It’s been 18 years since Nintendo fans were captivated by Dragon Ball Budokai Tenkaichi 3 and its massive roster on the Wii. Coincidentally, it’s been 15 years since the previous game in the Budokai Tenkaichi series, Dragon Ball Z: Tenkaichi Tag Team, graced the PlayStation Portable as well. All these years later, Nintendo fans can now play the latest game in the series, Dragon Ball: Sparking! ZERO, on Nintendo Switch and Nintendo Switch 2. Despite some technical setbacks, Dragon Ball Sparking ZERO is a great time on Nintendo Switch 2, with the core features of the PS5 and Xbox Series X|S versions included.
Dragon Ball: Sparking! ZERO is the latest entry in the Budokai Tenkaichi series, and as our initial review in October 2024 described, it’s a true love letter to the Dragon Ball franchise and all of its genre-defining arcs. With 182 characters in the base roster, Dragon Ball Sparking! ZERO carries on the legacy of the games before it with very fun game befitting of the Budokai Tenkaichi title. Although the game’s Episode Battle mode retreaded a lot of previously explored waters with the arcs of Dragon Ball Z, the Dragon Ball Super and What If scenarios, and the game’s Player Level system, gave players a lot to strive for. With the Switch and Switch 2 versions out, now is a great time to re-explore these games in a portable form factor, just like I did 15 years ago in Tenkaichi Tag Team.
Dragon Ball Sparking! ZERO Makes a Solid Landing on Switch 2
As of the November 14th launch, the Switch and Switch 2 versions of Dragon Ball: Sparking! ZERO include the updates released up to January 2025, along with the content of the base game and the pre-order bonuses, including Goku from Dragon Ball Daima and the complimentary Shenron wishes. You still get access to all the Episode Battle content, Custom Battle, the 182 character roster, and online and offline modes, including split-screen local multiplayer on the Hyperbolic Time Chamber stage.
In fact, the Switch and Switch 2 versions can support up to 6 players in local co-op on just one system. Unfortunately, I couldn’t test this out for myself yet, but with the holidays coming up soon, I can definitely see the appeal of this for hosting some short and friendly tournaments. Single Joy-Con play is also supported on both systems, but I wouldn’t recommend it unless you’re using a Joy-Con 2 controller. The Joy-Con 2 controller is at least big enough in my hands to pull off basic combos and motions when playing in tabletop mode.
What’s more, Dragon Ball: Sparking! ZERO supports motion controls on both consoles with a dedicated control scheme, which is in addition to the existing Standard and Classic control schemes. I thought motion controls would be a simple gimmick, but it’s much more technical in nature than I expected. There are individual motions tied to specific maneuvers, including Rush Attacks, Dragon Dash Attacks, and Burst attacks. You’ll have to go through Training again and sit down for a while to study each motion and move again to get a full grasp of the motion controls. I appreciate the effort that was put into motion controls to make it just as fleshed out as the other control schemes, though.
Performance Breakdown
In terms of specifications, the Nintendo Switch 2 version is the clear winner. On Switch 2, Dragon Ball: Sparking! ZERO runs at 30 FPS in 1080p in docked mode and 810p in handheld with dynamic resolution. This is the version I played for review, and I thoroughly enjoyed the game’s presentation in both handheld and docked. Although the game is capped at 30 FPS, the action didn’t feel bogged down, and there were virtually no frame rate drops in my playthrough. However, I think there’s still some room for improvements when it comes to the overall presentation. Occasionally, visuals in Episode Battle look muddy or jagged when transitioning from still images to actual gameplay, and it can be quite distracting.
In comparison, Dragon Ball: Sparking! ZERO runs at 720p 30 FPS in docked and 480p 30 FPS in handheld on the original Switch. It’s clear that this game is really pushing the limits of Switch 1 hardware, with some menus dropping down to 24 FPS, according to the game’s official specifications. Fortunately, players can apply a free update to their Switch 1 copies on Switch 2, essentially upgrading it to the Switch 2 version. After installing the update, players will match with Switch 2 players and other users who upgraded their copy in online matches. It’s worth noting that save data is carried over, but battle replay data, custom battle data, and online battle records won’t be brought over.
On another note, I’m impressed by how small the file sizes for Dragon Ball: Sparking! ZERO are. The Nintendo Switch version sits at 6.7 GB, while the Switch 2 version takes up 11.2 GB. Having a massive Dragon Ball experience take up so little space on the console’s internal storage is a big plus, especially when new content arrives.
In Need of Some Senzu Beans, or More Updates
As I mentioned earlier in this review, Dragon Ball: Sparking! ZERO on Switch and Switch 2 only has updates released up to January 2025, so there’s quite a number of post-launch updates that are missing here. Updates that were released after that point will be coming to the Switch and Switch 2 versions gradually over time, and this also applies to the game’s Season Pass content, which seems to have staggered release schedule throughout the first half of 2026. For example, the Hero of Justice DLC pack has a placeholder release date set for May 31, 2026, but this is obviously subject to change.
The lack of parity with the other versions of Dragon Ball: Sparking! ZERO is arguably one of the biggest drawbacks of the Nintendo Switch 2 version, besides not being able to reach 60 FPS or aim higher than the 1080p resolution. I wanted to try out the Demon World stage and the Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero and Daima DLC characters immediately since I didn’t buy into the DLC originally in the PC version, but that will have to wait for a later date on Switch and Switch 2. I hope these updates and DLC packs are released rather timely to get Nintendo fans caught up to speed, since there’s more Dragon Ball: Sparking! ZERO content planned for 2026 in what could be the Dragon Ball franchise’s biggest year yet.
Dragon Ball: Sparking! ZERO Shines with Portable Play
Although I wish the developers pushed Dragon Ball: Sparking! ZERO even further on the hardware, I’m really happy with the overall experience with the Switch 2 version. Being able to play Dragon Ball: Sparking! ZERO in portable mode is really fun, and I’m pleased with how the game’s visuals look on a large display as well. It shouldn’t be understated that the Switch 2 is capable of running most games, ranging from indie to AAA, and Dragon Ball: Sparking! ZERO being one of those titles is a real delight when I can sit back and enjoy it in a cozy setup.
I encourage Bandai Namco and the development team to make even more optimizations over time. The Switch 2 version can be even better, even if that 60 FPS target doesn’t get hit in the future. The rollout of Dragon Ball: Sparking! ZERO DLC is also vital, and I hope Switch and Switch 2 users won’t be far behind the other consoles in terms of content. Everyone benefits from the hype of new DLC releasing at the same time on all platforms, after all.
Dragon Ball: Sparking! ZERO is available now for Nintendo Switch, Nintendo Switch 2, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC via Steam.
Disclaimer: Bandai Namco provided a Nintendo Switch 2 copy of Dragon Ball: Sparking! ZERO for review purposes.
