Home Gaming Dragon Ball Xenoverse is going to leave you confused

Dragon Ball Xenoverse is going to leave you confused

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FUSION-HA

If there’s one thing that Dragon Ball Xenoverse has going for it, it’s that the game has its first original story in a very, very long time. Sort of. Thanks to time travel shenanigans, the Vegeta, Frieza and various other sagas are getting a remix, like a dubstep DJ butchering your favourite old albums in a versus compilation. And according to Vegeta, it’s not the confusion-ha story that’s going to sell the game, but the chance to create your own tale that will get asses in seats.

“We finally got a new story, but from a localization standpoint it was a little confusing,” longtime Dragon Ball voice actor Christoper Sabat explained to Polygon in an interview. Sabat, who voices powerhouse characters such as Vegeta and Piccolo, has also served as the voiceover producer for the game, and spoke about the mind-bending task ahead of him and his crew.  “There was nobody to ask, ‘Okay, what is this? What exactly does this mean?’ That information was locked away in some creator’s head somewhere,” Sabat said.

I don’t know if I’m allowed to say this, but there will probably be a couple of times in the story where you tilt your head and get confused.

Which is actually a good thing really. Honestly, there’s only so many times you can watch Frieza make Krillin explode before Goku turns Super Saiyan and…hang on, that never gets old. That scene will always be awesome. But according to Sabat, it’s the character customisation options of this game that are the real draw, as they’re far more varied than in previous attempts from older Dragon Ball Z games. “I think the new story is cool, but I think where a lot of people are going to have a lot of fun in this game is the customized characters,” Sabat explained.

There’s so many ways to customize characters. I think most people would get their money’s worth just by popping open the game and making a character that they want to make. They’ve done crude versions of a character creator before, but nothing like this. When you make a character in Xenoverse, it looks like something that [Dragon Ball artist] Akira Toriyama could have made.

PUNCHFACE

Besides the cosmetic choices in this mode, players will also have 20 different voices to choose from. And putting that together was a mammoth task for Sabat.  “Those are the people who got the shit sandwich on this game, from a voice standpoint,” Sabat joked.

They had to come in and not only do the regular battle callouts, but they to do every single attack for every character.

When it comes to the primary voice-over cast however, Sabat tracked down as many of the original voice actors as he could, although some exceptions had to be made and replacements brought in. Hopefully some of those of replacements were from the Team Four Star gang. “I got everybody who was available and appropriate for the roles,” Sabat explained.

There’s some actors who I don’t even know where they are anymore. I wouldn’t even know where to find them. The original voice of Chiaotzu was a librarian at the University of North Texas. I don’t have a clue where she is now.

I’ve always said that the English dub of Dragon Ball Z was far superior to the original Japanese voice actors, as watching a single episode is usually the equivalent of watching Quint from Jaws drag his nails on a chalkboard for 21 minutes. Dragon Ball Xenoverse drops later this month on PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, Xbox 360, Xbox One and PC.

Last Updated: February 4, 2015

32 Comments

  1. I dunno, I just don’t get DBZ

    Reply

    • Blood Emperor Trevor

      February 4, 2015 at 08:38

      Me neither. It has lots of shouting, fighting and colours. In order to watch it you probably have to be on plenty of these…

      Reply

      • Jason K

        February 5, 2015 at 17:06

        Whatever “those” are. You guys have your Soul Calibers and Street Fighters and Mortal Kombat that you can always keep an eye out for. Leave Dragonball Z to its true fans if the “greatest action cartoon ever made” (that’s a quote for the series in 2003 on Toonami) is too much for you.

        Reply

    • Matewis Jubilai

      February 4, 2015 at 08:43

      This might help if, uhm, you know something about chillies: http://imgur.com/gallery/JE6un

      Reply

    • Hammersteyn

      February 4, 2015 at 08:52

      I do but because I watched everything from the Raditz saga onwards. It’s pretty good mainly because the main characters are always in deep shit because the bad guys are just stronger than them. There’s real tension most of the time.

      Reply

      • HairyEwok

        February 4, 2015 at 08:53

        You have a lot of time on your hands if you watched from Raditz….

        Reply

        • Hammersteyn

          February 4, 2015 at 08:57

          It was back in the 2000s when SABC still aired the episodes. I would set my VHS to record the episodes and I would watch it when I got home. Yeah this was just before ADSL and DVD players.

          Reply

          • HairyEwok

            February 4, 2015 at 09:10

            Ahhh yes Tube I think it was called on SABC 2 aired Dragon Ball Z every day in the week at 5pm. Nostalgia mode activate.

          • Shas 'O Norm

            February 4, 2015 at 09:15

            Same here!

          • Hammersteyn

            February 4, 2015 at 09:47

            XD

        • Jason K

          February 5, 2015 at 17:13

          He sure does, but it’s not a bad thing. I did the same thing. You would too if you had a great passion about something or someone. Try it if you haven’t already. Dragonball Z forever!

          Reply

      • Ghost In The Rift

        February 4, 2015 at 08:55

        Me 2, from Raditz, Vegeta destroying Nappa, fun times, but hey, at least the game cant be as confusing as woman…*that’s what he said*…:-P

        Reply

      • Jason K

        February 5, 2015 at 17:11

        I’m right there with you man! From Raditz to Kid Buu! Dragonball Z has everything! Fighting, action, drama, romance, friendships, betrayal, life and death sequences. What else could you ask for?! Only weeks now until Xenoverse!

        Reply

        • Hammersteyn

          February 5, 2015 at 21:50

          XD

          Reply

    • CypherGate

      February 4, 2015 at 10:13

      Same here. There is literally nothing about it that interests me in the slightest. The characters annoys me.

      Reply

      • Jason K

        February 5, 2015 at 17:18

        So dude, go put your trash in someone else’s can. You’re absolutely entitled to not like something, just don’t downgrade something that other people might like. Seriously, I think you guys just talk because that’s all you can do. Maybe you’re a Grand Theft Auto guy, or a Call of Duty person. Try those if that will get you excited. Dragonball Xenoverse rules!

        Reply

        • CypherGate

          February 5, 2015 at 17:30

          Well…. for starters I never downgraded or insulted or made fun of Dragonball. All I said was it doesnt interest me in the slightest and the characters annoys me. Its just not my cup of tea. Lots of my buddies likes Dragonball for some reason and I even tried to watch it, but it just doesnt interest me. Im glad you enjoy it though. Just like my buddies and others around here. Oh one more thing…. Im not a GTA or Call of Duty kinda person. Im more into Ruoruni Kenshin, Bleach, Flame Of Recca, DragonDrive, Mass Effect and The Witcher sorta person ^_^

          Reply

          • Jason K

            February 5, 2015 at 17:44

            That’s good man. And you know everyone has his/her likes and dislikes. I’m glad that you have buddies that like Dragonball Z. It’s a free world with free speech. My thing is if the characters annoy you, Dragonball Z does not interest you and it’s not your cup of tea (this is all your words by the way), then why even speak of it at all? I’m a big believer in the quote, ” If you have nothing good to say, please don’t say anything at all.” Like what you like and leave what you don’t like alone. Don’t take it personal kid. I’ll defend Dragonball Z if a person so much as roll his/her eye towards it.

          • CypherGate

            February 5, 2015 at 17:52

            Assuming im a kid is quite cute. Well this is the comment section. People are allowed to voice their opinion or say what they feel. Good example: ANC & Eskom. Go over to MyBroadband and read an article about the endless power problems. People voice their views loads of negative ways. Hell any article for that matter. If no one had anything positive to say about a topic then the comment sections would be dead cause as you say if you dont have anything good to say then dont speak of it at all. Sorry, but that just doesnt make sense. This is the reason why you a fanboy. You lucky im not like those immature Youtubers who rant over nonsense that dont make sense. I have many reasons why I dont like Dragonball Z. I didnt add my reasons cause I have work to do so I kept it short and sweet. So its perfectly clear you are a fanboy so everything ill say will always be wrong in your mind.

          • Jason K

            February 5, 2015 at 18:00

            Yes sir! I’m most definitely a huge super fan of Dragonball Z. Don’t worry. Not everything you say will be wrong. Oh, and I don’t believe in luck. That’s too much wishful thinking for people. And hey, you seem like a gamer with the things that you’re interested in, so you have my respect for that. Perhaps I’ll check out that Broadband of yours. No guarantees.

    • Jason K

      February 5, 2015 at 17:01

      You don’t have to get it buddy, just try not to derail an awesome series that many people out there actually have loved for a long time.

      Reply

  2. Matewis Jubilai

    February 4, 2015 at 08:33

    My excitement level is over 100!!!
    which is nothing really…

    Reply

    • Jason K

      February 5, 2015 at 17:19

      Yeah man!! If I could power up to Super Saiyan I would. Guess I’ll do that when Xenoverse gets here!

      Reply

  3. Tosh MA

    February 4, 2015 at 08:39

    Lol. I actually put this on my wishlist yesterday. XD

    Reply

    • Jason K

      February 5, 2015 at 17:19

      You are the freaking man!

      Reply

  4. HairyEwok

    February 4, 2015 at 08:43

    Making my own character…. I shall call him Kaka Carrotcake and he will be true super sand legend.

    Reply

    • Hammersteyn

      February 4, 2015 at 08:58

      Virginia FTW

      Reply

    • Shas 'O Norm

      February 4, 2015 at 09:15

      Haha!

      Reply

  5. Hammersteyn

    February 4, 2015 at 08:56

    Hahahahaha poor Krillin

    Reply

  6. Shas 'O Norm

    February 4, 2015 at 09:18

    That header!

    Reply

  7. Jason K

    February 5, 2015 at 17:00

    I already read this article over in Polygon. The only people that may find it somewhat confusing are the hardcore super fans. I’m a hardcore super fan of Dragonball Z, but it’s not confusing. It’s a new and fresh take on one of the greatest series ever made. If people know the history, they’ll understand that. If not, like some of these comments down below have said, then please write about something that you’re interested in and not write in just to talk trash. Some of just need to stop putting down a great and powerful series like Dragonball Z. For all you super fans out there, we just literally have less than a month! Go Xenoverse!

    Reply

  8. GokuSS3

    February 28, 2015 at 14:30

    This game is is horrible, very very bad gameplay, always misses attacks in plain sight, even after dodging. The controls are terrible and dont work right or are in the wrong places, the lock-on is pathetic and will always make it miserable; the camera goes retarded when your fighting in stages close to walls… I can’t believe this; no way this can compare to Tenkaichi or any DBZ games of its kind,

    Reply

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