DRAGONBALL Z - Idainaru Dragonball Densetsu
(The Creation of the Dragonball Legends)
Sony Playstation
Bandai
SLPS 00355
96.05.29
¥5800


Perhaps the most natural anime license to create a fighting game with, DRAGONBALL Z has spawned another new twist on the video game fighting genre. This time, DRAGONBALL Z LEGENDS was released for the Saturn and Playstation simultaneously at the end of May. This is a review of the Playstation version specifically, although after briefly trying the Saturn game I found the versions to be very similar.
LEGENDS covers the entire DRAGONBALL Z storyline in one fell swoop. From the introduction of Vegita to the Buu saga, Gokuu and company fight it out again in the biggest battles. A dramatic introduction to each episode (eight total in the story mode) leads into the actual combat. Branching away from the standard 2-D side scrolling / split screen view of older DRAGONBALL fighting games, LEGENDS tries to recreate the full out "brawl" feel in a 3-D space. Up to six fighters at one time can circle and clash against each other, in the air and on the ground. From an outside view, this looks rather impressive.
How do you control it? Well, actual control is limited to one character against one enemy, while the rest of your group is run by the computer. You can switch fighters or targets at any time, and can call in reinforcements if desired. As battles rage on with fighters coming in and out, ganging up on an opponent becomes possible.
Pressing up on the joypad moves towards the opponent; pressing back retreats. Buttons allow the player to charge up power/turbo, shoot off a series of fireballs, punch/kick, and block. The left and right directions on the joypad are used for special combination attacks.
Of note, any normal attack actually does no damage. It instead moves a Power Balance gauge in or against your favor. If the power bar reaches one side completely, your current character will do a Meteo attack against the current target enemy (or vice versa), thus causing damage. After an automatic cinema of the character performing a spectacular special attack, the power bars are refilled, the Balance bar is centered and the combat continues until a side has been completely defeated.
The most important skill to learn is the chain combo: the trademark DRAGONBALL feature of hitting the opponent uncontrollably in a direction, racing around and hitting them in another direction or pummeling them up more, and occasionally plowing the enemy into the ground at a few hundred miles per hour. After each "chain", the enemy (if he has any power left) can try to dodge and hit you back. If your reactions are fast enough you can try to dodge the dodge, and so on. Twenty plus hit chains are possible (especially if the opponent is exhausted) which can quickly shift the Power Balance bar.
The graphics are a bit above average, with each character being distinctive in style and the 3-D Meteo attacks showing off a few tricks of the game system. The backgrounds are bland though, with each stage looking like the last. On the audio side, the character voices and sound effects are well done, but the music is barely noticeable.
The game does have some nice touches. For instance, the substitution screen has backup characters or others cheering on the fighters and commenting about the situation. A score is given at the end of each match, depending on various factors such as time completed and how many fighters were used. And after finishing the normal story an extra mode becomes enabled, supplying thirty new battle combinations which never happened in the original story.
But is LEGENDS worth it? I have mixed feelings personally, as the gameplay and design could have been better. Every character, although each drawn individually and each with a different Meteo cut scene, seems the same. Other than differing power and defense strengths, there are no special moves or features to any of the fighters. Kamehamehas and such are all performed automatically when the Power Balance shifts. Because of these things, the gameplay tends to get repetitive. Watch your power level, attack, start a chain combo, and watch your power level some more. So after one gets the hang of the control and strategy, many a player will breeze through the fights. Still there is an addictive quality to the game, which does keep me coming back to play through the various bonus bouts.
In summary, I would suggest this mainly to true DRAGONBALL Z fans. LEGENDS does a good job of recreating the feel of a full out DRAGONBALL brawl, and the added story touches will especially appeal to them. For fighting game enthusiasts, I would suggest other games first though. Titles such as VIRTUA FIGHTER 2, TEKKEN 2, and STREET FIGHTER ZERO have much more refined gameplay and as such more fun and replay value in my opinion. LEGENDS is a first step though in trying to achieve a more 3-D feel to the fighting genre, and is definately a good initial effort. It just lacks the greatness that it could have been.

-- Mark L. Johnson