If you spent any time hunched over a Nintendo DS in the late 2000s, you probably remember the tactile click of the D-pad and the frantic scratching of the stylus. Among the sea of licensed anime shovelware, Naruto Ninja Council 4—known as Naruto Shippuden: Ninja Council 3 in Japan—actually stood out. It wasn't trying to be a cinematic masterpiece. It was a side-scrolling brawler that felt like a love letter to the early Shippuden era.
Honestly, the DS era was a weird time for Naruto games. You had the Ninja Destiny fighting games and the Path of the Ninja RPGs, but the Ninja Council series was the bread and butter for fans who just wanted to run right and hit things. This fourth entry was the bridge. It moved the timeline from the "classic" pre-timeskip days into the darker, more intense world of the Akatsuki.
What Actually Happens in Naruto Ninja Council 4?
The game kicks off right at the start of the Shippuden arc. Naruto comes back to the Hidden Leaf, catches up with a much taller Sakura, and then everything goes south because the Akatsuki decided to kidnap Gaara. If you've watched the anime, you know the drill. But the game doesn't just give you a visual novel; it forces you to fight through waves of puppets and sand-ninjas to get there.
One thing people often forget is how the character swap system worked. You weren't just playing as Naruto. You picked a team of three. You could tag them in or use them as "strikers." This wasn't just flavor. Some levels were basically impossible—or at least very annoying—if you didn't have a character with a long-range jump or a specific projectile. It felt a bit like Mega Man met Kirby, but with more shouting about "Believe It!" or whatever the dub was doing at the time.
The roster was actually pretty beefy for a handheld game. You had 17 playable characters, which included the heavy hitters like Kakashi, Guy, and Neji, but also the villains like Deidara and Sasori. Playing as Sasori in a 2D plane felt unique because of the puppet mechanics, which was a nice change of pace from the standard "punch-punch-kick" combos of the leaf ninja.
The Touch Screen Gimmick
Remember when every DS developer felt legally obligated to make you blow into the microphone or rub the screen? Naruto Ninja Council 4 leaned into this hard. To pull off a Great Ball Rasengan or Sakura's ground-shattering punch, you had to perform "Touch Screen Actions."
Sometimes you had to tap icons fast. Other times you had to drag your stylus in a specific pattern. It sounds tedious now, but in 2009, it made the jutsu feel interactive. It added a layer of stress to boss fights. You’re trying to dodge Gaara’s sand tsunamis while frantically scribbling on your lower screen to trigger a counter-attack. It was chaotic. It was loud. It was exactly what handheld gaming was supposed to be.
📖 Related: Why Skyward Sword is Finally Getting the Respect It Deserves
Why the Combat System Was Deceptively Deep
On the surface, it’s a button masher. You press B to jump and Y to attack. Simple. But if you actually dig into the frame data—okay, maybe not frame data, but the "flow"—there was some strategy.
- Chakra Management: You couldn't just spam jutsu. You had a blue bar that drained fast.
- Support Spams: Some support characters, like Shikamaru, would freeze enemies in place. If you timed this right, you could infinite-loop certain bosses.
- Verticality: Unlike the earlier GBA entries, these maps had a lot of vertical space. You were jumping across cliffs and dodging traps that would knock you back three screens if you weren't careful.
The difficulty spike was real, too. The final encounters against the Akatsuki members required actual pattern recognition. You couldn't just walk up to Deidara and expect to win by mashing the attack button. He’d just fly away and bomb you from the top of the screen. You had to use the environment, timing your jumps to reach his bird. It was a platformer first, a fighter second.
The Wireless Multiplayer Chaos
Back before everyone had high-speed internet in their pocket, we had "Local Wireless." Naruto Ninja Council 4 supported four-player battles. It was a mess.
Imagine four people on a small screen, all trying to trigger touch-screen specials at the same time. The lag was sometimes legendary, but when it worked, it was the closest thing we had to a portable Super Smash Bros. with ninjas. You could pick your favorite team, argue about who got to be Sasuke, and spend an entire lunch break ruining friendships.
✨ Don't miss: ps4 price at launch: What Most People Get Wrong
The game also featured a "Battle Mode" where you could fight against AI or friends in specific arenas. These weren't just flat stages; they had platforms, hazards, and power-ups. It turned the game into a weird hybrid of a platform-fighter and a traditional brawler.
Technical Limitations and Art Style
Tomy, the developer, chose a very specific sprite art style. It wasn't the high-fidelity 2D of the Ultimate Ninja series on PS2, but it was charming. The sprites were small, allowing for a lot of action on the screen without the DS hardware catching fire.
The backgrounds were mostly static, but they captured the vibe of the Sunagakure desert or the lush forests of the Land of Fire. The music was... well, it was DS music. Compressed, MIDI-heavy, and repetitive, yet somehow iconic. If you hear that specific 8-bit-adjacent version of the Naruto theme, it stays in your head for days.
How it Compares to Other Ninja Council Games
If we’re being honest, the third game (the last one on the GBA) was probably the peak of the series in terms of pure platforming tightess. But Naruto Ninja Council 4 brought the Shippuden scale. It felt "bigger."
The first two games were very basic. Run, jump, hit. The fourth one added the "squad" mentality that defined the actual Naruto series. It understood that Naruto isn't just about one guy; it's about how different powers interact. Using Hinata’s Byakugan to find hidden items or using Lee’s speed to bypass a trap-filled hallway felt right.
🔗 Read more: One of 12 Depicted NYT: What Most Crossword Solvers Get Wrong
Is it Worth Playing Today?
You can find copies of this game for cheap at retro stores or on eBay. If you have an old DS or 3DS lying around, it's a solid afternoon of nostalgia. It’s not a 40-hour epic like Ninja Storm 4. You can beat the main story in about five or six hours.
But those six hours are packed with high-energy 2D action that modern games often over-complicate. There are no microtransactions. No battle passes. Just you, your stylus, and a bunch of Akatsuki members who need to be punched in the face.
Common Misconceptions
People often confuse this game with Naruto Shippuden: Ninja Council 3. They are the same game. The North American numbering got weird because we missed some of the early Japanese releases or they were renamed during localization.
Another mistake players make is thinking the game is a direct port of the console fighters. It isn't. It’s a side-scrolling action game. If you go in expecting Tekken, you'll be disappointed. If you go in expecting Shinobi or Mega Man, you'll have a blast.
Getting the Most Out of the Game
If you're going to dive back in, don't just stick to Naruto. The game rewards experimentation.
- Try the Villains: Once you unlock them, the Akatsuki characters have much more interesting move sets than the basic Leaf Genin.
- Focus on Mobility: Upgrade your jump and speed stats when possible. The platforming in the later stages is unforgiving.
- Master the Stylus: Don't be afraid to press down a bit. The DS screen is tougher than it looks, and missing a jutsu trigger during a boss fight is a one-way ticket to a Game Over screen.
- Look for Secret Paths: Many levels have breakable walls. Use characters with heavy attacks (like Sakura or Jiraiya) to find hidden health upgrades.
Naruto Ninja Council 4 serves as a perfect time capsule. It represents that specific moment when the Naruto craze was at its absolute peak and Nintendo's handheld was the king of the playground. It’s fast, it’s flawed, and it’s undeniably fun.
To really master the game, focus on unlocking the "Boss Rush" mode. It’s the ultimate test of your touch-screen speed and chakra management. Once you can clear the Akatsuki gauntlet without losing a team member, you've officially seen everything this DS classic has to offer. Go dig that stylus out of your drawer. It's time to head back to the Hidden Leaf.