Dragon Ball: Shenron no Nazo

Dragon Ball: Shenron no Nazo is a 1986 action game for the Family Computer that blends two distinct gameplay perspectives within a single title. The primary exploration segments present overhead 2D arenas where Goku moves through enemy-filled environments, collecting Dragon Balls and fighting off antagonists from above. These overhead stages then transition into side-scrolling sequences for the climactic boss encounters, giving each chapter a structural rhythm of exploration followed by a direct confrontation. The game progresses through fourteen chapters, each named after a specific story event and set across a variety of locations drawn from both the manga and original content unique to the game.

The combat mechanics are straightforward for the hardware of the era, relying on movement and attack inputs to defeat enemies before moving to the next area. Boss fights against named characters such as Yamcha, Oolong, Ox-King, Monster Carrot, and ultimately Emperor Pilaf test the player's ability to navigate the side-scrolling format under pressure. The game then departs from canonical story content to introduce a Kung-Fu Tournament arc spanning four chapters, followed by an entirely original storyline in which Goku searches for his Grandpa Gohan's keepsake Four-Star Dragon Ball, taking him to the moon, to a jungle ruled by a character named Bimbo, and finally to a tower controlled by the MB Army.

The North American localization, released as Dragon Power in March 1988, substantially altered the game's presentation by changing character appearances, renaming several characters, and replacing Dragon Ball references with unrelated terminology. Goku was redesigned in American martial arts imagery, Master Roshi's characterization was altered for content reasons, and the Dragon Balls were relabeled Crystal Balls, effectively severing the American release from its source material.

Shenron no Nazo opens by following the first two volumes of the Dragon Ball manga, tracing Goku's adventures as he collects the Dragon Balls, encounters Bulma, Yamcha, Oolong, and Ox-King, and eventually confronts Emperor Pilaf in his castle to make the first wish from Shenron. After this canonical portion concludes, the game introduces original content: Goku enters a four-round Kung-Fu Tournament against opponents including Krillin, a Metal Soldier, Yamcha in a rematch, and a creature called Buyon in the final. A third story arc then sends Goku on a quest to recover the Four-Star Dragon Ball, which takes him to the moon to fight Monster Carrot again, through an island chain guarded by giant crabs named Bubbler, into a jungle ruled by the antagonist Bimbo, and finally into a tower controlled by the MB Army. After defeating the MB Army General and a robot guardian, Goku recovers the Dragon Ball and the game ends on a cliffhanger with Emperor Pilaf promising future schemes.

Three regional versions of the game exist with meaningful differences. The Japanese and European editions both use the authentic Dragon Ball art style and music from the anime. The European version, released exclusively in France in 1990 as Le Secret du Dragon, holds the distinction of being the first Famicom or NES game translated into French, though the translation contains notable misspellings and errors. The North American Dragon Power version diverges most significantly, featuring a redesigned protagonist and altered character portrayals intended to appeal to Western audiences unfamiliar with the Dragon Ball franchise at the time.

Shenron no Nazo holds a distinguished place in Dragon Ball gaming history as the second video game based on the franchise and the first produced and distributed by Bandai, establishing a publishing relationship that would endure for decades. Its predecessor, Dragon Ball: Dragon Daihikyou, was the franchise's debut game, making Shenron no Nazo the title that defined many of the early conventions for Dragon Ball interactive entertainment on the Famicom platform. Developed by TOSE Software Company, the game arrived in November 1986 and reached France in 1990, demonstrating the early international appetite for Dragon Ball merchandise beyond Japan.

The game's legacy extends beyond its original release through multiple preservation efforts. Shenron no Nazo was included as a playable bonus in the Japanese edition of Dragon Ball: Origins 2 for the Nintendo DS, introducing the game to a new generation of players in an accessible format. It was also included in the J Legend Retsuden compilation for the Nintendo 3DS, positioning it alongside other classic titles from the same publishing era. These inclusions confirm the game's recognized status as a historically significant artifact within the broader Dragon Ball library.