Dragon Ball Z: Budokai

Dragon Ball Z: Budokai, released as Dragon Ball Z (ドラゴンボールZ, Doragon Bōru Zetto) in Japan, is a fighting game released for the PlayStation 2 on November 2, 2002, in Europe and on December 3, 2002, in North America, and for the Nintendo GameCube on October 28, 2003, in North America and on November 14, 2003, in Europe. It was the first Budokai game of the series but also the first Dragon Ball Z game to be released in all Europe and aside from specific releases in France, Spain and Portugal like it was with the earlier games. The game was released in Japan by Bandai on the PlayStation 2 on February 13, 2003, and on the Nintendo GameCube on November 28, 2003. It was developed by Dimps and published by Infogrames and later by Atari as a Greatest Hits title for the PlayStation 2 in North America.

The game includes a total of 23 playable characters, and the story follows the first three chapters of the Dragon Ball Z timeline starting with Goku and Piccolo's fight with Raditz in the Saiyan Saga, up to Gohan's final battle with Cell in the Android Saga. Features included in the game were a story mode, a versus mode, a tournament stage, a practice mode, and an items shop which allowed the player to purchase various customization abilities using money that was gained through the various challenges in the story mode and tournament victories to customize and make the most powerful warriors. Story Mode was divided into special chapters, initially having the player fight predominantly as Goku and Gohan through the Saiyan, Namek and Android Sagas before unlocking bonus chapters from different perspectives like Piccolo and Vegeta. The story mode also included a few "what if" episodes to play with the villains of each saga, retelling iconic events in the Dragon Ball history with a few twists. A cel-shading effect was added to the graphics in the GameCube version.

The North American versions feature English voice acting from the North American Funimation dub, while the European versions feature the original Japanese voice acting and several European languages text translations.[1]

Dragon Ball Z: Budokai 2, released as Dragon Ball Z 2 (ドラゴンボールZ2, Doragon Bōru Zetto Tsū) in Japan, is a fighting game and a sequel to Dragon Ball Z: Budokai and was developed by Dimps and published by Atari for the PlayStation 2 and Nintendo GameCube. It was released for the PlayStation 2 in North America on December 4, 2003, and on the Nintendo GameCube on December 15, 2004. The game was published in Japan by Bandai, and released for the PlayStation 2 on February 5, 2004.

The game's features include a tournament stage, versus mode, and an item shop. Unlike its predecessor, Budokai 2's story mode is known as Dragon World, which introduces a unique retelling of all four chapters of Z and plays like a board game as the player assembles a team of Z-fighters alongside Goku to challenge the various enemies from the story. The game has a total of 31 playable characters including fusions of different fighters, and Majin Buu's various absorbed forms, many of which were unique to Budokai 2 including an original fusion between Tien and Yamcha and Super Buu absorbing Vegeta, Frieza, Cell, and Tien and Yamcha simultaneously, which did not appear in future games. The Japanese version of the game added several new costumes, as well as a new stage in the game's story mode. Some of the added costumes were added to the North American release of the GameCube version.

Once again, the North American versions feature English voice acting from the North American Funimation dub. The European PlayStation 2 version also features it, while the later European GameCube version switched back to the original Japanese voice acting because of negative feedback from most European Dragon Ball fans which were used to the Japanese dub since the 16-bit era.[2]

In Japan, 2,000 lucky V-Jump readers got Dragon Ball Z 2 V, a revamped version of Dragon Ball Z: Budokai 2 with Cooler (4th form), Kuriza, Majin Frieza, and Majin Cell included. All of the characters were already unlocked, but the capsules were preset. The World Martial Arts Tournament now displays the "V-Jump" logo.

The logo for the game was slightly changed. In addition to a "V", mostly likely to emulate the "V" in V-Jump, Cooler poses near the "D" in Dragon Ball Z.

Dragon Ball Z: Budokai 3, released as Dragon Ball Z 3 (ドラゴンボールZ3, Doragon Bōru Zetto Surī) in Japan, is a fighting game developed by Dimps and published by Atari for the PlayStation 2. It was released on November 16, 2004, in North America in both a standard and Limited Edition release, the latter of which included a DVD featuring a behind the scenes looks at the game's development. In Europe, it was released on November 19, 2004.

The game's story mode yet again plays through the story of Z, but this time, the game includes several characters outside the main story, which include Bardock, Cooler, Broly and Gogeta from the DBZ films, Omega Shenron and the Super Saiyan 4 transformations from Dragon Ball GT, and Kid Goku and Demon King Piccolo (only a skin for Piccolo, which is unlockable in some versions of the game) from the original Dragon Ball. Players fly around a map of Earth and Namek, which changes depending on the Saga. Story Mode was originally intended to have storylines for every playable character in the game as proven by audio logs, but were cut down to just eleven characters, likely due to time constraints. Other features the game includes are a versus mode, an items shop, a tournament, and a battle ranking stage where the player has to challenge the AI in a hundred fighter challenge. Moving a spot above after beating who ever is next in the ranking. The fighting mechanics have also been enhanced from the preceding 2 games making the game closer to its anime counterpart in terms of combat (which was well received by fans of the series and gamers alike). Budokai 3 has a roster of 42 playable characters in recent releases of the game.

The game was released in Japan by Bandai on February 10, 2005. Like Budokai 2 before it, the Japanese version of Budokai 3 added several costumes not present in the North American and European versions. The North American Greatest Hits version of Budokai 3 adds these costumes, as well as the option to switch the audio to Japanese for the first time in North America. This version was also released in Europe as a re-release of the game under the title Dragon Ball Z: Budokai 3 - Collector's Edition. From this release onwards, all Dragon Ball Z games in North America and Europe were released with dual voice language options in English and Japanese in order to please all fans. as well as some graphical tweaks.[3]

It received runner-up placements in GameSpot's 2004 "Best Fighting Game" and "Best Game Based on a TV or Film Property" award categories across all platforms.[4]

Dragon Ball Z: Shin Budokai (ドラゴンボールZ 真武道会, Doragon Bōru Zetto Shin Budôkai, Dragon Ball Z: True Tournament) is a fighting video game part of the Dragon Ball Z franchise, developed by Dimps and released in North America on March 7, 2006, in Europe on May 25, 2006, and in Japan on April 20, 2006, for the PlayStation Portable. The game's story mode is based on the events of the movie Dragon Ball Z: Fusion Reborn. The choices the player makes in the story determine how the story evolves.

Another mode is the Arcade mode, a single-player mode that lets you brawl against the CPU in order to fight and gain the Dragon Balls. Next is the Z trial mode, which consists of two different types of play: survival, where you fight against CPU-controlled opponents for as long as you can, and time attack, where you see how fast you can make it through a predetermined set of opponents.

Finally, there's the Profile Card mode in which the players will have their in-game character profile cards that lists their name and power level. The player can design their own card and customize them with the items from the game's item store.

Dragon Ball Z: Shin Budokai - Another Road (known simply as Dragon Ball Z: Shin Budokai 2 (ドラゴンボールZ 真武道会2, Doragon Bōru Zetto Shin Budôkai Tzū, Dragon Ball Z: True Tournament 2) in Japan and Europe) is the sequel to Dragon Ball Z: Shin Budokai for the PlayStation Portable. The game features a brand new story that tells the tale of Majin Buu being released in Future Trunks' timeline. As Majin Buu is too strong for Trunks to handle alone, he uses his time machine to recruit the original Z warriors for assistance, eventually succeeding in the destruction of Majin Buu.

Dragon Ball Z: Budokai - HD Collection includes remastered versions of Budokai and Budokai 3, alongside full Trophy and Achievements support. Both games include the optional original Japanese language track. Both games also feature reused soundtracks consisting of soundtracks from the US and European versions of the Sparking! (Budokai Tenkaichi) games, whereas the soundtracks from the original PS2 versions were made by Kenji Yamamoto. This is because Yamamoto had used actual songs[5] as bases for the tracks he made for the Dragon Ball Z games he worked on were replaced by Shunsuke's scores. Yamamoto was fired by Toei Animation in 2011, and all the soundtracks he did for the Dragon Ball Z games and Dragon Ball Z Kai were replaced by Shunsuke's scores. The game was released in Europe on November 2, 2012, and in North America on November 6, 2012,[6] for PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360.

Dragon Ball Z & Z 2 Original Soundtrack
Soundtrack album by Kenji Yamamoto
Released	January 19, 2005 (2005-01-19)
Genre	Anime/Video game
Length	68:28
Language	Japanese
Label	Team Entertainment
Budokai Soundtrack chronology
Dragon Ball Z & Z 2 Original Soundtrack Dragon Ball Z 3 Original Soundtrack

Dragon Ball Z & Z 2 Original Soundtrack (ドラゴンボールZ & Z2 オリジナルサウンドトラック, Doragon Bōru Zetto ando Doragon Bōru Zetto Tzu Orijinaru Saundotorakku) is the official licensed soundtrack of the first two Dragon Ball Z: Budokai 1 & 2 video games. It was released by Team Entertainment on January 19, 2005 in Japan only.[7]

This release was unique in that composer Kenji Yamamoto collaborated with not just the standard Japanese performers of American as well as Japanese artists. American credits include Steve Lukather guitarist of the 1980s rock band Toto and 1970s R&B Soul Funk band Tower of Power who can predominately be heard on tracks 22-24, but despite these credits the album remains a Japanese exclusive. Because this release focuses on the first two PS2 DBZ games, many of Yamamoto's orchestrated tracks heard in the story modes of both games were left out. Prompting many fans digitally rip music straight from the games themselves. For the most part, the tracks featured are very rock oriented with only a few featuring a jazzy funk vibe thanks in part to Tower of Power's influence. The back of the jewel casing gives both Japanese and English track listings for the songs, but the English list is not a direct translation of the Japanese. Instead, they are the names that were provided when the games were released as Budokai and Budokai 2. Easily giving the impression that the soundtrack producer anticipated a big demand of importing the album by fans in English-speaking countries. Coupled with the soundtrack is a bonus DVD featuring the intro and music videos of the opening theme "Kusuburu heart ni Hi o Tsukero" performed by Hironobu Kageyama, and montage game footage.

The compositions were met with positive reviews by various gaming critics. Many critics who reviewed the first Budokai game assumed that the music, like the voice talent, was Faulconer's compositions straight from the anime. Sites like IGN[8][9] and GameSpy consider the music the strongest feature of Budokai.[10] Michael Knutson of GameZone though the tracks in Budokai 2 were upbeat and would not get repetitive.[11] Mr. Nash of the Armchair Empire first says that it doesn't hold up but then goes on to say "The music works just fine for adding atmosphere to the fights".[12]

1. くすぶるheartに火をつけろ!!
   Kusuburu heart ni Hi o Tsukero!!/Light a Fire in your Smouldering Heart!!
2. Big Opportunity
3. Expectation
4. 熱き風のごとく
   Atsuki Kaze no Gotoku/Like A Burning Wind
5. 勝利への疾走
   Shōri e no Shissō/Running Towards Victory
6. Move Forward Fearlessly
7. 挑戦者たち
   Chōsensha-tachi/Challengers
8. Breaking Free
9. 決戦へのカウントダウン
   Kessen e no Kauntodaun/Countdown to the Decisive Battle
10. 戦慄の刻(とき)
    Senritsu no Toki/It's Thrilling Time
11. 最強の力
    Saikyō no Chikara/Super Strength
12. BUDO～Asian Spirit～
13. FLaSH RuN aCRoSS THe UNiVeRSe
14. Spark of Fighting
15. A lot of'Qi'
16. 限界を超えて～`Qi'No Limit～
    Genkai o Koete ~'Qi' No Limit~/Breaking The Limit: 'Qi' No Limit
17. I Trust My 7th Sense～至高の力を信じて～
    I Trust My 7th Sense ~Shikō no Chikara o Shinjite~ /I Trust My 7th Sense: Believe in the Supreme Power
18. 遭遇
    Sōgū/Encounter
19. 未知の邦[くに]から来た戦士
    Michi no Kuni Kara Kita Senshi/Warrior From An Unknown Land
20. The Battle With All My Force
21. 野性の魂～Wild Soul～
    Yasei no Tamashii ~Wild Soul~/Wild-Natured Spirit: Wild Soul
22. Soul Vaccination
23. Only so Much Oil in the Ground
24. Soul With A Capital'S'
25. I'm Gonna Get Over～地平線の彼方へ～
    I'm Gonna Get Over ~Chiheisen no Kanata~/I'm Gonna Get Over: The Other Side Of The Horizon
26. Do It At All Risks
27. Full Of Tears～悲しみの淵で～
    Full of Tears ~Kanashimi no Fuchi de~/Full of Tears: In The Depths Of Sadness
28. The Man Called 'C'

When the games were released in English-speaking countries, names of various tracks including the theme song were changed in order to localize despite that this soundtrack has not been released in English-speaking countries. As follows are those changes.

1. Go For It!!
4. Take It On!!
19. A Stranger

Dragon Ball Z 3: Original Soundtrack
Soundtrack album by Kenji Yamamoto
Released	March 2, 2005 (2005-03-02)
Genre	Rock Jazz
Length	77:34
Language	Japanese
Label	Team Entertainment
Dragon Ball Z: Budokai Soundtrack chronology
Dragon Ball Z & Z 2 Original Soundtrack (2005) Dragon Ball Z 3: Original Soundtrack (2005)
Singles from Dragon Ball Z 3: Original Soundtrack
"俺はとことん止まらない!!" Released: February 23, 2005

Dragon Ball Z 3: Original Soundtrack (ドラゴンボールZ3 オリジナルサウンドトラック, Doragon Bōru Zetto Surī Orizinaru Saundotorakku) is the official licensed soundtrack of Dragon Ball Z: Budokai 3. It was released by Team Entertainment on March 2, 2005 in Japan only.[13]

Like its predecessor Dragon Ball Z & Z 2 Original Soundtrack this album contains a collaboration of American as well as Japanese artists. American credits include Steve Lukather guitarist of the 80's rock band Toto and 70's R&B Soul Funk band Tower of Power, but despite these credits the album remains a Japanese exclusive. The opening theme "Ore wa Tokoton Tomaranai" is performed by Hironobu Kageyama.[14] As its title suggests this release stays focused on tracks that are heard on Budokai 3, unlike its predecessor which focused on the first two games on a single disc. As a result, the soundtrack's track list appears to contain a more complete selection. However, many compositions that were featured throughout the trilogy's story modes yet were left out of the previous soundtrack were still overlooked, prompting many disappointed fans to rip copies of the tracks straight from the game itself.

Ironically, many of these and a few cuts from the previous soundtrack were used for the North American release of Budokai Tenkaichi[15] because at the time of that game's release neither Funimation nor Atari had secured rights to the compositions by the anime's composer Shunsuke Kikuchi which was used in that game. The cuts used appear to have rip straight from this album as the instrumentation does not loop as it did in the Budokai games. Like the previous soundtrack, the back of the album's jewel case feature track listings in both Japanese as well as English. However, a few of the English names are not all direct translations, but distinct track names the songs were given when the game was released as Budokai 3. Also like the previous soundtrack with Budokai 2's opening theme "Kusuburu Heart ni Hi o Tsukero!!", the Budokai 3 theme song "Ore wa Tokoton Tomaranai!!" is only presented in this collection its TV size version as it was heard at the beginning of the game. However, the full versions of both songs, performed by Hironobu Kageyama, were released coupled in a single disc between the two soundtrack releases.

Upon the game's release, the music received mixed reviews from gaming critics. Although it would receive high scores like 8 on GameZone,[16] some critics still referred to the music as repetitive and corny. Yet it was appropriate for conveying the game's atmosphere.[17][18][19][20] Luke Van Leuveren of Palgn states "the sound is generic but annoyingly addictive".[21] However, Jeremy Dunham of IGN thought the music sounded terrific[22] and Tony "Zing" Tomas of WHAM! Gaming called it top notch.[23]

1. "俺はとことん止まらない!!
   Ore wa Tokoton Tomaranai!!/I Won't Stop 'Till the End!!
2. "MISSION～新しき神話を創れ～"
   MISSION ~Atarashiki Shinwa o Tsukure~/Mission: Make A New Legend
3. "天空の闘い FOR JUSTICE"
   Tenkū no Tatakai FOR JUSTICE/Sky Battle For Justice
4. "勝利へのインパルス"
   Shôri e no Inparusu/Impulse Towards Victory
5. "We Go Nuts!"～誰も眠れぬ夜～
   We Go Nuts!~Dare mo Nemurenu Yoru~/We Go Nuts!: Restless Night
6. "Under the Gibbous Moon"
7. "不屈"～Indomitable Spirit～
   Fukutsu~Indomitable Spirit~/Fortitude: Indomitable Spirit
8. "Hand"-in-Hand Fight
9. "午前0時のシャッフル"
   Gozen Zeroji no Shaffuru/12:00 Midnight Shuffle Time
10. "24-7 Crazy"
11. "疾風チャレンジャー"
    Shuppū Charenjā/Hurricane Challenger
12. "Twist of Fate"
13. "ouT oF CoNTRoL"
14. "Heartbeatが聴こえるかい?"
    Heartbeat ga Kikoeru Kai?/Can You Hear The Heartbeat?
15. "Ultra dAnce in Battlefield"
16. "銀河を超えて"
    Ginga o Koete/Over The Galaxy
17. "Night of Tempest"
18. "I'm In Tip-Top Shape"
19. "炎のOutsiders"
    Honō no Outsiders/Blazing Outsiders
20. "Flight in the Dark side"
21. "暁"(あかつき)の闘い
    Akatsuki no Tatakai/Daybreak Battle
22. "魔の勢力"
    Ma no Seiryoku/Might of Evil
23. "Ultimatum"～最後通牒～
    Ultimatum ~Saigo-Tsūchô~/Surrender Or Perish
24. "暗黒からの強者"
    Ankoku kara no Kyôsha/Powerful Man From The Darkness
25. "宇宙最大の作戦"～Great Tactics～
    Uchū Saidai no Sakusen~Great Tactics~/The Greatest Tactics in the Universe: Great Tactics
26. "青空を抱きしめて"
    Aozora o Dakishimete/Embrace The Blue Sky
27. "Expectation"(Remix)
28. "Twist of Fate"～ouT oF CoNTRoL(Remix)

Like the game's previous two installments, the names of various music tracks were changed when it was released in English-speaking countries as Budokai 3 for localization. The name changes are as follows:

1. The Ultimate Energy!!
11. Step On It
22. Warning
24. Chaos
26. Sky High

Budokai received "mixed or average" reviews on both platforms according to the review aggregation website Metacritic.[24][25]

Many critics complained about the GameCube version's simple interface and the fact that combos weren't worth the payoff. However, more complex combos were possible due to an oversight in the move canceling feature but were rarely known at the time. These oversights were turned into an important part of the system in the later games and were what high level play tended to revolve around.

Budokai 2 received "average" reviews on both platforms according to Metacritic.[26][27]

Budokai 3 was given much higher reviews than its predecessors Budokai and Budokai 2 according to Metacritic.[28] This was often due to how critics felt that the game did more to improve its gameplay rather than just its graphics and presentation. Its fighting and graphics have also been praised, with IGN stating that Budokai 3 was "One of the few instances of cel-shading done right", and that it "also offers a healthy amount of special effects and pyrotechnics and they all look great."[35]

Shin Budokai received "average" reviews according to Metacritic.[40] In Japan, Famitsu gave it a score of one eight, one seven, one six, and one seven, for a total of 28 out of 40.[44]

Shin Budokai - Another Road received "mixed" reviews according to Metacritic.[52] In Japan, Famitsu gave it a score of one six, one five, and two sevens for a total of 25 out of 40.[53]

Budokai: HD Collection received "mixed" reviews on both platforms according to Metacritic.[64][65]