Dragon Ball Xenoverse 3 Could Be the Most Complex Game in the Series

Look, I really like Dragon Ball, but even I am starting to lose track of all the canon we have had over the decades. And that is just the old canon from the original creator. Now a new one is beginning, taking us far into the future. For example, in the upcoming action RPG Dragon Ball Xenoverse 3. Its story takes place in the year 1000, which is 148 years after the events of the second game. This is the furthest into the future the series has gone so far, so it is understandable that the game is built mainly around new faces. Bulma, Brett, Gamma 1, Lilica, Rom and Tap. These are the main characters, and most of them are completely new.

The game takes us to West City, which is also a new location. I could not try out the city at Gamescom, as our demo focused exclusively on battles, but the developers gave us a closer look at it themselves. It will be your central hub for practically everything. The city will be full of various NPCs who may give you quests or simply tell you to get lost. You will get quests and collect important items there, and you can also visit interiors, so it will not just be about running around the streets.

The key new feature is MystiPix. Imagine them as the wizard cards from the Harry Potter series. Except here, instead of Dumbledore, Goku is riding around in the picture. The cards contain the souls of legendary warriors, and your task is to collect them. You can gain their abilities, and they will also give you quests and move the story forward. First, however, you have to summon them from the card, which Fortunteller Gal will help you with. Your main task in the game is to train yourself into the ultimate warrior, and these mentors will help you do that.

Each new soul also gives you a new skill tree, where you can unlock new abilities. The souls also come with the option of using their Soul Assist, meaning the enhancements they provide. These can be offensive or defensive, buffs or debuffs. Another important feature is Soul Switch, a time-based ability that allows you to transform into the given soul during battle. There will be 100 of these souls in the game, meaning 100 progression trees, so there will be plenty of variety. There are also special Awoken skills that are unique to each of the 6 races in the game. What does that mean? Each race can transform into a stronger version of itself, such as a Saiyan becoming a Super Saiyan.

You will be able to customize your character to your liking, not only in terms of abilities, but also things like flying, running and, of course, combos. The equipment your character wears grants you both passive and active abilities. It works simply—if you dress like Goku, you will have abilities like Goku. All of this, together with what was described above, creates a great many layers of gameplay, and it is quite possible that this will be the most complex Dragon Ball game ever. Moreover, it is not set in stone yet, as the developers have already shaped it according to feedback and will probably continue doing so in the future.

And the battles? The demo focused mainly on them, so I got my fill of combat. Well, just one battle, but a properly long one. Standing against me and a group of AI companions was Broly (Super), and he can really put up a fight. He is just as powerful as he is in the film. You try to take him down with combinations of light and heavy attacks, use Chi, but above all, collect energy so that you have enough for Super Attacks and Ultimate Attacks. You choose these yourself as part of your build, but you know them well—Kamehameha, Special Beam Cannon and others. If you fall in battle, it is not the end—your fellow fighters can always revive you.

So, what are my overall impressions? There may be too much of it, but so far it feels good. It looks, plays and sounds exactly the way a Dragon Ball game should. Let us just hope it does not become overly complicated in the full version.