Super DBZ

Get your Ki meter charged for more 3D fighting action. The Japanese arcade comes home with a bold but accessible new fighting system reminiscent of the fighting genre's classics.

Dragon Ball Z is blessed with fans that are nothing if not voracious, devouring every bite of the comic book universe with a hunger envied by most other manga. While some of the sour grapes crowd point to its popularity as evidence of a lowest common denominator baseline, even the most deadly serious devotee knows the truth: DBZ is exciting and durable fun, and the gaming possibilities of such an extensive and engaging universe are practically endless.

Pumped Up and Stripped Down
Super Dragon Ball Z draws you into intense and seemingly reckless 3D battles on the ground and in the skies. About a dozen characters share the spotlight; Goku's a no-brainer, but you can also play as Gohan, Vegeta, Piccolo, Frieza, Trunks, Krillin, Chi-Chi, Cell, and Androids 16, 17, and 18 to start. Additional unlockable characters also become accessible, like Videl, Mecha Frieza, Demon King Piccolo, and Majin Buu, and the grand total tops out at 18. It's a colorful and diverse bunch that makes for some high-energy match-ups. Despite the cast, there's no story to speak ofno cut-scenes to soak up between duels, and no grand finale animation for beating back a crowd of opponentsbut that could be taken as a strength, giving the game an old-school fighting sandbox feel not far removed from the classics the developers helped create (Street Fighter II ring a bell?).

Reaching for the Stars
While the scuffles of most fighting games only briefly tilt skyward when the neckless muscle-bound goons jump, Dragon Ball Z demands a more fulfilling use of aerial space. Super Dragon Ball Z's lithe superstars launch into the insubstantial atmosphere constantly, unleashing energy blasts and homing attacks, and dodging incoming flurries in ways Ryu can only dream about. Sure, maybe you can't go zooming out into the stratosphere at a whim, but you can always pull off a quick high jump and hover at any height, using your bird's-eye vantage point as a springboard for new hostilities, or defensively forcing your opponent to meet you a few stories above terra firma. Doing so requires the expenditure of energy, so it could come to feel like a flexible and prolonged change-up pitch rather than a true extension of the battlefield, but it still promises to drizzle on plenty of unique super-hero flavor.

Wrecking Ball Z
But what fun is flying without a cool world to do it in and over? Super Dragon Ball Z features zones that, though not tremendously detailed, still evoke the essence of each setting, from day and night versions of the Eastern Capital and Wasteland, to Kami and Yemma's palaces, the Budokai and Cell rings, and Piccolo's own home planet of Namek. Chunks of scenery disintegrate as you smack into them, from trees and walls to entire small buildings. Cooler yet, though, is the ability to fall off the edge and tumble to another area completely, or catapult one another back up. It's not a new embellishment by any stretch, dating back all the way to the Mortal Kombat series, but it adds another dynamic flare to keeps things interesting.

The Specialists
The fighting system is all new, but the learning curve looks like it'll be surprisingly smooth. All characters share some basic abilities. Strong and normal melee attacks systematically assault your nemesis' dental work from nearby, while Ki energy shots and blasts do damage from afar. The coolest and fastest basic assaults are the homing attacks that spit your character across the screen in a burst of nimble athleticism to plant a fist or boot in someone's midsection or face. A guarding stance diminishes or negates damage as well, and mastering its use is critical to survival.

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