Goku, also known as Kakarot, does not have an easy life in the Dragon Ball Z anime series as he faces off against world-threatening individuals and saves the Earth several times over. You can experience these incredible adventures in Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot, where you play as the mighty hero and several others. The characters in the game gain experience points for battling enemies and completing quests, among other activities. There’s more to do than taking part in the combat.

In Kakarot, the best way to level up in the game is through combat and completing quests. You gain experience points and use these points to make your characters stronger. Leveling up increases your character’s base stats and makes them stronger.

However, there are so many ways to increase your character’s talents beyond straightforward combat.

Fans of the series know how much Goku loves to eat food. He wolves down any meal he can place in front of him. Kakarot has an important food mechanic where particular meals provide valuable bonuses to your character’s stats and give them buffs. Particular meal options also provide a permanent boost to your character’s stats, making them stronger and prepared for harder fights in the future.

You can find chefs in a town, or return to Goku’s home to ask his wife, Chichi, to make him a meal. There are several options available, and they provide different bonuses based on what you have available.

Unfortunately, you can’t ask for something to be made for him. You need ingredients to make these dishes. The rarer, more potent ingredients you pick up during your travels, the more bonuses and stat increases the meal provides your character. You can also discover new recipes through side quests you find in the world.

Your character can learn new super moves by going through a handful of steps. The first step is locating special colored “Z” orbs hidden throughout the world. There are Red, Blue, and Green orbs, and supers require different colored orbs to level up and unlock. When you have enough orbs for the ability, you can choose to upgrade it in your skill tree, or you can choose to learn another from your list.

However, you need a training partner if you want to learn a new Super Attack, or you want to unlock skills with a green icon in their upper right. You need to go to a training ground scattered throughout the game. But you need to find D Medals, which are items hidden throughout Kakarot. If you know you’re near a D Medal, you can use the Search for Ki ability to nail down its exact location.

You can start the special training when you have the appropriate amount of Z orbs, a D Medal, and you’ve arrived at a training grounds. To complete the training, you need to face off against a specific enemy, and this can be other allies, former foes you’ve already taken down, or a shadow of yourself. You’ll receive the ability after you successfully finish the training.

The final bit of progression in Kakarot is called the Community Board. It’s full of different communities that provide you passive buffs based on how many Soul Emblems you put into it. You receive Soul Emblems by completing side quests and tasks for characters throughout the game during your journey. These Soul Emblems go to specific boards, and you connect them on the board to increase the community’s rank. The more emblems you connect, the more passive skills you unlock to benefit your character during the game.

You can place specific ones next to each other to give them a link bonus. For example, placing Adult Gohan and Goku together on the board increases the community’s rank even more than it normally would. You also unlock exclusive dialogue between characters when you do it, too.

There are seven different boards, each with a unique series of passive skills available for your characters. You’ll want to find the board that best fits your playstyle to receive the most benefits to how you play the game.