When Dragon Ball FighterZ was revealed during E3 2017, fans were blown away by its art style. The cel-shaded look is the best we’ve ever seen, perfectly replicating the original 2D anime and earning Best Visuals from our Top Games of E3 2017 awards. In order to really appreciate the game, however, players need to see it in person, and Bandai Namco is making that happen with an open beta weekend two weeks before Buy Now releases.
According to Polygon, the beta will begin January 14 for everyone, and one day earlier for those with pre-orders. To be precise, it begins at 3 a.m. ET on January 13 for pre-orders, and at 3 a.m. ET on January 14 for everyone else. Players can fight to their heart’s content until 2:59 a.m. ET on January 16.
The Dragon Ball FighterZ beta is for PlayStation 4 and Xbox One players only. While the game is still releasing on Windows PC, there will not be an open beta for those users.
Bandai Namco has not provided details on which characters and game modes will be playable during next month’s beta. The publishers have announced 24 fighters to date, most recently revealing Beerus, Hit, and Goku Black from the current Dragon Ball Super anime series.
As the God of Destruction, Beerus can create Spheres of Destruction. When they come in contact with an opponent, they explode. Hit’s signature technique in the anime is Time Skip, which allows him to jump ahead in time a fraction of a second. In Dragon Ball FighterZ, his move-set emphasizes striking, and his Meteor special attack stops time and unleashes a combo attack. Goku Black’s special capability is called Work of the Gods, which allows him to summon Zamasu to “blind” his opponent.
A new feature was also revealed (via Gamespot) for fans of the series. Called Dramatic Production, it shows unlocks scenes from the anime when certain conditions are met. These scenes will appear before and after a battle.
Dragon Ball FighterZ launches simultaneously for PS4, Xbox One, and PC on January 26. Producers haven’t ruled out a Nintendo Switch release quite yet. Check out our hands-on impressions and you’ll realize that it plays as awesome as it looks.
