Bandai Card Games just put cards on the table for Naruto Card Game, the strategy TCG based on Masashi Kishimoto's series. A day ahead of its Gen Con 2026 world debut, Bandai published the first look trailer, a rules overview, early card art, and a Summer 2027 worldwide launch window.
How a match works
Decks are built around a Leader. Characters have to match that Leader's color. You win by cutting the opposing Leader's Life to zero.
A full deck is 57 cards:
1 Leader that sets your color and win condition
50 Character cards for the front line (some pay Chakra to fire Jutsu such as Ninjutsu)
5 Chakra cards as the resource pool for Jutsu and support effects
1 Summon card required to bring Characters into battle
EX Characters are the swing pieces. Meet their conditions mid-match and they can flip a game that looked settled.
What eras show up
Bandai is pulling from Naruto, Naruto: Shippuden, and Boruto: Naruto Next Generations. Early reveals include Naruto Uzumaki, Sasuke Uchiha, Sakura Haruno, Jiraiya, and Itachi Uchiha, with a mix of original card illustrations plus anime and manga art.
Road to Summer 2027
The TCG's world debut is Gen Con 2026 in Indianapolis (July 30 to August 2), with beginner Tutorial Sessions, gift sets, and giveaways at the Bandai Card Games booth. After that, Bandai lists a long convention run before retail:
New York Comic Con 2026 (October)
PAX Australia 2026 (October)
Bandai Card Games Fest. 26-27 across the season
Spiel Essen 2026 (October)
Paris Games Week 2026 (October)
Lucca Comics & Games 2026 (November)
More details in December 2026
In-store tutorials starting January 2027
Worldwide release: Summer 2027
Post-launch, Bandai plans store-level organized play up through major tournaments and a World Championship.
Where to follow it
Official English channels are on X, Instagram, and Facebook. Bandai also points players to the NARUTO TCG Updates Channel inside its TCG+ app.
Facts in this piece come from Bandai's July 29, 2026 announcement via PR Newswire.