Dragon Ball Sparking! Zero Review – A Dragon Baller’s Wet Dream

Dragon Ball is one of the few properties that boasts such a defining league of recognition that few other IPs can even conceive of matching. As a result, it has naturally received countless supplemental media and merchandise, with its video game lineup having a few particular heavy hitters. The most collectively beloved is Dragon Ball Z: Budokai Tenkaichi 3, a genuine cultural phenomenon that has enraptured fans for generations for countless reasons.

Cut to the announcement and imminent arrival of Dragon Ball Sparking! Zero, a true sequel to the Budokai Tenkaichi series, and it makes sense that fans worldwide are losing their collective minds in anticipation.

Dragon Ball Sparking! Zero: A Highly Anticipated Budokai Tenkaichi Sequel

Even I have been caught up in the hype cycle despite only having a passing familiarity with Budokai Tenkaichi 3 from my younger years. And after experiencing this ambitious entry, I’m constantly itching to play more, even if the single-player content isn’t as well-handled as it could have been.

The best way to describe Dragon Ball Sparking! Zero is that it’s a Dragon Ball fan’s ultimate fighting simulator, mainly due to the still insane to consider number of 181 playable characters, not counting post-launch DLC. The gameplay itself is a 3D brawler that has plenty going on with its fair share of captivating spectacle, and each character is immensely distinctive in overall feel.

A 3D Fighting Experience with 181 Playable Character

Without delving into the intricacies of the combat system needlessly, the essential factors to consider are your Ki, which is your energy gauge, and your skill count. The former grants ability activations, while the skill count is necessary to trigger more supplemental techniques from the d-pad and reach one’s sparking state. This latter is basically a character’s limit-breaking potential, as it leads to a truly devastating special attack if charged fully. Still, it must be aimed or timed properly since opponents can evade.

With 181 characters, every encounter feels fresh, offering endless possibilities for strategic depth.

Generally speaking, while your approach for the specific character types will differ, your strategies will practically always revolve around your Ki and skill count, making the in-between considerations and reactions to combos, counters, and guarding indescribably paramount to master.

How to Master Combat: Ki, Skills, and Sparking States

Sparking! Zero is a game that is more understood by feel rather than description, so it helps that the controls are pretty intuitive, with two-button layouts meant for veteran fans or newcomers.

The gameplay and character variety carry this experience, bolstered by the fact that the battles genuinely feel faithful to the source material. If you’re not dashing or combo-ing someone ceaselessly, you’re either standing still and charging your Ki or evading incoming attacks with frequent vanishing fakeouts. Every encounter is a rush, no matter how many bouts you participate in back to back; undeniably the most crucial accomplishment in this release.

A Faithful Dragon Ball Experience in Every Battle

The roster’s sheer scale helps matters, too, with characters from Super and even the movies joining the fray. Admittedly, it’s a tad upsetting and jarring not to see many characters from the original Dragon Ball, but it’s difficult to really complain when we’re spoiled for choice as it is. At the bare minimum, the vast majority of the fanbase will be absolutely delighted and satisfied with this roster. Plus, the DLC is confirmed to feature inclusions from Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero and Dragon Ball DAIMA, so we may see the 181-fighter list grow to a staggering 200. Further, while some players may consider the numerous variations of characters taking multiple slots as underwhelming, there’s extraordinary detail with their individualized animations and toolkits demonstrating the love the team has for this IP.

Despite some missteps in single-player storytelling, the combat and character roster carry this game to greatness.

Dragon Ball Sparking! Zero also accomplishes being welcoming to those who have not played the Budokai Tenkaichi titles thanks to well-implemented tutorials. These guides walk you through several actions and techniques that are the common denominators for all combatants, and it’s all rather brief, meaning you aren’t spending too much time learning the basics before you get into the other modes. As tempting as it is to jump straight into the story mode or other content right away, I do recommend completing the tutorials regardless of your skill level, just so you’re aware of your fundamental toolkit to its fullest.

Regarding its single-player offerings, Sparking! Zero thrives with a few stumbles. Firstly, the story mode of sorts is divided into eight characters whom you play from the perspective of specific points in the Dragon Ball story.

Story Mode: Reliving the Best Dragon Ball Moments with What-If Scenarios

It’s a compelling idea, chiefly thanks to the occasional decisions you can make that deviate from the established canon, with some what-if scenarios even being unexpectedly extensive. The deviations with Future Trunks and Gohan were amongst my favorites.

However, not every character scenario is created equally. Goku’s story delves into the arcs starting from the Saiyan saga to the end of the Tournament of Power, while Jiren’s only focuses on the latter. These character scenarios could have been excellent opportunities for expanding on select members with original content not seen in the canon firsthand. Consequently, the retreading can feel like hollow rehashing.

Of course, no one is getting Sparking! Zero to experience the Dragon Ball Z and Dragon Ball Super storylines, but the way it’s handled here is somewhat mixed. To elaborate, a handful of major scenes from the anime are remade and fully voiced, but most of the experience is told through voiceless dialogue and still images that rapidly progress through developments. I don’t see this format working for fans or newcomers, so I do not know why these voiceless and rapidly paced recaps exist. At the very least, the what-if scenarios and divergences are more than engaging enough to make this mode worthwhile.

Another central single-player offering is the bonus battles, which are custom scenarios that are quite brief with lite character exchanges that also function as what-ifs themselves.

Bonus Battles, Custom Creations, and Tournaments Add Replay Value

Moreover, these incorporations are examples of what players can create in the custom mode, comprised of highly in-depth customization for just about any battle context you can conjure. This creation system isn’t really up my wheelhouse, but I’m looking forward to seeing what fans can bring to the table since you can download other players’ creations.

Sparking! Zero also contains offline and online tournaments, offering another way for players to battle each other, especially in a group format. The shop deserves mention, too, as it contains purchasable characters, music, outfits, and more. Interestingly, there are capsules you can buy that act as equipment of sorts, and they can be attached to characters, which could be helpful for story episodes and bonus battles.

Dragon Ball Sparking! Zero accomplishes being welcoming to those who have not played the Budokai Tenkaichi titles.

Summatively, every activity in Sparking! Zero accomplishes in-game missions. These tasks feed into each other, ultimately culminating in the redeemable rewards from Zeno and Whis, which make the gameplay loop constantly fulfilling. The most significant rewards are dragon balls, and there are three types: letting players summon Shenron, Porunga, or Super Shenron, who can fulfill various wishes, such as granting a considerable amount of money or receiving select unlockables at no extra cost.

One of my favorite modes, though, is the Gallery. Here, you can view character profiles, and Videl, Bulma, and Chi-Chi can briefly discuss each entry. The sheer number of voiced lines here is incredible, making an otherwise obligatory menu full of appreciated personality. Plus, while not intricate, hearing their thoughts on characters they’ve never met is pretty entertaining.

Lastly, it’s worth emphasizing the stunning presentation of Dragon Ball Sparking! Zero. The character models and environments are abundantly faithful and gorgeous, both stationary in movement, and the framerate’s relative stability amidst it all makes the entire experience feel like you are playing the anime.

A Stunning Visual and Audio Presentation

However, I did encounter a few bugs, notably that once in a while, a character may get stuck dashing into a wall at the end of an arena; this also happened to me twice. The affected characters are invulnerable for the duration of this glitch, and it fixes itself after a bit. Still, it stands out, so hopefully, this issue will be resolved sooner rather than later.

At its core, Dragon Ball Sparking! Zero is an absolutely addictive delight, firing on all cylinders, and is the dream Dragon Ball game for fans worldwide. While the story mode contains poorly implemented retreading, the high number of what-if scenarios more than makes up for this shortcoming.

Further, the several other modes, such as the bonus battles, custom creations, and tournaments, alongside the endless cycle of rewards, make this an entry diehards will occupy themselves with for quite some time, doubly so when considering the online play. As long as you’re a Dragon Ball fan in capacity, regardless of your history, you will definitely find enjoyment in this ambitious outing.