Summary
Bandai Namco is making the first everDragon BallMOBA game viaDragon Ball Project: Multi— and what could be an awesome concept on its face will probably fall flat and be entirely unenjoyable. I remember tuning intoDragon Ball Zfor the first time when I was around 10 years old or so, back when the show was featured on Cartoon Network on the weekends, waking up early just to catch my favorite heroes power up to an absurd degree in which I’d never seen before.
As a fan of MOBA games,I have spent nearly 1,600 hours inDOTA 2and innumerable hours inHeroes of Newerth(remember that game?), so it feels likeDragon Ball: Project Multiis a gamemade specifically for a person like me. Sadly, from what I can gather from initial gameplay videos and details about its launch, it’ll more likely be another forgettable mobile game that gets yeeted into the trashbin of money-making mobile game machines from even the best gaming companies.
Dragon Ball: Sparking! Zero - Release Date, Characters, & Edition Differences
Over a decade since the last Budokai Tenkaichi game, Dragon Ball: Sparking! Zero has finally received an official release date in 2024.
Dragon Ball Project: Multi Is A Mobile Game
It Will Release On PC For Free
Themain issue withDragon Ball Project: Multiis that it’s being developed for mobile devicesand will be available on the Google Play and Apple App Store. While it doesn’t necessarily make the game bad or dead on release, it does significantly simplify the controls and makes it less alluring to hardcore gamers who prefer to game on a PC or console. Though the upside is that anyone will be able to try the game for free, the downside is that it’s possible many people won’t enjoy the experience.
Dragon Ball Project: Multiis a4v4 MOBA that pits popularDragon Ball Zcharacters like Goku, Vegeta, Krillin, and Android 18 against each other in a MOBA-style lane beat-em-upwhere each team must defeat mobs of creatures as well as the opposing team’s heroes. UnlikeDOTA 2orLoL, where the primary objective is todestroy the opposing side’s Ancient or Nexus, inProject: Multi, players must claim the enemy team’s Dragon Ball.
Even though the game is titledDragon Ball, the characters are mainly their iterations fromDragon Ball ZandSuper.
According to the staggering statistics of how many people play and enjoy mobile games — with the market reaching $98.7 billion in worldwide revenue in 2024, according toStatista— I’m probably now in the minority of people who don’t really enjoy them. I’ve tried higher-tier games like the gacha gameHonkai: Star Railand a few others, but it makes no sense for me to play these when I have two 140 hz gaming monitors and an awesome video card. This obviously doesn’t apply to people on the go or casual gamers who just want something to waste some time — but that isn’t me.
Every Character Revealed For Dragon Ball: Sparking! Zero So Far
Dragon Ball: Sparking! Zero is the continuation of the Budokai Tenkaichi series, and brings back its signature large roster of playable characters.
A Refined Dragon Ball MOBA Could Be A Lot Of Fun
Coming To Grips With Reality
Theoretically, the universe ofDragon Ballis the perfect setup for a MOBA game. Not only is there a huge roster of characters with different abilities that could lend themselves well to a MOBA setup, but theabilities themselves are unique enough to set them apart and make sense in a top-down isometric view. Master Roshi’s iconic Kamehameha or Piccolo’s Special Beam Cannon (or Makankōsappō) would have different cast times and a different sized radius, and this can apply to the various moves across the franchise.
Furthermore, certain characters, like Fat Buu or Android 16, are obvious tanks, while other, smaller and more agile characters, like Frieza’s final form or Kid Buu, could be DPS. Other characters like Bulma or Videl could be support characters with special tech or regenerative abilities that could make aDragon Ball-themed game one that I would actually play and spend some time in.
Though it would previously be somewhat unrealistic to think anyDragon Ballcrossover video game could be superb,Dragon Ball FighterZproved that it’s possiblefor such a crossover not only to be a fun game but one that could realistically build a strong community around it (yes,Budokaiis great, too, please don’t @ me). This is quite the feat, especially in a genre that is as guarded or competitive as fighting games, with games likeStreet Fighter,Tekken, andMortal Kombatcoming out with new titles every few years. That said, it’s unlikely that this mobile game will be anotherFighterZ, due to its requirement to have mobile-forward controls.
Dragon Ball FighterZ: Dramatic Finishers (& How To Activate Them)
Dragon Ball FighterZ’s amazing visuals are put on display during Dramatic Finishers, special cutscenes you can activate to end a fight with style.
Who Is Making Dragon Ball Project: Multi & Will It Be Any Good?
Backed By An Experienced Company
Although the game is being published by Bandai Namco,Dragon Ball Project: Multiis being developed by the lesser-known GANBARION Co.Although you wouldn’t be alone in having no idea what that company is or what games it has made, it’s been around since 1999 and regularly works with companies like Bandai Namco and Nintendo to create Anime crossover titles. Most recently, it created the relatively well-reviewedOne Piece World Seeker, which came out in 2019 and has worked on a host ofOne Piecetitles in the last decade.
Although reception for the rest of its catalog has been hit or miss, it doesn’t seem to be a studio that’s notorious for pumping out low-quality content, and at the very least, it’s an organization that has respect for the original material it’s basing its games on.
Dragon Ball’s Complete Timeline, Explained
What order should Dragon Ball’s plethora of content be consumed in? Here’s a chronological breakdown of every Dragon Ball series to date.
With the tragic and untimely passing of Akira Toriyama occurring in March of this year, it’s a personal hope of mine that upcoming titles from this iconic creator get shown the respect they deserve, much like the upcomingDRAGON BALL: Sparking! ZERO— the first game in theBUDOKAI TENKAICHIseries in 15 years — which looks to be superb from early gameplay footage.
I’ll Be Playing, But My Expectations Are Very Low
You Can Join The Beta, Too
TheDragon Ball Project: Multiwebsite also says that mobile support will be available the day the tests occur, but — you already know my opinion on that. Regardless of my initial impressions of the gameplay video, I’ll give the game a fair shot, and I’m hoping that it exceeds my low expectations.
