So I was sitting in my closet. (I work in what used to be a closet here in Iraq. :) ) I was absolutely, completely bored out of my mind. I was also reading a gaming magazine. I've noticed recently that gaming magazines are becoming more and more nice in their reviews of Naruto games. Mainly because Naruto games suck much less these days than they used to. (Admit it, Ultimate Ninja was crap. Ultimate Ninja 3? Awesomesauce) To me it appears to be because the Naruto games out now allow you to better explore the Naruto world. This was when my idea hit me. And it is an idea that if it was utilized, could give Masashi Kishimoto the same chance that Akira Toriyama has every single day. That is, to tragically drown in his own money.
What is the most popular thing about Naruto? Many Narutards would spout something about how awesome the emo characters are or the cool looking jutsus like chidori and rasengan. More intelligent people would say something about the compelling storyline in the first series and wanting to wade through the Uchihagasm that is Shippuden so as to be able to see the final resolution. To me though, the most popular thing about Naruto is quite simply the fanfiction. Everyone and their mother wants to as the Evil Authorlord put it "play in the sandbox".
Gaming technology of today has already shown that it is capable of allowing deep immersion into the Narutoverse. And if games like Fable 2 and Fallout 3 are to be any indication, this will only get better. Kishimoto could easily use these two things to his advantage. Create an epic rpg....about Naruto. One where your different choices as Naruto, affects the world around him. Basically, give the fans the chance to basically play out their fanfictions. Like pairing Naruto with off the wall characters? You can do it! Like seeing him wield Kubikiri Houcho? You can do that too! Like Super!Naruto? Well, that's what cheat codes are for. With a company like Bethesda or Bioware behind it, not only could fans get the chance to play out their fantasies in this way, but also be able to do it in an enjoyable manner with innovative control schemes for combat and other activites such as handseals or drawing up seals. It could easily be one of the most popular games of all time. The one that every single anime fan in a non third world country MUST own.
Thoughts?