Dragon Ball: Revenge of King Piccolo (Wii) Review
Posted by Todd Vote on 01.07.2010
Goku is back with another adventure. This time we go kid friendly with the Wii. Come in to see my thoughts on the game.
Dragon Ball: The Revenge of King Piccolo
Publisher: Namco Bandai
Developer: Namco Bandai
Genre: Action
Players: 1 Off-line, 2 player World Tournament
Rating: E 10+
Dragon Ball once again hits the Wii. Is the new game fun for all, or does everything here just fall flat? Come inside to find out. For those of you familiar with Dragon Ball, you probably already know what’s going on here. Back in the early days of the Dragon Ball story, Goku is on a quest to gather up all of the dragon balls. You know the routine, collect all seven and a dragon appears to grant you your one wish. Of course it wouldn’t be much of a game without obstacles standing in Goku’s way. Pretty cut and dry as far as premise goes. Let’s journey with Goku, shall we?
I’m told that the game draws more from the original Dragon Ball series rather than the later, arguably more popular Dragon Ball Z series. That would explain the younger Goku and how everything fits in. I’ve watched Dragon Ball on several occasions, but I am far from an authority on the series, so please pardon my ignorance with certain characters, and events.
Gameplay
The first thing I notice about the gameplay is how simplistic everything is. You have one main attack button in the A button. The B button is used to jump and a combination of the two will do a ground thump (think Mario 64). The player is equipped with a block button, and a power meter that serves to charge up the Kamehameha power attack, as well as your ability to counter. With one bar filled Goku can use a counter attack on his enemies while in a blocked state. Simply time your press of the A button and watch Goku smash.
The action of the game plays out on a mostly 3D plane with basic 2D graphics, similar to the beat ‘em up style of games past like Final Fight, and Double Dragon, which allows Goku to attack and all directions as he sees fit. Add in a bit of platforming, and you have the gameplay in a nutshell. The single player game follows from what is called the Red Ribbon Saga, all the way to the King Piccolo Saga (I’ll admit, I had to look that up).
While it worked well for what it was, I almost felt as if the game was limited by the Wii-mote. Almost as if there would have been more to the attacks and everything if they had more to work with controller wise.
Eventually I saw fit to go in and try out the World Tournament version of the game. Which is basically a one on one fighting game inside of an arena. I have to say, of the two game modes, the single player is easily more fun than the World Tournament mode.
Tournament mode offers a one on one combat situation, which is a nice addition in thought, but the simplistic gameplay of the single player mode doesn’t translate well in this mode. The controls are basically the same, and it comes down to which participant is more patient more times than not in the battles that we had when I was reviewing the game. It really seemed like whoever’s block lasted the longest would be the one to win the match.
One way that the two game modes compliment each other is that you actually unlock characters and items to use in World Tournament by playing through the single player game. The more you play and master, the more options you have available to you by earning “cash”.
With stories, music and voice work all yanked right from the series, fans will not be disappointed with the single player story mode. While being simplistic, it offers a surprisingly fairly enjoyable experience.
Unfortunately, I can’t really say the same for the World Tournament mode. I just didn’t like the gameplay for World Tournament, it was far to cheap. That’s not to mention the fact that getting your character to strike towards your opponent was a chore in and of itself. I cannot stress enough how un-happy I was with this mode of play.
That being said the combination of being able to use your points earned in each mode to unlock new items and characters was a plus, as it added some replay value for the hardcore fans of the series.
Graphics
Graphically, as I’ve noticed with most Dragon Ball games, the title really shows off what it has to offer, everything usually looks awesome. With cut-scenes, and voice work ripped directly from the TV show, the game is visually impressive. Little Goku is awesome looking here. But one question: How is it this series is able to feature an black agent, who looks like a white man dressed in Blackface makeup, named Agent Black? It was so cartoonish that it didn’t really offend me. It was more of a WTF moment.
Goku’s animations while fighting back his enemies is really something that I wasn’t expecting much from since it is such a small version of the character. But you can see all his winces and expressions fairly well in this game, and that is a nice little surprise.
In addition to the numerous other eye popping moments, seeing Goku flow fairly seamlessly from foreground to background while routing the baddies is as smooth as one could hope. If not given proper time, this could have easily caused some clipping issues, so I am glad to see they managed to make it work for them.
Sound
With sounds and dialog lifted right out of the cartoons, you really can’t have much of a complaint other than the typical cheesy delivery of the lines. As I and many others have come to expect, the dialog from Japanese Anime seems to lose something in the translation to English, you get the gist of what is happening, but I can’t help but feel that there are some things lost in translation.
The music is definitely serviceable, also being ripped right out of the cartoons. What more could fans of the series ask for? The sounds were crisp and sharp where they needed to be. Conversely, they were cold and plodding when the situation called for it.
Fun Factor
I actually enjoyed this game more than I anticipated I would. I was expecting a very pedestrian experience with not much to it. While this is true to an extent, it actually plays fairly well. The best time I had with this game was when I was at a friends house and we were all swapping turns. Playing the game with their son was a blast, as apparently he is a DB fan. I think we can all attest to how much more fun a game can be if there are others who are enjoying it with you.
Lasting Appeal
The games lasting appeal with directly coincide with your familiarity and enjoyment with the Dragon Ball universe. Those that enjoy the universe will obviously draw more joy and game time out of the game while trying to unlock all the goodies that are available.
However for those not familiar with the stories of DB, I can see this game being a bit confusing for you. You may still enjoy the simplistic yet fun gameplay, but you may not find yourself coming back to the game once you have finished the story.
The 411
What it comes down to is this is a game that is rate E10+, which means that it is meant for a much younger audience than myself. That being said the fact that I did actually enjoy playing the game with my friend and her family speaks volumes for Namco Bandai accomplishing what they were after, a fun experience for younger gamers. Something that I feel they accomplished in spades.
Graphics
8.0
The graphics are easily the best part of most DB games, and this one is no different. The game looks awesome and from what I could tell runs smoothly.
Gameplay
6.0
Although fairly simplistic, I’d be lying if I didn’t get at least some joy out of busting out some of Goku’s special attacks. Anime speed lines kick ass!
Sound
8.0
Ripped right out of the cartoon.
Lasting Appeal
5.0
As I said the lasting appeal is going to go up with your enjoyment of the DB universe. There are plenty of unlockables here to keep fans coming back. It just might not be enough to entice non fans.
Fun Factor
6.5
Offering several hours of mindless butt kicking, the game is at it’s best when passing a controller around the room with everyone taking a crack at it.
