Dragon Ball: Origins 2

(Namco Bandai for Nintendo DS)
By Mike Delano

It’s rare that I wonder what I’m missing by not following the Dragon Ball series, but when a game like Dragon Ball: Origins 2 comes along and there are children with monkey tails flying around on clouds who get shot down by rocket launchers, I’m tempted to carve out the time to jump into this bizarre world headfirst. A departure from the over-the-top fighting game mechanics that define most of the games with Dragon Ball in the title, Origins 2 is an action-adventure game that follows a super deformed version of main protagonist Goku as he battles his way through an impressively large selection of bite-sized stages in search of level-building treasure and, of course, magical Dragon Balls. Even if you’re not a fan of the series, it’s easy to appreciate the colorful and attractive presentation of the environments and cutscenes, and while the combat is fast-paced and responsive, it becomes repetitive during extended plays. Oddly placed save points also further punish players who slip up when the difficulty spikes sharply during boss battles, so don’t plan to race through this game in a weekend: Tackling a level or two at a time is key to ensuring that the combat stays fresh and frustration levels stay low.
(www.namcobandaigames.com)