The Naruto franchise isn’t slowing down anytime soon. These ninjas print money, and between a new spinoff series, live stage productions, and more, we won’t be seeing the last of this iconic yellow-haired shinobi anytime soon. Now, fans can expect another spinoff project to give them even more exciting jutsu-fueled fun in the form of a brand new mobile game.
Mars Games has announced a publishing deal to bring the GameSamba developed smartphone game Naruto: Slugfest to iOS and Android globally this spring. The game will be free to download, with optional in-app purchases. Pre-registering for the game now will net you some juicy in-game rewards once the title launches and you log-in. Most interestingly of all, the game is described as the “first-ever 3D MMORPG Naruto mobile game” by Mars Games.
The company describes the full Naruto: Slugfest experience as follows:
Naruto: Slugfest lets players step into Naruto’s anime world, brought to life in a rich 3D open world rendering that encourages players to explore in every nook and cranny as well as experiencing animated in-game cutscenes with the original voice actors. As Naruto returns home to the Hidden Leaf Village after training with Jiraiya, he is ready for action, allowing players to immerse themselves in the journey of Naruto fighting alongside his friends as they travel through the Shippuden Arcs. The story can be enjoyed with others using the game’s Running Commentary function to leave comments and reactions for other players.
There are four different character classes for players to choose from in Naruto: Slugfest: the Earth Keeper, the Blazing Lotus, the Thunder Assassin, and the Wind Shooter. You won’t be stuck playing as original custom characters, though. The Partner and Recruitment System in the game will let you bring your favorite characters from the franchise onto your team to help out in battle. The full game has a Story Mission campaign inspired by the original Naruto Shippuden story, as well as Team Missions, Chunin Missions, Ninja Scrolls, Tower Missions, and Guild Wars. The game is also rendered to look as close to the series as possible with “advanced cartoon rendering.”
This isn’t the first anime game to be developed by GameSamba. The company previously partnered with Funimation, Chinese game developer NGames Interactive, and Japanese publisher Kodansha to develop and release Fairy Tail: Hero’s Journey for web browsers. GameSamba also announced plans for another Fairy Tail game in February 2016. Additionally, the studio released Tokyo Ghoul: Dark Water for smartphones in January of 2018.
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