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Let me tell you about one of, if not the, most underrated Dragon Ball game. No, I’m not talking about Buu’s Fury or Super Dragon Ball Z (though both of those are bangers in their own right, Buu’s Fury especially). No, I’m talking about Dragon Ball: Advanced Adventure. 

Released in 2004 for the Game Boy Advance, this is a 2D, side-scrolling beat-em-up that follows the story of the original manga series from when Goku was a kid, all the way to the end of the King Piccolo arc. Now, I picked this game up on a whim just because I was itching for some OG Dragon Ball. What I wasn’t expecting, however, was a game that felt amazing to play. The platforming and all of Goku’s movements are tight, the combat is tactile, fast, and punchy, with some decent depth, and the level and enemy designs are varied and fun. 

Sure, the game whizzes past the story, truncating a lot of the important details and plot beats, which, combined with the handful of levels, makes for a pretty short three-hour experience. And even so, I found the gameplay to get a little on the repetitive side by the end of that short run-time. But still, I had a ton of fun with this game as a whole, and if you’re a Dragon Ball fan, you owe it to yourself to try this game out. 

Man, Legacy of Goku I & II, Buu’s Fury, and Advanced Adventure; the GBA might be the GOAT for Dragon Ball games.