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Review: Dragonball GT: Final Bout |
Bandai took a critical step when it introduced Dragon Ball GT: Final Bout in the United States. It brought into the spotlight a japanimation driven fighting game in combination with unique gameplay features. Of course, I been a big (not yet huge) japanimation fan, decided to take this game for a spin.
Dragon Ball GT: Final Bout is such a weird game, that after playing for the first 15 minutes I was already pondering why they call this a fighting game. Some of the characters were extremely small in size and the character movement sufficiently dull. I’ll explain the latter in detail.
Unlike your typical fighting game, Dragon Ball GT characters move excessively slow on the field. In order for your character to move close to one another in a relatively small amount of time, you must use your “dash” button. However, once you enter your dash animation, character control becomes bothersome. Dashing and attacking do not go hand in hand. If you wish to attack after performing your dash, you must come to a complete stop and afterwards perform the desired attack. Another annoying tidbit in control was the delay between the button press and the animation on screen. I swear, it takes for the characters a little more than 0.5 of a second to begin his/her animation. By the time the frames begin to animate, your opponent will most likely crush you to little pieces. That’s not all, controlling your character jumps is almost as bad as Virtua Fighter. Once your fighter is in the air, is every man for itself. Dragon Ball GT is not about jumping however, its more about flying and propelling your character through the air. The concept is terrific and I found it rather enjoyable. It took me a good 1-2 hours to become acquainted with the controls to finally begin admiring some of the game’s better aspects.
Musically speaking, Dragon Ball GT has a lot to offer. There are various tracks which resemble it’s japanimation cousin. The introduction and even some of the stages contain some of the animated film tracks (at least they sound a lot alike). Character voice overs are terrific. Cell’s trademark voiceover has been kept intact as well as the rest of the Dragon Ball GT cast. You will be delighted when you hear: “Now let me show you the source of my true power” from Cell or “So, show me what has changed” from Gohan, in their trademark voices.
The instruction booklet itself, contains some great japanimation art and decorations. Even the CD itself looks “keen.” Any Dragon Ball fan will want to have this treasure in their homes.
On the graphics department, Dragon Ball GT: Final Bout leaves more to be desired. After a beautifully animated introduction (Im a sucker for these) the game brings you to the main screen in which you find a great still of Goku. All of the game options screens are fabulous; they all contain a different still of every character. The character select screen itself, features a great marble background and letterboxes of each character. Once you choose your character the game will take you to a versus screen in which the characters will be featured in an awesome pose. In this screen, you will also hear your character taunt one another; no more letters for us.
While all of that sounds very exciting, the real game suffers from some dried out backgrounds and character animation. All of the backgrounds lack amazing detail. A game like Dragon Ball GT could have easily contained some detailed and japanimation-like backdrops. Stick in a few details in the back and the backgrounds could have done this game justice. But such is not the case. All backgrounds feature lots and lots of grass and an occasional mountain here and there. As far as the characters are concerned, they all resemble their japanimation counterparts. Bandai did an exceptional job in making those 3D polygons into DBZ characters. One thing they did forget was the awesome animation. All of the characters are stiff and contain very few frames. This game moves at 30fps at the most (perhaps less)! Again, the delay between a button press and on screen action is definitely pathetic.
I admit however, the fireballs found in this game are impressive. Perform your character’s fireball attack and you will get this really nice “Demo” in which your character will be captured from an angle as he powers the fireball up. During this Demo mode, the opponent will remain motionless and will be presented with a “Counter” opportunity. By pressing Square, Circle, and Triangle simultaneously, while the word flashes on screen and then pressing either Square and Circle or other combinations, in your controller, you are able to counter the incoming fireball. The most impressive of the counters, is the counter fireball. During this mode, both characters will shoot a wave of fireballs at one another and a big light will form in the middle. Pressing the Triangle button as fast as you can will move your fireball towards the opponent. He who presses faster will tend to win the fight and deliver a massive blow to the loser.
There is also a Meteor Smash movement for each character. This super move is extremely easy to perform. Once you are able to get your opponent in the correct position, you are able to start the move and finish it however you like. These Meteor Smash move, looks a lot like an Ultra Combo in Killer Instinct. The best part about it is that the camera continues to move around the characters as the move is being executed. You may decide if you wish to go up to Meteor Level 2-9 or finish the opponent with the Meteor Attack. When you execute the Meteor Attack, your character will shout a phrase and send the opponent into oblivion, judging he has no more life. The Meteor Smash is not an instant death, but it does chew up a lot of energy from the opponent. Oh and one more thing, the Meteor Smash can be defended against if you press the correct button while in defense.
In all, Dragon Ball GT: Final Bout is an enjoyable product, but only one that a Dragon Ball Z fan will be thankful for. If you are die hard fighting fanatic, leave this game in the shelves. The rather weird gameplay engine and the frustrating play control will make this game a pain rather than a playing experience for the average fighting game fanatic. If you have patience and want to try something new, Dragon Ball GT: Final Bout could be the way to go. So if you do want to try something new, I highly recommend you rent before buying. This game is weird in every sense of the word.
- HardCore
