“This is going to be the ultimate fighting experience for fans of the genre.”
PlayStation 2 has had its share of Dragon Ball Z games. Now that the new consoles have gone past their “next-gen” status and become the current generation, the classic anime series is ready to move ahead. Dragon Ball Z: Burst Limit is the resulting title. Built for PS3 and Xbox 360, the game makes use of new online play features (the details of which are still unknown), as well as a refined battle system.
“All the characters have new, awesome-looking super moves,” said Producer Donny Clay. “The fighting system itself was fine-tuned and I think you’ll find it’s the most balanced yet with all the counter moves, dodges, teleports added to an excellent array of offensive skills for every character.”
Dragon Ball Z: Burst Limit is the first DBZ made specifically for PS3 and Xbox 360. When gamers see it for the first time, we instantly notice the upgraded visuals. Besides that, what did these next-gen consoles allow you to create that wasn’t possible on a less-powerful machine?
Donny Clay: The graphics are a huge part of it but also the fighting system and the overall game mechanics have greatly improved. This is going to be the ultimate fighting experience for fans of the genre.
Online play will be available for both the PS3 and Xbox 360 editions. Can you tell us about the multiplayer contents?
DC: We’re keeping a lot of that under wraps right now, but I can tell you it is amazing.
With each new DBZ game, the environments became more realistic and more interactive. What additions are being made on the interactive end? More environmental destruction?
DC: Actually in this particular game the environments do change with the right finishing move (which will be revealed soon so stay tuned) but past that it’s a bit different than what fans could expect from the Budokai Tenkaichi experience.
DBZ supported motion control on Wii — will Burst Limit utilize any of the SIXAXIS motion control features on PS3?
DC: No SIXAXIS. We definitely wanted to keep the game as similar as possible to its 360 counterpart. That way you aren’t missing out on anything when buying one over the other.
There were more characters than we could count in Budokai Tenkaichi 3. Does the trend continue with Burst Limit?
DC: No, again it’s another departure from the Tenkaichi series, and there are far less characters in this game.
Whether big or small, can you give us an idea of which characters will appear in the game?
DC: We’ll be posting all character profiles online soon.
What enhancements (if any) are being made to the combo system?
DC: The combo system was kept nice and simple so you can focus on fighting- not memorizing huge combo string commands. You basically have your light and heavy attacks plus you can mix Ki blasts however you see fit.
Some of the DBZ games have moved deeper into the realm of storytelling. Will this continue in Burst Limit, or is the game strictly a core fighting experience?
DC: This particular title covers the Saiyan saga to the end of the Cell Saga. There’s definitely surprises as far as the story goes.
What game modes will Burst Limit include?
DC: Story mode, VS mode (which includes Online), Tutorial, Challenge mode (survival modes along with a couple unlockable secret modes).
In many ways the DBZ games are starting to look better than the show. Do you think there will come a time when the anime can no longer compare with what game developers can produce?
DC: Well, I think that it’s all relative to the particular style the game is shooting for – obviously as the consoles get more powerful we’ll be able to do more with them, but the same goes for animation technology as well. It all depends on what you want the game/cartoon/anime to look like.
Anything else we should know about DBZ: Burst Limit?
DC: This is the one not to miss.
