"DragonBall Z at its finest"

DragonBall Z: Sagas, its about time I'd say. And the title is exactly what it is. It may not cover the entire series, but up until the Cell Saga will suffice. Before, the rpg games only went from Saiyan-Frieza Sagas. This new style of gaming is very refreshing. You could also complete the game with 2 players at the same time which should give you plenty of gaming hours to put in. This review is based on a Single Player gaming experience.

Story:

Sagas begins with the notorious Saiyan Saga and a fight against Radditz. Of course, after that is complete our favorite evil saiyans, Nappa and Vegeta arrive. Next, its off to Namek to find the Dragonballs. After retrieving them all you fight Frieza. You then take the role as Trunks in the future and recreate what happened in the History of Trunks movie. Back to the DBZ timeline you must then duke it out against Androids 19 and 20. After wasting them its on to Imperfect Cell and Cell.

The Story gets a 9 out of 10 because this is one of the coolest franchises around. It may have better if there were more fights between lesser important characters. You'll know what I mean.

Gameplay:

Basically this is a beat em up style game. You're not limited to the ground, so you can also fly. You can purchase combo upgrades and such in stores found nearly in every level with Z coins. There are also red capsules and yellow capsules that you must collect to increase your health and ki meters permanently. So don't rush on to the next part because these do add up and you will need these bonuses. As you collect the z coins you can also purchase the teleport ability which enables you to teleport behind your enemy that you have locked onto. You also collect senzu beans that are automatically used when you lose your health. You can only hold 3 at a time, but don't worry there are plenty throughout the game. Eventually you can uppercut your enemy into the air and smash them down to the ground DBZ style. That also means that enemies crash into buildings and some elements can be destroyed. The learning curve for this kind of gameplay doesn't take very long but you will be satisfied when you begin to really kick butt, especially when its time to go Super Saiyan.

The gameplay gets a 9 out of 10 because you can execute anything just like in the Dragonball Z world. The only drawback is that you can only jump off of objects and must sustain the hight you jumped at to fly around and reach objects. For example, a Z coin is high in the sky, but merely jumping and flying will not get you there. You must climb a hill and jump off and fly to reach the coin.

Difficulty:

This game is not all that difficult to accomplish. You shouldn't be frustrated with beating a level and taking 4-5 tries each time. It is a pain sometimes to go out of your way just to get a z coin, but don't worry, they are worth the task. The bosses aren't too difficult and you'll find yourself just the right amount of difficulty or a pushover job with this.

This game receives a 7 out of 10 for difficulty. It just wasn't all that hard, but I prepared by making sure I got enough senzus and powerups.

Graphics:

Although not Halo 2 worthy, it still is pretty stunning at capturing the features of the show. It may not look like much at first but the detail of the facial features was pretty good. When you charge up for a special ki attack, there is a large glow of light where the energy is, and the longer you hold the attack the larger it's going to be. It is also a treat to watch the cut sequences because they are bits and pieces from the show. Very well done I might like to add. But you will see a slight difference in the story line with some things left out.

The graphics were a 9 out of 10. Not absolutely stunning. But very well put together.

Sound:

Correct me if I'm wrong but nearly all of the music in this game is original and not used in the show. I could be wrong but there were good transitions for the regular levels and fighting a boss within the level. Ki blasts and stuff blowin up, could it get better than that. It is nearly flawless in the game. The characters will also say the attack just like they would in the show and when the ki blast is delivered it is pretty much like it is taken from the show.

This game gets a 10 out of 10 for sound for its wonderful adaptation from the show to the game in sound effects.

Replayability:

There is something called the Pendulum Room. When you complete the game you can go back and take on enemies with a character of your choice with different costumes. So you could go take on Radditz with Super Saiyan Vegeta if you cared to. There are 5 characters to throw in as well and are a good choice of characters. Too bad there weren't a few more.

This game gets a 8 out of 10 for replayability. The length and the story is so good that you'll want to take on some enemies with certain characters to recreate the series in your own way.

Buy or Rent?

If I were you I'd go buy this game. If your tight on money you're always welcome to rent it. If you can rent it for a week or so you should be satisfied to a certain extent but you'll probably be wanting more.

Story = 9/10
Gameplay = 9/10
Difficulty = 7/10
Graphics = 9/10
Sound = 10/10
Replayability = 8/10
Buy or Rent? = Buy

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 03/25/05