REVIEWED – Dragon Ball: Raging Blast

Title:  Dragon Ball: Raging Blast
Platform:  Xbox 360
Developer:  Spike
Publisher:  Namco Bandai
Reviewed By:  GIF_Bluehawk
SCORE:  B+

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Dragon Ball: Raging Blast is here at last! We’ve been waiting for this one for a little bit now, after getting delayed twice, here’s hoping it’s a better game because of it. DB: Raging Blast is cited as the spiritual sequel to Dragon Ball Budokai Tenkaichi 3 (A.K.A. Sparking Meteor in Japan), and is made by the very same people. It’s immediate predecessor in terms of DB games as a whole is Dragon Ball: Burst Limit. This game is best listed as a 3D Brawler/Fighting game, though some previous installments had incorporated some forms of RPG elements as well. The game has several different modes, from the main mode called “Ultimate Battles Collection”, which is where much of the game’s story is told, to classics like the “World Tournament”, in which you pick one of many fighters to compete in tournament play. There is also an Xbox Live Online mode in which you can play either Vs. matches or World Tournaments. Now for the review!

Sound
For the most part, RB has the sound down to a science. All the techniques sound great, and the voice actors from the FuNimation dub return for the most part. Some of the dubbing is a little off, in terms of how they sound in the game, and how they do in the Anime. This could be attributed to the fact that most of these VA’s haven’t done an actual Dragon Ball episode in about four to five years. All of the main cast, I.E. Goku, Vegeta, Krillin, Gohan, Piccolo, etc. all sound perfect. The “off” voiceovers are mainly more minor characters such as Broly’s Normal and Super Saiyan states, Jeice, etc. A reviewer before me pointed this out, and I will reiterate it here, in that when characters perform transformations, the model is screaming, as they do in the anime, however there is no voiceover for the action, which can take you out of the action. Other than those small details, this game nails it with sound.

Graphics
Once again the graphics in a Dragon Ball game have surprised me. They are virtually spot on, and capture the feel of the anime almost perfectly. The characters look great, and the motions are, for the most part, fluid and dynamic. This is not to say that there aren’t some problems. Again, as a reviewer before me said, the energy attacks that the series is known for just feel lacking. While the size of some of these beams and blasts are appropriate for certain characters at certain points in the series, the fact that these attacks don’t scale with the increase in power level achieved through transformations and different saga versions of characters again takes me out of it. The beams themselves look fantastic, and avoid the problems Burst Limit had in that they look like they do in the show. I.E. In Burst Limit Piccolo’s special beam cannon was a completely different color than it was in the anime. Also, the effects/aftermath of said attacks are toned down quite a bit, and while not really a problem, again they take away from some of the appeal that originally drew me to the series. The levels/maps that you fight on are incredibly detailed, and blow up in a way that has never really been done before in a DB game. Only drawback as far as maps are concerned is that there aren’t too many of ‘em. Overall I’d say graphics are awesome, and it’s great to see what potential they have on the next-gen consoles, however, I still prefer BT3’s graphics over RB’s.

Story
I was really surprised at the storytelling in this game. In BT3 the story was given a general overview prior to the fight, and there were cutscenes before, during and after the fights as well. Another fun feature was that you had control over what cutscenes you wanted to play during your fight. RB has none of this. You are given a one paragraph prologue at the beginning of each saga, and you can see the “story so far” before each fight begins. Other than that, the story is told through shoddy one-character cutscenes that really only serious Dragon Ball fans will tend to understand. They do remain fairly close to the anime in terms of how they tell the story, and have several “What-if?” scenarios that are fun to play. However, the game’s story does differ from the manga in several ways, from including scenes and events that were never in the chapters, to extending scenes that really should have been left alone. This is not to say the story isn’t BAD… just that it isn’t nearly as refined as almost any of it’s predecessors.

Gameplay
The combat system has been revamped quite a bit, and it isn’t bad in the slightest. Melee has been simplified down to about five different variations, not counting rushes and charges. Super attacks like beams and blast rushes have been mapped to your right analog stick while your ultimate is achieved through charging ki to full and then clicking the right analog stick. This remains fairly unchanged from BT3. Transformations are achieved by holding down the right trigger and pressing the corresponding button to the transformation you want. The character list is the second biggest of all DB games, second only to BT3. Virtually all characters that fought in the DBZ sagas appear, with the exception of Cell Jr., Dabura, Spopovich and his brother. Two exclusive characters that only appear in RB make their debut as well, though you’ll have to play the game to find out who they are.

Combat is very streamlined and well balanced. Every move has a counter, and mechanics make it so you can’t just stay fifty miles away and sling energy blasts around like it’s the fourth of July. Melee is important, and helps set up your blast 2’s while giving you the immense feeling of satisfaction when you pull them off against human players or the computer on the hardest difficulties. This brings me to my next point, this game is difficult on the hardest setting. The computer is anywhere and everywhere, but in order to get the true feeling of a DBZ game, you can’t play it on any other difficulty. It’s fast, rough, and awesome.

Camera angles however, are a pain. While it doesn’t make the game unplayable in the least, it does get annoying from time to time. When encountering terrain while using a Homing Dash or Dash, the camera sometimes can’t track you OR your opponent, and can get lost for a minute. Also, the computer has a tendency to fly into the air a LOT, which also causes you to be able to see barely anything. Again, this hardly makes it unplayable, but it can get annoying.

Customization makes it’s return, and allows for an infinite amount of custom outcomes. Personally, I had a ton of fun mixing and matching all the different combinations, and I have to say, my Vegeta is kick ass! And with all the variables, your favorite character can truly become, the universe’s greatest fighter!

Verdict
It’s a tough one, but overall I think RB came out well considering it’s only the second game to come out on the next-gen consoles. While not nearly as good as BT3 (In my humble opinion), they do a very good job with graphics, sound, and gameplay. For Dragon Ball fans, it’s a must-have. For everyone else, rent it before you buy it, see if you like it. And here’s hoping for another one down the road!