Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot

Faithfully recreated cutscenes – featuring not just Goku but all your favorite Dragon Ball Z characters – manage to surpass the quality of the original anime series. With even nostalgic memories from before the Z saga included, Dragon Ball Z Kakarot is best described as a huge treasure box of fan service. While the battle system could have been deeper, flashy special moves keep things from getting boring, and while most quests may feel uninspired, this is still the ultimate game for any Dragon Ball fan.

Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot was designed for a specific audience and likely will not draw people who aren’t already invested in the series. For everyone else, Bandai Namco has delivered a gift to Dragon Ball fans the world over, a loving tribute to Japan’s most popular and endearing addition to popular culture.

While some of it feels a little dated and the side missions don’t diverge as much as they could, the overall package is a deeply engrossing fresh way to experience an old staple for any Dragon Ball Z fan.

Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot is a buffet of gameplay, ideas and diversions. It is a game that makes no bones at who it has in its crosshairs, aimed squarely at the fans who have made Dragon Ball Z the global phenomenon that it is. Much like its source material, Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot isn’t without faults but its enduring spirit of facing overwhelming odds head-on and conquering them, is one lesson that it has succeeded in learning.

An intriguing open world filled with content and challenging combat turn Karakot into a game that’s definitely worth your time. The graphics left a bit to be desired, though.

An essential single player Dragon Ball game for new fans and series veterans alike. Although it's a little slow paced and has some painful load times, no game has felt more "Dragon Ball" than Kakarot. Great combat, deep systems and a huge variety of content make this package a joy to sink your hours into.

Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot is a different experience that you won't find in any other Dragon Ball game. As for its proposal, is fun and complete, ideal for any lover of the popular anime of Akira Toriyama. Its well-achieved RPG component ensures that we spend hours and hours hooked on a title that doesn't have the best fighting system, but has a lot to offer.

A true gift to any Dragon Ball fan that works really well as an open world ARPG. It's not without flaws, but its length and dynamics are a safe bet.

Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot establishes itself as a must-buy for all Dragon Ball fans. Although it sometimes falls short of the mark while trying to portray each and every iconic moment in the series, it manages to offer the best representation of the anime in videogames. Also, the gameplay is frantic, fun and visually pleasant, and even though there is sometimes a lack of polish, it stands out as one of the best Dragon Ball Games ever made.

Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot is a feast for anime fans and it's incredible in terms of BOSS fights, story, and the open world.

There are plenty of flaws, but they mostly come down to the ambition being a little too high, and the mechanics not quite fitting right. Yet… for all these flaws, this Kakarot manages to hype the fans in the audience like the source material has done for all the years. Key moments from the series are showcased absolutely perfectly. Just like how filler can be abided to see and experience the fan-favourite arcs, the missteps here can be forgiven. At least by the hardcore Dragon Ball fans. This is a series that deserves to continue, let CyberConnect2 perfect its creation. There are still the OG sagas to cover, along with the many movies, and even better, the recent stories of Super.

Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot is the best way to get acquainted with the Saiyan saga and the series in general. It's strange that the most advertised mechanics of the game, the RPG and open-world aspects, are also the least developed. It's the story and the bombastic fights where Kakarot really shines, so if you're approaching the game from these perspectives, you're in for a thrilling ride. To put it bluntly, stay away from exploring and don't expect any deep, meaningful RPG elements, and you'll have a pleasant time in Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot.

Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot is the best representation of the series’ storyline in over twenty years of games. While animations in cutscenes may be too stiff and there are occasional bugs, the simple yet difficult to master gameplay and the sidequests that succeed in building a world we’ve already come to love make this a must-play Dragon Ball experience.

DragonBall Z: Kakarot isn’t necessarily trying to reinvent the wheel, but it doesn’t have to. After years of adding more and more “new” lore to the canon, it’s nice to take a trip down memory lane and re-experience the characters and story that makes DragonBall so special. While the open world isn’t necessarily the most engaging aspect of the game, the combat is epic and the characters are always entertaining. Simply put DragonBall Z: Kakarot is fun and is sure to please new and old fans alike.

While Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot doesn’t really do anything new “overall”, it’s still an amazing time because of the way that everything has been put together. Those new to the series and long time fans alike have plenty to find and enjoy, as the pacing is just right to both let you relive some of the iconic fights of the series, and just live a little with your favourite characters.

If you approach Kakarot for the story and the harrowing battles, it can be amazing. Outside of collecting Soul Emblems, the RPG elements are mostly lacking, even if they do push you to keep leveling to take on harder foes. All told, CyberConnect 2 gives fans a fun way to reexperience this saga.

This game is aimed at a particular audience, and those who get a rush of nostalgia from seeing Goku and his friends duke it out with the universe’s biggest baddies will love it. Others may need a proper introduction with the series before they soak up everything DBZ: Kakarot has to offer.

While the popular Xenoverse series utilized the RPG genre to try something different, Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot offers a more traditional retelling of the series in a single player only experience that should at least get the hardcore fans of the series excited to experience this adventure yet again.

Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot is a solid Dragon Ball Z game that is dragged down largely by a lack of polish in some areas. The combat system is probably too repetitive, and the content is too shallow to be of much interest to non-fans, but it's the Dragon Ball Z game that fans have dreamed of as kids. It doesn't matter if it's punching Frieza or playing baseball; the game captures the spirit of Dragon Ball extremely well, even if the gameplay doesn't always keep up.

Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot is a fairly good game that qualifies better than the sum of its parts. Some mechanics aren't quite convincing, but overall the game is one of the most inspired representations of Akira Toriyama's work.

The sheer volume of events to play through, spread across a meaty 40-hour campaign, with easily double that for a 100% completion rate, combine to make a game that fans should be pleased with.

Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot takes inspiration from prior games while taking the kind of stylized enhancements to make the final product stand out from other franchise games. Kakarot is not without its own issues, but what it executes well more than make up for it. Kakarot will be one of those games down the line that fans will remember fondly.

Dragon Ball Z Kakarot has become one of the best games in the Dragon Ball saga. It is an above average anime game, but some playable and technical elements keep it from excellence.

Dragon Ball Z Kakarot explores a new way to revisit Toriyama's creation. Exploration, adventure and nostalgia shine in an Action RPG with simple combat and some repetitive missions, but with the most impressive recreation of Dragon Ball Z story in any videogame.

Kakarot is one of the games based on this manga we’ve enjoyed the most. It’s a fantastic adventure, and even if it’s not perfect, it’s made by fans for fans. If you are one of those kids who sit in front of the TV waiting for the next episode to air, you’ll enjoy every second of it.

Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot is the best way to play through the entirety of DBZ's story. No other Dragon Ball game even comes close when it comes to immersion. While imperfect (the frequent and long loading screens are a pain for example), the game is a must have for any fan who has ever dreamed of living in the Dragon World.

As a fully fledged action RPG, Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot is a entirely unbalanced product: the action and cutscenes are way better than all typical roleplay elements and open world conventions. But in a strange, cute way it adds to the authenticity of the whole Dragon Ball Z experience.

Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot is the best videogame adaptation of the beloved manga/anime by Akira Toriyama but it has a repetitive campaign.

All in all Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot is an engaging and immersive experience that transports the fans back to the very beginning and for me, that came with a heavy serving of nostalgia.

Some of the fights seem too repetitive but many of the game’s shortcomings are made up for by its fantastic atmosphere of the original anime. [03/2020, p.60]

Alongside FighterZ, Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot is our favorite Dragon Ball game of all time. It just could've been a bit better.

Dragon Ball Z Kakarot is a declaration of love to the universe imagined by Akira Toriyama. The game is faithful while offering some new details to make the story even more coherent. The gameplay is easy to understand and the fast progression of the characters allows one to immediately take pleasure despite a capricious camera... All the narrative arcs are explored and thanks to the few original re-marketed musical pieces, we are totally immersed in the animated sequences. However, the RPG aspect is not explored enough and the world lacks some consistency. Fans and those who want to discover the story of Son Goku and his friends will be enchanted by this imperfect, but touching, title.

Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot is a good game with fantastic battle system, great fan service and amazing scenes replicating the show. It's the shallow role playing elements and the lackluster side missions that prevent it from achieving greatness.

An ode to the Dragon Ball Z era of the franchise. As a game it has its share of flaws and problems, but as a tribute and a fan service, Kakarot is probably the best thing that has happened to avid fans of the anime series.

Kakarot delivers an action-packed Anime to replay, which lacks playful class in the long run.

Definitely not a masterpiece, but a huge video game for a true Dragon Ball Z fan.

Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot is a fantastic avenue for new and casual fans alike, providing a deeper level of insight and immersion into a beloved franchise. However, more seasoned veterans of the series may not be as easily impressed. Fluid, fast, and visually stunning combat combined with some intriguing ideas gives Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot plenty to root for, but it still doesn’t feel as fleshed out and creative as its Xenoverse cousin.

Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot is the ultimate telling of Son Goku legend. It is an experience designed to please generations of fans, that will certainly enjoy all the content available. In general, the battles against the final bosses are awesome, but somehow the experience feels empty, tedious and unnecessarily long.

Some playful choices that are not always coherent and shareable weaken the aura of a product that is still fun and long-lived, which fans will welcome with open arms, albeit with the awareness that the fusion between the imagery of Dragon Ball and the role-playing game has failed to perfection.

Kakarot is an entertaining option to relive and (of course) fight through the story of the anime - even with its superficial sidequests and the confusing presentation.

Even though DBZ: Kakarot retells the same story the franchise has been telling for decades, it manages to do so in creative new ways for hardcore anime fans.

Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot is definitely a game for anime fans. If you are not familiar with this franchise, you will probably not enjoy this game as much. However, if you are a fan, this game is filled with everything we love about Goku and friends.

It's all well and good that Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot looks and feels like you're re-experiencing the show. That's why it's all the more disappointing that the game makes for a really lacklustre RPG. It's overstuffed with unnecessary mechanics just to try and make it feel like an RPG, but it fails because it forgets to make any of the systems actually matter. It doesn't need them. Essentially, if you love Dragon Ball in any form, you'll probably love Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot, but if you're looking for an in-depth RPG with engaging mechanics and combat, you're not going to get it here.

Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot is a solid entry in the long-running line of games based on the franchise. It's clear CyberConnect2 put a lot of love into this project, and it especially shows in how the story and locations are presented. However, it's held back by repetitive combat encounters and dull side quests. Despite its shortcomings, Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot is still an enjoyable adventure whether you’re a long-time fan or a newcomer.

There must be a reason we keep buying the same story over and over again, right? While the game certainly has its technical flaws, there's no denying that fans of the franchise will find a lot of love and attention paid to the classic series. It may not add anything truly new to the DBZ saga, but Kakarot is an interesting diversion sure to spawn several sequels or spin-offs.

Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot is an unexpectedly fresh take of the well-used Dragon Ball license. Although it must be said that most parts of the game could have been in better shape, and if you are not a Dragon Fall fan many aspects of the game fall flat. But on the other hand; With great fan service, some fantastic cutscenes and above all entertaining gameplay, Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot is a great choice for all Dragon Ball fans - whether your interest level is 150 or over 9000.

If you want to experience these stories again, Kakarot is the best way you can do it, but expect a bit of tedium along the way.

Despite the roughness that comes with some of its systems, Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot is one of the best Dragon Ball Z games we’ve ever seen. CyberConnect 2 has really brought some of the most iconic bits of the Dragon Ball saga to life with its work on the cutscenes, and the game has plenty of offer fans looking to get lost in the world. You just have to be willing to look past some of the more shallow systems and repetitive combat to experience the good.

Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot's modern, semi-open approach to telling the saga of DBZ--despite some minor issues--is a good one. Zooming around the environments and seeing the world up close is a blast, and it's great being able to interact with so many fun DBZ characters and see stories that usually get passed over for game adaptations. And even though combat can be a bit lacking, when the big battles happen, they feel suitably epic and engaging. If you're looking for an enjoyable way to see the life and times of adult Goku through a new perspective, Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot will grant your wish.

Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot's inconsistent quality holds it back from being a great Dragon Ball game, but ultimately, its high points do outweigh its problems -- especially if you're a fan. This is quite easily the most accurate retelling of Dragon Ball Z in a video game, and it's packed full of additional character moments and thoughtful little details. That said, it's difficult not to feel as though the game could have used more time in development or a bigger budget. CyberConnect2's admiration of the source material shines through, but at times, it's hard to ignore all of the corners that have quite clearly been cut. Kakarot's good fun and a decent way to spend 40 anime-soaked hours, but it could have been something more.

When Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot is at its best, it’s incredible. The big moments of each saga are brought to life impeccably with beautiful visuals and effects – but more than that, Kakarot also shows love to the smaller, more character driven moments that made fans fall in love with the anime in the first place. As a result, Kakarot is a wonderful way to revisit the story of Dragon Ball Z, whether you’re a fan or looking to jump in for the first time. However, while it’s backed by extremely solid combat, it also comes with major drawbacks like poorly implemented RPG mechanics, a general lack of polish, and some disappointingly shallow and repetitive sidequests.

As a Dragon Ball love letter, Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot is nearly perfect, featuring an amazing world and attention to detail. But as an RPG and action-adventure game, it’s only good. Its combat can be fun and some of the more in-depth elements are a good change of pace, but a lot of it feels pointless or time-consuming. Dragon Ball Z fans have a lot to love here, but RPG fans might find themselves wishing for something more.

Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot is a mixed bag. If you're a Dragon Ball fan, this game will offer so many nice moments and make you occasionally beam from ear to ear. But then during exploration and combat, things quickly become tedious. At full price, it's hard to recommend this game, but when it becomes affordable in a sale, it'll be hard for fans to resist.

Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot is not the anime game to end all anime games. It's not going to convert any non-believers or onboard them into this decades-old classic universe. Even as someone who still re-watches DBZ, it can be grating at times ⁠— but the juice is mostly worth the squeeze.

A competent adaptation of the original anime but there’s a serious danger of déjà vu even for series fans, and the solid but unremarkable action is unable to overcome it.

Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot is a beautiful monument to the legend of Goku and its wonderful world. But no matter how strange it sounds, it’s at the same time very close and very far from being the best Dragon Ball game out there.

Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot displays unparalleled care and respect for the iconic story arcs it adapts. The original music is there, original Dragon Ball characters return, and pivotal moments are gorgeously animated. If these were stories being presented in video game format for the first time, it would be a mind-blowing experience. Unfortunately, Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot doesn't push the envelope enough to warrant sitting through the Cell Saga for the umpteenth time and seeing Frieza get obliterated yet again. If you've played a Dragon Ball Z game before, you've basically played this one.

Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot isn’t a bad game as much as it’s a boring one. Turning the series into an open-world RPG seemed like an interesting challenge, but the game goes about that challenge in the dullest way possible. Putting effort into the series' highlights and dismissively padding out everything in between.

Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot is a solid game for anyone looking for some nostalgia thanks to a great retelling of the anime's story. The game gets repetitive though and relies too much on forced RPG-elements that don't add that much to the overall experience.

In itself, nothing is really bad and if we do even find some excellent things, many elements are unfortunately average. However, we will experience a lot of pleasure in reliving all of the iconic face-to-face saga especially as the clashes are dynamic and based on an instinctive playability.

It was a good idea to adapt Dragon Ball Z in a game that was not only based on combat, but also on the adventure aspect. In addition to playing Goku, being able to play other Z Warriors while customizing their attacks and traveling through the rich universe offered by Akira Toriyama's work is quite fun. Unfortunately, the poor execution and the large but superficial content greatly spoil the enjoyment. The side quests are basic and uninteresting, so we'll tend to focus on the main story. Luckily, the soundscape, the cinematics and some fight scenes make up for it, along with the fidelity to the original work. Nevertheless, Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot isn't the great adaptation we were all waiting for.

Despite the numerous flaws, Kararot still offers a wonderful retelling of the main story, above-average graphics, and a great soundtrack, so it’s worth picking up for established and new fans of the series alike.

With unimpactful combat, Kakarot isn’t the Dragon Ball action RPG fans have been waiting for but still offers a faithful recreation of the most beloved anime series. [Issue#172, p.81]

Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot focuses more on pleasing hardcore fans with a beautiful nostalgia reel than trying to be an RPG with substance.

That shortcoming definitely holds Kakarot back, but the overall experience still delivers strong all-ages, Dragon Ball Z fun. Are the open-world RPG elements perfect? No, but Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot is still a hit for hardcore DbZ fans in the moments when it counts.

But whether you’ve grown up with Goku and friends, or you’re a first timer who’s never fancied sitting through 300 episodes without getting to play a part in the action, this is still a great way to experience the classic story.

If you're the type of person who loves revisiting Dragon Ball Z every year, Kakarot can be an interesting way to do it thanks to its unique approach. This mediocre game is surprisingly fun for fans of the anime. However, if you don't understand the phenomenon of Dragon Ball, don't expect this game to change that.

While there are more detailed JRPGs out there, Kakarot scratches the itch of both Dragon Ball and JRPG fans alike.

Earth’s greatest defender, our boy Goku, deserves the best; instead, we only get a title that is competent, not exceptional. Die-hard fans — and even casual ones looking for a bit of nostalgia fuel — will have a blast at points, but it’s hard to recommend Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot for anyone else.

After the very good FighterZ, Dragon Ball Z Kakarot could have been a worthy RPG for the fans, but the game ultimately underperforms in too many areas to be of any interest to anybody but the most hardcore of Dragon Ball fans.

It’s just not particularly interesting to play through. There’s certainly some enjoyment for fans to latch onto, but it’s hard to say if that’s enough when the game feels skin-deep in its appeal.

This games feels like it's Frankenstein. The developer put the fights from other games on top of the rough rpg-systems, without contemplating if that would be a good fit. You must really love Dragon Ball Z to enjoy this.

When Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot is just being Dragon Ball Z , i.e. a sensory overloading action romp, it's an empowering and enthralling experience. But that novelty is just barely enough to overcome the flat open world and underwhelming mission design. With deeper activities and stronger variety, this could have rivaled Dragon Ball FighterZ as the best game Goku has ever graced. Some fans will be satisfied regardless, but others will see a promising fighter that should enter the hyperbolic time chamber for more training.