Is Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot an online multiplayer game?

No. It is almost entirely a single-player, offline action RPG. You do not need an active online multiplayer subscription or voice chat to play through Goku's story.

How violent is the combat in Kakarot?

The violence is stylized, bloodless anime martial arts. Characters throw energy blasts, punch each other through rocks, and knock each other across big battle arenas, but it lacks realistic gore or graphic injuries.

What kind of inappropriate humor is in the game?

The game retains classic anime tropes, including Master Roshi acting like a perverted old man, references to adult magazines, and occasional crude jokes about women.

Are there in-game purchases or loot boxes?

No. While there are downloadable story expansion packs (DLC) available for purchase in digital storefronts, the base game contains no loot boxes, gacha mechanics, or microtransactions.

Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot – WISE Score & Parent Review | Screenwise

Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot

Name: Screenwise
Author: Screenwise

game2020Role-playing (RPG), Hack and slash/Beat 'em up

68%

WISE Score

72%

IGDB

Fly across Earth as Goku, power up Kamehamehas, and relive the DBZ anime saga from Raditz to Buu without getting sucked into online multiplayer.

Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot

game

2020, Role-playing (RPG), Hack and slash/Beat 'em up

68%

WISE Score

72%

IGDB

Fly across Earth as Goku, power up Kamehamehas, and relive the DBZ anime saga from Raditz to Buu without getting sucked into online multiplayer.

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Screenwise Verdict

Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot is an affectionate, single-player love letter to anyone who loves watching Goku power up for three straight episodes before punching a world-destroying alien into a mountain. It trades modern microtransactions and toxic multiplayer for a traditional action-RPG structure where you fly, fish, eat monster meals, and level up.

Content-wise, it hits standard anime Teen beats: high-octane martial arts, ki beam struggles, a splash of mild profanity (bastard, ass), and old-school anime pervert humor (mostly involving Master Roshi and swimsuit magazines).

Because it's completely offline, you won't have to worry about predatory battle passes or random strangers screaming over voice chat. If your middle-schooler is into anime, this is a clean, contained way to let them live out the fantasy.

Age Fit

Best for middle schoolers and teens around 12 and up. The action is bright and bloodless, but the dialogue features mild swearing and traditional anime crude humor that younger kids might copy without understanding.

WISE Breakdown

Wholesome

Themes of intense friendship, sacrifice, and protecting Earth are front and center, but balanced out by retro anime perv jokes (Master Roshi) and constant martial arts violence.

Imaginative

Offers a vast 3D sandbox to fly around, shoot ki blasts, and explore iconic locations from the anime saga.

Safe

It is an entirely single-player RPG. No live-service predatory loot boxes, no online voice chat, and no dark pattern engagement traps.

Enriching

Solid narrative follow-through and basic RPG stats management, but mostly functions as pure fan service and popcorn entertainment.

Parent Info

✓

Why It Might Be Great

Single-player campaign: Complete offline action-RPG experience with zero live-service demands, daily login traps, or battle pass pressure.
Faithful anime adaptation: Recreates the entire story arc from the Saiyan Saga through the Majin Buu saga with full cinematic flair.
Big world exploration: Kids can fly across giant maps, cook meals, gather Z-Orbs, and go fishing with Goku's removable tail.

⚠

What to Watch For

90s anime innuendo: Characters like Master Roshi frequently comment on women and joke about adult magazines.
Mild profanity: Dialogue includes casual slurs like bastard and ass during heated combat exchanges.
Repetitive combat beatdowns: While bloodless, the gameplay revolves entirely around martial arts beating and energy blasts.

Conversation Starters

"Why do you think Goku usually tries to spare his enemies, even when they've done terrible things?"
"If you could fly anywhere on the map right now instead of fast-traveling, where would you go?"
"Master Roshi's crude humor comes straight from 1980s Japanese manga—does that kind of joke land today, or is it just cringey?"

Deep Dive

A Refreshing Break From Battle Passes

In a gaming environment dominated by live-service titles begging for allowance money, Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot feels like a throw-back in the best way. It's a structured, single-player campaign with a clear beginning, middle, and end. You buy the game, you play through Goku's life, and when you put the controller down, you're done. No FOMO timers, no daily login streak obligations, and no toxic lobby chat.

Understanding the Anime Tropes

The main point of friction for parents isn't the violence—which is over-the-top, bright, and functionally bloodless—but rather the humor style inherited from 1980s manga writer Akira Toriyama. Characters like Master Roshi exist as classic 'dirty old man' archetypes who make inappropriate comments and hide adult magazines. It's cartoonish and played for laughs, but if you have a 10-year-old who repeats everything they hear, expect them to pick up a few off-color lines or words like bastard.

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