Dragon Ball is the franchise that keeps on giving… Dragon Ball Z had its first episode aired in 1989 in Japan. It quickly came to the western side of the world and it blew up immediately. It had everything: interesting characters, amazing fighting sequences, dramatic battles, and some decent character progression. Eventually, there were a lot of adaptations of the Dragon Ball Universe. You have multiple seasons (within different eras of the Dragon Ball Universe) of the TV series, merch, TCG, and games. The franchise mostly gained a lot of followers when they brought in the fighting games of DBZ. Everyone wanted them, so that they could perform the same abilities as the characters and feel badass. For me Budokai started it all, I followed through the Tenkaichi era up to the Dragon Ball FighterZ. The first game that made DBZ stand out in the fighting games was Tenkaichi due to its fighter arena base. You could fly around, power up, chase down your opponents, and perform multiple trigger effects to make the game even more exciting. Dragon Ball FighterZ heightened the game towards a competitive level and I had a blast. However, the game looked cool, it had a big learning curve and the cell-shaded graphical presentation made it look decent but it didn’t feel like a Dragon Ball game doing its own thing… Sparking Zero tries to go back to its core and it has gotten all my attention. For me, it’s the best Dragon Ball game to date.
Dragon Ball Sparking Zero looks like a more improved and better Tenkaichi but it does try different things to make it stand out from the other games. Just for the setting, Dragon Ball is about different fighters with their own capabilities and skill set. However, the main goal of the main characters is all about training themselves and surpassing each other. They would want nothing more, only to become the better version of their previous selves. Some fighters can even heighten their senses in a way that makes them a powerhouse with a tremendous amount of energy. An energy level so high that it could alter the looks of the fighter. In Dragon Ball, there is always that villain who thinks they could conquer the world but is always stopped thanks to the fighters. This is Dragon Ball in a nutshell for those who aren’t acquainted with the franchise, however, it’s a bit more than this but it helps to picture what the story/ universe is about. But I firmly believe that a lot of people have heard about this popular franchise, especially because of the high fanbase. Now that being acquainted with the series is out of the way, I’ll tell you why it is the best Dragon Ball game today.
“It’s an amazing treasure to get a hold of.”
First of all, the character roster of this game is the biggest the franchise ever has seen. There are 182 characters available for play and the DLC contains a couple more but these are based on the latest entry Dragon Ball Super and the new TV series Dragon Ball Daima. Now to paint the picture a bit more clearly, these 182 characters contain altered versions of Dragon Ball Fighters. For example, the main character in Dragon Ball is Goku. But Goku can heighten his power level to become a Super Saiyan (An altered look contains new powers, straight-up blond hair, and some extra muscles). The shorter version of the altered version is Goku SS1, yes one… because you also have SS2, SS3, SS4, SSB (Super Saiyan Blue), SSGS (Super Saiyan God Goku), and Goku UI ( Ultra Instinct). In other words, you get the picture but this has to be the biggest roster ever seen. Like I said in the introduction, this altered version of the same character has another skill set and power moves. If you have watched the Dragon Ball series, you’ll know what I’m talking about. But this roster doesn’t only contain the popular characters known to the people who have watched the series on television when they were younger, you also have some playable characters that haven’t seen much screenplay but are imported nevertheless for the die-hard community. We are talking about Kid Goku, Pan, Metal Cooler, Bojack, Android 13… These extra characters are characters from the older narrative parts of the Dragon Ball universe and it’s an amazing treasure to get a hold of. All of these characters have played an important role during the narrative and it’s the first time a game offers all small and big characters known by the community.
Now, you probably already know but the game also features a story mode that helps new players to get a quick view of the story within the Dragon Ball Universe. Each game has introduced each character with a full story background that took you some time to get through it all. Sparking Zero seems to divide the story into different storylines focusing on one character at a time. I love this feature for 2 parts: it’s a lot faster because you get a more streamlined summary of what’s happened with this character in a specific story arc. You also are being introduced to a certain character with its specific move set and abilities. This helps you familiarize yourself with a character and see if the power plays suit you. However, the story being split into different story arcs (focusing on one specific character) can become less coherent because you’re playing a piece of a puzzle and aren’t able to see the bigger picture yet. If you play the different story chapters of a story arc, you will understand the story better. Though, the game gives you freedom in the structure of the different story chapters. In other words, you decide which character’s story you progress first and there’s no link given what story arc you’re playing. This can cause some confusion for a new player. A veteran player will have a blast, fighting their way through the different story arcs in a couple of hours because of its summarized story bits. A true fan will also notice that some summarized story bits are better written than others. It feels like some summarized story bits don’t contain those important details as to why a certain character feels that way… It has its pros and cons. It’s great to see that the player is following a “story map” and that it also is presented like a map with different key nodes. So a player could replay a certain node from a character’s story map, replay the map, and view the cutscenes again. It helps to play the game at your own pace.
“I mean there is a lot and it all feels Dragon Ball Z.”
Talking about the combat in the game, and the mechanics that make it one of the best Dragon Ball games by far. I do want to point out that I’m talking about the “FUN”- factor mostly and not the “COMPETITIVE”- factor but that doesn’t mean the game can’t be competitive, it depends on how well you can use your techniques, techniques that anyone can master but are hard to pull off in the middle of the game. Almost everything that has been shown in the TV- series can be done and we are talking about a lot of features: Vanishing and re-appearing behind the opponent, clashes between beam and physical attacks, transform/ fuse on the go, deflecting beams, charge beams, Dragon Rush an opponent from far away, counter a hit, counter a counter, ki blast, quick step to your opponent… I mean there is a lot and it all feels Dragon Ball Z. Even though you can do all of these abilities, you will have to work for them because there are a lot of combat techniques with key combinations before an attack or counter can be successful.
The game operates like an arena where you have a big arena with different breakable things and different terrain modes. You can ascend/ descend and move freely throughout this arena. The main point is charging op KI to get your key status up. These different KI- nodes are the fuel gauges you need to perform special attacks, energy blasts, evasion, and super dashes. You can overcharge to go into sparking mode. Sparking mode enables you to do fast melee attacks, traverse quicker, able to do your character super move, and do a bit more damage. You can only go into Sparking mode when you have your first Skill Counter. Skill Counter is another feature that builds up while you’re fighting. You have to be locked onto your opponent before these start to build up. It’s important because it blocks a player from hiding and power-up to perform special attacks with minimal of effort. These Skill counters also allow you to transform into altered versions of themselves and to perform countermeasures and/ or stats boost. The combat is more in-depth than you might think. There is a lot of back-and-forth action going on between the two characters.
“Fun is the most important factor the game will offer.”
When you talk about competitiveness, the game can definitely cure that itch a bit but it might not give you exactly what you want. There is a competitive mode in the game but I wouldn’t necessarily see this game at a competitive level however I don’t know what the future for this game holds. Let me explain… You can go in full swinging but the opponent has so many options to evade what you do or counter your abilities. Timing in this game is everything and this can be skill-based. There is also the fact that you have to be aware of what amount of KI or Z-counters your opponent has left. The mechanics are fun and challenging when both players are familiar with all of the combos they can perform. With all of the previous points in mind, the game can appear in the competitive scene but on a lower level because this game doesn’t strive toward competitiveness as Dragon Ball FighterZ but more toward fun and giving the community what it wants. The game is unbalanced for sure… Every character has a different power level and is literally built differently. For example, there are BRUTE-like opponents that move a bit slower but can pack a punch. You have smaller characters that can do nasty stuff like paralyzing but their hit-boxes are way off, so it’s more difficult to connect your melee punches and abilities. In my opinion, this isn’t a bad thing because you can choose your favorite character and fight against tougher opponents. This is also a “thing” that people like… Being able to take down the Legendary Saiyan Broly with Chiaoutzu will be challenging but it will be an amazing feeling if you could. People like these challenging situations. Also, some characters like Burter ( a Ginyu force member) hits very fast and the moment he hits his streak in your back, it’s difficult to get out of that damage zone. Not everyone is looking at Sparking Zero like it’s the next competitive FighterZ but the mechanics allow for competitiveness considering the balancing issues. Fun is the most important factor the game will offer.
There is a ranked mode in Dragon Ball Sparking Zero which allows you to form a team with different members based on destructive points with each character. In other words, your size limit is dependent on the amount of destructive points you have. Each player has 15 destructive points and all characters have a specific amount of destructive points based on their power level. You can have a team of 3 of the strongest warriors and battle it out or you can depend on smaller characters but get more chances out of it.
“So in my eyes, the game can be challenging if you want to fight like the Dragon Ball warriors.”
Talking about the combat mechanics, I do feel like they could have done a bit better with the tutorial “Technique”- wise. There are so many important techniques to master before you can take on the AI opponent. I feel ashamed to say this but fighting against the Ginyu Force made me lower the difficulty level because I couldn’t get my techniques to work. I had to play multiple times switching between the battle and the “Technique” explanation area, to get these techniques to work. I have gone to the training mode and yes, you have options on how the opponent can react but it doesn’t give you a lot of information on how to perform a certain technique or what’s the “window” to trigger the effect. So in my eyes, the game can be challenging if you want to fight like the Dragon Ball warriors.
Dragon Ball Sparking ZERO also has custom battles where you customize your fighting scene to your liking. What kind of battle do you want to see? Just imagine it and set it within the Sparking Zero arena fighter. You can add text boxes, filters, scenarios, zooming levels, conditions, … etc. This will definitely keep some fans occupied because it makes the fantasy battles that you didn’t capture on the screen, a reality. You can even share them online. There are also bonus matches that the game has for you in stock. These battles will put your skills to the test, depending on the conditions and status varieties. There is an amount of 30 bonus battles.
“Dragon Ball Sparking ZERO is the best Dragon Ball game at the moment!”
The game also offers customization options like outfits and Capsules to heighten your stats a bit, but nothing too complicated. The game runs 60FPS perfectly, even when the battles are going back and forth very fast. The game looks splendid. The color palette and lighting effects suit the game perfectly. It gives you a vibrant coloring effect when you’re going head-to-head against your opponents. The loading screens are fairly quick but I do have to mention that the cinematic scenes are pre-rendered and it shows. I didn’t think it would bother me that much but the transition between in-game scenes and pre-rendered stuff is just too noticeable.
Conclusion:
Dragon Ball Sparking ZERO is the best Dragon Ball game at the moment! The game offers the biggest character roster, the most customization options including custom battles and custom introductory scenes, and the most “DBZ”- feel with its destructive environments and move sets like vanishing attacks, countering, dragon rush, and clashes, … Not only does it offer all of these singleplayer options and toolset, there is also a ranked mode, tournament mode, (limited) and split-screen mode. The game’s main focus is all about having fun and feeling like your beloved DBZ character. Yes, there is a competitive mode but due to staying true to the franchise, characters have different power levels and physical builds. However, the developers might have a system (Destructive Points) to cure that itch for competitiveness and keep it balanced. This will have to be pointed out in the future whether it’s a system to keep or trash. If you’re new, the game offers a decent amount of explanation of all the characters and techniques that can be performed. For all of the veterans, the game is probably already in your digital library being pre-loaded as we speak! You’re in for a treat! Sparking Zero is the best follow-up for the Tenkaichi series and rebooting it to a new level! CHARGE-UP!
9,5/10
tested on PS5
