A-07 WHAT DB/DBZ RELATED VIDEO GAMES ARE THERE?

COMMENTS: The very first Dragon Ball video game, based very loosely on the earliest adventures of Son Goku. Most of the early cast shows up in cameos--Bulma, Oolong, Kame-sennin, Yamucha & Puaru, and Pilaf. This game was released in the U.S. under the title "DRAGON POWER", and having played that version, I can tell you that this is a REALLY weak game. Part sidescroller, part overhead action, but mostly Goku walking around punching things. For such a lame game, it's surprisingly difficult (for me anyway); it's really not worth the effort. For major DB otaku only.

COMMENTS: The first Dragon Ball RPG, this game deals with Goku's journey to his final confrontation with the demon king Piccolo--fighting to overcome piccolo's henchmen, like Tambourine and Cymbal, along the way. Part RPG, part action game, the game follows a very linear course to the end. Combat is performed using a strange "battle card" system along the bottom of the screen--outcomes are determined by who's "card" has the better statistics.

COMMENTS: A continuation of the previous game, this time Goku and friends (including Kuririn, Yamcha, Tenshinhan, and Chaozu) work towards the goal of facing off against Piccolo Jr. in the Tenkaichi Budokai. Same basic game engine, slightly better graphics, and the introduction of "item cards" into the fray. Same "battle card" combat system.

COMMENTS: Another RPG that picks up in the era of Raditz's appearance, deals with Garlick and his thugs in the middle somewhere, and ends up with a climax against Vegeta and Nappa. You can also make visits to Kaio-sama's planet to train yourself. The overall quality picks up starting here, better graphics & the ability to play with different characters and use their own special attacks (including Goku, Gohan, Piccolo, Kuririn, Yamcha, Tenshinhan, and Chaozu...)

COMMENTS: This game follows Goku and Company into space in search of the planet Namek and its Dragon Balls. But first you've got to take on the Ginyuu Team, and then finally face off with Freeza himself in the climax. New characters include Dende and Nail. Same basic "combat card" combat system, but a new "story mode" is included.

COMMENTS: This chapter really takes on a lot of stuff! First, Goku's gotta get to Namek in time, fight off against Cyborg Freeza and his Dad, unite all the Dragon Balls, fight against Freeza's brother Coola, later confront Dr. Gero and #19, meet up with #16, 17, and 18, and finally Cell! Whew... that's a lotta action packed into one cart. Vegeta also comes under player control in this one.

COMMENTS: Anyone remember the "barcode wars" craze in Japan? This game was designed for use with a strange device called the "Datach" that plugged into the SFC and allowed for the swiping of barcodes into the FC games. To use the different players and different attacks, you have to pass the specific barcodes into the system. Each card gives the characters different attacks. Characters include all of your favorites, plus Freeza, Cell, and the Cyborgs.

COMMENTS: The last DBZ game for the famicom, and the first to feature an original story designed just for the game. An animated version of the story, in 3 parts, was released at about the same time. In this adventure, the evil Dr. Raichi tries to conquer the world with an armada of genetically engineered robots. Characters include Goku, Piccolo, Vegeta, Trunks, and Gohan, and featuring the return of Freeza and Metal Coola, among others...

A-07-b Nintendo Gameboy/Super Gameboy (8-bit?)

COMMENTS: Released on the heels of the "super gameboy" adapter, this cart is an RPG that takes place in the time period between the final stages of the original DB series, and the first parts of DBZ--go up against Piccolo Jr. in the Budokai, and defend the world against Radditz, Nappa, and Vegeta. Characters under your control include Goku, Kuririn, Yamcha, and Tenshinhan...

A-07-c Nintendo Super Famicom (16-bit) [SFC (Japan), SNES (U.S.)]

(1) TITLE/JAPANESE: Dragon Ball Z--Suupaasaiyajin Densetsu

COMMENTS: A combination of the storylines from the 4th and 5th Famicom games, this cart begins with the arrival of Raditz, and end with Super Saiyajin Son Goku's final battle with Freeza. The bump up to the SFC brings along an improvement in the graphics, and it still uses the familiar "combat card" system. You can supposedly control up to 12 different characters through the course of the game.

COMMENTS: Inspired by the huge Street Fighter II craze, here begins the trend of the DBZ one on one fighting game. As the first DBZ game I ever played, I was pretty impressed by this--I guess it was seeing my fave characters on screen, rather than the actual game itself, that attracted me. While fun to play, the control is very stiff, and it plays a lot slower than the next 2 in this series. To recommend it, the game does offer special attacks with sampled speech, a huge playfield with split screen, and plenty of characters. Included is a story mode, along with the one on one battling, and a Budokai mode where up to 8 people can play in a tournament. Play as Goku, Piccolo, Vegeta, Freeza, #16, #18, #20, and Cell (when the title screen pops up, hold down the L, R, A, B, X, & Y buttons, and start twirling like crazy on the directional pad, the first chime allows two players to use the same character, and the second gives you extra characters).

COMMENTS: The second of the SFC fighting games is an almost 100% improvement over #1... the character and background graphics are better, the control feels a whole lot tighter, and basically it's just a heck of a lot more fun to play. Battles are improved as well--you can now generate your own Ki, have more varied and spectacular finishing attacks [the crashing of attacks has a high "aw, cool!" factor to it], and tons of sampled speech. To spice things up a little, a story mode is included, as is the Budokai mode. Characters include Gohan, Piccolo, Vegeta, Trunks, Cell, Cell Jr., Bojack and Zangya (during the opening flight sequence, push these buttons on controller #1-- UP, X, DOWN, B, L, Y, R, A. If you do it right, you should hear Broli yell out "Kakarotto!". Hold down the L & R Buttons of controller 2 when turning the game on to get a 1.5x turbo mode--the music should change if you do it right).

COMMENTS: A lot of people have given this game a bad rap, but I think it's better than the critics have implied. Yes, basically we're back for more of the same one on one fighting, but this time with characters from the Majin Buu saga. The graphics are a little sharper this time around, and the split screen playing field is back. Improvement include faster Ki charging time, and the ability to fly/land while on the same screen as your opponent. Here's the bad--the game looks rushed. There is no story mode this time out, which does take away from the replay value a little bit. Also, it looks like the background designer went on holiday, as we only have about 9 different choices this time, as opposed to something like 17 in #2. BUT, like I said, it's a chance to play with new characters... and thats why it's worth buying. This time you can play Goku, Vegeta, chibi Trunks, Goten, Gohan, #18, Dabura, Majin Buu, and Kaioshin [Hint--during the opening sequence, do the same code from #2 to be able to play as Future Trunks... also, for turbo mode, hold down all 6 buttons on controller #2 when you turn it on, and hold it all the way through the intro... the ball around the "3" should turn orange if done correctly]. Still a fun game.

COMMENTS: A return to the good old RPG days for the DBZ franchise after 3 beat-em-ups was a welcome change. Going all the way back to the beginning of the series, take on the role of Goku as he meets Bulma and begins on the adventure that started it all, then follow the course of the series until the final confrontation with Piccolo Daimao (I think this is where it ends, anyway...) From what I've seen, the graphics are pretty nice, and the whole thing has the 3/4 viewpoint, giving it a kind of pseudo 3-D look. Anyone play this game yet? Mail me with some details.

COMMENTS: This game's pretty much brand new, so I don't know much about it. I'm assuming it's a sequel to the RPG above, continuing the story from where the first one left off. Same graphics, I assume, same basic gameplay as the one above. More details anyone?

COMMENTS: Well, it's back to familiar territory for the DBZ franchize on the SFC... We get another in the series of one on one fighting games, this time covering characters from the final few chapters of the Majin Buu saga. There are a few changes though-- first, from what i hear the dividing line that we have grown used to isn't found in this game. Whether it scales when you get farther apart, like in the PSX version, I can't say, although from the commercials, it appears that you are now able to move into the foreground/background as well as ground/sky dimensions, which should offer more challenge to the game play. The graphics are nothing short of awesome, even better than those from Super Butonden #3, but i was hoping that this cart would take a clue from the Saturn and PSX versions and give us a larger range of characters to choose from... no dice. We get only 10 characters again, which include Goku, Vegeta, Gotenks, Gogeta, Piccolo, Fat Buu, Little Buu, Freeza (huh?), Cell (huh??), and Gohan. I don't know if the classic "secret code" from the Butoden games will work to give you extra characters in this game, but it's definitely worth trying. I also don't know if there is a Story mode or a Budokai mode, but i would almost guarantee the latter.

A-07-d PC Engine CD-ROM (16-bit) [Turbo Duo (U.S.)]

COMMENTS: This game aims to cover a broader range of the DB series--it starts out with chibi Goku fighting Tao Paipai, and finishes off with adult Super-Saiyajin Goku taking on Perfect Cell. Thanks to the CD technology, players are treated to supposedly near-actual anime quality cinema sequences during the story mode. There's also a one on one Vs. mode, of course, and you can pick from all the characters found in the story mode, including Tao Paipai, Piccolo Daimao, Piccolo Jr., Tenshinhan, Vegeta, Freeza, Perfect Cell, and 3 Gokus-- chibi, adult, and Super Saiyajin. While the graphics are better than the SFC versions, the game play is a bit slower, and a little less playable. It's prettier, but loses something of the gameplay ultimately. Geez, anyone in America even HAVE one of these systems anymore?! (^_^)

A-07-e Bandai Playdia (???)

COMMENTS: Bandai's next generation system never really took off, but this was one of the first games made available when it was released in Japan. Using CD technology, this game uses a ton of footage from the three episode "Gaiden" storyline. The gimmick is that you watch the cool anime footage, and periodically, the motion freezes, and like a choose your own adventure book, you're given several options on what to do next--should Goku punch, kick, use Kamehameha, or go home and eat?? It's up to you to decide. I imagine it would be pretty cool to mess around with for a while, but good luck finding a Playdia in this country... I also imagine it would get old after a while, but who knows?

A-07-f Sega Megadrive (16-bit) [Sega Genesis (U.S.)]

COMMENTS: Coming out about the same time as the 2nd Butoden game for the SFC, this game does what it can to capture the same flavor on the Megadrive. Play as Goku, Kuririn, Gohan, Vegeta, Trunks, Cell, Cell Jr., Piccolo, Freeza, and Rikum. Anyone who has this game want to give a few more details?

A-07-g Sega Saturn (32-bit)

COMMENTS: Now it's the Saturn's turn for a new DBZ game, and it promisses to be every bit as good as the new Playstation version [maybe it's even better!? I don't know.. all I got is some screen shots out of Shonen jump...] Anyway, the graphics look pretty sharp, and the CD technology should allow great sounds, music, and character cinemas. The Saturn version has 25 total characters to choose from, coming in 2 shy of the PlayStation with the code [maybe this one has a code too?]. The characters you can choose from are: Son Goku, Shonensen Gohan, Kyousenshi Vegeta, Trunks, chibi Trunks, Gotenks, Piccolo, Kuririn, Tenshinhan, Kame-sennin, Zarbon, Rikum, Ginyuu taichou, Freeza, #16, #18, Cell, Kaioushin, Dabura, Majin Buu, Mr. Satan, Great Saiyaman, chibi Goku, and Gogeta.

Comments: Wow, this game looks wild! I have only seen pics in issues of Shonen Jump, but from what I can tell, this game is the first attempt at a DBZ game using a totally 3-D environment similar to fighting games like Toh Shin Den. The backgrounds appear to be partially polygonal/partially rendered, and look kind of unimpressive from these shots I have, but I can imagine that playing it will be an interesting experience. The characters themselves are NOT polygons, and they too don't look as impressive as their cousins in Virtua Fighter. But, despite this apparent crudity, it also excites me... DBZ in a full 3-D world! It has a lot of posibilities for a new experience in the sort of tired fighting genre. From the limited screen shots I have, I can identify the following characters: Goku, Vegeta, Kuririn, Nappa, Saiba-man, and Piccolo... it also appears that more than two players can participate in the same battle. To be totally honest, I'm not sure if this IS a fighting game... it could also be an RPG as far as I know... I've heard different rumors about this game, so i guess we'll have to wait and see.

A-07-h Sony PlayStation (32-bit) [PSX]

COMMENTS: Welcome to the REAL next level--Dragon Ball Z on the Sony Playstation. The biggest reason to buy this game is the sheer number of characters you can choose to play with--the 22 in the title refers to the number of characters! Some of the characters available are: SSJ Goku, Trunks, chibi Trunks, Goten, Gotenks, chibi Gohan, Piccolo, Vegeta, Cell, Fat Buu, Mean Buu, Freeza, #16, and Zarbon... Actually, with the help of a secret code, you can access ANOTHER 5 characters, bringing the total count up to 27... I've been complaining for years that the SFC games leave out many of my favorite characters, but here they all are finally! I'm itching to take out Majin Buu with Kame-sennin (^_^)! Anyway, the play is similar to the SFC games, but here the splitscreen option has been replaced with scaling sprites ala Samurai Showdown, which supposedly allows faster gameplay. Once again, we get the standard Vs mode, a Budokai tournament mode, and something called a "build-up" mode, which allows you to build up your characters and save their progress on a memory card. Sony's CD technology allows tons of sampled speech, great music, detailed characters and polygon generated backgrounds, as well as opening character animation before each fight (At the Dragon Ball Z Ultimate Battle 22 screen, press UP, TRIANGLE, DOWN, X, LEFT, L1, RIGHT, R1).

Comments: This game is going to be identical to the Sega Saturn version talked about above. Like other multi-format games, I guess that the only differences will be in the hardware of the two systems.

A-07-i Arcade

COMMENTS: Having played this game first hand in the arcades of Madrid, I come before you to testify that this game pretty much stinks. Well, lets back up a bit. This is another in the string of one on one fighting games, but this time you're popping in tokens. This first game is rather similar in style to the classic SFC Butoden games--Take on the computer as you slowly fight your way up the ladder of challengers, or fight against your friends in Vs. mode. You have 8 characters to choose from here, each with his own special moves performed by using certain joystick/button combinations. The characters are: Goku, Vegeta, Gohan, Piccolo, Freeza, Rikum, Baata & Ginyuu. In my personal opinion, the game control was really loose, and the special moves and combos were very difficult to figure out. Not only that, but certain characters are inherantly more powerful than others. A friend of mine, who'd never played a fighting game before, almost beat this game by picking Ginyuu and just hitting the kick button continuously. The graphics are OK, as are the character animation... but this game is just missing that certain something that makes it stand out. I mean, who sits around dreaming of being able to play RIKUM??

COMMENTS: Judging from screen shots alone, I can tell that the graphics are much improved over the last outing. The characters are big and well drawn, the backgrounds are very detailed. Once again we're back for more one on one fighting action, this time with a new group of characters to choose from. You can pick from 10 characters in total, some of which are: Goku, #16, Future Trunks, Mr. Satan, Cell, Vegeta, #19, #20, and possible Gohan and Piccolo. Each character has seven special attacks to master, and the gimmick is that they are exclusive to this game i.e. these new attacks arent used in the anime or manga. I guess that's OK, but isn't the attraction of these games that they offer you the chance to play your favorite character, with his special attacks you've come to love? If I can't pull off a kamehameha, then forget it [I'm sure thats still in there, though]. Anyway, This game's also chock full of digitized voice samples done by the original seiyuu, as well as uses authentic sound effects. I think that all in all, it shows some promise... but as always, the proof is in the playing.

COMMENTS: I know absolutely NOTHING about this game, just that it is a fighting game with a bit of a twist--it's supposed to be a fighting game from a first person perspective, sort of a pseudo "virtual reality" type deal... I can only imagine.. is it like a DOOM perspective, with your hands sticking out in front of you? Or like that old NEO GEO game SUPER SPY or whatever it was called...? Anyone see this yet? Let me know if you have any more details...