Dragon Ball Sparking Zero preview: Step into the Grand Tour

I recently had a chance to go hands-on with Dragon Ball Sparking Zero and play as roughly 180 amazing characters in a wide assortment of modes. We had access to nearly the entire game, with a few things being left as surprises for later. From Episode Battle to simply battling through intense tournaments, there was so much on offer here. As a life-long Dragon Ball fan, and someone who played the original Budokai/Budokai Tenkaichi games, I was so excited to sit down with this title.

Whether you’re a fan of Dragon Ball, Dragon Ball Z, Dragon Ball GT, or the more recent Dragon Ball Super, Dragon Ball Sparking Zero is stacked with characters that you can pick up and play easily. With fun story modes, intense battles, and lots of love for the anime and manga, here’s what we saw.

---

Dragon Ball Sparking Zero brings back the classic Budokai series in a fresh, new way

Strength is all that matters (Image via Bandai Namco)

Dragon Ball Sparking Zero is definitely a must-play for fans of the classic Akira Toriyama manga and anime series. With roughly 180 characters from the series’ entire catalog, there are plenty of modes, options, and ways to play the game. If you want to play competitively, you can battle other players online.

Conversely, you can decide to tackle the pre-built tournament battle grounds, or even make your own. There’s also the Episode Battles, where you play as a series of classic Dragon Ball characters, to play through their familiar stories. You can, however, make some different choices that change things slightly.

During my preview, I had access to Goku, Frieza, and Goku Black’s stories, for a limited time. I wish I would have had more time to play through these, but all it did was leave me hungry for more.

This was such a cool scene to recreate (Image via Bandai Namco)

They were suitably challenging, and allowed for some level of freedom - Frieza could transform through most of his forms at the start of his battle with the Z-Fighters, for example. Some people might feel like the character list is a little misleading, and I can understand why - there are like eight or nine something flavors of characters like Goku and Vegeta.

That said, I like this choice. Each story arc version of Goku had access to different powers, and could only transform so far. I appreciate being able to play these various forms of Goku, Frieza, Vegeta, Trunks, and so many other characters.

---

Combat is fast and fun in Dragon Ball Sparking Zero

The universe(s) are your battleground in Dragon Ball Sparking Zero (Image via Bandai Namco)

Yes, some of the characters are stronger than others. Come on, this is Dragon Ball! If you expect Krillin to be as strong as SSJ4 Gogeta, you’re gonna have a bad time. That said, those “weaker” characters can still win! You just have to fight harder and be clever. On the topic of combat though, I had a lot of fun with it.

It will feel familiar to previous games, for sure. You have a normal attack, a heavy attack, and the ki blast. Then you can charge up your power, transform, and use a variety of special attacks. You also have passive buffs, that can also trigger other useful benefits. To use these buffs, you need to build your Skill Count (indicated under your health bar), by using attacks and skills in battle.

Hirudegarn, just casually smashing through the World Martial Arts tournament - as one does (Image via Bandai Namco)

Combat is definitely fast and enjoyable, with tons of ways to evade, teleport, and make comeback attacks. You can even throw down finishing attacks that can affect the world around you. My favorite thing in battle is using a major attack in the World Martial Arts tournament battleground. The announcer/fans flee, and you can start smashing through the arena, into the parking lot, and beyond.

---

The Dragon Ball Sparking Zero roster is absolutely stacked with fan-favorite characters

You can even play as the Savior of the Universe, Hercule Satan! (Image via Bandai Namco)

During our Dragon Ball Sparking Zero preview, we were able to play as more than just a couple of characters. Nearly the entire roster was playable. That means we could play as the movie bosses, GT cast, and so many others. Are you a fan of playing as giant bad guys like Lord Slug, Oozaru Baby, or even Hirudegarn? That’s allowed!

Heck, you can even play as Fat Janemba! There are so many little, amazing touches here that I love. From the weak to literal gods, you can play as almost everyone. Frieza Soldier? Check. Yajirobe? Check. Whis? You got it! However, there are some characters that I think are definitely missing.

I was disappointed that more of the Super female characters weren't added to the mix. That said, I still think the cast of playable characters is incredible. There is room for growth, and I think that’s going to happen. If there’s any character I am genuinely disappointed isn’t the game, it’s one of my favorite villains - Tao Pai Pai.

---

Tournament Modes are incredibly fun in Dragon Ball Sparking Zero

The tournament modes were my favorite part of Dragon Ball Sparking Zero, frankly (Image via Bandai Namco)

While we had access to nearly the full game, the place I spent the most time in Dragon Ball Sparking Zero was the tournament modes. The Cell Games, the Budokai Tenkaichi, and even the Tournament of Power battlegrounds are playable, each with its own rules. That’s the part I really liked. Even if I did occasionally accidentally ring myself out, I was still having so much fun.

Plus, there’s an extra-special tournament in Dragon Ball Sparking Zero, other than simply creating your own - the Yamcha Games. Anyone who knows me, knows I adore a good randomizer. The Yamcha Games is a tournament that takes place in the traditional World Martial Arts tournament battlegrounds, with a catch: All contestants are assigned a random character. The final fight will almost certainly still be Yamcha. I didn’t see him lose at all, until he got to me, that is.

---

Custom Battle allows players to create their own fantasy scenarios

The Custom Battles allow you to make your own dream scenarios (Image via Bandai Namco)

Another new feature that I adored about Dragon Ball Sparking Zero is Custom Battles! There are a series of these that are already built into the game that you can unlock. Each one is based around a specific scenario, or alternate take on a part of the franchise. For example, you can take DB Super Trunks to a training session with Piccolo, before heading back to the future to battle Goku Black.

You can also put together your own scenarios, using hundreds of word choices. I didn’t make any of these myself, but I did spend a little time exploring the possibilities. I can see these being very popular online, in the same way that Mario Maker stages are - it’s a similar concept.

---

The game is beautiful and sounds amazing, but is missing something

Dragon Ball Sparking Zero is stunning (Image via Bandai Namco)

If there’s anything I cannot praise enough, it’s the visual display in Dragon Ball Sparking Zero. Seriously, this game looks and sounds perfect. The characters look picture-perfect, and there were some updates in little places that I loved. For example, Frieza’s transformations are sped up, and honestly, are grotesque to watch - and I loved it. It made the Galactic Emperor’s forms feel and look as unsettling as they were supposed to originally.

The music is solid, too, but here’s where the lack starts to show itself. There aren’t very many familiar songs here. Now, there are plenty of the familiar BGMs, but I’m talking about the insert tracks, Openings, and Endings.

Now, I did speak with the producer after the event, and I did hear a DLC is coming with some of these songs. Given the glut of content the game comes with, I don’t feel bad about this. However, there were songs that I definitely felt belonged, and hopefully, that will change here in the future. That aside, the presentation of this game is nearly flawless.

---

Final thoughts - Plenty of hype awaits

This is a true return-to-form to the classic Sparking series (Image via Bandai Namco)

I’m so excited to play Dragon Ball Sparking Zero again! However, I do have to say, that despite my love of this game, it’s missing some things that I was really hoping to see. The lack of What-If stories and overworld exploration are arguably the things I loved the most about the previous games in this franchise. That said, I don’t think the lack makes the game bad or unenjoyable.

I had so much fun playing it, and hope that Bandai Namco expands the already solid offerings in the future. Perhaps more Episode Battles, or additions of the aforementioned modes. The cast is amazing, the gameplay is fast and furious, and it looks terrific. Sure, some (many) characters are vastly stronger than others, but you will have the power to restrict characters by their power category in online battles.

That means unless you really want to, you don’t have to worry about Hercule Satan getting stuck in a battle against Ultra Instinct Goku. If you’re a fan of Dragon Ball, you do not want to miss out on Dragon Ball Sparking Zero.