both awarded the game 80%. The game has an 80% rating on metacritic. http://www.metacritic.com/games/platforms/xbox360/narutothebrokenbond
Adventure
An adventure is defined as an exciting or unusual experience; it may also be a bold, usually risky undertaking, with an uncertain outcome. The term is often used to refer to activities with some potential for physical danger, such as skydiving, mountain climbing and or participating in extreme sports...
game developed by Ubisoft Montreal
Ubisoft Montreal
Ubisoft Montreal is a Canadian video game developer owned by French publisher Ubisoft.Ubisoft's North American studio is located in Montreal, Quebec...
and published by Ubisoft
Ubisoft
Ubisoft Entertainment S.A. is a major French video game publisher and developer, with headquarters in Montreuil, France. The company has a worldwide presence with 25 studios in 17 countries and subsidiaries in 26 countries....
for the Xbox 360
Xbox 360
The Xbox 360 is the second video game console produced by Microsoft and the successor to the Xbox. The Xbox 360 competes with Sony's PlayStation 3 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation of video game consoles...
. It was released on November 18, 2008 in North America.
The Broken Bond picks up where Naruto: Rise of a Ninja left off, taking place between episodes 81-135 of the anime. It contains the Return of Itachi, Search for Tsunade, and the Sasuke Retrieval story arcs. There are 30 playable characters, a new tag-team system and original voice acting and music from the original Naruto
Naruto
is an ongoing Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Masashi Kishimoto. The plot tells the story of Naruto Uzumaki, an adolescent ninja who constantly searches for recognition and aspires to become the Hokage, the ninja in his village who is acknowledged as the leader and the strongest of...
anime.
Development
The game was first revealed at the E3 2008 Convention, although work on it had started before the release of the first game. According to team member Masao Kobayashi, the developers wanted to bring something new to the franchise but still keeping the same feel of the anime that the first game had. The art direction of the sequel was definitely one of the biggest factors taken into consideration for the development of this new game.The environments were a big part of the first game and one of the things they wanted to make sure was that the environments in The Broken Bond would support the exploration factor by being very “rich and dense.” The lighting of the game was improved to complement the dynamic story, adding a new casting system, allowing the creation of maps with a more watercolor feel. Unlike the previous game, where the cutscenes were 2D, The Broken Bond now has 3D cinematics. There are also a lot more NPCs. Within the adventure mode, there are now over 70 unique character models.
The developers for The Broken Bond have also decided to keep the multiplayer system like Rise of a Ninja, but have improved upon it in several ways. The online format has been overhauled with a new ranking system, the fighting system has been greatly tweaked, and there are now 30 characters to choose from, 28 different characters and 3 bonus variations of Naruto, Sasuke and one for Itachi.
Reception
Naruto: The Broken Bond received positive reviews from critics. GamespotGameSpot
GameSpot is a video gaming website that provides news, reviews, previews, downloads, and other information. The site was launched in May 1, 1996 by Pete Deemer, Vince Broady and Jon Epstein. It was purchased by ZDNet, a brand which was later purchased by CNET Networks. CBS Interactive, which...
awarded the game 7.0 out 10 and said "The saving grace of this package is the fighting modes".http://uk.gamespot.com/xbox360/action/narutothebrokenbond/review.html?om_act=convert&om_clk=gssummary&tag=summary%3Bread-review IGN
IGN
IGN is an entertainment website that focuses on video games, films, music and other media. IGN's main website comprises several specialty sites or "channels", each occupying a subdomain and covering a specific area of entertainment...
awarded the game 8.3 out of ten and said "Much of Broken Bond improves on Rise of a Ninja, but there are a few areas that seem worse."http://uk.xbox360.ign.com/articles/931/931363p2.html
The website Total Video Games awarded it 9 out of ten.http://www.totalvideogames.com/Naruto-Broken-Bond/review-13487.html
Games Master UK awarded the game 81% and said that the game is "Not great for newcomers, but the ideal follow up to "Rise of a Ninja's" abrupt finish". X360 Magazine UK and Official Xbox Magazine both awarded the game 80%. The game has an 80% rating on metacritic. http://www.metacritic.com/games/platforms/xbox360/narutothebrokenbond