DRAGON BALL: Sparking! ZERO Review

Not many Japanese anime have had the chance to be adapted into video games as well as Dragon Ball, and Dragon Ball Sparking Zero may represent the ultimate achievement in this quest for the most faithful, well-crafted, and accessible game. While fans of 2D fighting games can enjoy the excellent Dragon Ball: FighterZ, the players have been eagerly awaiting a sequel to Dragon Ball Budokai Tenkaichi, considered one of the saga’s best arena fighters, thanks in particular to its impressive number of playable characters.

Since the franchise’s successful return with the films and Dragon Ball Super, Bandai Namco knew it had to hit hard with this sequel (a good ultra instinct on their part), which arrives 16 years after Tenkaichi 3. With over five years in development, Spike Chunsoft has had plenty of time to polish this super-ambitious adaptation. And when a project is well executed, you can feel it immediately, because Sparking Zero is literally the game Toriyama fans have always dreamed of.

The Ultimate Dragon Ball Experience

Despite a DLC strategy now well established in the world of fighting games, it’s rare to see such generous content these days. First of all, Dragon Ball Sparking Zero succeeds in offering a huge cast, with over 180 playable characters, surpassing Budokai Tenkaichi 3, which had over 160 playable characters. Although this impressive figure conceals a large number of variants, especially with the different versions of Goku and Vegeta, and the multiple transformations, we must applaud the immense work accomplished by the developers. Each character and each transformation has its own identity, with a wide range of moves and animations.

Except for Naruto Ultimate Ninja Storm in its day, it’s almost impossible to find a 3D anime game with such modern, faithful rendering and impressive attention to detail. Unlike Kakarot, which took an RPG approach, and FighterZ, which was a highly competitive fighting game, Sparking Zero is all about the big show.

This is reflected primarily in the studio’s excellent mastery of Unreal Engine 5, delivering an anime-like character rendering and stunning visual effects during combat, and all this with no technical problems. Glowing auras, spectacular environment destructions, and particle effects all contribute to making every battle look amazing. With one small exception, Sparking Zero doesn’t feature any of the anime’s iconic music. But the game doesn’t neglect this aspect, and features high-quality original compositions, with successful themes.

The attention to detail is so high, that every element highlighted by fans during trailers, demos, and previews has been enhanced to create the ultimate Dragon Ball game. Visually, it’s a real treat, whether in the combats with their magnificent techniques or in the introductions, which sometimes feature camera movements reinforcing the scenery. Transformations are also enhanced brilliantly. The sound design is no exception, with sound effects (SFX) that further enhance immersion in the fights. And let’s not forget the performance of the Japanese voices, never lacking in energy despite the old age of several actors.

The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

It’s hard to complain about Sparking Zero’s basic content, but there are a few gaps and weaknesses. First of all, when it comes to arenas, there’s a lack of variety, especially when it comes to Dragon Ball Super. All we get is the Tournament of Power arena. There’s a lack of more fantastic areas, such as the Otherworld or Planet Beerus. We also miss some of the most iconic suits, such as Gohan’s against Bojack, and some other lighter ones, like Vegeta’s pink “Badman” shirt. Another complaint is Broly’s aura (DBZ), which isn’t green in Legendary Super Saiyan.

Sparking Zero is not intended to make us relive the entire manga, which we already know by heart and which has already been adapted many times, to varying degrees. Instead, the title focuses on “Battle Episodes” that concentrate on eight characters: Goku, Vegeta, Gohan, Trunks, Piccolo, Goku Black, Freezer, and Jiren. This means you can experience the great battles of the Dragon Ball universe through iconic scenarios drawn exclusively from Dragon Ball Z and Dragon Ball Super. This focus on each character allows you to enjoy multiple points of view, and to experience alternative scenarios too.

What if Goku didn’t die against Raditz? Or what if Gohan hadn’t neglected his training? This “Episode Battle” mode keeps things simple and straight to the point. The whole thing is well-paced, thanks to a mix of cut-scenes using the game’s engine with dialogue vignettes and beautiful cinematics for key anime moments and “What ifs”. There’s even a rather amusing feature that lets you have a first-person view of the embodied fighter during a cinematic.

However, we regret the absence of the Dragon Ball arc, whether in the scenario or the characters, with young Goku and Turtle Hermit as the only representatives. The same applies to Dragon Ball GT and the films. Fortunately, the developers have had fun creating plenty of alternative scenarios via “Bonus Battles”, one of Dragon Ball Sparking Zero’s flagship modes. This mode lets you create your own battle scenarios and share them online. You can choose the characters, the environment, the victory conditions (knock out, reduce life to a certain percentage…), and even add special bonuses such as automatic Ki recharge or constant life depletion.

You also have the option of naming your sequence like an anime episode, and adding cutscenes and text to make your characters talk. However, this requires a series of predefined options, from dialogue to 3D character design. We understand the need to avoid certain excesses by limiting sentences or words, but we have to admit that ergonomics are rather difficult, even with the multiple filters available. A classic keyboard search would have been useful.

A Love Letter to Fans, with a Touch of Technique

Fans will undoubtedly be creative in imagining stories based on memes or non-canonical interactions. However, the game’s real strength is in the battles. Already very promising during our last preview, this feeling is confirmed after spending several hours on the game. Battles are spectacular, with a constant exchange of blows, high-speed movements, varied techniques, and waves of energy, just like in the anime. A real childhood dream come true.

Of course, you don’t need to look for something demanding like FighterZ, but there are plenty of elements to assimilate if you want to master the gameplay perfectly. These include guarding, countering, dodging, and Ki management. Fortunately, a well-designed training mode allows you to practice all the game’s mechanics.

Overall, Sparking Zero delivers dynamic, accessible, and enjoyable battles with vast arenas designed to grant you the freedom to fight the way you want. For example, you can enjoy high-speed aerial chases, destroying rocks and buildings in the process. Jousts are also highlighted by iconic moments, such as the clash of blows when two fighters charge towards each other, or energy duels ending with mad button-smashing. These moments are more frequent than you might think, and add a great rhythm to combat.

It’s even possible to lose sight of your opponent, which automatically deactivates the lock on him. Although the perfect balance between all the members of the character’s roster seems hard to imagine, some special techniques, such as Yajirobe’s senzu bean, restore all his health, and the skill meter, which fills up progressively, help to limit excessive rises in power. This famous “skill” meter is essential for triggering transformations, fusions, and of course, the famous Sparking mode. This temporary state strengthens your attacks, allows you to chain infinite combos, and above all, gives you the chance to launch your character’s ultimate ability.

We’ll have to see how players adapt online, but initially, Sparking mode seems a little too powerful, unless you’ve mastered dodging perfectly to counter it. To enhance your strategy, you also have access to capsules you can attach to your fighters, offering targeted enhancements such as increased health or reduced rushing costs. It’s also an excellent idea from Spike Chunsoft to introduce a cost in DP (Destruction Points) for each character, to avoid teams made up entirely of Gogeta, Vegito… online.

As a reminder, the title supports online multiplayer with classic battles, ranked games, and tournaments, plus a local split-screen multiplayer mode, available only on the Spirit and Time Room map. To maintain a certain level of progression after exploring all the content, numerous challenges are proposed to unlock titles, icons, and many other elements to personalize your player card.

Conclusion

Dragon Ball Sparking Zero is the ultimate adaptation of a 3D fighting game, both enjoyable and accessible, and something we’d like to see for all Shonen manga in general. The basic cast is so generous that it can easily make up for the avalanche of DLC to come. In addition to a breathtaking Dragon Ball game thanks to the Unreal Engine 5, the attention to detail at every level clearly demonstrates the developers’ desire to satisfy hardcore fans. Of course, we can argue about the absence of certain costumes, scenery, or characters, but it’s impossible to deny the enormous amount of work done to meet the high expectations this title raised. In short, this is the best fighting game in the Dragon Ball universe so far, and will certainly remain so for a long time.