Dragon Ball Z: Burst Limit has been out in Japan for a few days (and somehow Europe got it only a day after!?), and it's being released in NA today. If you don't know the Dragon Ball series, get out from under your rock; it's most likely the most popular manga/anime ever, with only One Piece seemingly coming close to it.
Personally, I'm a big fan of the series (the Japanese version, to be exact) and have for the most part enjoyed the videogames they have created for it. I have, however, always thought that they seemed rather... underdeveloped; that they could achieve so much more. I mean, Dragon Ball became basically the sheer definition of the fighting series genre, so you would think that some terrific fighting games could be made. Despite this, the games have not truly captured the essence of the series.
For one, why are almost all of the games 1-on-1? Sure, 1-on-1 is not something horrible or anything, but it would be nice to be able to have more characters. The only fighting game that isn't 1-on-1 that even comes to mind is Dragon Ball Z: Idainaru Dragon Ball Densetsu, in which you can have up to 3 characters in battle at a time that you can switch between. The game is pretty dated now, but this unique feature is one of the reasons that it's still pretty fun to play and gives it a more unique Dragon Ball-like feel rather than being similar to other fighters.
Graphics are not the most important thing for a game, but I feel that they can contribute a lot to the enjoyment and immersion you feel from it. That said, the graphics in the previous 3D Dragon Ball games have ranged from acceptable to downright awful. I still grimace when I see the horribly awkward-looking CGI openings for the Sparking! series (known by the gibberish name "Budokai Tenkaichi" in the West). Thankfully, Burst Limit looks really good. As in it actually looks like Dragon Ball. I suppose it should be expected from the fact it's on Xbox 360 and PS3, but still, it's pretty awesome to finally have a game that you can look at and be proud of the graphics.
In addition, the game features online play, and the story mode seems like it might be a little more developed this time around. The only slightly disappointing thing is that it only features stuff from the Saiyajin arc to the Cell arc (with Broli randomly thrown in), which has been by far the most used part of the series. It's not really surprising though, and I imagine the sequel (you know there'll be one) will expand to feature the Majin Boo arc. Don't get me wrong, I really like Freeza and Cell, but I wish they would feature the parts prior to this in more games, especially the stuff starting with the Piccolo Daimaou arc.
All in all, Burst Limit looks like it might be the best Dragon Ball game yet. I've not actually played the game yet (due to the fact I can't buy games at full price), but if it plays even as well as the recent fighting games, I'll be a happy customer. And from what I've heard and seen, the game does play pretty nicely. I doubt it's the "perfect" Dragon Ball game, but it at least seems to be a step in the right direction.
Finally, for your viewing pleasure, the opening to Dragon Ball Z: Burst Limit, featuring the original song "Kiseki no Honoo yo, Moeagare!!" by longtime Dragon Ball theme song singer Hironobu Kageyama:
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