Some games can’t be separated from their legacies, and few embody that more thanDragon Ball: Sparking! Zero. As the latest licensedDragon Ballgame from Bandai Namco and Spike Chunsoft,Dragon Ball: Sparking Zerohas already caught the worldwide fandom’s attention by officially continuing theDragon Ball Z: Budokai Tenkaichiseries, just under its Japanese “Sparking!” subtitle.Dragon Ball: Sparking Zerohas challenged a gaming legend for the right to be its successor, and it’s done a good job at reaching its lofty goals, even if its reach frequently exceeds its grasp.
Given arena fighters' decline afterBudokai Tenkaichi 3, returning developer Spike Chunsoft’s ability to match its magnum opus was suspect. Despite that, the end result looks and feels likeBudokai Tenkaichi 4should. Taking in its stylized characters, flowing animations, detail-rich modes, and lightning-fast gameplay, one might have trouble believing thatSparking Zerois from the same studio that madethe cautionary tale that isJump Force. However it happened, it’s good to see Spike Chunsoft share the reverence fans have forBudokai Tenkaichi, makingSparking Zeroeasy to appreciate despite its missteps.
Dragon Ball: Sparking Zero Looks Like Dragon Ball Should
The first thing worth admiring isDragon Ball: Sparking! Zero’s presentation, which is firing on all cylinders. WhileSparking Zero’s looks fall short ofDragon Ball FighterZ, it’s hard to fault a negative visual comparison to an Arc System Works title, even if that did a better job atunitingDragon Ball’s history of art stylesunder one cohesive look. As soon as players get pastSparking Zero’s opening, they will be wowed by a fantastic main menu that unfolds like a comedy episode set late inDragon Ball Super. Merely moving through the menus and seeing what different options result in is already delightful, and it’s just a prelude to the gameplay.
Dragon Ball: Sparking! Zerois the new standard for simulatedDragon Ball Zcombat, featuring lightning-fast characters blitzing through huge environments at the press of a button.
Budokai Tenkaichi 3came out at the tail end of the PS2’s generation, but its smooth art style and attention to detail helped it hold on to its reputation as one of the bestDragon Ballvideo game conversions of its age.Sparking Zeromay have a lot more consoleDragon Ballcompetition now, but, setting asideFighterZagain, it has retaken its crown.Many obscureDragon Ballcharactershave never looked this good, and their animations are every bit as faithful as their models. With secret interactions hidden in intros, outros, and many basic mechanics in between,Dragon Ballfans will be able to spend months, if not years, finding joy in this gorgeous game.
Sparking Zero Feels As Good As It Looks
Nailing the look is vital for a Shonen Jump arena fighter, while gameplay is typically an afterthought. Thankfully, Spike Chunsoft studiedBudokai Tenkaichi 3and fan feedback carefully, with the result far exceeding expectations.Dragon Ball: Sparking! Zerois thenew standard for simulatedDragon Ball Zcombat, featuring lightning-fast characters blitzing through huge environments at the push of a button. Combat is conceptually simple, but hides a depth that players can, and have, spent years mastering. The only issueSparking Zero’s battles frequently run into is the camera spinning wildly or clipping through terrain, but some degree of that is unavoidable.
Dragon Ball: Sparking Zero’s mechanics will be familiar toBudokai Tenkaichiplayers, especially if they opt for the classic control scheme. Characters still share a common template, with variations present in their attacks, movements, transformations, and supers. There are sub-templates like strength, speed, giant, and Android that foster more variety among the 182 fighters, but system knowledge triumphs over character specialization. AlthoughSparking Zero’s defensive tools, especially Perception and Vanish, will prove frustratingly slippery in experienced hands, the fighting system is a competent evolution ofBudokai Tenkaichi.
Competition In Dragon Ball: Sparking Zero Takes Many Forms
Speaking of which,Budokai Tenkaichi 3has built up a solid competitive scene over the years, and Bandai Namco has catered to it by adding online multiplayer toSparking Zero. Rollback netcode is absent despite becoming standard in fighting games, but the limited time Game Rant had online suggested a stable experience is possible, albeit player-dependent, with a wired connection and proper use of matchmaking filters. Notably, point-based teams join duels as a valid Ranked ruleset, and team gameplay is significantly smoother than it was inBudokai Tenkaichi. Considering that Burter was top tier inBT3,Sparking Zero’s developing metacould turn point designations into a hindrance, but they are interesting nonetheless.
Whether in ranked or custom lobbies, online play willremainSparking Zero’s main multiplayer option. Offline splitscreen can only take place in the Hyperbolic Time Chamber, a compromise that robsSparking Zeroof its highly interactive environments. Modding should fix that for PC players quickly, although that’s no consolation for console owners, and it’s strange that one of the most popular legacyDBZ: BTfeatures only got a last-minute inclusion due to fan outcry. This is, thankfully, the largest misstepSparking Zeromakes in appealing to theDragon Ballfandom, but it’s hard to ignore.
Is Dragon Ball: Sparking Zero Too Little, Too Late?
It isn’t the only flaw, though.Sparking Zero’s Episode Battle story mode isn’t bad, but it leaves much to be desired. Episode Battle tellsDragon Ball ZandSuper’s stories from eight major characters’ viewpoints, only with fewer surprises than one would expect from aBudokai Tenkaichisuccessor. Lavishly produced“What If” scenarios are seeded throughoutSparking Zero’s storyas rewards for completing tough side objectives on the default difficulty, though it’s hard to say if they top what’s inBudokai Tenkaichi 2and3. The rest of Episode Battle is pretty much a slideshow, however, so anyone looking to squeeze the most enjoyment out of it has some grinding ahead of them.
Its uneven story mode highlights a major issue caused by the gap betweenDragon Ball: Sparking! ZeroandBT3. Nearly every part ofSparking Zerohas been done better by anotherDragon Balltitle, many of which are still being supported.Dragon Ball FighterZhas its presentation and gameplay both down pat,Kakarotoffers a faithful recreation ofDBZ’s sagas, andXenoverse 2supports multiple “What If” campaigns on top of its cooperative MMO trappings. Witheven itsBudokai Tenkaichi 4nicknamecontested by an ambitiousBT3mod,Sparking Zeromay be more divisive than fans expect, and not entirely due to its own merits.
Dragon Ball: Sparking Zero Goes Further Beyond A Regular Arena Fighter
Luckily,Sparking Zerohas strengths that its contemporaries lack, and first and foremost is its Custom Battles. These consist of short, story-driven scenarios made from custom cutscenes and battles, and while that may not sound like much, a playable fanfiction creator is enormous for afandom as passionate asDragon Ball’s. A streamlined version of the editor is available in addition to the ability to modify other players’ scenarios, and even cleared developer-made Bonus Battles. Thanks to a wide variety of trigger conditions and effects ensuring that combat feels in line with the plot surrounding it, this mode will likely become some players’ home after they’ve exhaustedSparking Zero’s content.
Learning how to use Edit Mode effectively is harder than it sounds. Starting with its Simple Edit is recommended.
Custom Battle’s caveat is its text entry system, which uses pre-written lines with occasional spaces for interchangeable proper nouns. It’s translated in an awkward way andharkens back to FromSoftware’s online messages, with their charm and versatility equally present. Boosting that further, there are thousands of pre-written lines — which is the real problem. The lines are organized so poorly that gaining familiarity with the system will take hours, and grabbing some will always take too long. Custom Battle is still a reason to buySparking Zeroand should improve over time, but it’s a shame that such an impressive feature was held back by too much ambition.
Everything Sparking Zero Does Is In Service Of The Player
Sparking Zero’s last major selling point is more subtle, but it’s what ties everything together. Any time players participate in a fight, they will earn some mixture of Zeni to spend in the shop, player experience to expand the shop, character mastery, progress towards big rewards from Zen-Oh’s Orders and Whis’s Stamp Book, and potentially other unlockables depending on what mode they’re in. There are even three sets of Dragon Balls,tied to different Eternal Dragons, to collect to wish for further rewards. Progress is constant, feels good, and doesn’t have any major gaps for DLC to fill, mirroringBudokai Tenkaichiperfectly.
There are good reasons to want all of those unlockables, as many of them allow players to personalize their experience. Costumes and visible accessories have uneven character distribution, but equip-able capsules that power up stats and new emote voice clips are available for all, and carry into other modes like Episode Battle. Even AI opponents can be given unique behaviors bought in the shop, which opens the door to interesting scenarios in CPU vs. CPU matches, or just ensuring some characters act appropriately,like Vegeta spamming Ki Blasts.
Is Dragon Ball: Sparking Zero The Answer To Fans’ Wishes?
Personalization was enough of a priority that it extends toSparking Zero’s options, and they are quite extensive. PC players should be able to find a setup that keeps the game running smooth even on somewhat dated gaming hardware, the controls are fully re-mappable everywhere, andbeginners can enjoySparking Zero’s extensive accessibility features. Familiar voice cast options are available and do a stellar job as always, even ifSparking Zero’s soundtrack is tragically devoid of PS2Dragon Balltracks. Even with the two Anime Music Packs being confined to DLC for licensing reasons, players should be able to makeSparking Zerolook and sound right to them.
Episode Battle determines AI strength on a per-fight basis, though universally lowering its difficulty is an option. However, doing so will also disable “What If” secrets.
A few more modes are left to cover, which speaks to how wellSparking Zerocovers its inconsistent quality with abundant quantity. Battle Training is found next to regular Training, and smoothly transitions into a sparring bout between Gohan and Piccolo to coverSparking Zero’s many mechanics. Tournaments return with more options than ever, including custom rules, Tournament of Power flight restrictions, ring-outs, and online multiplayer integration. Finally, the Gallery holds several points of interest, but the best is Chi-Chi’s Encyclopediacharacter commentary returning fromBudokai Tenkaichi 3, now with Bulma and Videl in tow. There’s no doubt thatDragon Ball: Sparking Zerois the fullDragon Ballpackage.
Dragon Ball: Sparking! Zeroisn’t a perfect sequel toBudokai Tenkaichi 3, but it has successfully recaptured its spirit. Effort is visible even in the areas whereSparking Zerofalls short, and concentrating on the core gameplay, presentation, and progression has paid dividends. Custom Battle and a decent online suite help this game find its own voice, both compared to its PS2 forebears and itsmore focused modernDragon Ballpeers. Ultimately,Dragon Ball: Sparking! Zerodoes the late Akira Toriyama and his collaborators’ work justice, and that should help it find its audience.
WHERE TO PLAY
Dragon Ball: Sparking! Zeroreleases on June 25, 2025, for PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X|S. Game Rant was provided with a Steam code for this review.
