Dragon Ball: Sparking Zero Has A Hidden Class System You Need To Know About

We’ll start with the type that most players will use, whether they know it or not. Ki-Blast characters are the ones most known for their projectiles. They can comfortably attack from a distance with long-range beams or smother their opponents with rapid energy blasts. Most versions of Goku and Vegeta would be considered a Ki-Blast type.

The best way to tell that a character is a part of this category is that their energy blasts cost less Ki compared to others. They can use projectiles a bit more often in combat without having to worry about running out of energy. Going hand-in-hand is the ability to just keep throwing out blasts. Most characters have a string of up to four or five blasts they can shoot before taking a short break. With some Ki-blast characters, such as Vegeta, you can keep mashing out projectile attacks until your energy is depleted.

Out of all the different types we talk about, these are the closest you have to all-rounders. They’re adequate at a little of everything and have more flexibility in how you play them. Others will meanwhile excel at specific qualities that can sometimes give them the edge in a fight.

When it comes to characters in the Dragon Ball franchise, you’re either going to think of those who use giant energy beams or the hulking brutes who overpower their opponents. The latter is the basis for the Strength character type. The fighters of the Strength type move and attack a bit slower, but make up for it with powerful hits.

Pinpointing a Strength type can be difficult.. Defining them purely on their attack damage is also less helpful when the whole roster adheres to the Destruction Point (DP) system. I’ve found that the larger and more muscular characters usually fall into the Strength category. Think of characters like Jiren and either version of Broly.

Some of these characters are unfazed by Ki-Blasts and weaker melee strings. They’ll still take damage, but they won’t be staggered and can still move and attack while being hit themselves. It’s a trait that’s typically exclusive to a Strength character’s highest form from my time testing. Both versions of Broly gain this special attribute with their respective third forms, although their second forms will also temporarily obtain it while entering Sparking! mode.

Most characters can cause a stagger against these particular foes with the fourth or so hit from their rush combo. This isn’t tied to landing a certain number of hits first. Instead, it appears that the latter halves of a Rush string commonly have more heavy hits. Further proving this is that both a fellow Strength character and a Giant character only need a single punch to cause a stagger. A Strength type’s primary weakness will be its slower nature. They should watch out for long-range attacks and opponents who like to dodge and attack from behind.

Next up is the perfect inverse to Strength: Speed. Featuring fighters such as Burter, Kakunsa, and Dyspo, Speed-types are all about quick movements and even faster attacks. Their melee rush combos will typically consist of individually weaker hits, but they can dish out many more instead.

This means it will be much harder to land a counter or Sonic Sway against a Speed type. Still, the best way to play these characters is to dodge around the opponent and attack from the sides or behind. That’s an ideal strategy for any character, but it feels a lot more oppressive with faster ones like these. The last thing a quick fighter like this needs is to be cornered.

Read More: Super Movement Is A Vague Dragon Ball: Sparking Zero Mechanic You Need To Know About

I’ve also found that they’re more likely to have certain techniques. Each one I practiced with had access to moves like Super Movement or Violent Rush during Sparking! Mode. They also all had a Rush Chain that could end with a Delta Heavy Finish, which functions like the Tri-Attack from older entries in the series. Becoming familiar with these techniques is necessary to keep your opponents on their toes.

Out of all the character types, the Androids have some of the more distinct gameplay properties. Androids cannot raise their Ki with the manual Ki charging button, which all other characters make use of. They can use it to transition into Sparking! mode, but it might as well not exist before that gauge is filled.

The methods of raising their Ki depend on what type of Android they are. Just like they were in the story, an Android is either an energy absorption model or a perpetual energy model. Energy absorption models like Dr. Gero and Android 19 charge Ki with melee attacks or by absorbing blasts from their opponents. All the rest are perpetual energy androids who simply recover Ki over time.

Either way, Androids need to keep a close watch on their Ki gauge. Flying around and throwing energy blasts is a lot more costly for them. These characters should stay on the offensive with melee attacks and rush combos as often as possible. Since they don’t need to worry about regular breaks in the fight to charge up, they shouldn’t allow their opponent that time either.

Although Androids have some pretty special gameplay qualities to them, there is one group that stands out even more. Giant characters are, true to their name, huge, lumbering fighters who tower over the rest of the roster. Some great examples include Great Ape Vegeta and Hirudegarn.

This difference in size gives them many advantages. Any attempts to throw a Giant charac ter will be unsuccessful in nearly all cases. They’re also impervious to most Impact Actions, with smaller characters only able to trigger Blast Impacts against them. In a related matter, only blast and energy beam supers will work and inflict damage. Characters that try to use a Rush Super against them will bounce back and have wasted their Ki.

They further share many traits with those from the Strength category. Their attacks, whether that’s close-range or projectile, will take out some big chunks of HP and send opponents flying. Giant characters also won’t stagger easily, remaining undisturbed from Ki blasts and weaker melee attacks.

However, they also amplify many of the setbacks from Strength characters. Such slow attacks are easy to dodge for opponents that are constantly moving around. It’s common for them to lose track and miss attacks depending on their positioning. Fighters from the same category can also be an effective counter. Another Giant can cause a stagger with one hit and they are the only ones who can trigger a unique Power Impact. The latter likely won’t happen often as it requires both to use a throw at the same time, even though their normal throws won’t work on each other.

So far, we’ve covered the primary character types, but there are a couple of sub-groups worth mentioning. Sword characters consist of the various Sword fighters throughout the franchise. All of them use a sword, in varying degrees, within their combos and supers. The included fighters are as follows:

• Trunks (Sword)
• Trunks (Sword) Super Saiyan
• Future Trunks
• Future Trunks Super Saiyan
• Dabura
• Super Janemba
• Tapion

Another special sub-group consists of ones you won’t see in the air that much. Ground characters are the few that can’t properly fly in the game. They can jump and awkwardly keep jumping in the air as well as dash forward, but they’ll always come floating back to the ground. Their goal is to bring the fight down to their level. Only the characters below fall into this tiny category:

• Goku (Teen)
• Master Roshi
• Master Roshi Max Power
• Mr. Satan

There isn’t anything wrong with diving headfirst into Dragon Ball: Sparking Zero and playing with your favorites. Each fighter is viable when it comes to having a good time and engaging in exciting battles. Despite that, you’re sure to have a better understanding of character match-ups when you know the pros and cons of each character type.