A role-playing game (RPG) centered around Dragon Ball Z lore? Where can I start playing? This is what I thought when this game was announced last year.
I’m glad to say that for the most part, “Kakarot” meets those expectations quite nicely; if you’re already a fan, that is.
For the uninitiated, Dragon Ball Z is a manga series by Akira Toriyama, that was later adapted into a popular anime. There have been many games that retell the events of the story, but there has never been an “open-world” Dragon Ball game. Until now.
The game itself plays like a typical RPG, where the goal of the game is to boost your XP and level up your character while advancing through the story.
“Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot” allows for this through a system of fishing, hunting and of course fighting floating robots, because that’s so Dragon Ball Z.
The fighting is a strong point of the game though. Sure, fighting against thirsty waves of robots can get annoying a few hours in, but the combat mechanics themselves are pretty awesome.
The game does a good job at making the player feel like they’re fighting like a true Z–Warrior.
Fighting villains like Raditz, Nappa and Vegeta (ex-villain) feels climactic and grand in scope. They’re actually exciting in the moment. The game also nails the cut scenes that are inspired by the original series.
Like I mentioned, fighting is only a piece of the puzzle here, as the rest of your adventure will be filled with remedial tasks such as hunting for food. The method through which hunting happens in this game isn’t very dynamic. It’s basic, entry-level, RPG work on that front.
If you spot a deer in the wild, you can run up to it and press the circle button to catch it (for PlayStation users). This isn’t a difficult task and it’s also not nuanced in any way. The same goes for the fishing mechanic, which is to simply approach a fishing post and press the action button(s).
Long story short, the RPG elements that don’t involve fighting are very basic and may be lackluster for many.
“Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot” excels when the story is progressing and when it focuses on the lore from the series. It’s a great homage but with its promise to be something more, I can’t help but be slightly disappointed.
That said, if you’re a fan of Dragon Ball Z, then I’d recommend it for sure.
P.S. This game is long. For context, I’m about six hours into the game and I’ve just began the “Namek Saga” (2nd saga of the series).
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