Although there exist plenty of reviews, critical analysis and all other forms of ‘verdicts’ on any videogame, there’s only one ultimate form of judgement that stands above all of them—Time. How much a videogame stands in respect to time is the one ultimate yardstick that holds true, all the time (pun intended). It means that no matter what the critics say, no matter what the numbers are—in our hearts, the greatest games are simply those that we find ourselves keep coming back to, with time.
Time also shows ultimately what truly matters in a videogame—it’s always the gameplay and the sheer amount of fun that it allows the player to get out of from the game. Graphics get ‘older’ with time, as well as most other design elements that form the ‘exteriors’ of a game, but it’s the core of a game (which is the gameplay) that’s single handedly responsible for whether it still holds playability or not, over time. That’s why only the truly great games stand the test of Time, while the rest wither and fade. And when there’s a game that even after years and years of playing, still manages to feel exciting and can absorb you with it’s qualities and make you replay, that’s one true gem of a videogame, right there.
And for me, one of the games that I’ve found myself keep coming back to over and over and still love every moment of it, is Shin Budokai: Another Road. For me, it’s one of the very best and most complete DBZ fighting game that exists (yes, I’ve played Xenoverse) and truly captures what makes a great DBZ game. And this article will attempt to tell you why it’s one of those rare games that doesn’t age with time.
The fundamental characteristic of ANY great videogame is it’s self awareness. It knows what it’s going for and the experience it’s trying to create within the players. And SB: AR does it exceedingly well. It’s aware of what it’s aiming for, what really makes up a great DBZ game and does it with such a laser-precise focus that for me, it has earned it’s place as one of the greatest DBZ games ever made.
And most of it’s success lies in the fact that SB: AR completely understands what makes up a great DBZ game. And this is where Xenoverse so utterly failed cause in spite of all the visual chutzpah and expansive RPG elements, Xenoverse did not had the one thing that matters most: the gameplay, the fighting mechanics, the feels.
The reason we want to play a DBZ game in the first place is to be able to play as the characters we love watching on TV, to control and explore their powersets effectively and most of all, to experience those fantasy 1v1 battles in all of their intensity and unpredictability. Basically, to feel and recreate that sense of power fantasy that drives the TV series and getting freedom and control with it.
And that’s what SBAR is all about—the fighting mechanics in this game captures all the thrills and feels of a DBZ fight, with it’s simple yet deep gameplay mechanics, the immense attention to detail in both it’s animation and fluidity of motion and above all, how the game masterfully composes the fighting experience in a way that the fights not only feel authentic, they’re also endlessly replayable.
I can’t overstate this—the fighting mechanics in SBAR feels as if you’re really in the DBZ verse and taking control of each characters. And not only does it feel like the real thing, it also manages to be accessible and empowering at the same time, which means, it’s so perfect that you get absorbed into the experience without knowing it. That’s the definition of perfect gameplay, when you can lose yourself in the play.
A treat about SBAR is that it’s gameplay moments feel much closer to the TV show without it having to compromise on any of it’s ‘videogame-y’ aspects, which means unlike the Xenoverse series that uses shiny visuals to make itself appear closer to the show (but totally falls apart in the gameplay department to invoke that same feeling), SBAR’s authenticity is embedded in the gameplay itself.
For example, when playing as Vegito against Janemba, there was a moment then Vegito was low on health and was quickly faced with one of Janemba’s most powerful and fast attacks. For a brief second, I thought the game would be over but then out of gameplay instinct, I tapped the ‘X’ button right when the attack was about to hit Vegito, and in the fraction of a second, he teleported and appeared behind Janemba.
That was a ‘DBZ-perfect’ moment, and felt like it could’ve happened in the anime at any point. Gameplay wise, moments like these are so fulfilling, so emergent and they just make you grin from ear to ear. And SBAR has tons of these in-game moments that are as surprising as they are delighting.
It’s pretty hard to describe in how many ways the gameplay experience is so damn perfect in SB:AR. So instead of trying to do that through more words (and failing at it), I’ll just put some in-game screens that I think express all of that with much more clarity. After all, a picture does speak a thousand words.
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| Red Flame... |
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| What's Goku doing? Even Janemba looks startled, is he about to unleash a power beyond SSJ3? |
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| Gogeta's gonna get a GT-style beatdown... |
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| Both Goku and Broly at their strongest, it's going to be a fight for the ages... |
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| Standing right in the middle of that planet busting explosion and tanking it...the epitome of badassery |
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| Super Vegito pushes beyond his limits...I'm starting to feel bad for Broly. |
This article serves as a celebration of this underrated game, and if you've played this game, please drop a comment about how you feel about Shin Budokai: Another Road.
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