According to a recent interview, Dragon Ball: Sparking Zero possibly won't have any form of split-screen multiplayer. Dragon Ball: Sparking Zero has been one of the most anticipated releases for Dragon Ball fans, as it is a direct successor to the Budokai Tenkaichi arena fighter games. It features a lot of the classic gameplay from past titles in the series, including destructible environments, transformations, and a large roster of characters. One of the strongest aspects of the Budokai Tenkaichi series is its multiplayer mode.

In the original Dragon Ball: Budokai Tenkaichi series, players could play together in local PvP, with the third game introducing online multiplayer. While the online mode was criticized for being archaic and barely functioning, fans have nostalgic memories of playing these games with friends and engaging in kinetic battles with its huge roster. Split-screen multiplayer is still available in some games today, letting gamers play with each other locally. However, it appears this function may be axed for Sparking Zero.

Related

Dragon Ball: Sparking Zero Trailer Shows Off Goku and Vegeta's Transformations

Dragon Ball: Sparking Zero's latest trailer shows off some of the transformations that can be used by the iconic duo of Goku and Vegeta.

This information comes from a recent Twitter thread posted by LaunSSJ, which was translated by ShonenGameZ. It supposedly contains details that were gathered from an interview with Sparking Zero's producer, Jun Furutani, and two French streamers. According to Furutani, Sparking Zero won't feature split-screen local multiplayer, not because the developers don't want to include it, but due to issues related to Sony and Microsoft, stating the situation is "complicated."

Why Doesn't Dragon Ball: Sparking Zero Have Local Multiplayer?

Furutani states the developers are trying to find a solution to include split-screen multiplayer, but for now, fans shouldn't expect the feature in the game. ShonenGameZ puts forward that this omission could be due to Sony and Microsoft's policies, which currently favor selling more consoles to consumers. Furutani says the situation may still evolve, as the team is aware of the fans' demand for including this feature in Sparking Zero. Furutani also mentions that adapting games to the Xbox Series S console has been a challenge as well, which may be part of the reason why this feature was omitted.

Many fans were disappointed to hear that Sparking Zero is supposedly axing this feature, lamenting that one of the biggest draws of the Budokai Tenkaichi series was its multiplayer and getting together with friends to battle it out as their favorite Dragon Ball characters. The possibility of having the multiplayer modes regulated to be strictly online was seen as a bad move.

Furutani says the team is very open and wishes to improve Sparking Zero wherever possible, with series producer Ryo Mito gathering global feedback for the game. Despite this news supposedly coming from Furutani, fans should still likely wait until this detail is confirmed by Bandai Namco and Spike Chunsoft, as plans could change, and Dragon Ball: Sparking Zero may get split-screen multiplayer before launch or later down the line.

Dragon Ball: Sparking! Zero

The fourth mainline entry in the Budokai Tenkachi series, Dragon Ball: Sparking! Zero is an in-development arena fighter developed by Spike Chunsoft and published by Bandai Namco.

Franchise

Dragon Ball

Platform(s)

PC , PS5 , Xbox Series X , Xbox Series S

Developer(s)

Spike Chunsoft

Publisher(s)

Namco Bandai