"Dragon Ball Z: Budokai" was a fighter that I, unlike the general public, wasn't all that fond of. However, after playing it on the HD Collection, I realized that I hadn't played "Dragon Ball Z: Budokai 3" on the compilation, and I'd heard a number of solid things about it. So, I figured that I should give it a shot. I was initially skeptical of this one, but I actually walked away pleasantly surprised at how solid the game was.
"Dragon Ball Z: Budokai 3," off the bat, improved on one of my biggest issues with the first game: the controls. Where the original "Budokai" suffered greatly from very bulky controls, this game feels a lot better. It was a little awkward at first for me, but after a few matches, it was smooth sailing, and the game was a lot of fun. The cel-shaded visuals are quite nice (and the HD facelift from the collection definitely helps), the game is fast-paced, and it definitely feels faithful to "Dragon Ball Z" in regards to the voice acting and the sounds. It was very clear right from the jump that this game was made with a lot of heart and effort, especially in comparison to the first game, and with plenty of storylines to go through and characters to play with, there's tons of replayability with this one.
I do want to point out a few problems I had with the game: for starters, while the battle system and controls are far better than before, the game does start to feel extremely repetitive after a while. And while the story "cutscenes" feel faithful to the source material, I do wish there were a few CGI-recreated scenes, like there were in the first game. Sure, they were awkward then, but at least it was a sign that they were trying. With how solid this game's visuals were, I would've liked to see them try again this time around.
Even so, "Dragon Ball Z: Budokai 3" definitely improves on what the original "Budokai" did, and it earns a wholehearted recommendation to huge "Dragon Ball Z" fans. That said, I do also think there's plenty here to please gamers that aren't really all that into "Dragon Ball Z." I don't really care much for the series, but I definitely had fun with this game, and I think you guys will, too.
Final rating: 7 out of 10 "Good"