Naruto: Ultimate Ninja 3 ships to North America

via IGN

Namco Bandai Games America Inc., announced today a trifecta of ninja news as Naruto: Ultimate Ninja 3 ships to North American retail stores, Naruto: Ultimate Ninja 2 garners Greatest Hits status, and Naruto: Ultimate Ninja will be available for only a limited time. Exclusively for the PlayStation 2 computer entertainment system, the Ultimate Ninja franchise has consistently delivered heart-pumping action, new innovative features and enhancements with each iteration. Aspiring ninja can compete in fierce hand-to-hand combat or use deadly ranged weapons in order to become the greatest ninja of all with these three classics.

Naruto: Ultimate Ninja 3 perfects the art of anime fighting games with a host of 'firsts' for the series along with more than 40 playable characters, 20 stages and brand new jutsu to bring opponents to their knees. Players will be able to re-live the character defining battles of story arc one in Hero's History mode and customize their characters with Ultimate Jutsu. Dominate the battlefield by turning into a powerful ninja of unprecedented size or summon giant creatures as allies in the new Summoning mode. An all-new original story will have players exploring a massive 3D rendered Hidden Leaf Village, participating in battle royale matches and competing in more than 55 unique missions. Furthermore, Naruto fans throughout North America will be able to experience the game in both English and original Japanese voice over.

Naruto: Ultimate Ninja 2 follows its predecessor's footsteps to capture PlayStation 2 system's Greatest Hits status with the game's critically acclaimed fighting engine, feature-rich content and easy to pick up and play style. In Naruto: Ultimate Ninja 2, the orange jumpsuit hero continues his relentless pursuit of becoming Hokage of the Hidden Leaf Village. Fans will experience hours of intense combat with over 60 challenging missions to complete and the ability to play as one of over 30 popular ninja. Participate in one of the series' pivotal moments such as Naruto's showdown against Gaara, or unlock an original storyline in Ultimate Road. Customize characters' strength, chakra, and special abilities to unleash powerful attacks during head-to-head battles, and sharpen fighting techniques in Iruka's Training mode.

The game that started it all, Naruto: Ultimate Ninja, features blazing ninja battles that bring the colorful anime series to life. Available for a limited time only, players can experience the franchise's first meticulous re-creation of the characters engaged in fierce ninjutsu combat. A variety of ninja fighting techniques are at player's disposal, including ranged weapon attacks and close combat moves. Naruto: Ultimate Ninja's array of game modes allows players to follow their favorite character's storyline, accomplish specific missions or battle it out against a friend. With tons of unlockable content including movies, music and cards, Naruto: Ultimate Ninja will offer loads of replay value.

Naruto: Ultimate Ninja 3 is rated "T" for Teen by the ESRB and carries a suggested MSRP of $39.99. Naruto: Ultimate Ninja and Ultimate Ninja 2 are also rated "T" for Teen by the ESRB and carry a suggested MSRP of $19.99. Don't miss this opportunity to own the entire collection and to relive the series from the beginning while supplies last of Naruto: Ultimate Ninja. For more information on the Naruto: Ultimate Ninja series, please visit: http://www.namcobandaigames.com or www.naruto.com