DB: Sparking Zero Marks Spike Chunsoft and Budokai Tenkaichis Return

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DB: Sparking Zero Marks Spike Chunsoft and Budokai Tenkaichis Return

As a die-hard Dragon Ball fan and one who grew up with the Budokai Tenkaichi series, I can confidently say that Dragon Ball: Sparking Zero has been nothing short of a delightful trip down memory lane. The game’s return to form is as refreshing as a cool drink on a hot day, and it’s clear that Spike Chunsoft hasn’t forgotten the magic they created all those years ago.

After more than a decade, the beloved Dragon Ball series has made a comeback to one of its classic video game franchises. The release of Dragon Ball: Sparking Zero signifies the reemergence of the Budokai Tenkaichi games, originally developed by Spike (now known as Spike Chunsoft), and fans of both old and new are ecstatic. In terms of authentic Dragon Ball Z fight simulation, nothing compared to Budokai Tenkaichi in its day, and the same can be said for its extensive and specialized character roster. While Dragon Ball: Sparking Zero’s roster focuses on different aspects, its gameplay and mode offerings perfectly capture the essence of Dragon Ball.

Despite an abundance of remarkable modern Dragon Ball series, there’s something delightful about reviving elements that resonated most with older fans during their youth. In Sparking Zero, players can explore alternate Dragon Ball storylines, discover numerous unlockable items in the in-game store, and enjoy fresh features such as online multiplayer mode and Custom Battles, which expand on Budokai Tenkaichi’s content. The enthusiastic effort put into Sparking Zero has made it a triumphant return, but it’s not just the game that’s striving for greatness; the developers are too.

Dragon Ball: Sparking Zero and Spike Chunsoft’s Background, Explained

Spike Chunsoft, along with its later iteration, has been responsible for creating and distributing numerous games since 2012, one of their most notable collaborative series being with Bandai Namco on Shonen Jump properties. Following Dimps’ completion of the Budokai trilogy in 2004, Spike took over in 2005, launching the Budokai Tenkaichi series. This series ran from 2005 to 2007, with a spin-off for PSP, Tenkaichi Tag Team, released in 2010. The Budokai Tenkaichi trilogy was a popular third-person sequel to the traditional fighting game-inspired Budokai games, and all these games are still highly respected today.

Where Spike and Budokai Tenkaichi’s Reputations Diverged

Dimps and Spike consistently worked on the Dragon Ball series alongside other ventures. Notably, Dimps produced the popular titles like Dragon Ball Heroes and Dragon Ball Xenoverse during the 2010s. Unfortunately, Spike’s progress wasn’t always smooth, with their projects facing some issues. For instance, Dragon Ball: Raging Blast in 2009 was generally well-received but a scaled-back sequel, Dragon Ball: Raging Blast 2, launched in 2010 with more problems, indicating potential trouble. The release of Dragon Ball Z: Ultimate Tenkaichi in 2011 introduced create-a-character functionality to console Dragon Ball games for the first time, but it was soon overshadowed by the less successful reception of Raging Blast 2.

Spike Chunsoft Had A Rough Journey Back To Its Star Arena Fighter

2012 was a significant year for me as a gamer because it marked Spike’s merger with Chunsoft, leading to the release of Dragon Ball Z: For Kinect. I wasn’t surprised when the game didn’t do well, but little did we know that this was just the beginning of a downward spiral for Spike Chunsoft’s licensed arena fighters.

What Dragon Ball: Sparking Zero Could Mean For Spike Chunsoft’s Future

2019 and 2020 saw a significant downturn for Spike Chunsoft and Bandai Namco, with the releases of “Jump Force” and “One-Punch Man: A Hero Nobody Knows” respectively. These games received poor reviews, causing some worry when Spike Chunsoft was chosen to revive the “Budokai Tenkaichi” series. However, Spike Chunsoft managed to recover just in time, avoiding any further damage to its reputation. It’s believed that Bandai Namco played a role in ensuring that “Sparking Zero” met the expectations set by “Budokai Tenkaichi,” but it’s still impressive how much improvement “Sparking Zero” showed from Spike Chunsoft’s previous arena fighter of the same name. Hopefully, “Dragon Ball: Sparking Zero” helped restore Spike Chunsoft’s reputation to a point where it’s no longer a warning sign for future licensed fighting games.

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2024-10-20 17:03