For those like us who grew up on bread and DragonBall, intrepidly awaiting the fateful hour to watch a new episode, will certainly understand the importance of one of the most historical, exciting and engaging sagas in the world. During these long years two more or less similar factions have been created and formed, those who loved the anime and those who followed the official video games: the first perfectly follows the theories of the mythical author Akira Toriyama, while the second follows the events of the timeless Bandai Namco.
Both nowadays coexist almost perfectly in parallel, involving both newbies and veterans of this huge saga: after making its debut with Dragon Ball Z: Ultimate Battle 22 back in 1995 on the first PlayStation, Bandai Namco continues its enterprise by “churning out” new chapters of the series that are increasingly vast and technologically advanced.
During Gamescom 2019, we had the wonderful opportunity to preview a new demo dedicated to the new Bandai Namco title, Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot which faithfully follows the events narrated in the first and most famous anime, re-proposing some of the most famous scenes experienced during our childhood. There were two demos available, the first was the one already seen during the last E3 2019, while the second was a completely new build that put us in the shoes of Gohan against the evil Cell.
As soon as we got our hands on the pad, we noticed how the work carried out by the Japanese company of the same name is excellent: the details are the strength of DragonBall Z: Kakarot, expressing to the maximum what this multimedia work will soon offer.
The clash with Cell points out some peculiarities in the combat system that, this time, it seemed mature and full of special effects of well-known importance: the animations of each playable character are treated in an impressive way, faithfully bringing back the best of this timeless anime. The combat system entertained us more than we imagined, leading us to complete the challenge after a fairly demanding duel: the level of challenge within Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot seemed quite satisfactory to us and you will have to sweat if you want to win the victory. Get ready for great challenges! Little Gohan has shown us his strength with powerful attacks and quick flits, but that's not all: you will have to choose the style of play that suits you and you will decide whether to attack the enemy tactically or head-on, in any case. show is assured.
Once you have reached a certain amount of energy, our character will be able to transform or use his aura to deliver devastating blows against the enemy but, remember, using it at the right time can save your skin at the most critical moment.
The objects available will be fundamental within the fights, especially the healing ones: during our test we happened to use these objects from two to three times, saving us from certain KO. The cutscenes that will accompany us during and outside the fights are quite breathtaking, often leaving us speechless for the video quality of the latter: graphically the title is para poem and one cannot but praise the work done for Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot by the guys of Bandai Namco.
According to what emerged, the title will be optimized for PlayStation 4 Pro and Xbox One X and the frame rate should be around a fixed 30 fps: during our game section we did not encounter any major problems, it all turned out to be quite fluid, noting only some slight I shoot only during the most “complicated” scenes.
After a long Boss Fight, the demo available ends with a fantastic scene starring the homonymous Goku, the inevitable Vegeta, Krillin, Piccolo, C18 and the little Gohan: we avoid further spoilers! The other demo always concerning Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot, on the other hand, put us in front of an open world set within the universe of the game and full of secondary tasks and missions to accomplish.
In the vast game world we will have the opportunity to travel in two ways, flying or "riding" the cloud of Goku: the first option was sometimes disorganized and imprecise, while the second seemed fun and never boring. If somehow the things to do, besides the classic fights, are not enough, do not worry; Bandai Namco has thought of everything: side missions, errands, timed challenges and much more will make sure you never get bored during this magical adventure.
After completing some challenges present in this second demo of Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot, we set out to prepare for the final challenge against the powerful Raditz: even here we will be able to enjoy the fight in a vast playing field and we will be helped during the battle by friends aforementioned (it's pretty cool huh).
Again, the cutscenes are breathtaking and full of show, often leaving us dry-mouthed. The arrival of the title is scheduled for 2020 for PlayStation 4, Xbox One and PC, a version for Nintendo Switch or a version for future next generation consoles has not yet been mentioned.
What do you think about it? Are you a fan of the series? Keep following us to not miss any news from Gamescom 2019!
► Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot is an Adventure-RPG game developed and published by Bandai Namco for PC, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One, the video game was released on 31/12/2019
