Dragonball Z Ultimate Tenkaichi (PS3) Review

Posted by Justin Weinblatt on 12.03.2011

Does the latest Dragon Ball Z game have what it takes to go Super Saiyan, or is its power level under 9000?

Title: Dragon Ball Z Ultimate Tenkaichi
Publisher: Namco Bandai
Developer: Spike
Genre: Fighting
Players: 1-2
Rated: T



Over two decades since the legendary anime series made its debut, Dragonball Z is still inspiring new videogame adaptations. The latest game in the franchise is Dragonball Z Ultimate Tenkaichi. Developer Spike has went to great lengths to capture the spirit of the Dragon Ball Z franchise in all of its over the top glory, but in doing so made a number of sacrifices in the gameplay department.

I’m going to assume that you’re a Dragon Ball Z fan. I’ll assume you know who Goku is, what a Super Saiyan is, and what a Kamehameha looks like. If you don’t, then you can safely stop reading right now. This game is not for you.



Dragon Ball Z Ultimate Tenkaichi is the latest in a surprisingly long line of Dragon Ball Z fighters. Like most of the recent entries, this one features characters from the entire run of the series. From the arrival of Raditz to Goku’s battle with Buu, characters from every saga of the anime are represented here. The cast is comprised of a respectable 41 characters, not including transformed versions of certain characters.

Ultimate Tenkaichi is far and away the best looking Dragon Ball Z game to date. The character models are beautiful. They perfectly match the look of Akira Toriyama’s original drawings. This may actually be the best that Goku and his merry gang have ever looked. The animation in Ultimate Tenkaichi is incredibly smooth, and each character moves exactly as you’d expect; Android 16 attacks with powerful heavy handed blows while Cell attacks with quick insect-like strikes. Seeing Vegeta pull off his Final Flash attack is a joy to behold.

Fighting games like Street Fighter IV take a minute to learn, but years to master. On the contrary, Dragon Ball Z Ultimate Tenkaichi is incredibly difficult to learn, but easy to master. Ultimate Tenkaichi makes use of a somewhat odd context sensitive fighting system. Each button has a different function depending on where you are and what you are doing. When you’re close to your opponent the square button will perform a light attack. When you’re farther away from your opponent, the square button will fire a small energy blast. When your opponent is using his finisher, square is used to dodge.

Ultimate Tenkaichi relies heavily on what it calls the clash system. After you land a few hits on your opponent, you will engage in a clash. During the clash, you and your opponent each press one of two buttons. If your opponent chooses the same button as you, he will counter your attack. If you each choose a different button, you’ll be able to knock your hapless opponent all across the stage in an impressive looking combo.

During battles, you’ll have to keep your eye on two different meters. Your spirit meter will charge as you deal damage, and it is used to activate super moves. Your ki meter can be charged by pressing down on the d-pad and is used to defend against enemy super moves. When an opponent uses a super move, you can use your ki to guard against it, attempt to dodge it with a few well timed button presses, or try to counter it with a good old fashioned button mashing competition.

If all of this sounds complicated, don’t worry. Once you get a handle on what moves are available to you in each situation, things become very simple. In fact, things become too simple. In any given situation, you’ll only have one or two different options at your disposal. This means that the game is rather shallow. It’s great that Ultimate Tenkaichi captures the spirit and energy of the TV show, but the battle system relies as much on luck as it does on skill. Fans of the series will have a blast reenacting epic fights, but fighting game aficionados will be sorely disappointed.



While the game supports a large roster of characters, each character plays exactly the same. There is no appreciable difference between Majin Buu and Yamcha aside from different animations. Tien’s Tri Beam Cannon may look different from Android 16’s Self Destruct Device, but they function the same way. Character variety is typically lacking in Dragon Ball Z fighters, but other games at least feature some small amount of variation between different fighters.

The roster of Ultimate Tenkaichi features a healthy amount of characters from the DBZ universe. The roster isn’t as filled to the brim as a game like Budokai Tenkaichi 3 which featured super obscure characters like Grandpa Gohan, Nam, and Salza, but pretty much every major character from the series is represented. There are a few notable omissions. It’s puzzling that you can play as a Saibaman, but you can’t select Goten.

Fans of the series will be happy to know that the game has a fairly robust story mode. Players can play through the entirety of the Dragon Ball Z series, going all the way back to Bardock’s battle with Frieza. The story is told through a combination of in game cutscenes, clips from the anime, and scrolling text sequences. The text sequences go by unbearably slow, and there is no way to speed them up. If you’re a longtime Dragon Ball Z fan who knows the difference between Gogeta and Vegito, you can simply skip through these sequences.



In the story mode you’ll engage in pretty much all of the major battles of Dragon Ball Z. In addition to standard battles, you’ll also participate in boss battles against larger enemies, like Vegeta’s ape form. These battles combine an altered version of the typical fighting engine with quick time events. While they provide a nice change of pace from the normal battles, the small input window on the QTE systems may be frustrating, especially for younger gamers.

Besides the main story mode there is Hero Mode. In Hero Mode you can create your very own Dragon Ball Z fighter and play through an original story. The character creation is a little bit on the shallow side. At the outset of your journey you’ll have access to a grand total of three different outfits. As you go on, you’ll unlock more customization options. Once you create your character, you can engage in a series of battles to earn new super moves and upgrade your stats. There is a story about hunting Dragon Balls going on, but the story is just an excuse to string together a series of battles. It's far from perfect, but Hero Mode is a great addition to the world of DBZ fighting games. In addition to the two single player modes, you can always battle with a friend online or offline, or engage go into training mode to sharpen up your skills.

The 411

Dragon Ball Z Ultimate Tenkaichi does an amazing job of capturing the look and feel of the TV show, and features a robust single player mode. Unfortunately, the battle system is too shallow to hold the attention of anyone but the youngest or most rabid Dragon Ball Z fans. I don’t expect a Dragon Ball Z fighting game to be as deep as a Street Fighter or Soul Calibur game, but Ultimate Tenkaichi doesn’t even live up to the standards set by other DBZ fighters. Younger gamers who entered the franchise with Dragon Ball Z Kai will probably enjoy this game a lot. More discriminating fans should probably look elsewhere for their Dragon Ball Z fix.

Graphics	8.5	With incredibly drawn character models and smooth animation, this is easily the best looking DBZ game ever.
Gameplay	6.0	The battle system is too shallow to offer much to veteran gamers.
Sound	7.5	For the most part, the voice acting is true to the source material. The music is nothing noteworthy, but the sound effects are on point.
Lasting Appeal	8.0	Between two lengthy single player modes and online battling, those who enjoy this game can kill a lot of time.
Fun Factor	6.5	Seeing your favorite characters in motion is a blast, but the novelty wears off once you realize how thin the gameplay is.
Overall	6.5   [ Average ]

Screenshots
All 3 Dragon Ball Z: Burst Limit Screenshots