Dragon Ball Z for Kinect
Score: 83% ESRB: Teen Publisher: BANDAI NAMCO Games America, Inc. Developer: Spike Media: DVD/1 Players: 1 Genre: Fighting
Graphics & Sound: Over the years, there have been a number of Dragon Ball and Dragon Ball Z games. I have played a fair number of them and every time, I found myself wishing that there was a way that I could actually do the fighting without the controller. Finally, they have made that a reality in Dragon Ball Z for Kinect. You can count on Dragon Ball Z to look exactly as it always has. Over the years, Akira Toriyama’s style has been retained so that the characters and scenery look exactly the same now as they always have. I like that the style is consistent because you can always recognize a DBZ character, no matter where you might see them. Since the story in this game follows the series exactly, then it makes sense to not change the look. Overall, the majority of the major character’s voice actors are back. Vegeta sounded slightly different to me, but then I haven’t seen the cartoon in a few years and there have been two voice actors for him anyway. The rest I couldn’t really tell a difference from what I remember of the series, which was nice. I didn’t even have to look at the screen to know who was talking to whom.
Gameplay: Dragon Ball Z for Kinect is a fighting game where you are actually sparring with your opponent, more or less. From the Main Menu, you can choose Story Mode, Score Attack, Card Reader, Achievements, Options, and Special Movie. You’re going to want to start with Story Mode as it really is the only place to play other than Score Attack. In Story Mode, you will get a bit of the story before the fight starts, but then you just leap right in. You’ll notice there are moves displayed on the left and right of the screen. The ones on the left are the super moves that you can perform when you have built up enough Ki. To build up Ki, you need to squat slightly with your hands next to your hips. The moves on the right are what the game thinks that you should probably do to battle. You don’t have to listen to them, but I found that they’re pretty spot on. It’s a bit like playing Dance Central except with fighting moves. As you win each battle, you will unlock characters/items and you will be able to go on to the next level. Once you beat the Saiyan Saga, you’ll open up the next one and so on until you have beaten all four Sagas. Unfortunately, there isn’t anything more than that. I would really have liked a two player mode or online mode. Score Attack will let you replay any level that you have previously beaten, so that you can get a higher score. The times that you can unlock with Card Reader will power up characters and unlock new characters so you can use these to play Score Attack and beat your last score. If you’re looking for QR codes to read, check out the back of the Goku hair that comes with the game. Achievements just shows you the achievements that you have unlocked. In Options, you can change the difficulty settings, audio settings, and more. You can also change the game into Japanese or English in Options. The one thing that will always be in Japanese though is the Special Movie. The Special Movie is a 20 minute long show that gives you a bit of a Saiyan history lesson.
Difficulty: Dragon Ball Z for Kinect provides three difficulty levels: Easy, Normal, and Hard. Unless you are already in shape and used to doing push-ups or anything else that works your arms a lot, I will recommend that you do not start right on Hard. You can change the difficulty level under the Options Menu. For kids or adults who are just starting out and have never done martial arts before, you might want to start on Easy, just to get the hang of things. I found starting on Normal was just right for me, other than the sore muscles after a few hours of playtime. There is also a Tutorial level where you can learn how to play and try to perfect the timing and moves before you hop right into the game. I must say that it would be nice to be able to use the controller at times just to be able to keep playing when you’re too tired to throw another punch. It would make it a lot easier to be able to run through the game and unlock more levels quicker. You would also be able to complete more of the achievements quicker, but there’s something to be said for a game that makes you get up off of the couch and move for something other than dancing. I would venture to say that a lot more men will be willing to play Dragon Ball Z for Kinect than will play a dance game.
Game Mechanics: When I said before that I wished I could do the fighting without a controller, I’m not sure that I wanted to only be able to play that way. The only way that you can play Dragon Ball Z for Kinect is with the Kinect, so when you get tired you simply have to postpone playing or push through the pain. If you’re not used to exercising, I recommend going slowly and taking a break between each level of the story. Otherwise, you’re going to wake up sore in the morning, trust me; it creeps up on you. Of course, maybe that’s just because I trained in martial arts for years so if I do a punch, it will be a real punch. From my testing, the game can tell the difference if you just slowly put an arm out there as opposed to throwing an actual punch. Granted, it doesn’t make you hit harder in the game, but if you throw it too slowly, it will not register. Likewise, if you just throw your punch halfway out, your character will only half-punch and not hit the opponent. That does not mean that I am 100% happy with the way the game reads body movements. I had to fine tune my Kinect and I even had to move it so that it would register my hand above my head. I found that while DBZ for Kinect is really responsive for punches and jumps, I had a difficult time making my characters perform their "super" moves when I wanted. So far, I have resorted to playing DBZ for Kinect as a boxing game to complete the level, which takes a lot longer than it did the few times I could get the super moves to launch. I think that with more practice, I will be able to get it down better. Overall, Dragon Ball Z for Kinect is a decent game, but I would like to see a few things improved in the next version. If you’re wanting some exercise though and tired of pretending that you can dance, I think you will find you’ll at least get a good upper body workout from DBZ for Kinect!
-Cyn, GameVortex Communications AKA Sara Earl
Related Links: Game Vortex's Coverage of Dragon Ball Buy Dragon Ball Z for Kinect on Amazon
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