Goku and company land on PC, PS4 and Xbox One with their most faithful adventure to date.
For many years, Dragon Ball fans had wondered why a company like CyberConnect 2 was not leading the franchise. It seemed that the formula was not advancing enough and instead, this company hit the spot every time he took out a new Naruto. In E3 of 2019, Bandai Namco heard the requests and announced the arrival of Kakarot for PC, PS4 and Xbox One. An open-world Action RPG that was going to review the entire story of Goku and his friends within the Z series. delivery that wanted to become the greatest recreation of manga and anime that Akira Toriyama's work has ever had. A tribute to the series, but also to its readers, spectators and players.
Because Dragon Ball Z Kakarot is above all that, a tribute to the universe created for years by Akira Toriyama and now has continuity with Super and Toyotaro. It is complicated, if not impossible, to separate game and license in this case. Because many of the decisions made and many of the elements present in the world that we explore, in the narrative used and in the peak moments, is subject to the original work. In the knowledgeable and critical eyes with what deviates from what we consider fidelity. And to nostalgia. You cannot ask someone who was 10, 12 or 15 years old when Goku ended up with Kid Buu to separate those memories from the game he is holding. Because those experiences are what you want to evoke in Kakarot. Naturally, this does not nullify the critical spirit that should prevail in any Reviews nor does it mean that for being Goku, the game is automatically worthwhile. In our list of notes to games of the saga it is clear that it does not go of this. But it is true that Kakarot evokes and bets on sensations that go beyond being able to launch a Kame Hame Ha in a video game. And that is a great value that not many Dragon Balls have had and that points directly to the fan.
The new Dragon Ball title has neither the best combat system we have seen on the license nor is it an open world especially memorable in the era of Breath of the Wild, Red Dead Redemption 2 or God of War. In fact, the mold used seems from another era. But his great virtue is that he knows how to fit, surely like never before, any other game in the saga, the concept of adventure that has always accompanied Goku and company.
If one thinks of the last Xenoverse, it was clear that they wanted to be more than a Tenkaichi, betting on a solvent combat, a system of progress and personalization with interesting RPG touches to mold our character and even conditions to obtain greater rewards. But it all came down to a great hub that took us to fighting after fighting, with some missions and extras like dragon balls and little else. Kakarot differs in many ways from Xenoverse. One focuses everything on fighting as the main playable axis (along with personalization) and the other, the one that concerns us today, has many battles, yes, but it's half the cake. And the other half is no less important.
Kakarot: the most faithful game to the original work
The first measures of the game are a declaration of intent. The opening of Z with the original song already suggests that we are facing something special for the Dragon Ball fan. More when we started with Goku and a little Gohan in the middle of the forest, looking for food for Chichi. When we see how Gohan begins to cry inconsolably and screaming if we separate a lot, nailing those cries of the anime, we understand that the love for detail may be in every corner. And it is. Go if it is.
Throughout our adventure and the exploration of the enormous world that we are opening as we move forward in history we realize two things: that CyberConnect2 has had as a great objective to recreate with great fidelity the great events of the saga Z , and that includes fighting that has rarely been recreated in video games, such as that of Goku against Yakon in the Buu saga, Gohan's training when he is alone in the desert under Piccolo's watchful eye (something we only saw in the anime) or what happens in the hyperbolic time chamber between Gohan and Goku.
The fidelity that Cyberconnect2 wants to approach leads it to amazingly recreate all the locations we have known in the series. The sacred forest that runs the big tower of Korin, the Yamcha desert, the interior of the Capsule Corporation, the surroundings of the World Tournament, Namek, the planet Kayoshin or that of Kaito … It is difficult to find a corner that is not recognizable. As it is also difficult not to soak up constant details. Secondary missions starring dozens of characters from the history of the saga: Suno, the young woman who saved us in the snow during the arc of the Red Ribbon, Upa and her father, Baba the seer, Dr. Brief, Puar, Oolong … And many others that although it may not be spoiler, are a huge surprise that we prefer not to reveal.
Everything makes sense within the Dragon Ball universe, even the events that happen. As the development is open world and we go to the points marked to continue through history, we can take a look to see if the world is consistent with what happens in the plot. And it is. When Piccolo detects those multiple Ki that turn out to be those of Cell, and we go with him to that city. If before we approach the objective point we walk through the streets we will see that there are no humans: only clothes on the ground. When Super Buu sweeps the planet and kills all its inhabitants with that purple rain of bursts of ki, the world is deserted. And that means there is no one in the stores to buy, no side quests to do … nor Korin in his tower to give us senzu seeds. They are just two examples that show how Kakarot has been treated differently from other titles, understanding adventure and exploration as something that cannot be alien to the moment we are living in history.
In fact, the game also goes a little further and likes to respond to things we never know how they were solved, such as the days after Cell and a Gohan worried about what to do, or some outstanding debts with Old Kayoshin among others .
Kakarot is surely the most complete game we have in what Z event tour and good narrative use is concerned, because it stops in so many details and curiosities (that driving license of Goku and Piccolo, that first day of Gohan in the institute ) never seen before that adds value, but it is not perfect. There are important omissions at certain times, such as the way of the snake, the training of Goku going to Namek, the return of Trunks to the future or the combat of Goten and Trunks in the martial arts tournament. Also missing are spectacular video scenes at certain times that are solved with dialogues or (this not so usual) static images. And it is a pity, because there are such spectacular sequences, capable of getting goosebumps on several occasions, that you would dream of having them in all those moments that constantly occur to you when you play. And that is not usual in a Dragon Ball game.
Hands-on: Kakarot enters combat
Kakarot divides the action into two very well differentiated parts. On the one hand we have the open world that we can explore and in which we will find endless tasks to perform. The most important are the main missions, marked in orange, and the secondary missions, in blue. In the case of the former, they follow the main events of Z through dialogues, video scenes and combats, while in the latter they open a greater range of options in the form of combats, character search or all kinds of Objects and others. All this is aligned with a host of extras and mini-games that we can do in our stay in the world.
The combat is a main and key part of the game, because there are constantly, because the secondary ones also pull it and because the world is full of enemies that will persecute us. And it is here that Kakarot stays a step below the global count. Go ahead that throughout the 20 hours that the main campaign lasts and the more than fifteen extras that we have played a posteriori (surely remaining about 10 or more for 100%), the combat has not made us heavy nor a slab. But it is true that it feels better both in our options, although this is palliated as we improve our skill tree, as especially in the enemies and their patterns.
The title moves away from wanting to offer combos in the Tenkaichi 2/3 style or the Xenoverse, and we have a melee attack button, another one of ki bursts, one to charge energy, vanish with X on PS4 and the top buttons to open menu and launch special attacks or support attacks. The ki is spent with each attack or transformation and we have to reload it. We hit with melee attacks by inserting it with vanish to lengthen the combos, seeking to launch specials that allow chasing and ending with special attacks. The problem is that the link between attacks and specials is not as fluid as in a Xenoverse 2 – it does not have its options – and the bosses of the big bosses make us have to be more aware of when to dodge or block than of being able to make great combos .
The enemies usually have charge attacks that they can launch even if we hit them, special attacks of great range of action and then their own peculiarities. Androids absorb energy, Cell has a grip to prick us with its tail, Frieza its onslaught that leaves us stunned and comes at great speed, etc. There are nuances in the fighting but the general structure of the enemies is repeated, and that takes away interest.
Kakarot is not a difficult game in its main story, although it scales its own in the Buu saga. And that forces us to know how to manage well the concentration of energy that gives us extra damage and ability to stun the enemy, the use of objects such as senzu seeds or the use of cooked and eaten dishes before to get extra enhancers, elements that we appreciate in the final stretch of the story and in the endgame. Another mechanic presents is that of the support characters, who fight autonomously, we can indicate that they launch certain attacks and when we are unguarded they defend us. They do not have a great weight in the main plot, but they are essential in all subsequent.
Of course: the final stage at the level of fighting is pure spectacle for three reasons: the staging and selection of combats, including a small surprise that gives meaning to the name of Kakarot in the title at the end, the spectacular video scenes and that improve even anime and the demand of some of them.
Ultimately, combat offers a show of sight for the destruction of our environment and the loyalty of the specials, as well as some customization, because as we gain experience and collect orbs we can improve attacks on our skill tree (others are achieved in training areas ), and it is not the same as the “stone” attack of Goku that we have at the beginning that the “definitive paper rock scissors” that links three strokes with persecution and allows it to be combined with other attacks, but it is true that the enemy patterns and the dynasism and Link of our options could give more of each other. If we add to this that the enemies of the free world are quite repetitive in both form and mechanics, the result is that more could be expected from this section, especially seeing how some predecessors have worked.
Kakarot, much more than Goku
Something that is surprising is that despite the focus on Goku indicated in the name of the game, the title is very choral and in fact, the role that Gohan has is almost greater than the rest of the characters. The reality is that the structure of the free world and its options seems designed for that Gohan who learns to survive before the Saiyans arrive or that teenager who fights injustices like Great Saiyaman. They are two profiles that fit perfectly in the type of world that we are, but not the only protagonists. We have other characters available as Piccolo, Vegeta, Goten, Trunks, Gotenks and Vegetto among others, to which are added endless support characters (Ten Shin Han, Krillin, Yamcha …), all dressed and equipped with clothes that plays in every moment, and all of them with the transformations and changes that are taking place in the plot. Of course, something that we should begin to understand in some video games is that transformations such as SSJ2 or Super Vegeta are not spent when we do not have Ki and, in the case of Gohan, the unleashed power goes inert to the character, it is not a transformation of Removable. But we understand that they are concessions in the video game scheme.
To all of them, as we said at the beginning, are added a cast of characters from both props and NPC or protagonists of secondary stories that completes the largest cast of characters recreated in a Dragon Ball. Chichi, Videl, Bulma, Dende, Popo, Kami, Yemma, Nam, Kaito, Satan, the presenter of the Tournament, Lanch, Mutenroshi … We could be like this with dozens of lines of text with some more important and others so secondary that even scares.
Kakarot: the Dragon Ball theme park
Kakarot offers a living world that breathes Dragon Ball everywhere. Not only because of the cast of characters and NPC already mentioned, or for the locations that constantly refer to Toriyama's work. We have more than 20 locations with an average size that are designed to balance something that seems difficult: how to fly at full speed through a world that is large enough so that you do not finish it in 10 seconds and, in addition, have enough elements so that Don't be an empty world.
Why fool ourselves, the change between what we could try for the first time in E3 and what we found in the final game is huge. Navigation is made somewhat more bearable by the presence of orbs, which are necessary to expand our skill tree although rewards are really achieved is in the fighting. And the world has many tasks to do. If we go to the most exploratory, there are fruits, animals and fish that allow us to create new and better dishes, of which we will need recipes that will be given to us by the NPCs that we are finding scattered around the stages. The fact that there is not the same type of animals, fruits and materials (technological or mineral) means that in many secondary schools we have to explore where we can find these items.
The secondary ones drink a lot to get elements that we will only get exploring around us in specific areas, and that brings dynamism and variety. But there is more. Many high schools are intertwined, and if we do not solve a problem with Bulma, we will not be able to access others that happen to him. Although some are based only on fighting – some harder than certain bosses – others invite us to perform various steps, such as looking for dragon balls or answering questions like a Dragon Ball quiz. Of course, in the global calculation there is not a great variety between them and some mechanics sin of simplones, like killing dinosaurs where we only have to shoot ki from above so that they do not reach us.
We will also see that each location has new villains, marked with a red crown, of high level to which it is necessary to eliminate. A demanding subplot, connected with other games of the saga – we will not say more – and with an increasing difficulty ideal for the endgame. As is the fact that some secondary schools allow us to later revive the great final bosses with more level than we face in history. If we add minigames such as baseball, racing with vehicles (which we can build and improve with Bulma), dragon balls with various desires available, training areas to learn new skills and other details, such as a mysterious scientist that allows us Training with exclusive rivals and huge strength levels complete a cast of options to get lost in a Dragon Ball theme park like no other. There is much to do when the story ends.
In memory of Dragon Ball and Goku boy
The grace of exploration and being a completist in the game is that the rewards are consistent with the leitmotiv of the game. One of the mechanics is the community panels: as we move forward in the story, we solve secondary missions or other extras, we get medals of Dragon Ball characters that can be placed on different panels. The panels connect these medals and give us bonuses. The system has little incidence in the fighting, or at least it has not seemed decisive at the moment, but it ends up being an excuse to complete medals of Dragon Ball characters. It is not the only thing, since we will be unlocking entries, character relationships, melodies and biographies of all kinds in a virtual encyclopedia that is, simply and simply, a wonder. And along the way, a series of postcards that are images taken from the anime Dragon Ball, the story of Goku as a child, which multiply the already overwhelming nostalgia from which the game is nurtured. In fact, the NPC team is also constantly evoking the first adventures of Goku, and it is appreciated.
Anime and music
On an audiovisual level, Kakarot is a game of contrasts. It is evident that we are not facing a leading technical game and that is seen in the details of the scenarios, in the textures and in certain physics and destruction. But also that the modeling of characters and locations are faithful to the original work and that the video scenes are spectacular, both in staging and animation. Of course, a more polished and more detailed work would have left better overall feelings.The game has a powerful soundtrack, with many of the anime's melodies and others that accompany perfectly. Unfortunately, as far as BSO is concerned, we still don't understand decision making in the last games. Missing mythical songs that break high moments, as with Gohan in the SSJ2 transformation. There is ‘Unmei no hi: tamashi tai tamashi’, as there are others that we do see in Xenoverse and FighterZ. And in some moments it seems that licensed melodies sound that are not in that context. In any case, the presence of a large number of original songs – although only one sung and there is time that would lend itself to more – is to celebrate. Now we just have to be all.
CONCLUSION
Dragon Ball Z Kakarot gives off a special affection towards the work of Akira Toriyama that we have rarely seen with such care and meticulousness. The development of the story, exploring forgotten details in the games, delving into important moments, recreating them with extreme fidelity and imagining many others that we never saw but did dream, is worth mentioning. The title, without reinventing anything, narrates the usual events as better than in another Dragon Ball (and we have more than 150) and offers the manga fan a constant nostalgia swallow in the form of places, characters, dialogues, images, scenes or Simply tiny details that make you smile.
It is the recreation of the story of Dragon Ball Z more complete, although not perfect because it has some questionable decisions about certain omissions. This is joined by a world full of tasks to perform in the form of secondary, mini-games, exploration and an endgame with new challenges and level battles all always focused on the same thing: breathe Dragon Ball on all four sides. Although, and it should be noted, many of the missions are not the champion of the variety.
The combat system, the cornerstone of the game, is surely its least convincing point. It offers variables, but also evidence that it is something simpler than previous games and that it could give more of itself, especially in what patterns and actions of enemies refers, both the basic ones – they are repeated in excess in the free world – and in The big bosses. It is what generates more doubts, because without being a bad system, it does not exploit the possibilities as one might expect. However, Kakarot makes an approach to the Dragon Ball world different from what we were used to, and opens the way to a future with more games that promote the sense of adventure that captivated us, a long time ago, that little boy with a tail of monkey.
THE BEST
- The best recreation in the history of Dragon Ball Z
- Full of details, characters, places and situations that deepen as never before in Toriyama's work
- A lot of things to do, including endgame with surprises of all kinds
- The good fit of adventure and exploration in a Dragon Ball world
- Some scenes, so spectacular that they put goosebumps like in the anime
- That finally we have several melodies of the anime (although some keys are missing)
WORST
- The combat could give more of itself, both in options and in the enemies
- On a technical level it has several fronts to be polished
- Some side missions sin of simple
Very good
Remarkable game that we will enjoy and remember. A good purchase, highly recommended for lovers of the genre. It is well taken care of at all levels.