While the fusion technique is definitely a nice touch, the game still lacks any sort of power-struggle mechanic-where players just try to overpower one another by using huge beams of energy.īudokai 2 really outdoes its predecessor in the graphics department, which appears to be where DIMPS spent a majority of its development time. The most significant addition that Budokai 2 makes to the fighting system is the fusion technique, which allows you to merge your fighter with another for a short period of time while in midfight, thus greatly increasing your power. Here, both characters unleash a flurry of punches and kicks-and mashing buttons is the only way to come out on top. If you and your opponent both try to attack each other at the same time (with certain moves), you'll enter burst mode. Players can't actually jump, but there are certain attacks that will launch your opponent into the air, at which point you can fly up to him or her and continue your battle in the sky. The game still plays like a stripped-down 3D fighter, with basic punch, kick, and energy attacks that can be strung together for more powerful combos. The fighting system in Budokai 2 isn't too different from last year's Budokai, though it does add a few new bells and whistles.
Whether you're already familiar with Budokai or not, the training mode is worth going through, as it explains the mechanics that are new to Budokai 2 and explains those that make the series different from other 3D fighters. Beyond the Dragon World mode, Budokai 2 offers a duel mode (where you can fight against the CPU or another player in a one-off match), a single-player, ladder-style World Tournament mode, and a training mode. Unfortunately, if you want to get the most out of Budokai 2's multiplayer game, you really need to play through the Dragon World mode, as it's the only way to unlock many of the game's characters and stages. Also, you have to fight the same enemy several times before he is permanently vanquished, in most cases, and that just isn't any fun.
With your sole objective, on most maps, being to just find the bad guys and fight them, the board game format doesn't bring a lot of strategy to the table. The fundamental problem with the Dragon World mode is that there's really no point to it. Unfortunately, after a few levels, the overlying story just sort of derails. The story for the Dragon World mode takes some liberties with the Dragon Ball Z continuity by fashioning a tale that has many of the series' different villains teaming up to collect the dragon balls. In place of Budokai's story mode, Budokai 2 features the new Dragon World mode, which is essentially a board game where you control a team of Dragon Ball Z heroes as they move around on a series of maps while fighting bad guys and collecting dragon balls. The new Dragon World mode isn't as engaging or entertaining as the original game's story mode. Now, about a year after Budokai hit shelves, DIMPS has churned out a better-looking sequel, but this time around it lacks the compelling story mode that distracts you from the rather basic gameplay. Surprisingly, the game made excellent use of the license, with the crowning achievement being a story mode that reenacted many of Dragon Ball Z's most memorable moments. The action wasn't complex-as it valued accessibility over depth-but the visuals had a sharp, clean look to them. After over a decade of poorly realized Dragon Ball Z fighting games, Atari and little-known developer DIMPS surprised many people in 2002 when they released Dragon Ball Z: Budokai for the PlayStation 2.