By Mario Orozco

The Dragon Ball franchise has been around since the 80s and is a childhood favorite for many people, including myself. This week’s Mar’s Gaming Garage will be on a brand-new game, Dragon Ball Sparking Zero. Sparking Zero is filled with content, it builds off past games to create something that feels nostalgic yet fresh at the same time. 

One of my favorite aspects of this game is the episode battles. What makes episode battles unique are the branching story paths that create different outcomes in the scenarios. Episode battles allow you to play the story of Dragon Ball through eight different unique perspectives, each with its own branching paths that heavily impact the story. Being able to experience events through different perspectives is a cool feature on its own, but adding in the branching paths adds depth and replayability. 

Battles, both online and offline, are another way that Sparking Zero excels. The game has a massive roster of 182 characters with unique abilities that you can use against others in solo or team battles. I had a blast using some of the sillier character choices in online battles and it made losing to try-hards sting a little less.

The game also offers different tournament styles you can create and play with up to eight players. The tournaments are exciting to compete in and are my favorite part of the multiplayer experience. If you’re not interested in playing against other players, the tournaments can be experienced offline as well. The Yamcha Tournament has some great commentary and is my go-to.

The actual gameplay mechanics of Sparking Zero are fantastic. At first, all of the different combos and defensive mechanics can be a little overwhelming, but once you start to get the hang of them, the game becomes even more enjoyable. The skill gap in this game is quite large, so before you hop into online battles, I would recommend doing some training to get a better grasp of these mechanics.

I want to briefly touch on three honorable mentions from Sparking Zero before I get into my critique. First, custom battles are hilarious. They allow you to create your own custom scenarios that can be as tame or unhinged as your heart desires. Second, you can summon any of the three eternal dragons from the series to grant your wishes which provides an awesome visual. Finally, the encyclopedia allows you to view each character on the roster and listen to the main characters’ wives gossip about them, which are entertaining to listen to.

I only have one complaint for Sparking Zero — it doesn’t allow for crossplay. To me, this is ridiculous. How does an online multiplayer game released in 2024 not have crossplay? If indie games can handle it, then Sparking Zero can handle it. Despite this injustice, I recognize this isn’t a necessity for everyone and it doesn’t have a significant impact on my overall rating.

Overall, Dragon Ball Sparking Zero was a blast to play. I have a total of 37 hours put into this game and it took me 32 hours to complete every branching path for each character in the episode battles. I rate Sparking Zero a 4.9 out of 5. If the game was crossplay, it could’ve been my first 5, but that will have to wait for now. If you’re a fan of Dragon Ball or just want an engaging fighting game, then I highly recommend this game for you.

If you have any games you would like me to review or any thoughts on this review, you can email marsgaminggarage@gmail.com.

Mario Orozco is a writer and assistant social media editor for The Lumberjack. He transferred to Cal Poly Humboldt in 2022 and his favorite game of all time is The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild.