Naruto: Ninja Destiny is quite a surprise. It's openly an attempt by D3 and Dream Factory to pretty up a disappointing Japanese Naruto game -- the surprising thing is that it worked. Screens and trailers don't convey the shockingly beautiful graphics, which run at a constant 30 fps. Developer Dream Factory upped the framerate and changed the graphical style to a more cel-shaded look for the American release. It worked! I don't usually have much motivation to be personally interested in a Naruto game, but I was somewhat convinced by the appearance.

As for the gameplay, it's an openly mash-friendly 3D fighter, controlled with the d-pad and buttons. There are two attack buttons, a jump, and a special "jutsu" attack that uses energy from the chakra meter. The jutsu attacks are these huge flashy sequences of attacks. The touch screen holds a random assortment of recovery and booster items that restore health, chakra, and also have other in-game effects.

The game comes out next week, so we don't have long to wait until we find out if longterm play is as fast-paced and fun as it is in brief gameplay sessions.