I haven’t watched a single episode of Naruto in years, nor have I played any of the games in its series since a College acquaintance had bootlegged the first on the GameCube. I’ve long since grown tired of anime and its various archetypes that seem to exist in each and every show. Besides, I had already seen this show before. Only when I was a kid we called it Dragon Ball Z and it took itself much less seriously.

Yet to dismiss this game as a cheap cash in is to do it a grave injustice. No matter your feelings toward the series, the game itself is pretty solid. Anything you could want in a fighting game is there without being a carbon copy or imitation of a pre-existing franchise. In the end it is its very own entity, only related to the show in superficial ways.

The trickiest yet most important aspect of any fighting game is balance. We’ve reached an era where players not only want balance, but a large number of unique characters. No one wants imitations, but they also want every fighter to stand an equal chance against the other. Being based on an anime gives Naruto: CoNR3 a wide cast to choose from, as well as an opportunity for a variety of fighting styles. Fortunately for fans these characters are also all balanced out well. Even some of the more abnormal ones.

As an example, there are two characters that also use puppets in combat. These puppets can be used to absorb damage and even attack their opponent. This means a truly good player wielding these characters can deflect their opponent’s blows to the puppets while dealing great damage. However, to learn the characters so well when their play style is so different requires a great time investment. Even if you get good at the characters there are plenty of opportunities to be more vulnerable than any other. It’s a balancing act, and if you are ever pitted against a player that knows how to use such a character then your defeat comes at the cost of their own hours learning the required abilities.