Dragon Ball Z: Super Butōden

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Dragon Ball Z: Super Butōden
"Dragon Ball Z: Super Butōden" Title Screen
ドラゴンボールZ　超武闘伝 Doragon Bōru Zetto　Sūpā Butōden
Release Date	20 March 1993
Genre	Fighting
Price	¥9,800 + tax
Developer	TOSE Software
Music Composer(s)	Kenji Yamamoto
Playable Characters	13
Copies Shipped	1.41 million

Dragon Ball Z: Super Butōden ("Dragon Ball Z: Super Martial Arts Legend") is the Dragon Ball franchise's first fighting game, and first in line of a series of Butōden-branded games released throughout the franchise's history. The game's story and roster reflects the era of the original manga and television series of the time, focusing on the Cell arc.

Battles are held on a 2D field with the ability to dash in or out, as well as fly up into the air or back down to the ground at will. In addition to basic attacks such as punches, kicks, and energy blasts, players can perform special moves via specific button combinations, as well as super moves via similar button combinations with sufficient energy gathered.

Like other Dragon Ball video games of its era, Dragon Ball Z: Super Butōden is presumed to have been developed by TOSE Software for Bandai.

The Super Butōden series is generally referred to by name in its untranslated form (adapting the English word "Super" from its Japanese incarnation of Sūpā, and leaving Butōden untranslated). The "Butōden" brand name was used untranslated as such for the international release of Extreme Butōden on the Nintendo 3DS in 2015; similar marketing was done with words such as Budōkai on other generations of consoles.

Game Modes

• Story (ストーリー Sutōrī ): story mode
• Battle (対戦 Taisen): 1P VS CPU, 1P VS 2P
• Strongest Under the Heavens Martial Arts Tournament (天下一武道会 Tenka'ichi Budōkai): tournament mode
• Options (オプション Opushon): game options and adjustments

Gameplay

Goku facing Freeza from a distance with the game's signature split-screen presentation

All fights take place on a 2D field with the ability to jump into the air or dash forward and backward, causing the game to enter its signature split-screen presentation until the characters close the gap between each other. Players attack each other until one or both are defeated, or the timer runs out.

Players use the default attack schemes of punch ("Y" button), kick ("B" button), energy ("A" button), and plane switch ("X" button) alongside the dash forward and backward ("R" and "L" buttons, respectively) to attack their opponents. The directional pad acts as the basic movement, with the opposite direction from the opponent acting as a block when under attack.

A la other contemporary fighting games of the day, characters' special moves are performed via slightly more elaborate button sequences and combinations. Each character has a variety of these special moves which act as amplified melee and ki-based attacks. These moves generally affect the players energy bar reserves.

Playable Characters

Sprite	Name	Form	Notes	Status
	Son Goku	n/a	n/a	Immediately selectable
	Piccolo	n/a	Shown with cape and turban pre-fight	Immediately selectable
	Vegeta	n/a	n/a	Immediately selectable
	Freeza	Fourth Form / Full Power	Transforms to full power pre-fight	Immediately selectable
	No. 20	n/a	n/a	Immediately selectable
	No. 18	n/a	n/a	Immediately selectable
	Cell	First Form	n/a	Immediately selectable
	No. 16	n/a	n/a	Immediately selectable
	Son Goku	Super Saiyan	Transforms to Super Saiyan pre-fight	Requires unlock
	Vegeta	Super Saiyan	n/a	Requires unlock
	Trunks	Super Saiyan	Transforms to Super Saiyan pre-fight	Requires unlock
	Son Gohan	Super Saiyan	n/a	Requires unlock
	Cell	Perfect	n/a	Requires unlock

Stages

• TBD

Codes & Secrets

Character select screen following a correct code input, with five additional transformations of characters unlocked as playable

Additional Playable Characters

TBD

Debug Mode

TBD

Merchandise

Arranged Soundtrack

A single-disc arranged soundtrack (FMCC-5011), Dragon Ball Z: Super Butōden Game Music, was released 27 March 1993 for ¥?,??? (tax-included) spanning thirteen tracks. The composition/arrangement is credited to Kenji Yamamoto, with ...

Track	Title	Length
1	(Opening) Super Butōden Theme	4:06
2	(Battle Stage 1) Piccolo's Theme	4:27
3	(Battle Stage 2) Vegeta's Theme	4:35
4	(Battle Stage 3) Freeza's Theme	3:05
5	(Battle Stage 4) Artificial Human No. 20's Theme	4:29
6	(Battle Stage 5) Artificial Human No. 18's Theme	4:34
7	Continue Theme	0:12
8	(Battle Stage 6) Cell's Theme	4:21
9	(Battle Stage 7) Artificial Human #16's Theme	3:53
10	(Battle Stage 8) Cell's Perfect-Form Theme	4:56
11	Final Battle Theme	0:12
12	(Ending) Toward a New Battle	3:46
13	(???) Super Butōden: ?'s Theme	3:58

A version of this soundtrack with different instrumentation of each song (AB 0468 2 BM 670) was released in France in 1993 by BGM France (as part of Bertlesmann Music Group). Kenji Yamamoto is credited by name for the composition of all tracks with the exception of tracks 7 and 11, which are attributed to "L. Rouah / M. Dickopson".

Guide Book

Cover of the Super Butōden guide book

A guide book released under the Jump Comics Selection line was released 24 March 1993 covering the game's controls, strategy, story, etc. Subsequent games would be released under the V-Jump Guide Books Game Series line following the launch of V-Jump that year.

Releases

Dragon Ball Z: Super Butōden was originally released on the Nintendo Super Famicom 20 March 1993. As with most Nintendo Super Famicom games, the game comes packaged in a cardboard box meant to be stood vertically. The plastic packaging inside holds the game cartridge, while the instruction manual and promotional material slide in and fit on top.

The game was released as a separate download in conjunction with the Nintendo Switch edition of Dragon Ball FighterZ on 27 September 2018 in Japan as a first-pressing bonus item. This version of the game had a new musical score composed and inserted, replacing the original by Kenji Yamamoto. This altered version was also used — untranslated — as the international pre-order and first-pressing bonus.

International Releases

Title screen from the game's French localization

A French localization of Super Butōden was released...

Domestic Media Coverage

• TBD

Commercials & Trailers

• TBD

International Media Coverage

• Electronic Gaming Monthly, April 1993 issue, "Preview: Dragon Ball Z"
• Electronic Gaming Monthly, October 1993 issue, "Fact File: Dragon Ball Z: Super Futoden"

Additional Notes

On the initial black screen, players hear an audible quote of Son Goku speaking ("Ossu! Ora Goku! Iccho yatte mikka!" or "Heya! I'm Goku! I'm gonna give it a go!").

The number "08" printed on the game's box indicates its eighth place in line of Bandai games published on the Nintendo Super Famicom.

In 2016's Dragon Ball 30th Anniversary: Super History Book, game producer Toshihiro Suzuki stated that the development team only took one week off between the completion of the first Super Butōden and commencing work on the second. Suzuki also notes that original author Akira Toriyama himself had difficulty performing characters' special moves in the first game, and so the inputs were made easier to perform in the sequel. The sequel, Dragon Ball Z: Super Butōden 2, was ultimately released only nine months later.

Legacy

Dragon Ball Z: Super Butōden was featured in the seventeenth season (episode 165, aired 08 August 2013) of GameCenter CX, a Japanese television show featuring Shinya Arino attempting to complete various (generally older and difficult) video games. Arino managed to clear the normal ending, but lost 1-4 versus the staff.

Game Credits

To transcribe (below is for SB2) and check against - https://www.mobygames.com/game/snes/dragon-ball-z-super-butden/credits

Original Nintendo Super Famicom box

• Executive Producer: 平野 雄二
• Chief Producer: 宮河 恭夫
• Producer: Toshihiro Suzuki
• Chief Director: 島田 晋作
• Coordinator: 飛天 一助
• Game Design: 久保田 昭史, 田島 昭司, 清水 厚二, 竹花 欣也
• Programming: まるこ父, JCパジャマズ, まるこ
• Graphic Design: 玉井 裕和, 高橋 雅行, 荒井 翔子, M.柏木, ボージャック鈴木, ザンギャそば, TAKO仙人, 服部 大三郎
• Toei Animation: Kōzō Morishita, Sei'ichi Hiruta
• Scenario Draft: Takao Koyama, Sumio Uetake
• Sound Work: Kenji Yamamoto, SWITCH・E, Kumatarou
• Battle Character Base Drawings: Tadayoshi Yamamuro, Naoki Miyahara, Hideko Okimoto, Akemi Seki, Naotoshi Shida, Yukio Ebisawa, Kazuya Hisada, Tai'ichirō Ohara, Satoru Iriyoshi, Takashi Nashizawa
• Assistant Work: 渡辺 浩孝, 清水 泰臣, 磯貝 健夫, 金子 孝治, 麻生 佳子, 亀 えりか, 檜桓 賢一, どんきー