PlayStation 2

Dragon Ball Z: Budokai 2

Being a Dragon Ball fan and also an avid gamer, you tend to get used to disappointment. Many Dragon Ball games have been released in the west since the anime series finally made it to US and UK screens (albeit in cut down and censored versions) and in every single case they have barely average in quality, in fact most were barely playable, so riddled were they with sloppy and lazy programming. So I honestly wasn't expecting much when I got my copy of Dragon Ball Z: Budokai 2 to play, especially as Budokai 1 was one of those barely average games mentioned above.

It is no secret at the Next Level Gaming offices that I am a huge fan of the great Dragon Ball Z series. I had the chance to review the GameCube version of Dragon Ball Z Budokai. I was pretty damn impressed with what I played. But it made me long for a more in depth Dragon Ball Z game. I have pretty mush played all of the Dragon Ball Z games, dating back to the SNES and Sega Mega-Drive systems. They were pretty much sucky games. We even had the Playstation one version's of Dragon Ball Z, all which were a huge disappointment. I was left scratching my head wondering how such a great Japanese cartoon could have a crappy load of videogames based on the franchise. I mean how in the hell can you go wrong and botch up such a game. Developers always found a way to though.

Even with these problems taken into account, Dragon Ball Z: Budokai 2 is an amazingly accessible and fun experience in a genre overfull with games that pride themselves on their depth and complexity. Even with the first game's robust collection system intact, it's not the kind of game that will consume one's focus for weeks on end. All it asks from a player is a few minutes to learn the ropes and a willingness to enjoy themselves. At a time when games proudly announce just how many long hours they will take before being vanquished, it's actually something of a breath of fresh air.

Traditionally, the Dragon Ball Z fighting games have been about pure window dressing. Give kids characters and story lines they love and the rest will take care of itself. Budokai 2 is noteworthy because it not only gives you an extra layer of depth, but it also throws in a few gameplay additions to make the average fighting slightly more bearable.

It was just over 12 months ago that Dimps and Infogrames loudly released one of the biggest PlayStation 2 titles of 2002. Selling in excess of a million copies in North America alone, Dragon Ball Z Budokai served as a classic example of consumerism over criticism -- as the masses latched onto its charming characters and faithful recreations, while professional observers cited it for a lack of mechanical depth and its questionable production values. If ever there was a scenario that supported the old saying "There is a dichotomy of the one and the many," this would be it.

The Dragon Ball series is one of the most lucrative franchises in the world. If you look around you will find myriads of games, comics, DVD’s, and many other items related to this franchise. Dragon Ball Z, in particular, has spurned many fighting games on various systems, and this is due to the “fighting” nature of the anime. Last year Infogrames released Dragon Ball Z Budokai, and while it was one of the better fighting games based off the series, it was still flawed in many aspects. This year Atari has released a sequel to that game, but is it better, or just more of the same?

Dragon Ball Z Budokaï 2 n'est pas une déception mais le peu de nouveautés apportées au titre ne suffisent pas à relancer l'intérêt. Le gameplay s'enrichit de deux trois petites astuces programmées à la va-vite et les graphismes gagnent d'un côté ce qu'ils perdent de l'autre. Le mode Dragon World est sympathique mais pas suffisamment travaillé et enfin le doublage américain vous fera hurler à la mort. Ce jeu s'adresse plus que jamais aux fans absolus (j'en sais quelque chose !), les autres pourront tranquillement gambader vers d'autres horizons " bastonnesques ".

This game is not really something you want to spend over £10 on it if you are not expecting to take it back because it is going to get very boring after you have unlocked everything. There is really nothing more to do in the game, except of course get angry at it and throw the disc against the wall, which is always fun. There are a lot of better games out there in this genre such as Bloody Roar or Tekken. I spent £40 on this game and it extremely annoyed me. If you do decide to get it try and get the cheapest deal you can find so you don’t waste lots of money on it like I did.

After over a decade of poorly realized Dragon Ball Z fighting games, Atari and little-known developer DIMPS surprised many people in 2002 when they released Dragon Ball Z: Budokai for the PlayStation 2. Amazingly, it wasn't half bad. The action wasn't complex--as it valued accessibility over depth--but the visuals had a sharp, clean look to them. Surprisingly, the game made excellent use of the license, with the crowning achievement being a story mode that reenacted many of Dragon Ball Z's most memorable moments. Now, about a year after Budokai hit shelves, DIMPS has churned out a better-looking sequel, but this time around it lacks the compelling story mode that distracts you from the rather basic gameplay.

Si tras el prometedor aunque con fallos DBZ Budokai todos esperábamos en esta secuela el juego de Son Goku defiintivo, parece que vamos a tener que seguir esperando. Budokai 2, espectacular gráficamente, no deja de ser un juego de Dragon Ball sólo para adictos a la serie...

Overall, Budokai 2 is a step backwards from the previous title. There were fewer voice-overs, a worse story (if that was ever possible), and a more limited fighting system. The visuals were far superior and a few of the mini-games helped keep the game afloat, but it is taking on water fast. Fans, go ahead, anyone else, rent first.

Dragon Ball Z: Budokai 2 is an improvement in many areas over the previous title, but still inherits some of its main flaws, particularly in the key area of combat.

The popular Dragon Ball: Budokai series returns to the PS2, this time with pretty cell-shaded graphics. Unfortunately, the game doesn?t offer much else than that.

While this game is good at reaching the hard core Dragon Ball fan, it does nothing to reach out to any other type of gamer. There is little originality, the controls are simplistic, and definitely suffer from the inability to use the right analog stick. The story is only decent if you followed the TV show. While this game would probably get a much higher rating if I was a devoted fan of the show, I have seen way too many episodes and know how to appreciate the show for what it is. Unfortunately, the game isn’t something that should be in anyone’s collection unless they have a room covered in Gohan and trunks pictures.

If you're familiar with the first game you'll notice that this sequel borrows heavily from it. Sound bites, sound effects, music, characters and even animations are reused, though they are mixed in with some new features so that the blind devotees would be none the wiser. Don't get me wrong, this isn't a bad game at all, it's just that a better version of it existed before this one was even conceived. Save your money kids.

If there ever was a video game award for "Sequel that was most similar to the original," Dragon Ball Z: Budokai 2 would certainly be a nominee, if not a winner. In fact, this game has no significant improvement in functional terms over the first one. Right away I can tell you that if you played the first one, your opinion of this game will more than likely be the same.