Introduction
Dragonball Z: Budokai is the best DBZ game ever! It's the first to have real 3D fighting over any other DBZ game ever made! You can choose 23 characters with about 60 combo moves each. As you play through story mode you unlock more and more characters. The only two characters that aren't in story mode are Hercule and Great Saiyaman. To unlock Hercule you have to beat the World Martial Arts Tournament in Adept mode. As for Great Saiyaman, you have to beat the tournament in Advanced mode. You can play through the story of DBZ from the Saiyan Saga to the Cell Games Saga. First you watchthe story and every time theres a fight, you get to be in it (Most fights). So for me, and I think for most DBZ fans this is the best Dragonball Z game ever!

Feature List
As all the game features are outlined in detail in other sections of the site, I will just state the more important ones here.

- 23 playable characters (5 to start with)
- 5 different game modes: Story, World Match, Duel, Practice and Legend of Mr. Satan
- Unlockable characters, locations, play modes and episodes in story mode
- Customisable and interchangeable skills and items

Story
Basically the game spans from the beginning of the Saiyan Saga right through to the end of the Cell Games Saga. However, some of the events and stories have either been condensed or completely cut out. What the developers have chosen to do is take three of the main sagas and incorporate the smaller sagas into them. These sagas are Saiyan Saga, Namek Saga and Androids Saga. Some of the less popular or important sagas such as the Garlic Jr. saga have been left out entirely. When you play through the game for the first time you will take control of Goku 99% of the time. However, an excellent game feature is the unlockable episodes in each of the sagas that allow you to take on the roles of Vegeta, Piccolo, Cell, Frieza and a few others. This allows for some really interesting and fun plot twists. For example when you take control of Cell and attempt to absorb Android 17, Krillin pushes her out the way and he is absorbed himself, causing you to change into a very short orange version of Cell. When completed however you find that Cell has just been dreaming while waiting the 10 days till he fights in the Cell Games. All of the battles and other minor activities are linked together using fantastic cut scenes that really allow the story to develop smoothly. Moving away from the main Story Mode, Legend of Mr. Satan incorporates a fantastic piece of ingenuity where you take on the role of the World Martial Arts Champion himself and fight it out as if he really did defeat Cell and save the earth. This sees you take on all of the Z fighter as well as the evil green Android. Overall this area of Budokai is flawless and should provide excellent entertainment and detailed information without boring you to death.

Gameplay
After the horrors of Ultimate Battle 22’s handling, I was a little worried about how well this title would perform. Well although I am going to waffle on in detail, let me make it 100% clear right now, Budokai plays like a dream. Every move, every special attack and every over the top death move is executed with incredible precision. If I fly towards Nappa at the speed of light I can still smash him in the face when I get to him, no slow down, no crappy clunky movements, just sublime smooth action. Something that I particularly enjoy is how time freezes when you pull of a special move and the camera reacts accordingly to give you the best view of the action. Trunks’ Burning Attack in particular is amazing to watch and when it is all over you will find the arena is now just a big brown crater. The actual controls themselves are very easy to master, the proof being that my friends 5-year-old boy had mastered them in about 10 minutes. To be honest I do not see how things could be any simpler to master, even specials moves are just a 4-button combination followed by a Ki blast. The other aspect of combat is Burst mode. Burst mode is entered when the punch and kick buttons are pressed simultaneously right next to your opponent. When this has been done the surrounding area turns black and the two competitors start to go at it at incredible speed, up close and personal. The object for you the player is to spin both analogue sticks as fast as possible in order to do as much damage as you can, this will last for about 10 seconds before you return to normal gameplay. This is very possibly the games best feature, forget graphics, sound and everything else and the gameplay alone provides a title worth having.

Graphics
This is the first DBZ title that can claim to be true 3D as every aspect of the characters and arenas are fully interactive. Each character is drawn impeccably well and really looks fantastic. Using the same 3D models for the cut scenes give everything something extra special and the whole “feel” of the game is great. Infogrames appears to have found just the right mix between great graphics and a good frame rate to provide all the action you could ever want. Looking past the in-game graphics, the real essence of DBZ has remained intact thanks to the rather cartoon-like appearance of the mode select and character select screens, we are also treated to a beautifully drawn image of each character before a battle in World Match, Duel and Practice mode begins. The PS2 has really had a good work out with Budokai and manages to handle the pixelated warriors without any problems. There isn’t really much else I can say about the graphical side of Budokai except that the screen shots available on the web don’t do it justice.

Music/Sound
Once again this aspect of the game is almost completely unrecognisable from its predecessors. The in-game and title music stays true to the cartoon and provide a good atmosphere for the entire game. At times it can be light-hearted and fun while at other times it can have a very serious and powerful feel to it. A visit to Mr. Popo’s shop will greet you with very warm and welcoming music, while a battle to the death with Frieza will have you gritting your teeth as you smash in those combos. The sound effects are also breath taking and you can almost feel every punch, kick and Ki blast. Sadly in the version of Budokai that I own all of the voices are Japanese, unlike the U.S version that will get the royal treatment from the VA’s over at FUNimation. Though at times I enjoy hearing the hilarious shout of “Son Goku!” I would much rather have English voice actors explaining the story to me. Overall a solid effort here and one that I would think is better than average.

Lifespan
Put it this way, while writing this review I have stopped 3 times to go back and try a little more. Though story mode will not take you long, the World Match and Legend of Mr. Satan should keep you more than happy. The Edit Skills feature is a great addition to the game and really gives you something to aim for as well as an outlet for that big heap of Zenie you have acquired. Exploring all the game modes is one thing, but with 5 difficulty settings a whole new dimension of player vs. computer fun is there to be enjoyed. For once the familiar characters of DBZ are not the only draw here and it could in fact have any old characters in there, you would still be coming back for more. Do not pick up this game thinking it is a bit of fun with no real depth to it, as you couldn’t be more wrong. Expect to play this title a lot, because for me it is an instant classic.

Closing Comments
Well I am not entirely sure what else I can say about Budokai. All the hype was deserved and all the waiting was worth is because this game will blow you away. For once it is not just DBZ fans that are going to get something out of this, it is one of the best fighters I have ever laid my hands on and in fact has changed my whole perspective of the beat em up genre. For those who own a PS2, buy this game, for those who don't, get one then buy this game!

Sagas

Saiyan Saga



After winning countless battles, Goku is once again reunited with his friends at Kame House. Out of the blue a man named Raditz appears, claiming to be Goku’s elder brother. Raditz defeats Goku with his incredible power and kidnaps Goku’s son, Gohan…

#1 Mysterious Alien Attack!!
#2 A Mutually Dead Foe
#3 Saiyan Attack!!
#4 Goku’s Quiet Fury
#5 Super Duel!
#6 Show Gohan’s True Power!
#7 Vegeta, Saiyan Prince

Namek Saga



Goku and his friends have managed to stop Vegeta’s invasion. Krillin heads off to Planet Namek in place of the injured Goku in order to help his friends who have been killed. In the meantime, Goku eats a Senzu Bean and recovers from his injuries. He then boards a spaceship he has Porunga’s father build and heads for Planet Namek, where Krillin and Gohan await.

#1 Let’s Go To Namek!
#2 Vegeta’s Attack!
#3 Goku’s Arrival!
#4 The Road To Super Saiyan
#5 Frieza? Or Vegeta?
#6 Goku’s Revival!
#7 The Legendary Super Saiyan
#8 A quiet But Fierce Battle
#9 Raging Frieza
#10 The True Ruler

Android Saga



Trunks claims to have come from the future, and states, “Goku will die of heart disease one year from now, and in three years androids will appear and destroy the earth.” Three years later, two androids appear just as Trunks predicted, and proceed to destroy everything in sight. Even the gods would shudder at their evilness.

#1 A New Threat
#2 Super Saiyan Vegeta
#3 A Wicked Omen
#4 Sneaky Cell
#5 Vegeta’s Confidence!
#6 Perfect Form Cell Complete!!
#7 Cell’s Game Begins
#8 A Warrior Beyond Goku
#9 Gohan Explodes!!
#10 The Final Battle
#11 Aim For Perfect Form
#12 A Cold-Blooded Assassin

Characters

Saiyan
Goku
Vegeta
Raditz
Nappa
Trunks
Kid Gohan
Teen Gohan
Great Saiyaman

Human
Krillin
Yamcha
Hercule

Covers

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