Like the previous title, Broken Bond is a 3D action game set in the Naruto universe, but picking up from the storylines featured in the anime and more or less carrying over where the first game left off. The story actually starts off and ends really strong, and it helps that this is one of the better arcs in the series (Naruto/Sasuke Fallout), and the in-game voice acting does a pretty good job of driving home the emotional scenes, but if you're not a fan of the English VA you can opt to switch to the Japanese voice track instead, this time without an optional download. Also, the story is told entirely thru the game engine, so there's no poor looking, standard definition anime scenes to break up the visual style of the game.

Throughout the majority of the game you'll control Naruto from the Leaf Village to various other points in the world, often times partaking in various tasks for villagers or engaging in missions to advance the story. Other characters'll typically accompany you as well, which you can switch between on the fly. Each character has a certain number of Jutsu (or special abilities) that they'll need to use to overcome obstacles and small puzzles along the way. These instances aren't particularly difficult though; so don't think of this as a heavy thinking game. Oftentimes the only trouble you'll run into will be using two powers together between characters, but even then the areas are designed to make use of particular abilities, so it's pretty easy to figure out what works. Unfortunately, the design of the forest that you're going through for the majority of the game is pretty bland, and oftentimes it feels really repetitive. It doesn't help that it's filled with generic enemies and traps, which just heightens the boredom level while you're stuck navigating it.

Hidden Leaf Village, on the other hand, is pretty grand. It's wide-open, lots of rooftops to run around on, and overall it's just more fun to explore. Of course, you'll need to actually do some exploring too, because there's a lot of fetch quests from villagers in this game. So much, that it completely wears on you over time, and you'll end up being pretty annoyed with it by the end of the game. The hardest part is always going to be the initial location of whatever you're trying to find, considering that the game only gives you a rudimentary idea of where stuff is hidden. There are some powers that characters possess that will help you locate things a bit better, but they're not always at your disposal.

However, when you get into the battles with the named characters in the game, it's here that the gameplay starts to shine. The battles are fast paced, pretty open, and definitely enjoyable. It would appear that the developers realize this is the strong suit of the game as well, since they add in a completely separate mode from the story that features just fighting, with up to 30 different characters involved. In the game you'll often engage in 3 vs. 3 battles, but offline and online you can fight in 2 on 2 matches, or even a tournament mode, which is actually a pretty fun way to pass some time online. The fighting system isn't nearly as involved as a straight up fighting title, and the moveset is somewhat limited, but it's still a lot of fun, and doesn't take an insane knowledge of fighters to get the hang of. Enemy AI feels particularly balanced in the single player mode, so you won't always get to dominate the matches either.

Visually this title is just as impressive, if not more so, than the original. The cel shaded animation style works incredibly well here, keeping the animation smooth and solid, with no real noticeable jagged lines, glitches, and overall framerate issues. Likewise, the soundtrack features tunes that are recognizable from the show, but also fit the fast paced style of the game quite well. Fans will definitely be pleased with the presentation, and it's the best representation the series has had on consoles so far.

It's not quite a perfect game, definitely, but it's the best Naruto game I've been able to play, and I'm glad to see steady improvements being made here. I'm hoping the next one will continue that trend, and I'd like to see a bit more emphasis made on the in-between fighting segments to help the overall gameplay feel a bit more balanced. Still, it's worth picking up, even if you're not a big fan of the cartoon, as the game itself is still fun to play without any real knowledge of the show. Check this one out, I don't think you'll be disappointed.