To say I am hyped for the upcoming Dragon Ball: Sparking! Zero game would be an absolute understatement. The Budokai Tenkaichi series has always been one of my favorite game franchises, and I was ecstatic to dive into the gameplay and learn about the new features unveiled during the presentation. Let’s break down everything we learned!
Episode Mode – Experience the Dragon Ball Universe
The core of Dragon Ball Z and Dragon Ball Super is presented in a format called episode mode. In this mode, you can experience the entire storyline through the perspective of a character of your choice. There are eight different characters to explore, including the confirmed favorites Goku and Vegeta. Many fans speculate that Gohan will also be a strong contender for one of the episode modes.
Throughout episode mode, players will encounter options to branch into different story paths. A significant change in this format is the ability to deviate from the official canon of the manga and anime. For example, after battling Raditz with Goku, you can choose to pursue him solo or alongside Piccolo. Your choice not only influences the battle but also alters the story’s progression.
This format is reminiscent of Dragon Ball Z: Budokai 3 rather than Budokai Tenkaichi 3, and I personally welcome this refreshing change.
Custom Mode: Unleash Your Creativity
The Custom Mode was an exciting reveal in the Dragon Ball: Sparking! Zero release date trailer. Although we didn’t delve deep into this mode, what was showcased was quite robust. Players can select from a variety of pre-made scenarios and customize them with different characters and dialogues. Moreover, you can create entirely original scenarios from scratch, incorporating text and animations.
While the showcased custom mode lacked voiced dialogue, it offered extensive options for victory and defeat conditions. These conditions can be based on survival time, HP percentages, ki amounts, or transformations. Once you craft your custom scenario, you can upload it online to share with others.
You can also design a title screen for your custom scenarios, complete with various screen options and customizable text. The possibilities for creativity are endless!
Combat: The Heart of Dragon Ball: Sparking! Zero
The bread and the butter of Dragon Ball: Sparking! Zero is the combat. If you are familiar with the Budokai Tenkaichi series type of gameplay, then getting into the rhythm of the gameplay will be simple. A ton of the mechanics of the Dragon Ball Budokai Tenkaichi series make a return here. Vanishing attacks where you teleport behind your opponent performing your combo or when they are performing their combo is back. You can even do the vanishing attack ping pong again until one of you runs out of ki. This is when you vanish behind your opponent, and they vanish behind you right before you attack them, and then you vanish behind them before they attack you.
One thing that was interesting to me is that they added a good chunk of accessibility options for combat. You can turn on an auto or semiautomatic control scheme that helps you land combos more effectively. You can also turn off all of them to make it feel just like it was during the Budokai Tenkaichi games. You can even change the control scheme entirely to play exactly like the old control scheme. Spike Chunsoft wants to make sure that the fans of the old games, as well as new fans of Dragon Ball, can pick up and play the game.
The Heads Up Display has not made a change since the gameplay showcase. The User Interface includes a health bar, a ki bar, a skill point number, a transformation available number, and the character model. When you hold a certain trigger, you can see the skills you have available. When you press left on the d-pad, the characters in your lineup pop up, and you can instantly change to another character. Pressing up on the d-pad allows you to look at the transformations you have available for your character. There is a little number below your ki bar that will glow, and the number shows the amount of transformations you have available to you.
One thing that the trailers have not shown in full is how certain maps change when you enter sparking mode in a big transformation. When I was playing as Super Saiyan Blue Vegeta, and I went into sparking mode, the entire map turned into a torrent of power that was destroying the very map I was in. Sparking mode is when you max out your ki, and then you continue charging your ki until you can’t charge it anymore. Sparking mode also provides you with the ability to combo indefinitely, and infinite dashing. When you use a super skill, it takes up all your ki and deals massive amounts of damage. You also unlock an ultimate super skill in Sparking mode. An ultimate super skill deals extreme damage if it hits your opponent.
The only nitpick I have for Dragon Ball: Sparking! Zero is the character select screen. Not only is it counting every single transformation as a separate character, but it no longer mixes the transformations with the associated character. The character select screen also has a generic look to it, which is boring as the presentation of the characters when selected is intense. If you choose a character for your team and then the enemy team and select fight, it almost instantly gets you into the action. It is a cool feature, and it makes getting in and out of the versus menu fast.
Overall, I look forward to getting my hands on this game when it comes out. This is looking to be my most played game for a casual need. Being able to choose from a huge cast of fighters, or even create a whole what-if scenario if my creativity urge hits. This game will have a large amount of replayability for years to come. Here’s hoping the finished product is as good if not better than the build it is at right now.
Dragon Ball: Sparking! Zero will be released on October 11th, 2024, on PS5, Xbox Series S|X, and PC.
