While its fighting is fun, Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot doesn't
do enough to carry the subpar side content.
Playing Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot is a battle. It's a fistfight
between the part of me who loves Dragon Ball and the part of me with a
more critical eye. Every time I think one side will come out on top, the
other screams for 30 seconds, their hair starts glowing, and the tides
quickly turn. During my time with Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot, I've often
found myself torn between these two perspectives, either grinning during
high-intensity moments or sighing due to the dull repetition that
plagues large portions of this otherwise enjoyable title.
In essence, Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot is an okay role-playing game
with a fantastically fun combat system attached. It's in the battles
that it shines brightest, with projectiles flying all over the place and
fighters yelling while they charge up for their next special move. At
first it seems quite simplistic, with dedicated melee and ranged buttons
begging to be mashed vigorously. When combined with a selection of
super moves specific to each character and defensive options like a
burst that repels enemies, the encounters never become too stale or
repetitive.
It only gets better as you progress. New unlockable attacks can be
swapped in and out at your pleasure, a partner system lets you call in
assistance, and a transformation mechanic allows you to further boost
your power - all of this built on a foundation of responsive movement
options. Not once was I frustrated when attempting to close the distance
or dodge a ranged attack.
Sadly, I can't say the same for the open world. Scattered around
the numerous areas you can explore are activities you can participate in
- such as fishing spots, animals to hunt, dinosaurs to slay and upgrade
orbs to collect. While the inclusion of so much side content sounds
great on paper, it's all far too shallow. With hunting you assume you'd
need to lurk at a distance, only to approach when your target's back is
turned, but that's rarely the case. Playing one of the godlike
characters that Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot provides, you can just run down
any animal you see and smack it with ease.
Dinosaurs would appear to provide some extra challenge, but taking
one down is as simple as lobbing a dozen ki blasts in its direction. So
many of the periphery activities available quickly become repetitive and
simplistic, and it soon becomes a grind. Thankfully, it's largely a
grind you can avoid. While fishing and hunting allow you to create meals
that boost your stats, I never felt as though I was forced to grind out
these boosts to progress through the story. The same goes for upgrade
orbs, which are so saturated throughout the zones you explore I found I
had more than enough simply by picking them up as I completed quests. While the boosts from food can prove quite useful if
you're stuck on a fight, for the most part it's not something you need
to worry about.
That being said, there are some brilliant aspects of Dragon Ball Z:
Kakarot tucked away within the game's otherwise dull RPG sections, the
foremost being the community board system. It works like this: you have
seven boards that represent communities Dragon Ball Z characters are
part of. They're represented with a web of connections, where you can
attach different characters together to gain in-game bonuses. It's one
element of Kakarot's RPG side that invites experimentation and
satisfying micromanagement.
I was also a big fan of how you acquire and improve characters in
these community boards. You obtain emblems that represent characters
through story and side quests. No grinding, no fuss. If you do happen to
miss a side quest that would provide one such emblem, you can use a
time machine later in the game to head back to previous parts of the
story and grab anything you miss, albeit at a cost. The act of
upgrading, like acquiring emblems is just as easy. Throughout your time
playing you are given items that boost certain stats on your emblems.
So, let's say I have an item that boosts the stat used in the cooking
community, giving that to Chi Chi will boost her cooking stat and thus
improve that board while she's in it. It's a neat addition to the
community boards that allows you to either pamper your favourite
characters with gifts and treats, or spend hours determining the most
efficient way to boost stats with strategic item use. Figuring out how to best position your emblems to gain the best bonuses is a strangely enjoyable experience.
Regardless of whether you're fighting or flying around, a clear
love of the series and attention to detail can be found in every corner
of Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot. The opening cinematic is unapologetic in its
reverence for Dragon Ball, zooming through memorable moments from the
series with the classic theme tune "Cha La Head Cha La" booming out.
Once you boot the game up and explore, you discover an all-you-can-eat
buffet of sights and sounds from the series. It's a cool feeling to run
into familiar faces or come across the setting for a future battle. If
nothing else, fans will often find themselves stumbling across something
they recognise with a shiny new look, a result of what surely must have
been a massive effort from the team responsible.
This intense adoration for the subject matter reaches its pinnacle
during big fights at the end of each story arc, where the game goes from
looking pretty good to downright dazzling. Every "iconic" scene you
could think of, from Yamcha lying dead in a crater to Buu killing
everyone on earth, is recreated brilliantly. When even Yamcha (albeit in his most popular and meme'd
moment) gets the big money cinematic makeover, you know the folk at
Bandai Namco are seriously invested in the series.
But for all that, the biggest issue I have with Dragon Ball Z:
Kakarot is I'm unsure of who it's for. It's clearly intended for an
audience familiar with the series, people who are massive fans of the
show and who need no explanation regarding who the main characters are
and their stories prior to Dragon Ball Z. Being a game for fans isn't a
bad thing, right? Not at all! There's absolutely nothing wrong with
making games targeted towards your core audience. However, if this is a
game aimed at diehard Dragon Ball fans, why is it covering story arcs
that are 20-30 years old? Yes, it's cool to see the Vegeta, Frieza, Cell
and Buu arcs polished up with love and care in 2020 - but it's
something fans of the series have seen a million times. There are no
twists, no surprises, and any brand-new story info peppered throughout
the game doesn't distract from the fact that we've been here before.
Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot is a fine game, with its best moments being
wonderful renditions of beloved scenes from one of the most popular
anime of all time. It oozes with passion for the source material, but I
could only recommend it to someone who can match that fondness. If
you've only a passing interest in Dragon Ball Z, or worse yet no
interest at all, I just don't think there's enough here for you.
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