At Atari's recent press event, I had the opportunity to go hands-on with the last Dragon Ball Z game for the PS2: Infinite World. Scheduled for a November release, Infinite World represents a sort of "best of" iteration of the Dragon Ball Z fighting game series and will likely please long-time fans looking for one last outing on Sony's previous console. While my time with Infinite World was limited, it was nice to get a taste of the over-the-top battles to come.

I was told that Infinite World combines a number of different systems and specific game elements from the many Budokai and Shin-Budokai titles that preceded it. Infinite World will definitely feel familiar to fans of the franchise that have played with certain characters and styles extensively, considering the basic formulas for Infinite World are the same.


Lightning punch!


Once again, you'll be able to customize any of the approximately 40 characters to your liking by purchasing attacks and special techniques and assigning them into colored slots on a characters readout. Forty fighters might seem like a fairly large number with all the customizing you can do, but I learned that -- when you consider all the transformations characters can undergo -- the number of fighters reaches into the hundreds. Intense business indeed.

Like previous Dragon Ball Z games, Infinite World will allow you to execute a number of short and long range attacks, with varying levels of ridiculousness. You can obviously blow up the world when you charge up enough energy, but you can also carry out a series of normal combos and basic beam attacks with ease. In terms of defensive techniques, Infinite World has a number of options. Fighters can block normally or dodge attacks by swaying back and forth (hitting the X button at the moment of impact). You can also teleport behind your opponent by hitting the X button at the right time while pushing forward on the D-pad. It takes a bit of practice, but the results can be devastating.

Infinite World can also take to the skies as battles play out during levitation, which is always a good time. During one battle, I was happy to hear that the original Japanese language track was also available for those of you who aren't too fond of the English actors. At the very least, you'll be able to have a more traditional vocal backdrop as you pummel your enemy into the side of a mountain.


Seeing stars.


The representative on hand made it a point to indicate that Infinite World spans a massive chunk of the Dragon Ball Z universe, from the Saiyan Sage to the happenings of Dragon Ball GT. There will be plenty of story to enjoy during the experience, so anime enthusiasts will be able to piece together numerous connections to the show.

Straight-forward, one-on-one battles aren't the only things going on in Infinite World. Dragon Missions, the game's "story mode," lets you select a number of either battle scenes or mini-games that also offer a glimpse into the story. You'll find your fair share of platforming, timing games, shooting galleries, etc. These look like they'll offer a good diversion from the primary fighting affair that will otherwise occupy the rest of your time.

Although I was only able to play a few rounds (and the difficulty in the unfinished build, I was told, was stuck on "kick-your-ass hard"), I wasn't able to get a complete sense of the battle mechanics, but things mostly felt like previous Dragon Ball Z games. There's a fair amount of button-mashing to be found, but timing certainly becomes important when you enter a defensive posture and movement (both on the ground and in the air) is always a challenge. Although the control responsiveness felt a little stiff, I'm sure Infinite World will be refined in the coming months as its release approaches.

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