GENRE
	Platformer/Fighter
	DEVELOPER
	Media Vision
	PUBLISHER
	Bandai Namco
	NUMBER OF PLAYERS
	1-2
	WI-FI ENHANCED
	No
	DS COMPATIBLE
	No
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Nintendojo was provided a copy of this game for review by a third party, though that does not affect our recommendation. For every review, Nintendojo uses a standard scoring criteria.

Dragon Ball: Revenge of King Piccolo is the third game in the Dragon Ball series to be released on Wii, following Budokai Tenkaichi 2 and 3, but Revenge of King Piccolo is a different type of game, and that is not a good thing. While the two titles that Wii received in the Tenkaichi series were both respectable 3D fighting games, Revenge is more of a platformer/fighter hybrid, incorporating 2D levels with 3D boss fights. This idea could have worked, but the title would need a lot more time and work before it could ever be on par with its Tenkaichi cousins. In short, Revenge of King Piccolo is probably the worst Dragon Ball title to be released this generation.

For those of you that don’t already know, Dragon Ball is the story of a boy named Goku, and his quest to find the Dragon Balls, seven magical balls that, when brought together, will grant any one wish. Revenge takes place throughout the entire Dragon Ball timeline, so it makes no sense as to why developers chose Revenge of King Piccolo as the title, especially when said King is in only one of the game’s nine chapters. In the platforming parts of the game, Goku will run, punch and jump his way to the end, which usually culminates with a boss fight. Unfortunately, the visuals in this journey aren’t so pretty. The character models look worse than those in Budokai 2 on GameCube, and the facial expressions are even worse. Most of the time when characters talk, their mouths don’t even move. This is inexcusable; perhaps if this game had been on the 360 or PS3, everything would’ve been up to par. Yet Revenge seems more like another example of developers not caring about their Wii games. Luckily, the backgrounds of the 2D levels look decent, as opposed to the cut scenes' graphics. The opening video of the game is also fantastic, and is probably the best part of the game.

As with the visuals, Revenge's audio isn’t good, either. Developer Media Vision did get the original cast from the show for voice acting, which is a plus. Also, most of the background music is original, though one of the boss fights reuses music from Tenkaichi 3. Again, this just suggests cutting corners on the developer’s behalf. Instead of creating all original music for the game, some is reused from a previous Dragon Ball game. Also, as Goku runs through levels, you will hear the same sound effects and "I'll blow you away!" quips again and again, which quickly gets old, and the boss fights suffer from the same problem.

The gameplay of Revenge is just as bad as the music and graphics. When controlling Goku, gamers can run in one speed, jump, punch, use a special action or a kamehameha wave. There are a small number of combos that can be utilized by Goku, but nowhere near the number the Tenkaichi games feature. A special action may range from exploiting a weak spot of an enemy to jumping onto a flying object to help advance Goku through the level. The kamehameha wave can be used once you earn enough ki, which you get as you progress through the level. Many times players will be forced to jump across pits or over objects, which shouldn’t be a problem, but the clunky controls make doing even simple things a chore. When the game shifts to 3D boss fights, the controls stay the same, but Goku now has a larger amount of room to move in. Sometimes boss fights can be ridiculously easy, or incredibly hard. For instance, the battle with Mercenary Tao took an uncountable number of attempts to win. Unfortunately, due to this inconsistent difficulty, the game's much less fun and players' desire to finish the challenges evaporates. The one bright spot in gameplay is that Revenge can be played with all of Wii’s controllers. The only motion control implemented is an uninspired and occasional waggle, so players are better off using GameCube controllers.

The game does include multiplayer, and unlike New Super Mario Bros. Wii, it is not during the platforming parts of levels. Instead, Revenge allows two players to compete in the World Martial Arts tournament, which takes place in a 3D battle arena. Players can choose which character to play as, and they fight until someone is out of health. Unlike the Tenkaichi World Tournament, there are no ringouts, which is missed here.

All in all, this is probably the worst Dragon Ball game available, and there is no reason as to why this game wasn’t given the attention it deserved. With both games in the Tenkaichi series selling very well on Wii, why should Wii owners get a poor game like Revenge, while 360 and PS3 owners get Burst Limit? It's too late for this game's quality to be improved, but perhaps the next title will be a step up.

5.0/10