Dragon Ball Sparking Zero review - A near-flawless addition to the classic Budokai Tenkaichi franchise

Dragon Ball Sparking Zero is almost everything I hoped it would be. With just very few minor flaws, it’s an otherwise perfect Budokai Tenkaichi game. From the opening cinematic to the story battles, huge roster, and game modes, it’s just what I was hoping for. It’s the little things that make me happy about this game. The menus are filled with familiar faces, and the character roster includes every single anime - from Dragon Ball to the upcoming Dragon Ball Daima.

I recently previewed this game, which definitely left me wanting more. I was so thrilled to sit down with this game again, and it didn’t disappoint in many places. Beautiful visuals, great characters, and intense combat - it all blends to create a near-perfect Dragon Ball game.

Let’s talk about Dragon Ball Sparking Zero’s roster

There's someone for absolutely everyone in this amazing roster (Image via Bandai Namco)

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Dragon Ball Sparking Zero brings together over 180 characters into one major battleground. No matter which series is your favorite, you have some representation here. That’s right, even Dragon Ball GT enjoyers like myself had something to look forward to. But before we get started, there’s an elephant in the room. Yes, some of your favorite characters are likely not here.

Sorry, no General Rildo, or Hell Fighter 17. Heck, the one character I wanted isn’t in - Tao Pai Pai (Mercenary Tao). That doesn’t bother me in the slightest though. Some fans will be upset about one or two characters not being here, but I think 182 characters is an incredible roster. Sure, there are many Gokus, but I like that the most prolific characters in the series are split up by saga. There are different abilities for each of those characters, so it made sense to split them up.

No two Gokus are the same (Image via Bandai Namco)

Goku is very much a different fighter at the start of Z, compared to the Universal Survival Arc of Dragon Ball Super. It wouldn’t make sense to have him use all of those powers all the time, on just one Goku.

So, before we go any further, yes, I know there will be fans who will be upset about some of the character choices, but I’m not really among them. From movie bosses to classic, familiar characters, to characters that have never been in a game before, I was satisfied with the roster.

Combat in Dragon Ball Sparking Zero has something for everyone

Combat is as easy or as difficult as you want it to be (Image via Bandai Namco)

At its core, Dragon Ball Sparking Zero’s combat is pretty simple. You have one melee button and a ki button as far as setting up combos goes. The main attack (Rush Attack) leads into Ki Blast/Rush Chain, to set up your combos. Then you can chase down, and perform a variety of more complex maneuvers, offering plenty of depth for fans who want to get serious in this game.

You’ve probably seen some of the dodge moves in the trailers for the game. From swaying away from attacks like Whis and Beerus to simply catching someone’s incoming strike, there are so many ways to approach the battle.

Beam Clashes are back too! I missed doing that. There’s also something new to keep in mind: Skill Count. You’ll see a number under your health bar that goes up and down as you fight. As you use moves in battle, this will increase. This gives you access to some of your activated abilities. Typically, these buff your character, or even completely fill your meter.

Revenge Counter and Super Perception are both incredibly fun counters to use as well. There’s a lot to be said for fights where players just constantly teleport behind each other to try and get an edge. I think the actual combat will bring people around when they realize just how deep it can get. There are plenty of defensive and offensive combat options in Dragon Ball Sparking Zero, that’s for sure.

Dragon Ball Sparking Zero brings plenty of fun game modes with it

The training mode is still worth doing - even if some of it is obvious. There's a lot to know about Dragon Ball Sparking Zero (Image via Bandai Namco)

The other most important thing is the game modes! You need plenty to do in a game like this - even if I think the most popular mode will be online. Even without crossplay, I think online battles are what will keep this game alive for years to come.

The game comes built-in with quite a few fun modes. If you want to make your own custom battles and storylines, you can do that in Episode & Custom Battle. If you're looking to train and learn the new mechanics, Training Mode has you covered. Maybe you just want to set up the ultimate online World Tournament for players to come battle in. Then you can do just that in the World Tournament mode.

Episode Battle also features canon/non-canon stories to battle your way through - 10 in total! The only real complaint I had about these is that some of the “What If” objectives are a menace to my well-being. I won't lie that some of these were maddening to unlock. Some of them I still have to go back and do - in particular, for Goku Black.

There's so much to do in this game, so no worries about running out of challenges to conquer (Image via Bandai Namco)

You can purchase a variety of characters, looks, and more in the Shop, and you can unlock some easy Zeni for those in the Challenge & Missions section. That’s where Zenoh and Whis have specific challenges for you to complete - for titles, Zeni, and even Dragon Balls. On that note, let’s talk about summoning the Dragons.

Is it worth it to summon the Dragon(s) in Dragon Ball Sparking Zero?

It's worth it to farm up a few sets of Dragon Balls (Image via Bandai Namco)

Dragon Ball Sparking Zero features all three Dragons - Shenron, Prounga, and Super Shenron! That means you have three separate dragon ball sets to collect. There are some pretty simple ways to get them the first time, but the grind will get harder. For example, completing Goku’s Episode Battle rewards you with a full set of Super Dragon Balls, and Whis’s challenges unlock a full set of regular Dragon Balls.

If I had used my wishes more judiciously, I’d have all the characters unlocked by now - unfortunately, I didn’t realize the easiest way to unlock Goku Black is by wishing for him on the Super Dragon Balls. That is how I unlocked Fused Zamasu, though. I should have just wished for them both.

Dragon Balls can get hard to farm. But most of it is the standard stuff - player level, more Zeni, titles, and stuff like that. It’s not game-changing, but wishing for more Zeni does make unlocking characters and other things so much faster. While there are a few ways to unlock Dragon Balls, the later game will require you to complete story modes for them, which could be kind of tedious. Make your most important wishes first!

Choose your own (Makafushigi) Adventure

You can either play pre-made battles or create your own epic scenarios in Dragon Ball Sparking Zero! (Image via Bandai Namco)

There’s one mode or two modes in particular I want to highlight. Custom Battle is a cool, new concept in Dragon Ball Sparking Zero. The ability to make your own dream battle, including intro/outro scenes, some dialog, and any character that you want, is just amazing. Sure, you’ve got to invest time and effort into it, but it’s worth it!

You also have to ensure these battles are winnable, so players can’t just cook up whatever awful challenge they want and throw it online. That’s right, you can put this content online for other players to tackle! Alongside this, I also wanted to highlight the World Tournament mode. All the major tournaments are here, alongside the wacky, random Yamcha Games.

I love that you can make your own custom tournaments and host them online as well. It should make the competitive scene pretty interesting, that’s for sure. However, there’s one little thing that really got to me. You can take part in both the Tournament of Destroyers and the Other World tournament - but they don’t get their own stage! I hope this is something that does get fixed at a later date.

Dragon Ball Sparking Zero is gorgeous, but . . .

Dragon Ball Sparking Zero, from a visual perspective, is sublime in how gorgeous the graphics are (Image via Bandai Namco)

I adore the look of Dragon Ball Sparking Zero. I cannot possibly say enough about how gorgeous this game is. Each character looks exactly how they did in the shows/manga, and even their attack animations are amazing. The special attacks look suitably bombastic, and there are some nice touches/easter eggs.

For example, you can use a devastating super attack at the World Martial Arts Tournament arena to clear out the fans from the stands. You can then go smashing through the stands, out into the parking lot, and more. However, I do wish there were a few more stages. Admittedly, I get it - it takes a lot of work to make these destructible battlegrounds. I hope we get more in the future, though.

The voice work and combat sounds are equally perfect. However, I have one more gripe that I pointed out previously. How is there only one noteworthy music track from the series - Limit Break X Survivor? There are so many songs that could have been included but weren’t. From what I understand, there will be DLC for it later, but I think too many songs were stripped out of the game.

No Kuu-Zen-Zetsu-Go, We Gotta Power, News of the Cell Game, Makafushigi Adventure, Boku-Tachi wa Tenshi Datta? So many missed opportunities, here. Dragon Ball as a franchise has incredible opening, ending, and insert tracks. I could easily come up with a list of 15-20 songs that were missed out.

In conclusion

Wanna see who has the best Kamehameha? (Image via Bandai Namco)

I adore Dragon Ball Sparking Zero. As a long-time fan of the franchise, it holds up excellently well. It feels like a Budokai Tenkaichi game, and it’s very clear the developers also loved the manga/anime. While I do wish there were more in some spaces, I think overall, what the team put together is exceptional.

Sure, I miss being able to fly around in the world and I wish unlocking some of the What If stories was just a little less ridiculous. However, I love everything else about the game. The complaints are relatively minor.

The game doesn’t explain what character proficiency does, for example. It also doesn’t really explain the customization system - you just kind of have to remember from previous games. Other than some very minor complaints, Dragon Ball Sparking Zero is an incredible experience that any fan of the anime should take part in.