A new bet on the classic

After releasing two incredible games with very positive reviews, Dragon Ball FighterZ and Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot, a fighting game and another focused on narrative and RPG elements, Bandai Namco decided to return to its roots with Dragon Ball Sparking! Zero. For those who don't know, the games titled Budokai Tenkaichi were called Dragon Ball Sparking! in Japan. The exclamation point at the end of the name refers to the gameplay style, something with frenetic and unrestrained action, without much time for long texts and less important cutscenes.

Not only aiming to meet the countless requests from the older fans of the series who were clamoring for the return of the style, but most likely wanting to unify the title, the publisher decided to adopt the name Sparking! worldwide. Even taking into account the strength the name has, it is a great move by Bandai Namco to want to revive those glorious moments of the 2000s.



Those who had the opportunity to play the three games of the franchise on Playstation 2 and Wii certainly were curious about the word "Zero" at the end of the title. It is not a concrete statement from the studio, but it is clear that they seek to restart the series, even those who were not lucky enough to play them, to understand the dynamics and why even today the classics of 2005, 2006 and 2007 receive online tournaments and various PC mods.

The new with a deja vu sensation

If you are one of the thousands of passionate fans who wanted the return of the original series, in Dragon Ball Sparking! Zero your wish was granted by the dragon Shenlong. Starting with the list of playable characters, the game offers 182 fighters (that's right!), with 20 of them just variations of Goku, each with a different look and moves. The selection ranges from Dragon Ball fighters to the inclusion of characters from Z, Super, and GT. The likelihood of testing all of them is practically nil, even more so when you can select the most legendary ones right from the start, like Vegeta, Frieza, Piccolo, among others. But that's not all.

Dragon Ball Sparking! Zero also offers the option to play with traditional controls, choosing the classic option, bringing even more nostalgia to the nostalgic players. Expect also gigantic 3D battle arenas, free movement of fighters, etc. Want to concentrate Ki? Go away from the opponent and do it. Want to unleash combos with kicks and punches? Be behind your opponent through the use of Z Burst Dash.



But stay calm and relaxed, if you are a first-timer in this experience, the game has a very friendly tutorial that quickly makes the idea of battles in the best "anime Fighters" make sense. One piece of advice I can give to do well is always to concentrate as much Ki as possible, so that powers like the Kamehameha, for example, can be unleashed.

Dragon Ball with its What If version?

In addition to the classic mode, Dragon Ball Sparking! Zero presents a story mode, in which it is possible to relive several memorable arcs of the adventure written by the late Akira Toriyama, from the perspective of the following characters: Goku, Goku Black, Vegeta, Piccolo, Gohan, Future Trunks, Jiren, and the powerful Frieza.

So far, no mystery, right? But the great icing on the cake for this mode is the possibility not only to tell how a certain arc happens during the anime/manga, but there is the possibility of choosing an alternative ending for the moment, as shown in the What If series from Marvel.

When choosing Goku and tracing his timeline, when you reach the first battle against Raditz, you can choose to help Piccolo and proceed alone. Depending on your choice, the game content increases and offers a new perspective on that key moment of the traditional adventure.

Despite the idea being amazing, and even offering the possibility of creating a new story from scratch and even sharing it with other players, it can't be said that this feature literally is capable of changing the anime story in a natural way. Not only because of a possible translation problem, but also, the presence of cutscenes is scarce and there is no narration, as there is in the anime, taking away the emotion of the scenario being presented.

Every detail impresses

Dragon Ball Sparking! Zero is a graphic wonder in every pixel presented, whether in the cel-shaded design of the characters, the battle arenas, the Ki concentration, the special moves unleashed by each character, the combo combinations... everything is a tremendous feast for the eyes, without any exaggeration.

The presence of completely destructible scenarios is also a show in itself, as dictated by the classic Budokai Tenkaichi. In addition, depending on your choices in the timeline, more interaction options will appear throughout the battle. It really is a game that can easily surprise.

Not least, but the game also features an online mode, which at the time of this review had no difficulty in finding matches, which encourages facing the legendary Martial Arts Tournament and becoming the grand champion.

Dragon Ball Souls?

If you even minimally followed the Dragon Ball anime, you know all the difficulty that Goku and company had in defeating some enemies like Frieza, Majin Buu, among other beings from other planets and galaxies, seeking global destruction or just having fun with others' suffering, right?

But here it seems that the publisher decided to test this type of challenge in battles, even the simplest ones. In the episodic mode of Sparking! Zero, you should be aware that you will be defeated a few times, whether you are a veteran or not. I remember dying countless times to Vegeta's Oozaru form. Even putting it on the easiest modes, there was an absurd imbalance, which made me question even my few skills. But realizing that it wasn't just me, I felt more relieved. It may be corrected at some point. I hope so.

Especially considering the basic gameplay of the game, in which everything can be defined by the strategy found to overcome a challenge, because it's not enough to just hit, but to find the right moment for it to be truly effective. So if you die a few times, review your concepts and approaches and focus especially on absorbing Ki.



The review of Dragon Ball Sparking! Zero was carried out on a Playstation 5. We thank Bandai Namco for sending a copy of the game.