How would you make a DBZ RPG?

[Dayspring]

Just wondering what you would like to see in a Dragonball Z RPG. I'd love a fighting system that follows what we've seen a ton of times in recent DB games, but I'd prefer it if the game itself were a classic RPG. Characters would have level-dependent stat increases like in all RPGs, whereas a user's PL would simply be their experience points (so their strength has a story purpose, but doesn't become the be all and end all).

There'd be 2 kind of story modes: an action-dependent mode (leading into What Ifs depending on what you at certain times in the game) and a classic story mode (the manga followed to the letter). Unlockable side-quests for the classic story mode would only be the Bardock and Trunks specials (When Freeza recalls Bardock, rather than a flashack, you go into the entire game; a similar occurence for Trunks).

However, action-dependent mode would cover the movies, filler, and what-ifs depending on how you played. So if you leveled up Goku like a maniac prior to fighting Radditz, defeating Radditz at a certain level could result in meaning Goku never dies. If he never dies, the story would follow the events of movies 1-5 instead of the Saiyan and Namek sagas. For movie 5's story, it would be altered so Earth is just Cooler's next planet to conquer. When Cold and Freeza arrive, it would be to avenge Cooler's death and not what happened to Freeza. This is how you meet Vegeta if you've never met him, who joins your team at the site of how strong Goku and Trunks are. Depending what level Goku is at, Vegeta will already know SSJ. If he does, then during the three years training, movie 6 will occur, only instead of Dende asking for help, Kaio asks everyone for help.

Depending on events from the android saga, rather than fight Cell, you play the events of movies 7 (Trunks hasn't gone back to his time yet), and, if Gohan reached a level high enough to learn SSJ, movie 8. Movie 9 could be played two ways: if Broly is defeated while Goku is at a weaker level than him, or if Perfect Cell in the Cell Games is defeated when Goku is at a weaker level than him, than Goku will die in those storylines. If you've played movie 9, then during the month of training prior to the 25th budokai, you play movie 10. If you play movie 10 and manage to prevent Buu from appearing, then you get to play movie 11. If the Buu saga runs its course up to the point where either Gotenks or Shin no Gohan defeats him by being a certain amount of levels greater than Buu, than you play movie 12 instead.

If you don't play movies 8 and higher, and Buu isn't prevented from escaping, then you get to play movie 13 since Goku is still alive and since the Earth DBs still only grant one wish. 28th budokai occurs depending on how you defeat Buu (otherwise he won't reincarnate as Uub).

[caejones]

If only I'd get up and learn J3d...

Which reminds me, things I read in the old Ask Vegetto EX talkback threads made me think of stuff I should add to my already too huge file of notes...

Hmm, originally I wanted to put in DB stuff in flashback form, seeing as I put up this after starting in a hurry, hence only going from Raditz... then I realized that I'd much rather the game start with the start of the characters' stories. And stuff.

I guess on the one hand I want to be able to plow through the story with some basic battle outcome-based what-ifs and sidequests and things, but at the same time be able to do all kinds of wacky side adventures that would give enough of a free-roming expansiveness to ... warp... everything... to another dimention...

I'd either like a perfected version of the fighting engine that has not stopped developing in my notes, or a more RPG-esque adaptation of the Sparking fighting engine (with obvious fixes... I guess, maybe some of the less crappy of Sagas' elements).

Leveling... blargh, maybe I haven't played enough RPGs, but I don't want to be concerned with that ... much, unless in very specific points or not-overly-complex ways. Of course, then there's the level up system in the lame, never to be updated "har har, I'm moving every single layer at once" version, which I guess I based on XMen legends or something... but I'm starting to think that's a horrible idea, especially with the level of epic I'm interested in. I.E, training tasks like we see in the series should affect your stats the same as in the series... and... stuff.

And so help me ... the sound had better own all your base. ^_^.
*rambles about how speech synthesizers that can act (is that an oxymoron?) would make it easier to add what-ifs since the VAs would only need make a small number of samples for non-predictable scenes*.

[gohanku]

I like the action-dependent mode, it's more exciting and makes you wonder what will happen if you do something.

[Xyex]

Ah, my dream game. A new DBZ console RPG. I'd do similar to the Legend of the Super Saiya-jin for the SNES, and the LoG games on the GBA. Stick to the story line (if I'm following the series and not doing an original story like the 3rd NES game) but allow for discrepencies. Such as only Piccolo dieing against Nappa and Vegeta and working the movie villains into the plot in some fashion.

Your EXP = Powerlevel idea is neat, Dayspring, but I don't know. Seems too much of a cop out to me. I'd make the powerlevels the sum of all stats except HP and KP(Ki Points) IE, A PL of 200 could break down as: ATK: 50, DEF: 48, KAT: 25, KDF: 31, DEX: 20, EVA: 22, AGL: 4. And hell, really, your Power Level could be considered your level. Granted, you'd be starting out with a level 330/416 Goku and your levels would most likely increase in jumps (such as 1,000 to 1,075 or something)... but meh, it'd be neat.

Adding in equipment could be insteresting. I don't see anyone, except Trunks, buying weapons. But accessory type equipment that boosts stats wouldn't be hard. Items that increase defense (like armors, for instance), light clothes for speed boosts, special rings or wrist bands that can enhance Ki Attack power, etc. And, of course, weighted items that reduce all stats (save Agl, which is always low) by a certain ammount but boost EXP earned allowing for faster level-ups.

As for the actual battle system... I can picture one in my mind that would be amazing. It'd be turnbassed and the action would flow a lot like Dragon Rush from B3. I'll try and explain how a battle could play out. You can have up to 4 people on your active party at once. You'd have your characters lined up, say you've got Tien, Yamcha, Krillin, and Gohan on Namek. Across from you would be, say, four of Freeza's soldiers.

An ATB type system would be useful, the speed at which it charged for your next turn for each character determined by that character's AGL and modified by the recovery time for moves you'd done. Anyway, at the start of the battle, once someone's turn is up, you'd get a display on the screen. We'll use the PS2 controller for the buttons here...

The display would show the buttons and list an action submenu for each one. Let's say you'd have Triangle = Ki Attack, square = Physical Attack, circle = Item, X = Defend. Pushing triangle would replace those four buttons with up to 8 new ones, the four face buttons and the shoulder buttons (R3 would be cancel), each linked to a specific Ki attack.

So, say, Tien got first turn. Square = Energy Blast X = Energy Blast Volley, Circle = Dodon Ray, Triange = Multi-form, R1 = Tri-beam. Same thing would happen with the other three submenu options. Physical attacks could be left side, right side, above, below, behind, and/or special combos like Volley Ball Fist and Wolf Fang Fist. Defend would be up, down, left, right, counter physical, and counter Ki. Item would give you the ability to use any one of 8 items that person is carrying.

Anyway, you'd pick their move and target and they'd attack the enemy and the attack animation would vary depending upon how you chose to attack and if they've chosen some sort of defensive move on a previous turn.

Hope that makes sense in writing. It looks amazing in my head, though. >>

[caejones]

Oddly enough, I was thinking of an engine similar to that... for talking. o.o. I think that'd make actually playing the game a lot more fun than standard menus would; and the physical attack stuff you described sounds like it would make for some interesting battles.

About storyline stuff... assuming we cross timeline gaps like Cell-Buu, what would we do there... just skip over them, have some sort of transitiony sidequests (egh, introducing new characters like Goten and Trunks), or... yeah, how would we do that?


Yajirobe uses a sword.