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Playstation 2 : Dragonball Z Budokai Tenkaichi Reviews

Below are user reviews of Dragonball Z Budokai Tenkaichi and on the right are links to professionally written reviews. The summary of review scores shows the distribution of scores given by the professional reviewers for Dragonball Z Budokai Tenkaichi. Column height indicates the number of reviews with a score within the range shown at the bottom of the column. Higher scores (columns further towards the right) are better.







User Reviews (1 - 11 of 57)

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A lot of fun but not everyone will aprove.

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 4 / 5
Date: October 20, 2005
Author: Amazon User

This game is a blast to play. The learning curve for previous budokai gamers will be high. The buttons can be switched but the default works the best for me. Very fast paced fighting, much closer to the show than previous games. Problems begin with no transformations in the gameplay. All powered up charachters are available but as seperate playable charachters. Also the dramatic cut scenes are gone. This may dissapoint some fans while others will be happy to see them go. Dragon Rush, so the paper, rocks, sicssors aspect is gone. A similar attack can be done via combination of attacks strung together. Free roaming through completely destructible stages are the games strong point. The story mode while not on par with Budokai 1 is still very respectable. With a few minor flaws and learning curve that is tough, the game will be a welcome addition to the DBZ collection of console games.

Atari really has outdone themselves with Budokai Tenkaichi!

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 3 / 4
Date: October 21, 2005
Author: Amazon User

This is probably the best DBZ title to come out on the PS2. Known as DBZ: Sparking! in Japan, Budokai Tenkaichi is a fresh fighting game that allows freedom of movement around huge levels and is probably has the fighting system that is the closest to the DBZ show. You can play as 60 characters, 90 if you count transformations (which are separate characters themselves and not actual skills this time around. Trust me that's a good thing. I'll explain later), and fight in fast paced action.

Graphically, the game is pretty nice. Not the best cel-shading I've seen, but definitely not the worst. Also, many small touches make the graphics even better, such as correct auras, electricity in the auras, and other small stuff.

Gameplay is much different from the other Budokai games. Along with the larger arenas, you fight from third-person perspective, with the option to freely move about the stages. It's really cool, but you can't go in and play the game like before. The control scheme has been changed up to the point where you won't know what the heck you're doing if you don't learn about them. They fit the game pretty nicely, but at times they can be somewhat clunky, but not to the point where it's super horrible. Also, characters are noticably different from other characters, save for a few that are super similar. The difference in characters, free-roaming, and speedy gameplay adds up to quick thinking and strategic measures at a bit of points.

Sounds are really nice. I'm not going to get into this but nice sound effects all around. Music is exactly from the older Budokai games, so don't expect any new tunes.

Overall, if you're a DBZ fan, it's a must buy. If you like fighting games, a bit passable, but can be fun.

WHY NO TRANSFORMATIONS?!?

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 1 / 2
Date: October 22, 2005
Author: Amazon User

Seriously, who is the genius that decided to take out the in-game transformations that we all loved in DBZ Budokai 3?!? If you know DBZ then you know what I'm talking about. You could pick Goku and if powered up he would go from regular to SSJ all the way to SSJ4 while fighting. This game won't allow you to do that. You either choose to fight with SSJ Goku or SSJ4 Goku, there is no powering up. Same with the other Saiyans including Broly who is already a SSJ. It sucks. They say 60+ characters but 5 of them are each the same character...just different stages of being powered up.

Other than that the game is great. Its 3-D so you can fly anywhere and destroy stuff. The Dragon Rush is optional I think so thats great and its fast like the cartoon.

Also for whatever reason some characters from DBZ Budokai 3 were cut from this game. If you loved to play with Uub, Omega Shenron or Supreme Kai from the last game they gone from this one. Again...who knows why because it sucks. Instead of having 5 different Gokus, Vegetas or Gohans you could add completely new characters like Pikkon or Super Android 13. If you are a fan of DBZ like me then I would rent this first because you might just end up playing DBZ Budokai 3 more like myself. Hopefully they will get it right for the next gen systems.

its ok

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 2 / 4
Date: October 23, 2005
Author: Amazon User

If your somewhat fimilar to the budokai series, well your not missing much. The game is a great game, but it still has its flaws. Everything to the music to the game screen seems all to fimilar. You will still have all your classic game modes and more. The big thing about this game is the freeroaming ability which adds more heart-bounding experience. The graphics are basically the same as the other budokai games out there. Also you have 60-characters to choose from..but theres a big draw back. You can start as goku but you cant change into super sayian 1,2,3 etc. Instead you can choose from 5 different goku's that are all different super sayian levels/stage, this is for all characters also. Plus it still doesn't have online yet.But theres so much to unlock and you will be spending countless hours unlocking stuff. i rented it instead and im glad. If I were you i would rent it first or wait intell it drops in price, unless your a die-hard dragonball z fan go out and get it, if you must. thanks for listening to my review.

Crash, Bang, Pow, Kamehameha!

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 4 / 5
Date: October 24, 2005
Author: Amazon User

Wow this game is awesome but, there are some disapointments but let's start with the pros. First of all, there are over 50 characters. Yes, Hercule is in there but he will serve a purpose. Now the modes are what really make this game exciting, but I won't spoil too much, just the stuff that you'll first see. Ok, the best mode is the Z battle gate. what it is is just a story mode that has movie stories, show stories, and other stuff. Just select a battle, listen to a cutscene, and fight. Next is the world tournament, which needs no introduction, has 4 modes novice, adept, advanced and one I won't tell you. Next is Practice, which has practice, where you can fight a cpu and not die, and tourial (sorry if I spell it wrong) where you can learn how to play. After that is Ultimate Battle where you can fight 99 other people so you can get rank #1. Evolution Z is a customizable mode where you can upgrade your character with portara. Fuse portara, and you can unlock SOME characters (most you unlock in z battle gate). Dueling (what I should've put first) is where you can pick two characters and fight (yes it's 2 player). The final one is Character Illustrations. It is a not needed mode that let's you see Ilustrations of characters that were from the series.

Gameplay 9.2

Graphics 9.0

Sound 9.0

Value 9.6

Tilt 9.7

Average 9.3

A few faults but otherwise a good addition to the DBZ lineup

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 20 / 24
Date: October 25, 2005
Author: Amazon User

Let me tell you this straight: This is NOT a DBZ Budokai game. Yes, it has the Budokai name, but that's because it simply had the Budokai license slapped on it for its US release. Forget everything you knew about the Budokai series, because this game's entirely different... which may be a good thing or a bad thing.

Probably the best thing of this title is it features the Japanese voices for the game, so you get to pick whichever you prefer. Longtime fans will probably enjoy hearing many of the original voices, such as mainstay Masako Nozawa as lead hero Goku(and Gohan.. and Goten... and Bardock...), as well as regulars such as Inuyasha's Takeshi Kusao, One Piece's Mayumi Tanaka, Rurouni Kenshin's Hirotaka Suzoki, Cowboy Bebop's Norio Wakamoto, and Sailor Moon's Toru Furuya and Yuko Minaguchi. Not to mention many of the voices, including Daisuke Gori, Hikaru Midorikawa, Toshio Furukawa, and Bin Shimada have provided voices for some of todays top fighting franchises, such as Dead or Alive, Tekken, and Soul Calibur. It's one huge reunion. Characters also have different abilities. Goku, for example, can use Kaio Ken to power up or Solar Flare to blind an enemy so he can get a hit in(ironically though, Tien or even Krillin for that matter, DOESN'T have Solar Flare) In his SSJ mode, he could use Instantaneous Movement to teleport safely behind an enemy and avoid their attack, leaving them open to a crushing blow. Fighting is fast paced and occurs on land, in the air, or even underwater.(apparently everybody can hold their breaths really well). The main mode retells most of the stories, as well as a few movies and some of DB and DBGT. There's also some extra fighting modes, as well as an improved customization menu that even lets you help unlock more characters. There's also some pretty neat character pages for every person you've unlocked, which provides history and attack info and even lists who does who's voice for both the English and Japanese versions. In appearance it seems like the perfect DBZ game... all is not well, however, as there are also quite a few negatives.

First, the controls are very poor. Yes, you heard me. It doesn't matter whether you know what the buttons do or not. They are horribly jerky and unresponsive even after you finally understand how to perform each move. For an example, when I press left, my fighter should go left, NOT STRAIGHT TOWARDS THE ENEMY! The music is also annoying. It's the same stuff we've been hearing since Budokai 1 three years ago... shouldn't we at least get a few new tracks? Story mode's cutscenes are also pretty dull, they're similar to the ones in B1 where two characters would chat right before the battle... unlike B1 though, it doesn't have extra scenes that attempt to copy the anime series.

All in all, DBZ: Budokai Tenkaichi is a very mixed bag. Some parts are great, but a few areas could be improved upon. I'd honestly suggest renting first in case you don't like it, because some may be disappointed, especially if they are expecting this to be "Budokai 4." Still, for me at least the positives outweigh the negatives. I'll be playing this for quite some timie, even with more big hits coming out soon.

superior saiyan

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 2 / 6
Date: October 25, 2005
Author: Amazon User

This is for atari. maybe he start to listen to the fans. first thing is first make the bad ending of the dbgt well again. dbgt is not so good as dbz. that may be so because there where different makers working with eachother. well the dbgt has no spirit in the serie. start whit a new hard breaking db serie.now lets talk about the game dbz budokai tenkaichi. there is no transformation in the game. have you lost your marvels. dbz is all about martialarts en that means its all about getting better, getting stronger, the hunger for superior bean. if you can't transform any more that means there is no spirit anymore.

This is how the ultimate db,dbz,dbgt must look like:

+ Transformatiom 100 %
+ All most all the characters
+ Very large areas
+ Gets faster when you become stronger
+ The story continues
+ Make your own characters / just like the player of the game

Thankfully more characters

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 2 / 5
Date: October 27, 2005
Author: Amazon User

Admittidly I haven't played this game yet. I plan on getting it for Christmas. I have however read the strategy guide and found out most of the new characters in the game. No one has written a review talking about the added characters so here they are.
Chiatsu* "Finally"
Master Roshi*
General Taio*
Burter*
Guldo*
Jeice* "Finally all the ginyu force"
Metal Frieza*
Sayain ape*
Andriod 19* "Wasn't in budakia 2 or 3"
Zarbon* "Wasn't in 2 or 3
Dodoria* "Wasn't in 2 or 3"
Evil Boo* "The gray one"
Babby Vegeta* "From GT"
Super android 17* "From GT"
Bojack* "?"
Some purple and red guy* "?"
They got rid of these guys
Supreme Kai
Omega Shenron
Uub
Regular Broly
Regular Cooler and Metal Cooler
I was hoping that they would add Uub from the GT, but the other additions are worth it. I don't know about the custum create. No one has wriiten a review talking about that. The no transformations sounds weird, but I'll get the game just like I did the other 3. I will write another review after I get the game.

A good game with some major control issues

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 61 / 68
Date: October 28, 2005
Author: Amazon User

Dragon Ball Z: Budokai Tenkaichi.

INTRODUCTION:
I have long been a fan of the Dragon Ball Z series. The series has a "love it or hate it" reputation, but even those who do love the series aren't afraid to say that a lot of the games based on it haven't exactly been that good. The Budokai series is a major exception to the rule. Its two-dimensional fighting action has been nothing short of excellent, and definitely one of the best Dragon Ball sub-series of games. In 2005, Budokai Tenkaichi was released, which totally reinvented the Dragon Ball Z fighter. Did they do a good job. To find out, read on!

OVERVIEW:
Dragon Ball Z: Budokai Tenkaichi was released in October of 2005 in the United States. The game features several characters available right off the bat, as well as many more characters/forms that can be unlocked. There are many different gameplay modes.

REVIEW:
I had some doubts about this game, and some of those doubts I was right to have. This is a good game, but sadly, lots of little problems kick it down a notch. Let's check out the pros and cons of Budokai Tenkaichi.

-THE GOOD:

-THE GREATEST GRAPHICS EVER SEEN IN A DRAGON BALL Z GAME. EVER. This game's graphics, particularly in the opening intro, are nothing short of excellent. I have mixed feelings about cel-shading, but this game does cel-shading better than any other game on the market at this time. It's the ultimate triumph for this graphic style

-EXTREMELY INNOVATIVE. Previous Dragon Ball fighters restricted you to a two-dimensional fighting plane. But here, you have huge, three-dimensional arenas, with tons of different and interesting locales to battle in. This game makes every effort possible to capture the free-flowing, fast-paced battles of the anime, and it succeeds beautifully,

-YOU HAVE THE OPTION TO HEAR THE ORIGINAL JAPANESE VOICES FOR THE CHARACTERS! As a die-hard fan of the uncensored, unbutchered Japanese version of the series, I can't tell you how happy I was to discover this.

-LOTS OF DIFFERENT GAME PLAY MODES. With all the different game modes, this is a game that is likely to hold your attention for a long time, should you be able to get into it.

-TONS OF UNLOCKABLES. Dragon Ball games always have unlockable stuff, and there are a ton of hidden things in this game, including many more characters than just those initially available.

-CHARACTERS ARE IN THIS GAME THAT WERE PREVIOUSLY NOT PLAYABLE IN ANY OTHER DRAGON BALL GAME! Granted, most of them have to be unlocked, but it's just awesome that so many of these characters, deprived of their place in earlier games, get it here. It's about damn time we got a Dragon Ball game that lets us play as Chiaotzu! Likewise, the ENTIRE Ginyu Force is here! There are even little-known characters, like Janemba, the villain from the twelfth movie. Furthermore, the game also boasts a few original series and GT characters. With all the different characters and forms of them, there are close to a hundred different playable identities in the game!

-THE BAD:

-PLAY CONTROL. I understand that the game maker wanted to be innovative, but the controls in this game just aren't that good. They take some major getting used to. Even I, a veteran gamer, had a big problem adjusting to them. Most of the flaws in this game stem from the control issues.

-THE ACTION IS TOO FAST-PACED! I understand this was done in an effort to capture the feeling of the anime, but combine it with poor play control that is extremely tough to grasp, and the end combination is NOT something desirable.

-THE COMPUTER IS TOO DIFFICULT TO DEFEAT. Granted, this is mostly due to play control issues. However, it is still a key issue. In the story mode, because of all these little problems come together, it must have taken me ten tries just to defeat Raditz! Now that hurts.

-IT IS UNCLEAR HOW TO UNLOCK/OBTAIN THINGS. I understand why the unlockables remain a secret; it adds some fun to the game. However, many different items/skills/etc. must be obtained in the various game modes, and it's confusing as to what does what, and how it must be obtained.

-THE STEEP LEARNING CURVE MAY TURN AWAY POTENTIAL PLAYERS. The control issues are obviously the biggest factor to blame for this, but just the same, I wish they would have found a way to make the game more accessible.

Overall, I think that this game is a very mixed bag. Where it succeeds in one area, it fails in another. If you're a die-hard fan of Dragon Ball Z, definitely check the game out, but I strongly recommend you try before you buy.

EDITION NOTES:
At the time I write this review, the game is still fairly new and fairly popular. You should have absolutely no trouble finding it in any place that sells video games.

Extremely fun! Minor, but forgiveable camera and control problems.

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 1 / 3
Date: October 29, 2005
Author: Amazon User

The cell-shaded characters, expansive environments, and lighting effects are all phenomenal, and the voices, sounds, and music are straight out of the anime. The game looks and sounds about as close to the anime as I imagine you can get. The developers paid attention to detail, and the game is full of little touches that show this.

Although some fans of the previous DBZ Budokai games have complained about the lack of in-game transformations, this is a more accurate depiction of how the fighting occurs in the anime. The majority of times a character transformed or "powered up" in the Dragonball shows and movies, it either happened before a fight started, during brief breaks in the fighting, or as the result of special circumstances. Not once in the series does the character Goku go through every stage of Super Saiyan (increasing power levels) during a single fight. Cell does not go from his imperfect form to his "super perfect" form during a single fight.

Additionally, if a player wants to play as the highest-form of a particular character, being able to start the fight in that form gives them more time to do that. If you really want to play as SuperSaiyan 4 Vegeta, for example, wouldn't you rather start out that way than spend a good portion of the time during the fight trying to reach that form?

The fighting system is a bit simplistic, especially compared to games like Soul Calibur 3, but there is enough variety to it to keep it interesting and challenging. The simplicity of the fighting system makes it more friendly to younger players, who can pick it up quickly. My 5 year old nephew plays the game often, and despite AI that has been described as "merciless" and "cheap", he holds his own against the computer on the "easy" setting. My only complaints about the fighting system is that sometimes the controls are difficult during rushing and dodging, and the camera positioning can be poor when you are up against the outside edge of an arena or trees and some other objects. This is the only reason I gave the game an overall rating of 4 instead of a 5.

With 90 characters and 8 different arenas to choose from, there is the potential for over eight thousand different character match ups, and over sixty four thousand unique fights! With an average match time of about 3 minutes including character selection and loading, you would have to play forty hours a week nonstop for over two and a half months to play every possible match up, and almost a year and a half to play every possible match up in every arena.

Although the ESRB rating is T, I haven't found anything in this game that a reasonable adult would find inappropriate for younger children. There is no foul language, nudity, sexual themes, etc., and even the fighting is devoid of blood and gore. Although the characters show some visual damage in the form of torn clothing, bruises, scrapes, and scratches depending on how much of a beating they take, there is never any blood spatter or gore. IMO, this game would make an excellent gift for a Dragonball Z fan of any age.


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