The iconic Dragon Ball Z Budokai Tenkaichi 3 is about to receive its much-awaited sequel, titled Sparking! ZERO and fans are extremely excited about the large character roster.
At least 150 character slots have been announced, so far, which will be filled by characters from various Dragon Ball franchises such as Z, Super, and multiple films with more expected to be unveiled soon.
Many, like the writer of this piece, have grown up playing the Tenkaichi series on PlayStation 2 and fans would remember the massive pool of fighters available. Tenkaichi 3 boasts 161 playable characters including multiple transformations and reports suggest the new game is set to at least match that.
At the end of January Bandai Namco revealed an initial list of 24 characters which included various versions of Goku such as Z – Early, Mid and End, along with all the Super Saiyyan variants seen in the anime including Dragon Ball Super versions like Super Saiyan God Super Saiyan. The list also included many versions of Vegeta such as Super Vegeta and Great Ape Vegeta.
Since then trailers for the game have teased fan favourites like Android 17 & 18, Cell (Perfect Form), Majin Buu, Frieza (Final Form), Broly, Future Trunks, Bergamo, Hercule, Jiren, Krillin, Yamcha, Tien and Piccolo
The latest V-jump scans reveal characters such as LSSJ Broly, Nappa, Burter, Jeice, Toppo, Roshi, Ascended Trunks, LSSJ Kale, Hit, and Dyspo. The official website for the game states that there will be a "historic number of playable characters, each with signature abilities, transformations, and techniques".
Earlier this month Dragon Ball creator Akira Toriyama passed away due to acute subdural hematoma. The 68-year-old left the entire anime and gaming community in a state of shock and tributes poured in from all over the globe. Toriyama’s work and the subsequent games based on them have been a major part of the childhood of many and have defined a generation of fans.
It won’t be unfair to say that nostalgia will play a big part in the hype of the lovingly called Budokai Tenkaichi 4 but the anticipation is through the roof since it’s been 17 years and three PlayStation console generations since the last release. Check out the latest about the split screening situation for Sparking! Zero and everything you need to know about Tenkaichi 4.