Naruto Shippuden : Ultimate Ninja Storm 2 (Platinum)

🎮 Basic Info

• Title: Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm 2

• Platform: PlayStation 3 (also Xbox 360) 

• Developer / Publisher: CyberConnect2 / Namco Bandai  

• Release Year: 2010 (late 2010 in most regions) 

🧭 Story / Setting

• The story follows the Naruto Shippuden anime/manga plot from the point where Naruto returns to the Village Hidden in the Leaves (after training), through his battles against the Akatsuki, the Pain arc, etc. 

• It covers major arcs from Shippuden — up to and including the confrontation with Pain, and includes transformations like Sage Mode Naruto. 

🕹 Gameplay Mechanics

Combat & Battles

• Battles are 3D fought in arenas rather than 2D, with full movement around the field. 

• Each character has a basic moveset, jutsu attacks, melee combos, chakra-based abilities. You build up special meters to execute more powerful Jutsu. 

• Awakening Mode: When certain conditions are met (usually when your health is low), many characters can enter an awakened state, which changes their appearance or grants new/different moves. 

Support Mechanics

• You have support characters (two per battle) who assist you. In Storm 2, they introduced more flexibility: you can choose a support type (Attack / Guard / Balanced) which affects how they behave. 

• There's also a Support Drive mechanic: after summoning supports enough (or based on gauge), they can act automatically depending on their type. 

Arenas & Interactivity

• The game includes a number of interactive or destructible stages/maps (sometimes the environment shows damage during battle) 

• Also features cinematic boss battles, some with quick-time-event (QTE) sequences in story mode. 

⚙️ Modes & Features

• Story Mode: Plays through the big Shippuden arcs. Allows you to relive key moments of the anime with cutscenes and boss fights. 

• Free Battle Mode: Standard versus battles with customizable rules; pick any unlocked character and fight a friend or CPU. 

• Online Multiplayer: For the first time in the Storm series, Storm 2 included real online versus battles. Ranked matches, match customization, leaderboards. 

🎨 Presentation

• Visuals: The game uses strong anime-inspired graphics with cel-shading. Very faithful to the anime in art style; characters and environments are richly detailed. 

• Sound & Voice: Includes both Japanese and English voiceovers with soundtracks matching the Naruto Shippuden style. 

• Arenas: Many famous locations from Naruto — Hidden Leaf Village, rain village, forests, etc. Story mode also has exploratory elements in 2.5D hub segments. 

📝 Strengths & Weaknesses

What the game does well:

• Very satisfying combat system with depth (Awakening, supports, jutsu combos).

• Great fan service: it captures many of the major scenes of the Naruto Shippuden saga in a visually appealing way.

• Strong aesthetics and faithful recreation of the anime’s look and feel.

• Online mode added replayability beyond just the story.

What some criticisms are:

• Some parts of story mode abridged or compressed, not all side material from the anime is included. 

• The hub/exploration segments aren’t as expansive as players might expect (less free-roam compared to some earlier elements). 

• Some balance issues in multiplayer, especially with awakened characters being very powerful.

✅ Summary

Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm 2 is a high-quality anime-based fighting game on the PS3 that brings together beautiful visuals, strong combat mechanics, and a story drawn from a beloved part of Naruto’s journey. It’s especially appealing if you’re a fan of the Shippuden series, or you enjoy 3D arena fighters with flashy attacks and cinematic flair.