Review: Dragon Ball Z: EXTREME BUTODEN
The caps lock in the title was to signify the manly screams of the Dragon Ball franchise. If you are new to the DB series then you have missed out on a long history of shounen manga spanning over 325 chapters which was then adapted into anime (dubbed into several territories over the world) and then into  games and animated movies.

 

The story follows  a child on earth is found to have incredible strength and later grows up has a family and searches for the mysterious Dragon Balls which bring your wishes to life. Later, aliens arrive and believe his is a missing member of an alien race and Goku is one of a rare breed of Saiyans.  Dragon Ball Z follows Goku’s adult life and his son Gohan and his other companions.

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Dragon Ball Z Extreme Butoden is set at the start of the DBZ saga which follows the direct anime adaptation you may have watched on TV many years ago. It is in the form of a 2D fighting game.

Story mode takes you through the DBZ story where you play as Goku and and engage with the villains and fight one round which dictates the story.  The moves are pretty straight forward and are virtually the same for every character except signature moves for certain characters. It’s almost impossible to lose whilst playing as Goku. Later in the game you switch characters and become young Gohan which makes things tricky.

All in all with the complete story mode including Hercule’s long winded story within , it can take up to 45 minutes to complete and then you have unlocked the majority of the game options.

You can also use old cheat codes from the snes days including unlocking Super Saiyan God Super Saiyan Vegeta, players can enter the following code on the title screen: XAB↓→↑YAR↓→↑A→R.

dbz cheat

In total there are 25 playable characters and a few more available in Z-Assist that you choose ton come in to battle to help fight. The list includes Chi Chi, Bulma, Launch but the list does not include any Super Saiyan forms even have the Super Saiyan 3 versions. In comparison you have more assist character to choose from which seems to be rather odd.

Adventure mode is a bit more experimental as you can choose different characters and change the story but it is a but more technical than the story mode as you have conditions to meet.

You also have 1v1 mode and you can mix up your team which is standard for a fighting game. The best way to compare it is to Street Fighter, where you use your specials according to the character but proceed to button bash and occasionally if you jump up you are flying which doesn’t change the fighting style at all.

Review Summary

Overall the graphics look beautiful and if you are a fan of the anime you get 10 memorable scenarios relived in the story mode. The character rooster seems small and a bit of a mish-mash. You cant play standard characters like Tien as a character but you can play Super Saiyan Gotenks but not basic Gotenks. Entertaining in small intervals like traveling to and fro from work. This game has it's merits in a nostalgic way also if you buy the digital package you receive “Super Butoden 2” *(previously on Super Nintendo) along with a 3DS theme.