Review written by Playstation4.net staff member Klark Byrd
Published in the U.S.A. by Atari, Dragon Ball Z: Burst Limit has the visuals of the anime it garners its name from, the furiously fast fist pounding action and a frustratingly huge Great Ape to beat. Following on the heels of Dragon Ball Z: Budokai Tenkaichi 3 for the Playstation 2, Burst Limit seems small indeed. BT3 featured about 160 characters with a full story line through Dragon Ball GT, whereas Burst Limit ends at the Cell Games. Don’t expect to find Majin Buu around this game.
But Burst Limit makes up for what it lacks in quantity with quality. Fighters get to choose up to three drama pieces that are unlocked in Story Mode before fighting. These drama pieces come in handy for saving your butt in the knick of time, providing you’ve met the criteria for activating them. Burst Limits visuals are so wonderful on the PS3 that it’s nearly impossible to tell it from the actual drawn anime. The game even allows for in-game transitions, such as Goku changing to Kaioken and then to Super Saiyan form. This allows the match flow to be more in line with what you’d see watching the cartoon.
One of the largest advances for the Dragon Ball Z fighting games is that Burst Limit allows you to go online and fight with anyone from around the globe. A word of warning for online – if you’re fighting someone outside of your own country, be prepared for severe lag. Lag issues aside, the online fights exactly like a player 1 versus computer match. You don’t get to control how much health either side has, but if you elect to allow drama pieces, the match could go either way. I took the game online the first day I had it and won my first match. I received a proper thrashing thereafter, but I won my first match.
My only wish for this game was that it was more inclusive. Perhaps BT3 spoiled me since I was able to have Goku all the way up to Super Saiyan 4 or fight as any of the Buu characters, but I really expected to see them in Burst Limit.
If you’re looking for a game that you can pick up, properly beat the crap out of someone and relive the glory moments of the Dragon Ball Z anime, Burst Limit is the game for you. The fighting controls are incredibly intuitive though altered from BT3 and initiating ki bursts and furious fists are easy. I also found it easier to kick my opponent in the air in this game. There’s no time to look for Dragon Balls in Burst Limit, you’ll find them on the loading screen. You can control them in certain ways by pressing buttons on your controller while waiting for the match to load. Load times aren’t too bad, but a little longer than I thought they would be.
If and when Burst Limit 2 is announced, I hope they’ll include the Majin Buu saga and improve online fighting. Don’t let that discourage you from picking up this prime fighting game.
SCORE: 8 out of 10
