Key Takeaways
- Dragon Ball: Sparking Zero tournament generates controversy due to roster imbalance and gameplay exploits.
- The Grand Finals will be happening in January.
The recent Dragon Ball: Sparking Zero tournament has been making headlines for all the wrong reasons, including an imbalanced roster and competitors exploiting certain gameplay mechanics in ways that aren’t satisfying for spectators. Earlier this year, Bandai Namco and developer Spike Chunsoft released the first mainline Budokai Tenkaichi entry in nearly 17 years with Dragon Ball: Sparking Zero, which updated the classic formula with new roster additions from Dragon Ball Z and Dragon Ball Super.
The results have been quite positive for Dragon Ball: Sparking Zero, which was recently named the highest-selling Dragon Ball game in the United States and the fourth-highest-selling game of 2024 so far. Even though Sparking Zero’s PC player count has dropped considerably since its massive initial launch, Bandai Namco has promised to continue supporting the game through future DLC and even a global eSports tournament. Dragon Ball: Sparking Zero – The Dramatic Showdown – Grand Finals was announced earlier this month, with champions from all around the world picking one character to play as in a battle to see who is the best in the world.
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While this might seem like an interesting way to promote Dragon Ball: Sparking Zero at first glance, the tournament has already generated a lot of controversy. As reported by Push Square, observers have pointed out that Dragon Ball: Sparking Zero’s playable roster isn’t very balanced, with some characters having very clear advantages over others in a way that is clearly meant to emulate the Dragon Ball shows rather than serve as a competitive multiplayer fighter.
Dragon Ball: Sparking Zero Tournament Sparks Controversy
Additionally, some of Dragon Ball: Sparking Zero’s gameplay mechanics are really easy to exploit, as shown in the most recent qualifying competition in France. The grand finals match saw both competitors stalling and avoiding their opponent using the game’s vertical flying to keep themselves just out of reach of a high-damage Sparking Zero combo. As many have noted, this doesn’t make for the most gripping fight to watch, and the commentary team at the French qualifying event even stopped calling the match for a considerable stretch of time.
Dragon Ball: Sparking Zero – The Dramatic Showdown – Grand Finals will continue throughout the rest of November going into December, with Japan and Spain holding qualifying events on November 30, Italy holding one on December 1, the US west coast having their Sparking Zero event on December 7, and the US east coast holding one on December 8. From there, the grand finals will take place at the Dragon Ball: Games Battle Hour 2025 event in Los Angeles, CA on January 18 and 19. Hopefully, this event will be worth the hype for Dragon Ball: Sparking Zero fans, but the previous qualifiers haven’t been the best of omens.
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