A fan or not, this game will satisfy just about every fighting fan. Fans...just get it now.
User Rating: 8.5 | Dragon Ball Z: Budokai 3 PS2
DBZ B3 has finally hit the stores and it's easily the best in it's series. Based on the very popular anime series, DBZ B3 is chock full of characters from the anime series and many of the movie and spin off tales such as Bardock and Cooler. Chances are that if you have a favorite character from the series, you will be able to play that character here. While not as deep as some of the other games in the genre, this game does provide alot of new features that make give it much more meat and substance than the two before it. New moves such as Transportation, new blocking skills, the Dragon Rush, Hyper Mode and the Ultimate Attack add on to what previous versions have had which make battles much more fun and can change the pace of battles. Gameplay-8 The games controls are for the most part unchanged if you are familiar with the prior versions of the game. Combo's are executed by pressing a predetermined order as before, and most characters share the same buttons to execute their moves. The controls are very responsive, with no lag between button presses, which is important because of the combo system. Modes of play include Practice, Duel, World Tournament and the all new Dragon Universe. Dragon Universe is set up so that you pick a character and play through a storyline for that character. This time however, you are able to fly across a map of the DB world and either progress through the story, or explore a bit to find items, capsule cards (which include moves, items, powers), or the ever important Dragonballs. Graphics-9 I really liked the graphics in the game. The characters models have been cleaned up fairly well from DBZ B2 and look much cleaner. You'll instantly recognize every character from the game if you are familiar with the series. Even more impressive however, are the special effects. Beam weapons, explosions, dust, fight scenes and eveyones favorite, the glow effects around characters when powering up or are in their "Super" states look fantastic. The graphics really help sell that this IS Dragonball. The over done fight scenes from the animation series are superbly captured here along with all the extra crashing through buildings, moutains, etc that you expect to see in a DB game. Sound-8 Yup, those are the cartoon character voices all right. The same people that give the voices to the characters in the series have come in to do the voices for this game. For the most part, the voice acting is fairly good with the exception of a few parts in the game which really doesn't take much away from it however. The music is a mixed bag though. They range from catchy to "meh." I really haven't come across to many songs I didn't like, but there are a few that I don't really pay any attention to. Punches, kicks and special attacks all sound great however, and help to draw you in. Value-8 If you are a fan of DB, then this has alot of value to it. The storyline is good, all the characters that you could want are here (plus a few that you might not) and this game will easily keep you playing for hours and hours trying to unlock every secret or purchase that last capsule card. I purchased the LE which includes an extra DVD with a "Making of" type theme, a tiny figurine (not a very good one either) for an extra $12 (after taxes) which may or may not appeal to everyone. If you are a HUGE fan of DB and feel the need to get your hands on everything DB, then you will not be dissapointed. Those who aren't to big a fan of the series, will be perfectly happy with just the regular version. Overall Impressions All things said and done, this is a great game. Even for those who may not be a fan of the series. It has enough depth, flash and fun factor to appeal to most people. If you are a fan of the series or enjoyed the previous versions, then this is a pretty simple decision. Buy it. You'll love it. For those of you who aren't, but enjoy fighting games, try renting it. I bet my last dragonball that you will enjoy it. 
