Like so many other popular manga/anime, Dragon Ball continues to reach new heights as the mediums grow each year. Whether through the return of the anime or the major popularity of its video games, we continue to see huge fan demand for more Dragon Ball content. Earlier this year, we got a tease of what’s next with Project AGE 1000, which was finally revealed to be Xenoverse 3 in April.
At Summer Game Fest: Play Days 2026, I had the chance to view a hands-off preview of Dragon Ball Xenoverse 3 to see what’s next for the beloved franchise. The long-awaited sequel to 2016’s Xenoverse 2 looks quite ambitious thus far, and I’m interested to see just how big this adventure is going to be.
Xenoverse 3 is set in Age 1000, far in the future, with wild technological advancements. The game’s main hub is West City, and from first glance, this location looks to be huge. The demo started in a very messy apartment that belongs to the main character of Xenoverse 3. Speaking of, your character is someone you’re able to customize to your liking. We saw a small peek at the character creation screen, and Bandai Namco showcased picking between a Saiyan and an Earthling, then customizing them. I’m interested in whether the apartment will be a customizable area as well, as this could be a really fun way for players to carve out their own slice of West City.
Stepping into West City, it becomes very clear that this is much larger than anything seen previously in the Xenoverse series. The city was bustling with characters throughout, with futuristic buildings lining the skies and even flying cars jetting around. It seems like West City is going to be a really neat location to explore, as in the small slice we got, we saw fan favorite characters you could interact with, tons of areas to run around in, and more. I left my preview excited to see more and wondering just how much content there will be in West City, as I really wanted to explore more of it and see the day-to-day lives of its inhabitants.
Naturally, the demo quickly moved on from West City and into combat, where things have also seen a major level up. This is an area that has seen a ton of attention from the team, and you can really feel the ambition just by watching the footage. Combat has you utilizing familiar Dragon Ball moves as you defeat enemies in different levels/arenas. My preview had an area filled with ice that you could move around in a bit, with enemies throughout, and a major boss fight at the end.
The most interesting mechanic I saw essentially lets you swap souls with beloved Dragon Ball characters and become them, allowing you to utilize their abilities in combat and deal major damage. We saw the main character morph into Trunks, and his health bar and damage output vastly grew. Additionally, we also saw an SSJ3 transformation by the main character. It appears that numerous Dragon Ball characters will be available to swap into combat, which should be a lot of fun for experimentation with different abilities.
Overall, I’m liking what I’ve seen from Dragon Ball Xenoverse 3 so far. The ambition is clearly there, and it appears that Dragon Ball fans are going to have much to look forward to when it launches in 2027.
For more on Dragon Ball Xenoverse 3, check out our video preview on YouTube with new footage of the game:
