Although there are dozens of Dragon Ball Z games, from the great (Dragon Ball Z: Budokai 3, Dragon Ball FighterZ) to the terrible (Dragon Ball Z Ultimate Battle 22). However, Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot attempts to set itself apart by telling the entire saga, from the first battle with Raditz to the final confrontation with Kid Buu. While many games recount Dragon Ball Z, few have done it in an open-world, console adventure setting like this -- at least not since the disastrous Dragon Ball Z: Sagas.
While Dragon Ball Z fans have a lot to be excited for, gaming fans might not find enough here to jump onto. Developed by CyberConnect2 and released by Bandai Namco Entertainment, the game is a love letter to franchise fans. Kakarot allows them to relive some of the highest highs of the series while adding elements that actually endear them to the world. There are also a lot of repetitious side-quests that might exhaust a casual player, but those who love Dragon Ball Z will cherish every second.
The start of the game provides a good metric as whether you will enjoy Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot, as the cinematic recreates the classic "Cha-La Head Cha-La" opening from old-school Dragon Ball Z. If you stare at this with a rush of warm memories of a childhood spent watching Dragon Ball Z, you will love this game despite its warts. If it doesn't? Well, while you won't hate this game, it isn't a must-buy, either.
If you've watched Dragon Ball Z, the plot is familiar: You go through the core arcs of the series, order, with lots of downtime between major fights allowing room for exploration. You play primarily as the Saiyans, but characters like Piccolo are also controllable throughout the game. This is the story you've heard before, only told in an open world in which you can collect items, such as fruits, ore, meats and electrical equipment.
As an action RPG, there is a large focus on leveling up and skill trees. There are several spheres you can pick up while traveling that help you level up your techniques, as well as training exercises that grant you hidden abilities. However, the really interesting element is the Community Boards, which allow you to increase aspects of your character. One board increases offensive damage, another increases how much money you make, another your cooking skills, and so on. Each board's bonus is determined by Soul Emblems, which you receive from characters you meet along the way. The mechanic is a simple but effective way to diversity the characters.
The action, central to any franchise game, is reminiscent of Dragon Ball Z Xenoverse and Dragon Ball Z: Budokai Tenkaichi, albeit with some integral tweaks that make Kakarot more engaging. The gameplay is smooth and intuitive, although due to the simplicity of the controls, some in-game fights feel a little repetitive. The core fights in the game, however, feel more like arena-boss fights. There are multiple special moves that require planning and spacial reasoning if you have any hope of surviving. Because of that, you play to get to those huge battles.
This is where one of the big weaknesses of Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot comes in: the fights between the big fights. You will encounter robots, Saibamen, and Frieza's henchmen, who will charge and engage you. The enemy varieties are fairly straightforward and the fights easy, but, while they're good for grinding your characters, they often feel repetitive. This, coupled with the often-underwhelming side-missions, leaves you rushing from main mission to main mission to get to the epic boss fights faster. Players will most likely either skip many of the side-missions or taking a very long time to complete the game.
Ironically, however, some of the best moments come from the side-quests when you aren't fighting. One thing this game excels at is it puts you in the shoes of your favorite characters. The side-quests offer players a chance to see characters interact in ways you wouldn't normally see. We see shades of characters we adore in ways that are honestly quite interesting. There are a lot of cameos by iconic characters from across the Dragon Ball lore.
However, if you aren't a fan of Dragon Ball Z already, all these characters will feel superfluous, since they add little to the core narrative beyond just existing. The game takes its time. There is a lot of content in this game. It's not impossible to take upwards toward 40 to 50 hours to unlock everything, and that's before you get to the DLC. However, if you rush from mission to mission, you might spend between 15 and 20 hours playing the whole game -- although, again, you won't feel the pure immersion that Kakarot hopes to offer. The role-play aspect of is what makes Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot so very special.
There are also a lot of glitches that are being patched by Bandai Namco. Upon release, the game will have faster load times, but frame-rate drops when saving. There are also points in which it's unclear where you're supposed to go, because the markers you're supposed to see on the map simply don't show up. These glitches should be patched fairly quickly, but it's not impossible to get lost if you step away from a core objective to grind or buy some items, only to realize halfway across the map the game didn't mark where, say, Vegeta is. Until that's patched, it's probably best if you leave markers on the map for any important areas before you leave them.
The game has flaws that might alienate people outside of Dragon Ball Z fandom. However, it's indisputably a must-play for any Dragon Ball Z devotee. It's not a perfect game, but it's certainly one of the better ones. Is it better than Budokai 3 or FighterZ? No, the gameplay is not nearly as refined or balanced. That said, no other video game delivers on the promise of living in Goku's world quite like Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot does. It's a simple enough game to pick up and play, but it's also complex enough to leave players hunting for secrets and new material. Warts and all, this is the Dragon Ball Z experience fans have been waiting for.
Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot will be released Friday, Jan. 17, by Bandai Namco for PlayStation 4, Xbox One and PC. A review copy was provided by the publisher.