One of 2002’s greatest Japanese imports, Dragon Ball Z quickly became a phenomenon on children’s TV before spreading its wings and venturing into the world of video games. 2002’s Budokai game for PlayStation 2 was a Christmas hit, combining faithful Anime style with a simple and playable beat-em-up. A year on, the sequel is ready, and its bigger, better and bolder than ever before.

Where its predecessor played host to 23 fighters, Budokai 2 boasts an additional 11 faces, many of which wil ... more >>

One of 2002’s greatest Japanese imports, Dragon Ball Z quickly became a phenomenon on children’s TV before spreading its wings and venturing into the world of video games. 2002’s Budokai game for PlayStation 2 was a Christmas hit, combining faithful Anime style with a simple and playable beat-em-up. A year on, the sequel is ready, and its bigger, better and bolder than ever before.

Where its predecessor played host to 23 fighters, Budokai 2 boasts an additional 11 faces, many of which will be familiar to the TV audience. Each have a variety of signature abilities and special attacks, and Budokai 2 also possesses a new Fusion move, whereby two fighters can merge to make play a lot more interesting. Game options include Versus, Tournament and Training modes of play as well as a new Dragon Mode. Here, players join a team of computer-controlled opponents in an attempt to capture seven Dragon Balls.

But the most noticeable difference, setting it apart from its year-old predecessor, is the game’s visual approach. For this instalment, the developer has rendered the game using the ever-popular cell-shading technique. Some consider this a step back with regards to visuals, but in this instance it works extremely well, making the game look remarkably similar to the Anime original. The game is more spectacular and it has more flair than its predecessor ever did. Dragon Ball Z fans will no doubt fall in love with it. << less