Naruto Online screenshot, courtesy of 2P.com

Even though the Naruto series is of dubious quality, there's no denying the fact that its one of the most popular anime around. With that in mind, it shouldn't come as much of a surprise to hear that there is an official MMO being released later this month.

What might surprise you, however, is that its almost impossible to find any information about it, and even the Bandai Namco website seems to shy away from even mentioning it. From what I've gathered its been available in a couple of regions for a few years now, though mostly in a beta state, with July 20th being set as its official Western release. Here's the trailer, though don't expect to see more than a sliver of its turn-based gameplay:

 

While I'll reserve my judgement for when it finally releases, I can't say that I have high hopes for Naruto Online. Its sudden announcement, zero screenshots or gameplay footage, and basically dead silence from Bandai Namco all tell me that this project has gone through development hell and is now finally complete enough to receive at least some sort of a release. Whether I'm correct or not, we'll see soon enough as Naruto Online is releasing to the West on July 20.

You can find "more information" over at the official website, and if you want some straight-up gameplay footage, head over to the Skills section.