Dragon Ball has had a long history in video games. From Japan exclusive entries, the GBA RPGs, the great Budokai series and more, Dragon Ball has had great representation in gaming. Dragon Ball Xenoverse was a great entry in the series and was a breath of fresh air after some increasingly stale games. Xenoverse gave players the chance to explore multiple points of the series timeline from another perspective. The online was great and it had an excellent amount of characters. So how does its sequel hold up?
I am pleased to say that for the most part Xenoverse 2 is a worthy follow-up to the original game. It has its issues but it is still fun and enjoyable. We have a great amount of characters, better character creation ( my Frieza race character can now go golden Frieza which is excellent!) and best of all, refined gameplay.
The story is in parts too much like the original but does manage to have its highpoints and when it does, it hits it out of the park. A major difference is that new villains are being put into the scenarios which manages to give things a fresh look for longtime fans who have gotten to used to how things play out. The game has numerous “What if?” scenarios that help shake things up as well. Things play out differently than you are used to and so this is a great treat for longtime fans. The lineup of characters, as mentioned above, is great. The game incorporates characters from Dragon Ball Super as well as the usual sources. This is a great way to introduce fans to Super, if they haven’t been following the subbed versions. I do feel that some characters should not have been saved for DLC and should have been in the main game right away but that is a small issue really.
The online play have been greatly improved and I had a lot more fun with them this time around, then I did with the first game. That said There was some connectivity issues and lag that did get in the way of my enjoyment. And speaking of missions, the central hub from the previous game is back but greatly expanded on. You can go to more areas, visit more shops and interact with more people. You do need to do the parallel missions to progress, same as last time, so there is some basis to fall back on in the game.
Xenoverse 2 has a great selection of music but the voice synchronization is terrible. It really feels like an awkward dubbing from the past, and not up to par with some great English voice acting in modern games from Japan. It isn’t a deal breaker but it is noticeable. I would say that Xenoverse 2 is a good sequel to the original Xenoverse. It is not perfect but it is a good game. I would recommend it greatly,