Is Budokai 3 overrated?

[emperior]

when Budokai 3 came out it was great but Right now it looks meh....

i know there are fans who put this game on a solid gold Pedestal but in my opinion Budokai 3 & Tenkaichi 3 are the best DBZ games on PS2 and thats it.

Which games are better?

I'm been out of the game for a while (so to speak) and I wouldn't mind picking up a good DBZ game.

Xenoverse 2 is better than those games.
Gameplay wise Burst Limit and the Shin Budokais were already better than Budokai 3. I also heard Infinite World is better than B3 but I never played that game so I can't give you my opinion on that.
For the 3D games I rank Xenoverse 2 as the best, with Tenkaichi 3 close second and Raging Blast 2 third.

[KorgDTR2000]

when Budokai 3 came out it was great but Right now it looks meh....

i know there are fans who put this game on a solid gold Pedestal but in my opinion Budokai 3 & Tenkaichi 3 are the best DBZ games on PS2 and thats it.

Which games are better?

I'm been out of the game for a while (so to speak) and I wouldn't mind picking up a good DBZ game.

Xenoverse 2 is better than those games.
Gameplay wise Burst Limit and the Shin Budokais were already better than Budokai 3. I also heard Infinite World is better than B3 but I never played that game so I can't give you my opinion on that.
For the 3D games I rank Xenoverse 2 as the best, with Tenkaichi 3 close second and Raging Blast 2 third.

Is Xenoverse 2 dramatically better than the first one? Because I just started playing the first one and I think it's awful.

[SingleFringe&Sparks]

It's often considered the "best Dragon Ball fighting game", and when it comes to that respect, yes, it's overrated, especially considering that the Shin Budokai series is Budokai 3 but better in every single way besides character count.

Yea. B3 is a mixed back for me. I mean structurally, its storymode was good (even though it being unfinished and just semi-voiced avatars talking) I really don't see why people rate it so high. Its gameplay was relatively the same as B2's (just now ultimates were easier to pull off) and was infamous for its annoying CPU spamming the Dragon rush feature (which Burst Limit took better direction with). Shin Budokai is infinitely better than B3 even though I personally thought it's storymode was pretty bad, but Burst Limit by far gets the best 2D DBZ fighter title for me. Its gameplay was a smoother update to Shin Budokai's. (Just with a terribly obstructive HUD).

Beyond that I really do not see how B3 stands out at all. Shin Budokai just has more attacks, more stages, smoother gameplay, better flight mechanics, actual dashing and more practical cinematic. B3 is just clunky by comparison.

For the 3D games I rank Xenoverse 2 as the best, with Tenkaichi 3 close second and Raging Blast 2 third.

I prefer BT3, I found its gameplay to be the smoothest with combos you can actually chain a combo for a while without the opponent just teleporting out of them after the first 3 hits. Tenkaichi 3 just felt closer to DBZ to me.

[emperior]

Is Xenoverse 2 dramatically better than the first one? Because I just started playing the first one and I think it's awful.

Gameplay wise? Yes. The first one was truly awful.

For the 3D games I rank Xenoverse 2 as the best, with Tenkaichi 3 close second and Raging Blast 2 third.

I prefer BT3, I found its gameplay to be the smoothest with combos you can actually chain a combo for a while without the opponent just teleporting out of them after the first 3 hits. Tenkaichi 3 just felt closer to DBZ to me.

Actually you might be right, Tenkaichi 3's punches also felt more powerful and I like how that game had high and low block. I'm also starting to hate how easy it is to teleport in Xenoverse 2 and that dash teleport spam is a problem too.
Though BT3 also had many problems so it's difficult to say which game is better.

[SingleFringe&Sparks]

Actually you might be right, Tenkaichi 3's punches also felt more powerful and I like how that game had high and low block. I'm also starting to hate how easy it is to teleport in Xenoverse 2 and that dash teleport spam is a problem too.
Though BT3 also had many problems so it's difficult to say which game is better.

BT3 just seemed to have more melee related options because it had a parry counter, high & low block, step in chaining and it's overall combat seemed more aggressive focus on pursuit chaining where as Xenoverse seems to be more about evading and sudden dashing.

[90sDBZ]

Its gameplay was relatively the same as B2's (just now ultimates were easier to pull off) and was infamous for its annoying CPU spamming the Dragon rush feature (which Burst Limit took better direction with).

The difference in gameplay between Budokai 2 and 3 is night and day. It introduced teleportation counters and the ability to dodge individual punches and kicks at the cost of ki, which added a new layer of defensive strategy and ki management. In Budokai 2 it was common for players to block all day, which could really slow down the pace of a match. The combos you could pull off were also much more elaborate and varied in B3, while in Budokai 2 many characters still played like clones of one another i.e. Goku, Gohan, Raditz and Frieza all using the same basic cancels for their combos. Budokai 3 also added in special moves that could be cancelled to extend combos such as Goku's Dragon Fist and Gohan's Soaring Dragon Strike.

And I've seen lots of people complain about Dragon Rush over the years, despite the fact that it can be easily avoided by backdashing and teleport baiting. In a serious match going into hyper mode is a very bad idea, as your opponent can easily avoid you and then punish the hell out of you when you become fatigued.

[KorgDTR2000]

It's often considered the "best Dragon Ball fighting game", and when it comes to that respect, yes, it's overrated, especially considering that the Shin Budokai series is Budokai 3 but better in every single way besides character count.

Yea. B3 is a mixed back for me. I mean structurally, its storymode was good (even though it being unfinished and just semi-voiced avatars talking) I really don't see why people rate it so high. Its gameplay was relatively the same as B2's (just now ultimates were easier to pull off) and was infamous for its annoying CPU spamming the Dragon rush feature (which Burst Limit took better direction with). Shin Budokai is infinitely better than B3 even though I personally thought it's storymode was pretty bad, but Burst Limit by far gets the best 2D DBZ fighter title for me. Its gameplay was a smoother update to Shin Budokai's. (Just with a terribly obstructive HUD).

Beyond that I really do not see how B3 stands out at all. Shin Budokai just has more attacks, more stages, smoother gameplay, better flight mechanics, actual dashing and more practical cinematic. B3 is just clunky by comparison.

Compared to B2, Budokai 3 had a much deeper fighting engine. Not just in the depth of combinations but also in new mechanics that were added or tweaked. Transformations now made more sense by increasing the baseline ki rather than constantly draining it, while dodging, teleporting and beam struggles. And while Dragon Rush is a misstep, the option for Ultimates to fail - tying in to the new Fatigue mechanic - was better than the straight cutscenes of the previous two games.

The Shin Budokai may have had further refinements to the mechanics but I wouldn't know - I never played it, because it was only available on the PSP. If you want to know why it isn't more popular than Budokai 3, that's it. It was on a niche platform, not a home console.

As for Burst Limit, it had a very solid foundation but it was so stripped down that it's no surprise it doesn't have the reputation of Budokai 3. I think the fact that we never got a sequel to further flesh out the game is one of the biggest missed opportunities in the realm of DBZ games.

So all in all it's really not hard to see why Budokai 3 has the reputation it has. It was a massive improvement over its predecessors and the games that came after it either went in a different direction (Tenkaichi, Xenoverse), were on side-platforms (Shin Budokai) or were barebones (Burst Limit). It's really the best option a DBZ fan can turn to if they're looking for a traditional fighter.

[SingleFringe&Sparks]

The Shin Budokai may have had further refinements to the mechanics but I wouldn't know - I never played it, because it was only available on the PSP. If you want to know why it isn't more popular than Budokai 3, that's it. It was on a niche platform, not a home console.

Shin Budokai was what made the actual animations of the fighting attacks smoother, and it made ultimates the easiest to use with it just being two buttons and no need for long cutscenes and damage negotiation prompts. It also gave characters more ultimate attack variety (like Goku & Cell having Super Kamehamehas), and it added a pursuit chain (that Burst Limit didn't have for some reason). Its basically the most polished of the engine.

As for Burst Limit, it had a very solid foundation but it was so stripped down that it's no surprise it doesn't have the reputation of Budokai 3. I think the fact that we never got a sequel to further flesh out the game is one of the biggest missed opportunities in the realm of DBZ games.

Yeah, I still want a sequel to that game but it didn't happen due to the BT3 fanbase that cared more about a 3D camera than tight-gameplay. Though BT3 was the best of its game type, the fanboys of that age were the worst. They wouldn't even accept a BL sequel because BT3 was all about huge rosters. I had hoped people got sick of that format after Battle of Z but then Xenoverse game out. I want at least a fixed up BL sequel and I'd be set for life.

So all in all it's really not hard to see why Budokai 3 has the reputation it has. It was a massive improvement over its predecessors and the games that came after it either went in a different direction (Tenkaichi, Xenoverse), were on side-platforms (Shin Budokai) or were barebones (Burst Limit). It's really the best option a DBZ fan can turn to if they're looking for a traditional fighter.

It is. Even though Infinite World is somewhat better gameplay wise and has more GT characters, it was rushed with a few broken mechanics at the end and had no stages from Shin Budokai in it.

And I've seen lots of people complain about Dragon Rush over the years, despite the fact that it can be easily avoided by backdashing and teleport baiting. In a serious match going into hyper mode is a very bad idea, as your opponent can easily avoid you and then punish the hell out of you when you become fatigued.

To be honest, I nearly forgotten that you couldn't do much of the B3 features in B2. Its been a long time, that B3 was just the standard.
As for Dragon Rush, I never implied that it was inescapable, it was just annoying when caught within it however it happens, and BL improved upon to where it just became apart of natural gameplay.

[KorgDTR2000]

As for Burst Limit, it had a very solid foundation but it was so stripped down that it's no surprise it doesn't have the reputation of Budokai 3. I think the fact that we never got a sequel to further flesh out the game is one of the biggest missed opportunities in the realm of DBZ games.

Yeah, I still want a sequel to that game but it didn't happen due to the BT3 fanbase that cared more about a 3D camera than tight-gameplay. Though BT3 was the best of its game type, the fanboys of that age were the worst. They wouldn't even accept a BL sequel because BT3 was all about huge rosters. I had hoped people got sick of that format after Battle of Z but then Xenoverse game out. I want at least a fixed up BL sequel and I'd be set for life.

I'm sorry to say I was one of those fanboys. I was anti-Burst Limit because I was still riding the high of BT3 and I was very upset that it wasn't getting a next-gen sequel. Then Raging Blast came out and the demo put me off of DBZ games ever after. I very recently picked up Xenoverse and I'm actually appalled at what DBZ games have become, there's definitely a feeling of atonement for slamming Burst Limit and the 2D format. Nearly a decade later Budokai 3 has proven to be the game I go back to more, as it has a very polished feel that wasn't there with the Tenkaichi series and I feel has let the game age better. Haven't gotten around to getting the HD version though, gonna have to pick a copy up.

[SingleFringe&Sparks]

I'm sorry to say I was one of those fanboys. I was anti-Burst Limit because I was still riding the high of BT3 and I was very upset that it wasn't getting a next-gen sequel. Then Raging Blast came out and the demo put me off of DBZ games ever after. I very recently picked up Xenoverse and I'm actually appalled at what DBZ games have become, there's definitely a feeling of atonement for slamming Burst Limit and the 2D format. Nearly a decade later Budokai 3 has proven to be the game I go back to more, as it has a very polished feel that wasn't there with the Tenkaichi series and I feel has let the game age better. Haven't gotten around to getting the HD version though, gonna have to pick a copy up.

Yeah, this became evident by how expensive BT3 is and how hard to find its become in even used stores. I knew they jacked up the prices on BT3 during the period of hate Ultimate Tenkaichi got, the unimpressive reception to Battle of Z and the general boredom people had with the Redundant Blast series. BT3 was treated as a relic, for understandable reasons. I was one of those people who begged for Dimps back after RB2. Namco finally got them back after a long hesitancy they had, and what did they do? Give us a game that they might as well could have just let Spike or Cyberconnect 2 make. People wanted Dimps for the Budokai revival. Not another 3D game. Though I'd forgive any BT3 fanboy if somehow a BL2 was demanded enough by fans, but the fans of that game like myself are in the minority now because Xenoverse has distracted people enough.

[emperior]

Yeah, I still want a sequel to that game but it didn't happen due to the BT3 fanbase that cared more about a 3D camera than tight-gameplay. Though BT3 was the best of its game type, the fanboys of that age were the worst. They wouldn't even accept a BL sequel because BT3 was all about huge rosters. I had hoped people got sick of that format after Battle of Z but then Xenoverse game out. I want at least a fixed up BL sequel and I'd be set for life.

We're on the same boat. I loved Burst Limit, I liked how it was a simple game for everyone, but with complex mechanics behind. I played a ton of online matches on that game, much more than I've ever played in the Raging Blast and Xenoverse games. That game felt very satisfying and graphically it's still above Xenoverse 2 in my opinion.

I'm still crossing my fingers for a new 2.5D DB game for 2017. It seems like Bandai has a contract which forces them to release a new Dragon Ball game every year, and remakes/ports don't count so XV2 on the Switch wouldn't do it. Dimps also stated they are taking more time for Xenoverse 3.
It would be easier for them to just release a 2.5D game this year with the gameplay basically taken straight from Shin Budokai 2. with maybe a few changes. I really hope they will, it would be a nice change as we haven't got 2d DBZ games since 2008.

[90sDBZ]

I think what hurt Burst Limit the most was that a lot of people weren't aware you could turn off the Drama Pieces. And even then you still can't turn them off in story mode. The game doesn't even explain how to turn them off in CPU vs mode. You literally have to scroll all the way down without selecting any drama pieces and then proceed to the match, which isn't exactly the most straightforward way they could have done it.

There was nothing more annoying than spending all your ki on an ultimate move only to have it immediately interrupted by a Drama Piece and then have your opponent kick your ass while you have no ki left. And getting stuck on a fight in story mode was the worst because you'd have to watch the same damn Drama Pieces every time you chose to retry with no way of skipping them.

I actually think the Drama Pieces were way more annoying than Dragon Rush ever was. Aside from that the online was laggy, and the extra defensive options that the game introduced made cancel combos impractical in a real match.

[SingleFringe&Sparks]

Yeah, I still want a sequel to that game but it didn't happen due to the BT3 fanbase that cared more about a 3D camera than tight-gameplay. Though BT3 was the best of its game type, the fanboys of that age were the worst. They wouldn't even accept a BL sequel because BT3 was all about huge rosters. I had hoped people got sick of that format after Battle of Z but then Xenoverse game out. I want at least a fixed up BL sequel and I'd be set for life.

We're on the same boat. I loved Burst Limit, I liked how it was a simple game for everyone, but with complex mechanics behind. I played a ton of online matches on that game, much more than I've ever played in the Raging Blast and Xenoverse games. That game felt very satisfying and graphically it's still above Xenoverse 2 in my opinion.

I'm still crossing my fingers for a new 2.5D DB game for 2017. It seems like Bandai has a contract which forces them to release a new Dragon Ball game every year, and remakes/ports don't count so XV2 on the Switch wouldn't do it. Dimps also stated they are taking more time for Xenoverse 3.
It would be easier for them to just release a 2.5D game this year with the gameplay basically taken straight from Shin Budokai 2. with maybe a few changes. I really hope they will, it would be a nice change as we haven't got 2d DBZ games since 2008.

Honestly I think a BL2 could only happen if it was in demand, because Namco doesn't know the relevance which games have among people. I'll assume they'll just throw out a Xenoverse 3 just because its the current popular title that the Tenkaichi fanboys easily transitioned into. They need to see a BL2 in demand for them to consider it selling. I would be perfectly fine if they just threw out a BL2 as a place holder to give Xenoverse 3 more time, because the Budokai era is already developed and its all there. Thats what I liked about Budokai. You really just needed to tweak things for a sequel. For Spike's games, they literally have to overhaul the gameplay entirely in all the installments because of the 3D mechanics was hard to balance for competitive play. Personally I wish Namco would rotate because as much as I like the 3D games for what they are, I'm tired of them.

[emperior]

Yeah, I still want a sequel to that game but it didn't happen due to the BT3 fanbase that cared more about a 3D camera than tight-gameplay. Though BT3 was the best of its game type, the fanboys of that age were the worst. They wouldn't even accept a BL sequel because BT3 was all about huge rosters. I had hoped people got sick of that format after Battle of Z but then Xenoverse game out. I want at least a fixed up BL sequel and I'd be set for life.

We're on the same boat. I loved Burst Limit, I liked how it was a simple game for everyone, but with complex mechanics behind. I played a ton of online matches on that game, much more than I've ever played in the Raging Blast and Xenoverse games. That game felt very satisfying and graphically it's still above Xenoverse 2 in my opinion.

I'm still crossing my fingers for a new 2.5D DB game for 2017. It seems like Bandai has a contract which forces them to release a new Dragon Ball game every year, and remakes/ports don't count so XV2 on the Switch wouldn't do it. Dimps also stated they are taking more time for Xenoverse 3.
It would be easier for them to just release a 2.5D game this year with the gameplay basically taken straight from Shin Budokai 2. with maybe a few changes. I really hope they will, it would be a nice change as we haven't got 2d DBZ games since 2008.

Honestly I think a BL2 could only happen if it was in demand, because Namco doesn't know the relevance which games have among people. I'll assume they'll just throw out a Xenoverse 3 just because its the current popular title that the Tenkaichi fanboys easily transitioned into. They need to see a BL2 in demand for them to consider it selling. I would be perfectly fine if they just threw out a BL2 as a place holder to give Xenoverse 3 more time, because the Budokai era is already developed and its all there. Thats what I liked about Budokai. You really just needed to tweak things for a sequel. For Spike's games, they literally have to overhaul the gameplay entirely in all the installments because of the 3D mechanics was hard to balance for competitive play. Personally I wish Namco would rotate because as much as I like the 3D games for what they are, I'm tired of them.

I don't think they release games based on demand, or else we would have seen a Tenkaichi HD collection already.
Raging Blast got a sequel even though it sold less copies than Burst Limit, and the latter was also the first next-gen game at a time when lots of people still hadn't switched from PS2 to PS3, and in the same year Infinite World was released on PS2 so Burst Limit would have probably sold more if it was released later.

They also released a Budokai HD collection in 2012 so it shows that they know those games were and are still popular. 2017 is really the best time for them to release a 2.5D DB game. I really hope their 2017 game isn't going to be XV2 on the switch...

[SingleFringe&Sparks]

I don't think they release games based on demand, or else we would have seen a Tenkaichi HD collection already. Raging Blast got a sequel even though it sold less copies than Burst Limit, and the latter was also the first next-gen game at a time when lots of people still hadn't switched from PS2 to PS3, and in the same year Infinite World was released on PS2 so Burst Limit would have probably sold more if it was released later.

I don't know. I mean then I can't explain how a Budokai HD release came out then. They also know people wanted a Tenkaichi HD collection, but their contract with Spike could have just been up. It could be why they gave us BT after Burst Limit even though BL outsold all the RB games anyway. So there is no excuse to me in sales, and I know the reason most fans on facebook wanted Dimps back because of BL but, they instead made XV because people wanted the 3D camera simulators. I was hoping Ultimate Tenkaichi was the last straw before we got a new 2.5D game. I think though it was just between contracts and whom they were willing to work with. I used to think that they renewed Spike so often because they were just cheaper regardless of game quality since BT3.

They also released a Budokai HD collection in 2012 so it shows that they know those games were and are still popular. 2017 is really the best time for them to release a 2.5D DB game. I really hope their 2017 game isn't going to be XV2 on the switch...

Yeah. I honestly hope we don't see a XV2 port or a XV3 in a while, because I honestly can't think of anything that would significantly overhaul what XV2 already has, but I do think they're wasting their contract with Dimps by not making more Budokai games, what they're known for. I mean I was pissed that they bothered making a 3D game considering they have to waste a year or 2 starting from scratch with a new engine.