Previously announced — back in March! — as the next entry in the Sparking! series of video games, Dragon Ball: Sparking! ZERO was more formally unveiled with a new trailer tonight during The Game Awards.
Characters showcased included Son Goku (normal, Super Saiyan Blue), Vegeta (normal, Super Saiyan Blue), Freeza (final form), Broli (Wrathful, Super Saiyan), Piccolo, Kuririn, Tenshinhan, Yamcha, Trunks (Super Saiyan from both Z and Super), No. 17, No. 18, Cell (Perfect), Mr. Satan, Boo (Good), Bergamo, and Jiren.
The trailer’s final screen confirmed that the series’ original developer, Spike Chunsoft, is back at the helm, and the game will be released internationally for the PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC (via Steam). The official Japanese Twitter account later clarified that the Steam reference for Japan was published in error, and that the domestic release will only include the PlayStation 5, as well as digital versions for the Xbox Series X|S.
An official Japanese website has opened at: dbsz.bn-ent.net
Both the official Japanese website — プレイ人数1人 (オンライン時 1～2人) — as well as online retailers in English appear to indicate that the game is locally playable by a single user only, with online play extending to player-vs-player battles.
Bandai Namco also later shared a press release regarding the game:
DRAGON BALL: SPARKING! ZERO IS THE EARTH-SHAKING SEQUEL BRINGING THE BUDOKAI TENKAICHI SERIES TO A NEW GENERATION
December 7, 2023Shake the Earth, Break the Heavens in the latest Dragon Ball Game, Bringing Back the Beloved Arena Brawler Series after more than 15 years
- DRAGON BALL: Sparking! ZERO brings back the revered 3D action battle game series previously known as BUDOKAI TENKAICHI in the West
- Arriving on new-gen consoles and PC, this is the first entry in the series since BUDOKAI TENKAICHI 3 released in 2007 on PlayStation®2
- Engage in exhilarating battles with exceptional visual fidelity, fighting arenas with destructible environments, and an incredible roster of DRAGON BALL fighters
- See the explosive announcement trailer here
Bandai Namco Entertainment America Inc. blasted global audiences with a Kamehameha by announcing DRAGON BALL: Sparking! ZERO – the first entry to the DRAGON BALL Z: BUDOKAI TENKAICHI series in more than years – at The Game Awards. The debut trailer, which showcased in-game footage, revealed a visually stunning, authentic continuation of the BUDOKAI TENKAICHI series alongside faithful recreations of legendary characters and their special powers as they fight epic battles on massive and destructible fighting arenas. DRAGON BALL: Sparking! ZERO is coming exclusively to PlayStation®5, Xbox Series X, and PC via Steam®. For more information, visit https://www.bandainamcoent.com/.
Developed by Spike Chunsoft, the developers behind the original BUDOKAI TENKAICHI series, DRAGON BALL: Sparking! ZERO brings the series forward to a new era by harnessing the power of Unreal Engine 5 and pushing the envelope for gameplay and features in an arena brawler. DRAGON BALL: Sparking! ZERO also brings the franchise back to the original Japanese naming convention, where the original DRAGON BALL Z: BUDOKAI TENKAICHI was titled DRAGON BALL Z: Sparking!
“This is the DRAGON BALL fighting game players have been waiting for, bringing a new sequel for one of the most beloved game series based on the franchise to a new generation of players,” said Mike Chang, VP, Marketing and Digital Business, Bandai Namco Entertainment America Inc. “It has been more than 15 years since DRAGON BALL Z: BUDKAI TENKAICHI pioneered arena brawlers, and DRAGON BALL: Sparking! ZERO continues the legacy while adding new genre-defining features made possible only with the latest game platforms to deliver one of the most immersive anime game experiences of all time.”
The game’s gravity-defying fights promise to ‘shake the earth, break the heavens’, with each DRAGON BALL character’s signature destructive powers and Ki abilities showcased in stunning detail with damage capable of destroying entire parts of the arena.
Though the trailer included text stating “A New Budokai Tenkaichi Begins,” the game’s seemingly final title was revealed at the end as Dragon Ball: Sparking! ZERO, falling more in line with the original trilogy’s naming scheme in Japanese. The three Sparking! games — the original, NEO!, and METEOR — hit the PlayStation 2 over the course of 2005 to 2007, with the Nintendo Wii also receiving ports of the second and third games. The game series was released numerically under the “Budokai Tenkaichi” moniker internationally. A fourth games — Tag Vs. in Japan / Tenkaichi Tag Team internationally — was released on the PlayStation Portable in 2010.
As opposed to the completely separate Dragon Ball Z (“Budokai”) series developed by Dimps which came before it, the Sparking! series — developed instead by Spike — featured 3D arenas with an over-the-shoulder camera angle.
Spike (as Spike Chunsoft) later went on to also develop the crossover fighting games J-Stars Victory VS in 2014 and Jump Force in 2019.