Competitive Play and a Story Presentation that was ahead of its time.
Gamers, who play this game for the first time, would experience Budokai's explosive and engaging story. A retelling of the classic Dragon Ball Z anime, Budokai's storyline depicts the life of an adult martial artist named Goku. Goku, along with the help of his mentors and old and new friends, saves multiple worlds from three alien factions (Saiyan, Frieza and Cell) and claims his destiny as Earth's hero and legendary Super Saiyan.
The story of Goku is engaging and enthralling: nothing is held back. Using dramatic and riveting cut scenes, each "chapter" of the story is told through small movies with full color and voice-acting. Budokai's voice acting is probably the highlight of the game. While many types of action and fighting games use textboxes and type what a character is saying, which I feel is cheap and uninteresting, Dragon Ball Z: Budokai uses voice-acting throughout the entire story. The use of voice-acting allows gamers to feel the emotion and weight of each character's words and I often felt deeply saddened when Goku's allies were killed and very proud when Goku avenged their deaths. Overall, Budokai's story is very engrossing and is therefore very rewarding, in my opinion, and I often found myself replaying many exciting moments. The game definitely has replay value.
Aside from Budokai's explosive story, the game has a competitive play mode where gamers can use their favorite characters, from the Dragon Ball Z anime series, and fight each other in a quick brawl. The game offers over twenty characters to choose from and fans of the Dragon Ball Z series can enjoy matching up wacky character combinations. Ever thought of matching up the villainous Frieza against the equally villainous Cell? Or maybe you'd like Goku to wipe the floor with the feeble, bald-headed Krillen? It's all up to you, but the game remains fair. Each character has the same amount of stamina and health. In addition, a character's reflexes are only as fast as it's gamer in control. So Krillen has a fair chance of defeating Goku! However, that doesn't mean that all characters are identical.
Moreover, each character has a unique fighting style and special ways to attack their opponent. Fighting styles vary only in aesthetics, but special character attacks are far more unique. Characters stay true to the anime, so Goku will always have his trustworthy "Kamehameha Wave" attack. Likewise, the villainous Frieza will also have his signature "Death Beam" attack. These special attacks are made available when a gamer uses their character to pull off an impressive attack combination. However, opponents may block and dodge, preventing attack combinations from being set up, and so being able to use these special attacks will take practice and skill. The special attacks deal a considerable amount of damage to the opponent, and look really cool, so it's crucial to make use of them.
Overall, the competitive play mode offers a quick fight anytime and allows you to practice for fights during Budokai's story. Likewise, playing Budokai's story unlocks characters and features for the competitive play mode. Therefore, the two modes really complement each other and provide gamers with an exemplary story presentation and competitive play: making this game an "instant classic".