Software:Naruto: The Broken Bond

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Short description: 2008 video game
Naruto: The Broken Bond
North American box art
Developer(s)Ubisoft Montreal
Publisher(s)Ubisoft
Designer(s)Daniel Bisson
Composer(s)Inon Zur
EngineJade
Platform(s)Xbox 360
Release
  • NA: November 18, 2008
  • AU: November 20, 2008
  • EU: November 21, 2008
Genre(s)Fighting, action-adventure
Mode(s)Single-player, multiplayer

Naruto: The Broken Bond is an action adventure game developed by Ubisoft Montreal and published by Ubisoft for the Xbox 360. It was released worldwide in November 2008. It is a sequel to the 2007 game Software:Naruto: Rise of a Ninja and is the second and final Naruto game to be published by Ubisoft before their rights to the IP expired.

The Broken Bond picks up where Software:Naruto: Rise of a Ninja left off, taking place between episodes 81-135 of the anime. It contains the Search for Tsunade and the Sasuke Retrieval story arcs as well as some flashbacks of the previous game. There are 30 playable characters, a new tag-team system and original voice acting and music from the original Naruto anime.

Development

The game was first revealed at the E3 2008 Convention, although work on it had started before the release of the first game. According to team member Masao Kobayashi, the developers wanted to bring something new to the franchise while still keeping the same feel of the anime that the first game had. The art direction of the sequel was definitely one of the biggest factors taken into consideration for the development of this new game.[1]

The environments were a big part of the first game, and one of the things they wanted to make sure was that the environments in The Broken Bond would support the exploration factor by being very “rich and dense”.[1] The lighting of the game was improved to complement the dynamic story, adding a new casting system and allowing the creation of maps with a more watercolor feel. Unlike the previous game, where the cutscenes were pre-rendered scenes from the anime, The Broken Bond now has 3D cinematics. There are also a lot more NPCs. Within the adventure mode, there are now over 70 unique character models.[1]

The developers for The Broken Bond have also decided to keep the multiplayer system like Rise of a Ninja but have improved upon it in several ways. The online format has been overhauled with a new ranking system, and the fighting system has been greatly tweaked. Also, there are now 30 characters to choose from, 28 different characters, one DLC character, and four bonus variations. The bonus variations were Taijutsu Jumpsuit Naruto Uzumaki, Anbu Itachi, Level 2 Curse Mark Sasuke Uchiha, and One-Tailed Fox Naruto; the DLC character was Chūnin Exams Sasuke.

This was the last Naruto game to be developed by Ubisoft before Namco Bandai decided to make the Ultimate Ninja Storm for multiplatform consoles instead of being a PlayStation 3 exclusive, starting with Software:Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm 2.

Reception

Reception
Aggregate score
AggregatorScore
Metacritic80/100[2]
Review scores
PublicationScore
1Up.comB−[3]
Game Informer8.25/10[4]
GameRevolutionB[5]
GameSpot7/10[6]
GameTrailers7.6/10[7]
GameZone8.2/10[8]
IGN8.3/10[9]
OXM (US)8/10[10]
PALGN7.5/10[11]
TeamXbox8/10[12]

The game received "favorable" reviews, more so than its predecessor, according to video game review aggregator Metacritic.[2]

Naruto: The Broken Bond was nominated for Best Game Based on a Movie or TV Show at 2008 Spike Video Game Awards, but lost to Software:Lego Indiana Jones: The Original Adventures. During the 12th Annual Interactive Achievement Awards, the Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences nominated Naruto: The Broken Bond for "Adventure Game of the Year" and "Outstanding Achievement in Adapted Story".[13]

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 "Naruto: The Broken Bond Xbox 360 Behind the Scenes - The Art Direction". IGN. October 15, 2008. http://www.ign.com/videos/2008/10/15/naruto-the-broken-bond-x360-the-art-direction. 
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 "Naruto: The Broken Bond for Xbox 360 Reviews". Metacritic. https://www.metacritic.com/game/naruto-the-broken-bond/critic-reviews/?platform=xbox-360. 
  3. ↑ Hayward, Andrew (December 9, 2008). "Naruto: The Broken Bond Review". 1UP.com. http://www.1up.com/reviews/naruto-broken-bond. 
  4. ↑ Reeves, Ben (January 2009). "Naruto The Broken Bond: A Refreshing Take On an Overexposed Anime". Game Informer (189). http://www.gameinformer.com/games/naruto_the_broken_bond/b/xbox360/archive/2009/09/23/review.aspx. Retrieved July 26, 2015. 
  5. ↑ Morse, Blake (January 27, 2009). "Naruto: The Broken Bond Review". Game Revolution. http://www.gamerevolution.com/review/naruto-broken-bond. 
  6. ↑ Petit, Carolyn (November 26, 2008). "Naruto: The Broken Bond Review". GameSpot. http://www.gamespot.com/reviews/naruto-the-broken-bond-review/1900-6201732/. 
  7. ↑ "Naruto: The Broken Bond Review". GameTrailers. January 9, 2009. http://www.gametrailers.com/gamereview.php?id=9207. 
  8. ↑ Sandoval, Angelina (December 3, 2008). "Naruto: The Broken Bond - 360 - Review". GameZone. http://www.gamezone.com/reviews/naruto_the_broken_bond_360_review. 
  9. ↑ Goldstein, Hilary (November 18, 2008). "Naruto: The Broken Bond Review". IGN. http://www.ign.com/articles/2008/11/18/naruto-the-broken-bond-review. 
  10. ↑ "Naruto: The Broken Bond". Official Xbox Magazine: 79. January 2009. 
  11. ↑ Jastrzab, Jeremy (January 11, 2009). "Naruto: The Broken Bond Review". http://palgn.com.au/xbox-360/13447/naruto-the-broken-bond-review/. 
  12. ↑ Darax (November 19, 2008). "Naruto: The Broken Bond Review (Xbox 360)". TeamXbox. http://reviews.teamxbox.com/xbox-360/1628/Naruto-The-Broken-Bond/p1/. 
  13. ↑ "D.I.C.E. Awards By Video Game Details Naruto: The Broken Bond". Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences. https://www.interactive.org/games/video_game_details.asp?idAward=2009&idGame=1017. 

Further reading

  • Haught, Jeb. "'Broken Bond' best 'Naruto' title to date" The Charleston Gazette; Charleston, W.V. 24 January 2009: C.2.
  • MobyGames is a commercial database website that catalogs information on video games and the people and companies behind them via crowdsourcing. This includes over 300,000 games for hundreds of platforms.[1] Founded in 1999, ownership of the site has changed hands several times. It has been owned by Atari SA since 2022.

Features

Edits and submissions to the site (including screenshots, box art, developer information, game summaries, and more) go through a verification process of fact-checking by volunteer "approvers".[2] This approval process after submission can range from minutes to days or months.[3] The most commonly used sources are the video game's website, packaging, and credit screens. There is a published standard for game information and copy-editing.[4] A ranking system allows users to earn points for contributing accurate information.[5]

Registered users can rate and review games. Users can create private or public "have" and "want" lists, which can generate a list of games available for trade with other registered users. The site contains an integrated forum. Each listed game can have its own sub-forum.

History

Logo used until March 2014

MobyGames was founded on March 1, 1999, by Jim Leonard and Brian Hirt, and joined by David Berk 18 months later, the three of which had been friends since high school.[6][7] Leonard had the idea of sharing information about computer games with a larger audience. The database began with information about games for IBM PC compatibles, relying on the founders' personal collections. Eventually, the site was opened up to allow general users to contribute information.[5] In a 2003 interview, Berk emphasized MobyGames' dedication to taking video games more seriously than broader society and to preserving games for their important cultural influence.[5]

In mid-2010, MobyGames was purchased by GameFly for an undisclosed amount.[8] This was announced to the community post factum , and the site's interface was given an unpopular redesign.[7] A few major contributors left, refusing to do volunteer work for a commercial website.{{Citation needed|date=June 2025} On December 18, 2013, MobyGames was acquired by Jeremiah Freyholtz, owner of Blue Flame Labs (a San Francisco-based game and web development company) and VGBoxArt (a site for fan-made video game box art).[9] Blue Flame Labs reverted MobyGames' interface to its pre-overhaul look and feel,[10] and for the next eight years, the site was run by Freyholtz and Independent Games Festival organizer Simon Carless.[7]

On November 24, 2021, Atari SA announced a potential deal with Blue Flame Labs to purchase MobyGames for $1.5 million.[11] The purchase was completed on 8 March 2022, with Freyholtz remaining as general manager.[12][13][14] Over the next year, the financial boost given by Atari led to a rework of the site being built from scratch with a new backend codebase, as well as updates improving the mobile and desktop user interface.[1] This was accomplished by investing in full-time development of the site instead of its previously part-time development.[15]

In 2024, MobyGames began offering a paid "Pro" membership option for the site to generate additional revenue.[16] Previously, the site had generated income exclusively through banner ads and (from March 2014 onward) a small number of patrons via the Patreon website.[17]

On February 13, 2025, Freyholtz stepped down as the site lead to move onto new projects, leaving operations to Tracy Poff, a veteran coder on the site, and Atari staff.[18]

See also

  • IGDB – game database used by Twitch for its search and discovery functions

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Sheehan, Gavin (2023-02-22). "Atari Relaunches The Fully Rebuilt & Optimized MobyGames Website". https://bleedingcool.com/games/atari-relaunches-the-fully-rebuilt-optimized-mobygames-website/. 
  2. ↑ Litchfield, Ted (2021-11-26). "Zombie company Atari to devour MobyGames". https://www.pcgamer.com/zombie-company-atari-to-devour-mobygames/. 
  3. ↑ "MobyGames FAQ: Emails Answered § When will my submission be approved?". Blue Flame Labs. 30 March 2014. http://www.mobygames.com/info/faq7#g1. 
  4. ↑ "The MobyGames Standards and Practices". Blue Flame Labs. 6 January 2016. http://www.mobygames.com/info/standards. 
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 Miller, Stanley A. (2003-04-22). "People's choice awards honor favorite Web sites". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. 
  6. ↑ "20 Years of MobyGames" (in en). 2019-02-28. https://trixter.oldskool.org/2019/02/28/20-years-of-mobygames/. 
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 Plunkett, Luke (2022-03-10). "Atari Buys MobyGames For $1.5 Million". https://kotaku.com/mobygames-retro-credits-database-imdb-atari-freyholtz-b-1848638521. 
  8. ↑ "Report: MobyGames Acquired By GameFly Media". Gamasutra. 2011-02-07. https://www.gamedeveloper.com/game-platforms/report-mobygames-acquired-by-gamefly-media. 
  9. ↑ Corriea, Alexa Ray (December 31, 2013). "MobyGames purchased from GameFly, improvements planned". http://www.polygon.com/2013/12/31/5261414/mobygames-purchased-from-gamefly-improvements-planned. 
  10. ↑ Wawro, Alex (31 December 2013). "Game dev database MobyGames getting some TLC under new owner". Gamasutra. https://www.gamedeveloper.com/business/game-dev-database-mobygames-getting-some-tlc-under-new-owner. 
  11. ↑ "Atari invests in Anstream, may buy MobyGames". November 24, 2021. https://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/2021-11-24-atari-invests-in-anstream-may-buy-mobygames. 
  12. ↑ Rousseau, Jeffrey (2022-03-09). "Atari purchases Moby Games". https://www.gamesindustry.biz/atari-purchases-moby-games. 
  13. ↑ "Atari Completes MobyGames Acquisition, Details Plans for the Site's Continued Support". March 8, 2022. https://www.atari.com/atari-completes-mobygames-acquisition-details-plans-for-the-sites-continued-support/. 
  14. ↑ "Atari has acquired game database MobyGames for $1.5 million" (in en-GB). 2022-03-09. https://www.videogameschronicle.com/news/atari-has-acquired-game-database-mobygames-for-1-5-million/. 
  15. ↑ Stanton, Rich (2022-03-10). "Atari buys videogame database MobyGames for $1.5 million". https://www.pcgamer.com/atari-buys-videogame-database-mobygames-for-dollar15-million/. 
  16. ↑ Harris, John (2024-03-09). "MobyGames Offering “Pro” Membership". https://setsideb.com/mobygames-offering-pro-membership/. 
  17. ↑ "MobyGames on Patreon". http://www.patreon.com/mobygames. 
  18. ↑ "An update on MobyGames leadership". 2025-02-13. https://www.mobygames.com/forum/3/thread/269628/an-update-on-mobygames-leadership/#post-269628. 
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