Dragon Ball: Sparking! ZERO Review

The Budokai Tenkaichi format in the modern age.

By
Richard Li
,
Ben Janca
, and
Tom Caswell
on October 7, 2024 at 5:18PM PDT

It’s been 17 years since Dragon Ball Z: Budokai Tenkaichi 3 and its 3D-arena-based combat graced consoles, and ever since, fans have clamored for a return to that old style. Dragon Ball: Sparking Zero has answered the call, with the benefit of an entirely new story arc to explore thanks to Dragon Ball Super–which wasn’t part of the Dragon Ball canon until 2013. For the most part, the Tenkaichi approach still works thanks to its fast and energized battle system; however, repetitive gameplay and limited mode options leave us wanting more from this battle.