Title: Dragon Ball Z: Budokai Tenkaichi 2

Date: 11.09.2006

Genre: Fighting

Platform: PlayStation 2

Developer: Spike

Publisher: Atari

After a disappointing showing in all but one case the month before, when I found out that a new Dragon Ball game was due to be released, I looked into it with caution. The last Dragon Ball game I had played wasn't so fantastic, and the Japanese gaming community agreed, judging by its swift sweeping into bargain bins nationwide in record time after its release. I thought that this game would have to be better by default, but would it really fulfill? So I set out to look at its website. Interesting, I thought, and promising since it featured so many familiar characters. So, interested from the site, I thought I'd give it a try.

I am so glad I did, because this really does what every good game based on a classic series should do, and that is to take you back to remember all the things you loved about that series. From the beginning of Dragon Ball Z to the (somewhat different) end of GT, this series covers just about everything. Although it doesn't have absolutely everyone, it has more than enough characters to satisfy virtually any fan of the series, even featuring many characters from the various films that accompanied the series during its run.

Taking all its aspects in order, the first and most immediately striking feature is of course the visual impact. This game looks very pretty, and the arenas are all quite expansive and interesting. The characters are fantastic and true to their anime and manga forms, of course, and the details are beautifully-done. This game is one that you can tell a lot of attention has been put into. Of course the arenas have many, many destructible elements, which adds even more to the fun. You can also pan the camera around in various modes to see the surrounding environments, which are perfectly realized. It all looks really good, and it looks like anime come to life. Absolutely super. All the characters are just gorgeously made, and they all look like they should.

The sound is of course marvelous, and it includes many familiar tunes. Any fan of the series will recognize them instantly, such as the iconic Cha-La Head-Cha-La, various instrumental themes from the series, and even the prelude version of DAN DAN Kokoro Hikareteku. I was especially glad to see this included, as it brought back so many memories. The soft instrumental version that is included, part of just about every episode of GT, is most welcome. The nice variety is especially notable in the Versus Mode, wherein you can choose your music. Sound effects, voices, and everything else sound-related is perfectly faithful to the series, and you won't find anything out of place here.

Gameplay in this is something that has to be explored in vast detail, because there is simply so much to do. First of all is play control and responsiveness, which is extremely good. This one plays much more smoothly than the first Sparking!, and it's much more intuitive. They have fine-tuned the controls and the response, making it a great deal easier to do things. Fortunately they have also included an exhaustive tutorial, which is especially nice in that it lets you continue to practice that lesson for as long as you like, or even not practice it at all; you still get credit for doing it even if you cancel out of the practical application part, which I thought was nice since I just couldn't pull off one or two of the moves at first! But it was a good tutorial overall, and it prepared me more than adequately for playing the game. It was also extremely fun to hear the responses from Vegeta and the other characters while doing the lessons, as all of the menus in NEO feature our familiar friends, who are wonderfully vocal about everything you do. That adds so much charm to the title already.

Difficulty level depends quite literally on you, which makes this an instant winner. You can choose from three difficulty levels when going into the adventure mode, and you can also adapt difficulty to your liking in the general game such as the versus, and so forth. In the adventure mode, you can also equip or choose not to equip extra stat-boosting items that may help you in your battles. If you want more of a challenge, then don’t equip them. Both people who want a leisurely play and people who want to have a great challenge will find something to like here. And it's all up to you and you’re playing style, which makes the appeal very wide indeed.

As stated before, there are many modes, including adventure, ultimate battle, and versus, all of which have so much to offer. Adventure mode gives you an unprecedented amount of story, from the very beginning of Z to the (somewhat altered, but for the better) end of GT, with lots of movie storylines in-between. Ultimate Battle lets you choose a course and fight various opponents. Of course there is a Tournament mode too, where you can engage opponents in tournament settings and win money, which you can spend in the shop and doing the 'Z Evolution'. Of course, you can also visit the shop and earn money in the adventure mode, so that's your choice. Versus is so wonderfully done that all fighting games in general should take a page from its book: you are able to select from tag, single, and free modes, select an arena, and even select the music if you want.

You can have items appear in the middle of the battle, you can turn transformations on and off, and you can alter various other things as well, such as the toughness of your opponent, time of the match, and so forth. You can customize so much, and of course you can fight against the CPU, another player, or even watch the CPU fight the CPU in an exhibition match of your choosing. It delights me to no end to see this kind of attention paid, especially since I've said many times that a game without a 1p vs CPU versus mode is a game that I'll play for less time than a game with it. There's no excuse having a Versus Mode if you can't fight the CPU in it. Not everyone has friends who play fighting games. Fortunately NEO doesn't let you down. You can set up dream match after dream match with the music you'd like.

Characters are plentiful, reportedly somewhere around 130 of them total, and they don't repeat moves all that much either. If they do, it makes sense because they did in the series as well. There are characters here who are uncommon or who may have never appeared before, such as Tapion, or who don't get a chance to appear often, like Pan. I was overjoyed when I saw that Tapion would be in it, and he doesn't disappoint. In fact, none of the characters are disappointing. And while I don't usually make note of alternate colors in most games, the ones here are impressive and interesting enough that I have to say they're nice to have. I'm glad to see so many of our beloved friends from such a classic series represented so well here.

The adventure mode should receive special mention here, since it is likely the most unique mode and the one that you will spend the most time in at first. In it, you go from the very beginnings of Z to the end of GT, as mentioned before, tackling so many battles along the way. This is handled in an overall excellent way, although sometimes you might be surprised to see battles in a certain way because the story is different. Due to limitations of space, some locations had to be reused in somewhat creative ways, but it doesn't detract from the fun at all. Ultimately the fun lies in the story and the fights, which often have special conditions for completion.

But don't worry, none of them are unreasonable. You can also unlock special 'what if' scenarios by doing things in a certain way in certain battles. There's so much here to keep you busy that you will literally spend days trying to find it all. It's every fan's dream, to see all of these wonderful familiar locations and characters in a presentation worthy of them. There are moments that made me tingle to see recreated like this. Some of the stories will surprise you too, since some are changed from their original storyline, to make a more coherent and fitting chapter at where they occur in the adventure's chronicle. So even if you're intimately familiar with the series, expect some fun twists and turns.

Although I know GT has its share of often deserved criticism, it still occupies a fond place in my heart, possibly due to my memories of the time when I was watching it, while it was still on TV. I remembered the first time I saw the opening sequence, and the first time I heard what became one of my favorite songs ("Don't You See!" by ZARD), and various other things about that time. It's all summed up nicely by that prelude version of DAN DAN, which is just about the best and fondest inclusion they could have had for GT in this game. I'm so glad it's there. And the GT part of the storyline is handled very well, overall. I was only slightly disappointed that Trunks didn't have his GT costume at all, and that there was really nothing from the first part of GT, pre-Baby, where I considered GT to be at its best. But as this was Dragon Ball Z Sparking! NEO and not Dragon Ball GT Sparking! NEO, I couldn't complain too much. I was glad that any nice parts of GT made it in at all. And as I said, the real fun lies in the fights, so you have Trunks anyway in a variety of costumes, Pan (and Gill, in one of her special moves), Goku, Baby, Super 17, and so forth.

You can play this game for literally ages, making up your own new stories with the old familiar friends, pitting them against bitter foes, and even recreating familiar confrontations. You can let the game throw enemies at you in the Ultimate Battle, or you can have fun in a tournament. And of course you can go on an adventure in the world of Dragon Ball. Everything is here for fans to enjoy. I couldn't imagine a more ideal game based on a beloved series, and I certainly have never seen one done better for Dragon Ball. There is just so much to do, so much to see, so much put at your fingertips to enjoy and have fun with indefinitely, that it's hard to imagine getting tired of NEO even months down the line. Further, it's not just limited by its source material and actually plays very well too.

This transcends the label of 'anime-based game' and actually makes a great showing as a fighting game, which I believe raises the bar on what fighting games should include. More fighting games need to have an engaging adventure mode, genuinely fun and exciting alternate modes, and above all a versus mode that allows 1p vs. CPU battles where you have so much control over the content. If a fighting game doesn't have that 1p vs. CPU option in versus mode, for me that shortens its replay value considerably. Fortunately that's not a problem with NEO, which seems to prize replay value and longevity above all else. This is a game that's not only immense fun, but it will continue to be fun for a very long time. Its well worth the price for anyone looking for something fun and long-lasting that isn't difficult to pick up and play. Easy to learn, difficult to master, and addictive like crazy!

If you're a Dragon Ball fan, you owe it to yourself to get this game. It will take you down that 'hikari to kage no winding road' again and make you remember the things you love most about the series. It's given me a nice warm nostalgia and made me remember all of the best things about the series. And even outside of the nostalgic value, it's still an incredible game. It has earned my highest mark for that reason, accomplishing everything it was expected to do and then blowing away those expectations with things far above and beyond what was necessary. This game is truly a labor of love, and a gift from its makers to the fans. It deserves more praise than my words can convey.

Game Score

A-

Reviewed By: Contributed