Anime has become huge in both the US and Japan, so it's no surprise that there are quite a few games based on anime. While almost every quality anime series has a very solid storyline, a good number of them also focus on combat in some way, shape or form. Because of this, game developers generally create a fighting game based around an anime, with the occasional RPG or Action title. However, anime fighting games (and most anime games in general) suffer from the same fate as games based on movies; they suck the big one.

Despite the mass amount of crap that has been shoveled onto US and Japanese retail shelves in the past decade, there are a few gems that stick out as quality titles. A few of these titles haven't made it to the US yet, but if you're an avid anime fan, you probably already know how to get anime-related things from Japan that aren't available in the US. So without further ado, here are the top five anime fighting games.

5. Dragon Ball Z Legends (PSone)

The Super Nintendo Dragon Ball games were some very good titles, but the PSone title, Dragon Ball Z Legends, edged them out by a hair to take the number five spot. DBZ Legends and DBZ Ultimate Battle 22 were the main PSone DBZ fighting games. Ultimate Battle 22 was a standard 2D fighter that was fairly decent, but Legends was a blast to play back in the day. Featuring an inventive flying engine and the ability to have up to three on three battles, the game could get crazy when two people who knew what they were doing got their hands on the title.

Almost every character featured in DBZ was selectable in Legends. Every form of Goku, Vegeta, Gohan, Trunks and everyone else could be selected. Energy blasts could be avoided by flying around them, and frenetic battles could ensue during close combat. These battles would then turn into one character slamming the other into the ground or off into the air, and following up with consecutive slams. These could be countered, adding more depth to the gameplay and keeping players on their toes.

In addition, a meter at the top of the screen showed the balance of power between the two teams, with every attack and combo pushing the meter further onto your opponent's side. Once the meter was full, the character that landed the final blow performed a special attack. After a few special attacks, the opposing character was knocked out of the battle, making the teams uneven and giving the player in the lead a slight advantage. Once one team was completely out of characters, the battle was over.

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