The Dragon Ball franchise changed a lot when it departed from Goku’s childhood adventures, aging the protagonist up to his adult life, but one of the biggest alterations was a massive lore drop regarding the Saiyan race. This included revelations regarding Goku’s heritage and his family before arriving on Earth.
It was revealed that the once-mysterious Goku was not only born with a mother and father but a brother as well. That brother was a Saiyan warrior named Raditz and, in addition to acting as the audience’s crash course on the newly named race, he was the first major challenge upon reaching the Dragon Ball Z era. Aptly, Raditz is also your first major challenge in Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot.
For the first challenge, he’s quite a toughy, so how exactly do you beat Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot’s first boss? Here’s a guide to mastering the game’s combat mechanics so you can wipe the floor with Raditz.
But first, read more Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot guides from Inverse:
How to beat Raditz in Dragon Ball Z Kakarot: Round 1
When you initially encounter Goku’s estranged brother in Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot, Piccolo will be at your side. It’s easy to overwhelm Raditz here by rushing him with a flurry of attacks, leaving him little breathing room to launch a counterattack. You should definitely take advantage of Piccolo’s support moves, which can be accessed by holding the top right shoulder button on your controller and pressing one of two face buttons.
This will make his health bar deplete in mere moments. Alas, the good fortune of Piccolo can’t last forever. After decimating a few health bars, your green frenemy decides his ultimate move needs time to charge, leaving you alone to defeat Raditz.
This is where things will really heat up.
How to beat Raditz in Dragon Ball Z Kakarot: Round 2
With Piccolo gone, it’s up to you to deliver the final blows to Raditz. Unfortunately, during the brief cutscene intermission, Raditz seemingly mastered a slew of brand new techniques designed to take you out.
An attack called Saturday Crash sees Raditz release a barrage of ki orbs at you. When that happens, I’d recommend you first move away from Raditz. Once you’ve distanced yourself, his attacks will be somewhat easier to evade. Try to dodge a few orbs and then block the remaining onslaught.
Attempt to block too early and Saturday Crash will break your guard, leaving you wide open. After he does this, Raditz will often follow-up with Cyclone Monday, where he does a few vertical or horizontal spinning kicks, which may be dodged by moving your character away from the Saiyan warrior. Once he’s gotten all that out of his system, Raditz will express exhaustion and try to catch his breath, but there are no time outs in battle! Shoot your shot and attack while he’s recuperating!
Raditz’s last new move is called Double Sunday. For this technique, he’ll spin in the air slowly while launching a continuous energy beam from each hand. This can be avoided by continuously moving horizontally with up and down movements s before the technique connects. Fly upwards when Double Sunday is narrow and fly towards the ground when the technique is wide.
Remember to block when Raditz or any opponent stops attacking and gains a red aura. The aura means they’re about to do a stun attack, which will leave you wide open if it connects.
With that, you’re more than ready to face the first Saiyan warrior in Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot! Hopefully, you can Special Beam Cannon him right down to hell!
Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot is currently available for PS4, Xbox One, and PC
