Platforms: Xbox One, PS4 (Reviewed), PC
Publisher: Bandai Namco
Developer: Dimps
Disclosure: Review copy provided by the publisher
Introduction
In February of 2015, we were introduced to a wholly fresh take on the Dragon Ball universe. No longer were we just recreating popular story arcs from the hit anime series. This time, thanks to time traveling baddies, we had to ensure that moments from history weren't disrupted, so that events could unfold as they always have. Sure, you're still essentially playing through familiar scenarios, but remixed in a way where events would unfold just a bit differently, thus, altering the timeline. Thanks to Trunks and his team of Time Patrollers, history was restored.
And while I did enjoy my time with Xenoverse, I couldn't deny that over time, things began to grate on the nerves. Toki Toki city was never fun to explore, and the RNG elements of acquiring skills was absolutely infuriating. Thankfully, developer Dimps took a whole lot of fan feedback, and developed Xenoverse 2 with that in mind, and it certainly shows.
What's fantastic is that Xenoverse 2 takes into account your accomplishments from the first game, awarding you money and medals, making it easier to purchase skills from the get go. You also get some skills transferred over from your main character, as well as a hologram statue erected of them in Conton City.
A vastly improved hub
Speaking of Conton City, not only is it much bigger than Toki Toki City was from the first game, it's a lot more fun and interesting to explore and walk (or fly) around. Each location within the city has its purpose, whether it's the Parallel Quest counter, or the Academy where you can learn basics and even advanced techniques from the Elder Kai, or a World Tournament building giving you access to set up your own tournaments.
There is also a ton to do in Conton City, making its size that much more meaningful. You will meet other players, or simply their Avatars if you're in Single Player mode, recruit them for battle or spar with them. You'll also be tasked with completing silly side missions like milk deliveries for Krillin, which is a fun nod to the original Dragon Ball. There are also items scattered around the city which are all helpful for various situations.
Miniature time rifts add even more variety
High above Conton City are floating islands that contain mini-rifts that are associated with famous locations. You can go to Frieza's Spaceship, Buu's House, Hercule's House, Guru's House on Namek and the Capsule Corp building. Each one of these rifts has different activities to partake in. Buu will ask you to bring him food which will help spawn additional Buus in his house, since he's lonely and wants to have a family. Frieza's Starship will have you enlist and take on various missions for the menacing villain. Hercule will task you to be his bodyguard, while also becoming the next Great Saiyaman with Gohan and Videl. Nail will task you with protecting the Namekian Dragon Balls, whenever they're in danger and Capsule Corp will have you teaming up with Vegeta, while also utilizing the new wardrobe fusion system to develop new items called QQ Bangs, which I'll explain in a bit.
Each of these locations and their respective activities will constantly give you something to do outside of the main story and the plethora of side quests, and each one of them is certainly worthwhile. What's also cool is that the five locations are also themed after the five different races you can play as, meaning you get bonus rewards for completing tasks as a Namekian for Nail for example.
Improved combat and mechanics
While the core ideas of combat remain the same, there are some new additions and improvements to the mechanics that make it much more satisfying this time around.
The inclusion of the Burst Dash move, for one, is something I have really wanted back since the Raging Blast series. It's a move that let's you immediately close a gap between you and a locked on opponent, by either dashing right in front of them, or pressing a button during it dash behind them. It's a perfect counter for runners.
The combat itself seems familiar in that you'll still be pulling off combos using your light and heavy attacks, combined with some well placed Ki Shots as well, rounding it off with some flashy Super Attacks and devastating Ultimates. However, small but important things like hit detection were vastly improved.
Even the basic combos of light and heavy attacks have a flashier animation now, and can easily be chained together, provided you have the stamina for a Z-Vanish.
There's also the fantastic Stamina Break system, which is a move that completely eliminates your opponent's stamina. It takes a few seconds to pull off, since it's a charged move, but it's a perfect counter for opponents that have a full Stamina meter, and you want to disable their ability to Z-Vanish or Burst Dash.
Of course then you also have the extremely handy Snap Vanish/Step Vanish which doesn't use up your stamina bar, and lets you perform short burst teleports to either get out of harms way, or to disorient your opponent.
It's fashion-verse up in here
The previously mentioned QQ Bangs are the answer to clothing restrictions from the first game. There, you would equip stuff based on the stats that it would contribute to your character. That meant often you'd wear something you didn't necessarily want to, just because it has great stats. QQ Bangs fix this, somewhat. You can mix two pieces of clothing together as well as an extra mixing item to produce an equipable QQ Bang. These items have affixed stats to them, overwriting any stats coming from costumes and outfits, meaning you can then wear whatever you want.
The only downside, at least as of right now, there is no clear indicator of what stats the QQ Bang will produce. You're pretty much blindly putting two pieces of clothing together, and hoping for a good outcome. Granted, the rarity and base stats of the clothes will factor in for sure, but you still can't full predict what you're getting. Whether this process is random, or there are actual recipes and calculations to figure the outcomes out, I can't say for sure.
Sound and graphics
Like its predecessor, you can play Xenoverse 2 in its original Japanese VO or the American dub, both which are fantastic choices. Dragon Ball Z in general has always been a favorite dub of mine, and it's usually my preferred method of watching this particular anime series, but those who prefer the original cast can get excited as well.
On the graphics side, the game retains the look of the first game, though the character models do seem to look a bit more detailed this time around. This is made even more impressive, since the game now runs at 60fps on consoles, and not just PC. The bump in fps is certainly appreciated and makes for a far better experience.
In conclusion
Having played a whole bunch of Xenoverse, even through the frustrations of its horrible RNG systems, I can safely say that Xenoverse 2 is an improvement on all fronts.
Sure, some of it will still feel familiar, as the story is somewhat of a retread (shocker) but the changes to the combat and mechanics make it feel like the true version of what Xenoverse should have been all along.
