Athe time that the launch of a new one is confirmed Dragon Ball Z: Budokai Tenkaichi, death has returned to us and we wanted to revisit what could be one of the most legendary and iconic franchises in history. Indeed, we are of course talking about Dragon Ball, but from another angle: video games.
Like any good saga worth the name, Goku and company have appeared many times on very different consoles through experiences that are as unique as they are striking. And although they were not all as good as the ones we present to you today, it is true that the work of Akira Toriyama has given a lot of his over the years.
That’s why today, with this DBZ: DT4 in mind, we wanted to bring you a list of the best Dragon Ball games, but only with 10 computers from worst to best. It says it all, even tenth place is incredible and similarly we have left other great titles that also deserve to be here in the dark. Either way, you have to choose, and those are our choices.
Dragon Ball Z: Buu’s Wrath
Dragon Ball Z: Buu’s Wrath It is an RPG style game for Game Boy Advance. with leveling and increasing stats. As the name suggests, it is based on the Buu saga, a favorite of many original anime and manga lovers. As an action role-playing title, it worked very well and had a high degree of customization in its own concept.
The animations were really good for their time, the sprites are just beautiful and the soundtrack is a real delight. The battles, although admittedly easy to “break” through specific builds, also worked very well.
Dragon Ball Z Hyper Dimension
A classic among classics, this 1996 SNES title marks a forward and a despus in Dragon Ball from a real 16 bit gamer who is still as good today as he was before. Ok, the passage of time has done it a disservice, but that doesn’t mean it was a true revolution in its day.
Visually, had very remarkable aspects and the fights were really complex for the simplicity that many games of the time offered. And although it is clear that technically it is very limited by the conditions inherent in the console and could not aspire to much more, it was a real madness. In addition, visually it is magnificent. It’s just wonderful.
Dragon Ball Z: Attack of the Saiyans
Did you know that there is a Dragon Ball Z role-playing game with turn-based battles? Well yes, and his name is Dragon Ball Z: Attack of the Saiyans. Devolved by Monolith Soft for Nintendo DS, claims to be one of the franchise’s most unique titles. It was one of the bestsellers of the time, because quite a few players liked it very much.
Its concept is something we are not used to, it is one of its main virtues. The most common thing is that DB games focus on real-time battles or shoot action and adventure, so an RPG is as groundbreaking as it is surprising. A remake or remaster will make many players happy, including us.
Dragon Ball: Origins
Nintendo DS video game fondly remembered by many fans of the franchise to be another one of those rare games focusing on Goku’s early stages when he was little more than a kid. Its graphic section was very striking for the time, but what really convinces us is its concept of adventure.
He has not aged as well as we would like to admit and it is true that he is one of the great forgotten because not only has he not had as much impact, but there have been many players Who they weren’t particularly drawn to its premises.
Dragon Ball Xenoverse 2
While it is true that many players find Xenoverse does not meet expectations, for us it is quite the opposite. Its constant updates and/or DLCs have managed to keep it alive over the years, even going so far as to add characters based on the latest movie: Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero.
It is something that is appreciated, although what really catches our attention is that we can create our own character and develop our favorite fighting style by learning from each other. It’s something that we just find extremely addictive, because it allows us to “freak out” with our own “doll” while we relive the stories of almost all the sagas. It’s absurdly full.
Dragon Ball Advance Adventure
Dragon Ball Advance Adventure is another great video game that has survived very well and on which the passage of time has not taken so much toll thanks to its minimalist graphics. Originally released in Game Boy Advance in November 2004, It only came to the West in 2005 (Europe) and 2006 (NA), but it didn’t take long to win over audiences.
Its story mode is one of the best that Dragon Ball remembers thanks to the fact that recreates Goku’s childhood adventures through nearly every stage until facing King Piccolo himself. It’s one of the few games to have “taken a risk” with this step, since almost all modern titles have preferred to use Z as a plot base.
Dragon Ball Z: Budokai 3
Another game that has survived the test of time and built its own history over the years. Dragon Ball Z: Budokai 3 is a landmark title that managed to catch locals and strangers alike with a simple yet entertaining premise: hitting “sticks” with our friends with a 3D fighting game with a really great cast and a very avant-garde graphics section for the time.
Well loaded with content and collectibles that can be obtained by playing non-stop, Budokai 3 surprises with a well-planned story and a pseudo-open world with well-orchestrated campaigns. depending on the chosen character. It was a bit reminiscent of Tekken, as all of the playable characters had something to tell us.
Now, what sets it apart, beyond the quality of its mechanics for such an old game, is its staging. It was just spectacular; playing on PS2 was a technical mess that left you speechless day after day.
Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot
Although for many it was a video game that did not stand out so much in the idiosyncrasies of Dragon Ball, The truth is that Kakarot does everything it sets out to do very well.. As a game made by and for fans, it perfectly meets the expectations of almost all gamers who claim to be fans of the franchise. Very faithful to what we saw in the anime and the manga, it goes up right away, being something we just love.
Moreover, the soundtrack is spectacular and the graphic style (despite the fact that some textures may be missing a bit) is simply brilliant. The next-gen patch gave him an added edge that made him stand out even more. It is normal that for many it is, at least, one of the five best games in the franchise.. Fun and comprehensive, the DLCs have given it a lot of life over time.
Dragon Ball Z: Budokai Tenkaichi 3
Major words and video game history. One of the most iconic and important PlayStation 2 titles. The announcement of a quarter shocked the world for several hours… and no wonder. Dragon Ball Z: Budokai Tenkaichi 3 stands out as one of the best Dragon Ball games ever created thanks to many virtues that are still fondly remembered today.
Without technically standing out, it didn’t aim to be an exceptionally complex or deep game. No. Its aim was to be entertaining and addictive, which it more than achieved.. Its huge team (there were over 150 fighters) makes it one of the most comprehensive DB projects, but there were more. Much more. In addition to accumulating almost all the series that there has been and to have, he had a lot of class.
It doesn’t matter that the imbalance between the characters is more than obvious (they wanted to emulate their real level based on the series) or that there aren’t big differences between many of them. He was funny like him. Now well, the number of joysticks unconsciously sacrificed in his honor is… They can be counted to infinity.
DragonBall FighterZ
Even if it can “hurt” us in our most nostalgic side, the work carried out by Arc System Works undoubtedly offers: DragonBall FighterZ is the best game ever made, as long as we’re talking about Akira Toriyama’s franchise. If it is true that it is not perfect and that it suffered a lot with the balance of its characters and the patches (the Goku GT at the start still hurts us), it is a real audiovisual spectacle.
Simply stunning, this is pure Dragon Ball; few titles have explained more precisely what it means smash faces with friends and strangers through a game based on Dragon Ball. It looks great whether streaming or in first-person, thanks to its spectacular combos and near-perfect 2D design.
Without a doubt, the bar is set quite high, especially when it comes to fighting games. It has been one of the most popular for a long time and although right now It’s in low hour due to the ‘negligence’ of the producer, it’s still a real big game. Of course, you have to devote a lot of time to training to become even minimally good.