Months after its initial announcement,Dragon Ball: Sparking! Zerohas received a new trailer at the Summer Games Fest, detailing new features, story content, and the game’s final release date. The first entry in its specific series ofDragon Ballgames sinceDragon Ball Z: Budokai Tenkaichi 3in 2007 (or the PlayStation Portable-exclusiveTenkaichi Tag Teamin 2010,),Sparking! Zerofollows series tradition by including a wide cast of characters from all across variousDragon Ballmedia, giving fans a much-requested series revival.
WhileDragon Ballgames have found success, withFighterZ,Xenoverse 2, and, most recently,Dragon Ball Z: Kakarotreleasing to generally positive reception, none of them have served quite the same niche as the classicBudokai Tenkaichiseries. As a result, in spite of the success of those games, a new entry specifically in theTenkaichiseries has long been highly requested by fans of the original three games. Now, over a decade since the series' latest game,Sparking! Zerohas finally received an initial release date, along with new information on characters and editions.
Dragon Ball Sparking! Zero’s Release Date & Platforms
Sparking! Zero Launches On August 01, 2025
As announced in the game’s newest trailer,Dragon Ball: Sparking! Zerowill release on July 22, 2025, on PS5, Xbox Series X|S, and Steam, with a simultaneous release across all platforms and a number of pre-order bonuses.Players who pre-order the game will be able to unlock six characters early- three variants of Gogeta, and another three variants of Broly. Additionally, the pre-order bonus also includes a currently un-revealed playable character - and, since this mystery character isn’t specifically included as an “early unlock”, it’s possible that it may be a pre-order exclusive, or else available as separate DLC.
Additionally, while it was already known thatSparking! Zero’s storywill take players through the anime’s most iconic story beats, like the fight against Frieza on Namek and the Cell Saga, the game’s newest trailer has also revealed that it will includeextra story content devoted to what-if scenarios branching off from canon events. Currently, it’s unknown just how many scenarios there are, or how in-depth the system is, but two scenarios in the trailer show Goku going Super Saiyan in the initial fight against Vegeta, and Vegeta and Trunks firing a combined Final Flash against Cell.
Iconic Dragon Ball Z Transformations Finally Confirmed For Sparking! Zero
Dragon Ball: Sparking! Zero is about to bring the fusions, as multiple fused characters from DBZ and beyond have been announced for the title.
Sparking! Zero’s Character Roster At Launch
Many Of The Series' Most Popular Characters Will Be In Sparking! Zero
SinceSparking! Zero’s initial reveal,the game’s roster of characters has been slowly unveiled with gradual new reveals, including several characters from the classic series as well as more recent additions fromDragon Ball Super. As with mostDragon Ballgames,Goku and Vegeta are the most heavily represented characters on the roster, with each taking multiple character slots across their many different forms, including multiple different Super Saiyan forms and variants for their appearances in each of the differentDragon Ballanime series.
Other notable characters include many of the series' most iconic villains, including Frieza, Broly, Cell, and Majin Buu, along with more recent antagonists like Jiren and Kale. As was probably expected, the Z Fighters will also appear in the game, with Piccolo, Krillin, Yamcha, Tien, and Master Roshi all having been confirmed, alongside popular allies like Trunks, Mr. Satan, and Android 17 and 18. As usual,the game will include a large roster, and it’s likely that some characters are still unannounced - but for those looking for more, there is a list ofevery currently revealedSparking! Zerocharacter.
Aside from Goku and Vegeta, it’s known that some other characters, like Gogeta and Broly, will also have multiple variants, with the most likely candidates being popular characters with different transformations - Frieza, who’s Golden form has already appeared in trailers for the game.
Dragon Ball: Sparking! Zero Edition Differences
Sparking! Zero Has Four Editions To Choose From
Dragon Ball: Sparking! Zerowill be available in four different editions - Standard, Deluxe, Ultimate, and Premium. Starting off with the Standard Edition, the game’s base version is priced at the relatively new triple-A premium of $69.99, andcomes with no bonus content unless players pre-order the game. Notably, while the game’s official release date is October 11, the Standard Edition is the only version actually releasing on that date, asall versions above will also include a 3-day early access periodin addition to their extra content.
The first of the enhanced editions is the digital-exclusiveDeluxe Edition, which costs $30 extra over the standard version, putting it at a total price of $99.99. This edition of the game includes the base game, the Season Pass (which includes the game’s first three DLCs), a Season Pass Bonus to “Summon Shenron”, and the previously mentioned 3-day early access to the game. Notably, this edition of the game also specifies that it will include additional 3-day early access to the DLC packs of the Season Pass as well as the base game.
New Dragon Ball: Sparking! Zero Rating Could Be Bad News For Future Characters
Dragon Ball: Sparking! Zero’s ESRB rating was revised, which indicates that microtransactions could be coming. If so, that might be bad.
The next edition, and the last one available on platform-owned storefronts, isthe Ultimate Edition, which is priced at $109.99. This edition of the game includes everything included in the Deluxe Edition, but with the added bonus of an Ultimate Upgrade Pack, which includes a costume for Goku of hisSuperappearance with the Power Pole, an Emote Voice Set, two Player Card backgrounds, and an unspecified customization item. Additionally, this edition of the game will allow players to “Summon Super Shenron”.
Finally,the Premium Collector’s Edition of the game is exclusive to the Bandai Namco store, andcosts a staggering $229.99. In addition to all the bonuses offered by the less expensive versions, the Premium Edition also offers a number of physical goods, including four exclusive cards for theDragon Ballcard game, a Steelbook case, a lenticular card, a double-sided metallic bookmark, and an exclusive diorama of Broly and Ultra Instinct Goku fighting.
Dragon Ball: Sparking! Zero’s Most Exciting New Features
Lots To Look Forward To
Sparking! Zerowill include a plethora of new featureswhen compared to the originalBudokai Tenkaichiseries. Perhaps the most exciting isthe ability to revisit, and even change, classic stories from theDragon Ballanime. Players can experience what-if battles, scenarios in which characters make different choices and have different abilities from canon. For example, Goku can choose not to team up with Piccolo against Raditz, or become Super Saiyan much earlier than normal. These lead to never-before-seen battles with unique constraints and victory conditions, givingSparking! Zerogreat appeal even for veteranDragon Ballfans.
Of course, much ofSparking! Zerois still dedicated to telling the classicDragon Ballstorywith few, if any, alterations. These what-if battles are just a diversion from the main story; plenty of fun, but with no long-term impact on the plot.
Dragon Ball: Sparking! Zerowill also have a diverse menu of multiplayer modes, ranging from one-off battles to multi-tier tournaments. Unfortunately, not every mode will be available in split-screen multiplayer; only the Hyperbolic Time Chamber stage will allow two players to face off against each other while sitting in the same room. All the other multiplayer modes are relegated to online multiplayer only, but even then, there are plenty of options.
Players can select from a wide variety of tournamentsinspired by the anime, each with its own unique rules, difficulty settings, and win conditions. For example, the Yamcha Game, returning fromBudokai Tenkaichi 3, is crushingly difficult, and special conditions change every battle - for example, players may find their Ki constantly decreasing during one round.
Releasing on October 11,Dragon Ball: Sparking! Zerois the game that many of the series' most devoted fans have been requesting for over a decade, and looks to be delivering a modernized version of theBudokai Tenkaichiseries' classic gameplay. While some of the anime’s more modern content is likely to be saved for post-launch DLC,Dragon Ball: Sparking! Zeropromises a completeBudokai Tenkaichiexperience at launch.
