Non woke Dragonball sold 3 million units in 10 minutes, was this Emperor Showa plan all along?

It appears Dragonball is still incredibly popular with 35 year old men.

Dragon Ball: Sparking! Zero Sells an Incredible 3 Million Copies in Just 24 Hours

Dragon Ball: Sparking! Zero has got off to an incredible start with three million sales in 24 hours.

The first sequel in more than 15 years in the Dragon Ball Z: Budokai Tenkaichi series launched on October 11 across PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X and S, and PC via Steam, and quickly shot up to the most-played games list on Valve’s platform. Neither Sony nor Microsoft makes their console numbers public.

Sparking! Zero soon sped past the Steam peak player counts of every other Dragon Ball game released on the platform — and it's not even close. SteamDB currently reports a peak player count of 122,554, which was achieved at launch. The next-highest peak player count for a Dragon Ball game was set by Arc System Work’s fighting game Dragon Ball FighterZ, which topped out at 44,303. At the time of this article’s publication, Sparking! Zero still had a sizeable number of players (28,064, with a 24-hour peak of 83,313).

To put Sparking! Zero’s success into added context, at least on Steam, Capcom's Street Fighter 6 has a peak player count of 70,573, while NetherRealm's Mortal Kombat 1 peaked with 38,129 players.

I mean didn't all the people around the world coming together to grieve over Akira Toriyama not tell you how much influence his work still has?

Product made for fans

Fans buy product

This is the correct answer. Us DBZ fans wanted to show Akira Toriyama respect towards his final projects and while not slightly involved but Dragon Ball: Sparking Zero was one of them paying respects.

I agree with Champ that these games are actually mid/low.

Being a fan doesn't mean low expectations, Dragon Ball FighterZ proved this and completely trumped all other games.

I'm a fan, be picking it up on a sale at best.

Quality control is actual respect. Consuming product for the sake of consuming is not that.

Akira Toriyama was not happy with Dragonball Super. Now we have Dragon Ball: Daima animation quality which had his direct involvement, which from the opening episode appears already a better series.

He was also involved with Dragon Ball FighterZ, namely Android 21.

The difference between Dragon Ball FighterZ and these games is that it can stand on it's own, you don't have to be a fan.

Most of these games are shallow as a puddle dressed up with the aesthetics going over Z for the hundredth billionth time, because that's bankable.

Disagree with champ and I'm a fighterZ fan, played it since it was in Beta. He's scared to play a DBZ area fighter. He claims it's easy mode fighting game for babies but I can 100% guarantee you he would get his ass handed to him in ranked because he's probably never bothered to play a fighting game that's not a traditional 2D fighter. Anyone who claims these games take no skill and are easy I disregard because to rise to a high rank in these games get just as sweaty as Street Fighter or Tekken.

I do love fighterZ and I also love MvC. FighterZ is just a more accessible MVC game with a pretty DB skin on it. But Tenkaichi is a fighting game that is focused more on trying to feel like an actual Dragonball fighting game. Having full movement on a 3d scape is a more authentic dragonball fighting experience.

Kind of reminds me of people who shit on smash bros and say it's not competitive, has no mechanics, then they play guys who play it sweaty and get absolutely destroyed. Fanboy logic because they suck at the game.

Champ needs to stop hating and get good

@uninspiredcup:

Speaking of fighting games, that new Mortal Kombat 1 dlc crap got a 6

https://www.gamespot.com/reviews/mortal-kombat-1-khaos-reigns-review-organized-chaos/1900-6418301/

Sarge is proof that women shouldn't drink alcohol when pregnant. Their children develop brain damage that they will have to deal with for the rest of they life : (

I'm loving it honestly. They absolutely nailed the look and the counter mechanics make the game deeper then you would think.

Never bought a Dragonball game in my entire life, I just don't get it I suppose, and i'm content with that.

Not as cool as FighterZ, so will not be getting it. I'm not a DB fan, never seen the anime. But FighterZ was rad.

I'm loving the game so far. It's just like the Tenkaichi 3 my buddies and I used to play back in the day, and I'm glad it's selling so well. In fact, before it released it had more pre-orders than Call of Duty Black Ops 6 did, which is pretty wild for a niche anime game.

DBZ isnt niche though. Its franchise power worldwide is on the level of something like Pokemon. Not surprised at all its selling this good. FighterZ didnt sell as good because it was more of a hardcore fighting game with a weak roster of characters at launch. Sparking Zero is a more complete game on this regard

Precisely why I dropped it maybe two minutes in. I'm not into that combat I have to take hours learning in fighting games.

FightersZ was about as casual a fighting game as you can get. If you're actually new to fighting games that or SF5/6 are probably you're best choice as a first entry .

The main problem (and it's always been a problem) with fighting games is smurfing. Haven't played a fighting game in yonks, but everyone I have played it's fucking horrific.

If you're new and playing for the first time again people deliberately ranking down, gives a completely false impression.

While DB is a worldwide franchise, I still consider anime games in general niche. They aren't exactly know for powerhouse quality nor do they constantly top the selling charts like other game franchises. One Piece for example, is a higher grossing IP than Dragonball but One Piece games have historically sold terribly by comparison. I think it's pretty astounding that Sparking Zero had more pre-orders than the newest entry in the biggest shooter franchise on the market.

On one hand from what I hear, Mr. Satan doesnt even do any damage. Which broke my hopes. But at the same time, I heard that my boys Krillin and Yamcha are perfectly viable.

Still I would love to have beaten up some of the DB gods as Mr. Satan, that would have been a memory to cherish.

It it means less naruto games I am all for it. Kill all other anime franchise we just need Dragon Ball and the occasional random hot anime of the year game.

So many good defense mechanics, that's where most the depth is, not in the attacks but your defense and spacing.

I love it

@uninspiredcup: tired of these threads...when did dragon ball go woke? Is going woke, just code name for changing with the times?

Let's use women fashion as an example. In the early 1900s women wore long skirts to their knees. 1950s they started showing legs and today women are full blown skanks wearing bra and panties to gym sessions. Is that going woke or just capitalism combined with a lack of morals and cultural decency in the west? In the middle east women are not allowed to wear such skanky clothing, and although I think it's going too far, they do have the right idea.

So again...the question is, do you call it woke or just changing with the times? People generally being kinder and more considerate is a good thing.

They made Mr.PoPo blue.

You can dude, he's viable.

Really like the DP system, for ranked he's viable and only costs 1 pt.

He does do damage but is grounded and can't fly. He's not a great character. But he is 100% viable in team battles due to the DP system. Yajarobee probably the most useful 1 dp cost character though because of sensu bean special move heals himself.

You have 15 pts to work with. Gogeta is like 8dp for example. Hercule is 1dp so he can fit in alot of teams.

@uninspiredcup: and so what if they did? Times change. Back in the day things were done differently from today. Again, refer to all the skanks in the gym comment. If your great grandma could see the skanks of today and what they wear, getting a beat down would be putting things mildly. It hasn't even been that long since "inter racial" marriage became common or accepted. Back then black face / pink lips was also acceptable in Japanese art, now they know better.

Times change my man. You need to stop griping about this nonsense...lest all women wear floor skirts and corsets. Men wear top hats and suits.

Daima has restored Mr.Popo's honor.

@sargentd: That system is very good! I know people in the MvC2 community started to draft an unofficial system like that, so it is cool to see a AAA game make it a part of the official ruleset.

@uninspiredcup said:

@blaznwiipspman1 said:

@uninspiredcup: and so what if they did? Times change. Back in the day things were done differently from today. Again, refer to all the skanks in the gym comment. If your great grandma could see the skanks of today and what they wear, getting a beat down would be putting things mildly. It hasn't even been that long since "inter racial" marriage became common or accepted. Back then black face / pink lips was also acceptable in Japanese art, now they know better.

Times change my man. You need to stop griping about this nonsense...lest all women wear floor skirts and corsets. Men wear top hats and suits.

Daima has restored Mr.Popo's honor.

lmfao 😂🤣🤡

I havent bought this game yet, but I am honestly tempted to give it a try. Even if it wont be as technical as Street Fighter or Tekken, the game is just so fun to watch. Steam allows for refunds afterall.

@pcgamerlaszlo: One Piece higher grossing than DBZ? O_o

Where did you get that? It is not

https://www.cbr.com/highest-grossing-anime-franchises/

One Piece is stupid pirates, Dragonball is cool shit.

Of course Dragonball is more popular.

Toriyama's passing has led to a sales boost for new Dragon Ball products... Maybe Dragon Quest might also get a sales boost?

Yup. Seems like the article you posted and mine are only a month or two apart. Both franchises are pretty close, which solidifies my original point.

https://www.hindustantimes.com/entertainment/anime/one-piece-overtakes-dragon-ball-claims-revenue-crown-with-mind-boggling-lead-101715662076323.html

https://www.titlemax.com/discovery-center/the-25-highest-grossing-media-franchises-of-all-time/

Depends on what metric we're comparing:

Lifetime revenue - Dragon Ball > One Piece

Annual revenue - One Piece > Dragon Ball

It's only in the last fiscal year that OP surpassed DB in annual revenue. This was thanks to the OP anime and live-action show each topping 2023's viewership charts for anime and Netflix shows, respectively.

@blaznwiipspman1: Relax. The thread title is not serious. Cup is very tongue in cheek when talking about "woke".

@uninspiredcup said:

@blaznwiipspman1 said:

@uninspiredcup: and so what if they did? Times change. Back in the day things were done differently from today. Again, refer to all the skanks in the gym comment. If your great grandma could see the skanks of today and what they wear, getting a beat down would be putting things mildly. It hasn't even been that long since "inter racial" marriage became common or accepted. Back then black face / pink lips was also acceptable in Japanese art, now they know better.

Times change my man. You need to stop griping about this nonsense...lest all women wear floor skirts and corsets. Men wear top hats and suits.

Daima has restored Mr.Popo's honor.

According to Toriyama, Popo's design is based on Indian and Arabic cultures. In Arabic art, some jinns (a.k.a. genies) were depicted with black skin. In Indian mythology, the Hindu deity Mahakala is depicted with black skin and red lips.

@Jag85 said:

@uninspiredcup said:

@blaznwiipspman1 said:

@uninspiredcup: and so what if they did? Times change. Back in the day things were done differently from today. Again, refer to all the skanks in the gym comment. If your great grandma could see the skanks of today and what they wear, getting a beat down would be putting things mildly. It hasn't even been that long since "inter racial" marriage became common or accepted. Back then black face / pink lips was also acceptable in Japanese art, now they know better.

Times change my man. You need to stop griping about this nonsense...lest all women wear floor skirts and corsets. Men wear top hats and suits.

Daima has restored Mr.Popo's honor.

According to Toriyama, Popo's design is based on Indian and Arabic cultures. In Arabic art, some jinns (a.k.a. genies) were depicted with black skin. In Indian mythology, the Hindu deity Mahakala is depicted with black skin and red lips.

What was Staff Officer Black based off?

@judaspete: these woke/ non woke nonsense is just getting annoying now and ill admit it was funny before. Fucks sake, let's stick to games and forget the cultural bs.

The fact is dragon ball sparkling is a solid game that fans of budokai will love regardless if it's woke or not.

@blaznwiipspman1: Yeah, it has gotten truly annoying. Seems like a lot of folks spend more time "researching" reasons to be big mad about games, than actually playing games.

Aren't 35 year old men the only group Dragonball is popular with?

Can't imagine many kids are into it given there are other things out there to watch/play.

Imagine confusing Japanese xenophobia and racism with "non-woke".

Yet another example of how centrism is not actually neutrality. You take a -10 and add a +3 to it, you still get a large negative.

Anyway, it's all kind of funny to me.

Very true. I'm not even a One Piece fan either, I'm just saying that the this anime game has broken records for fighting games sold on launch and has more concurrent players than most games right now. It sold 3 million copies in 24 hours. That, for an anime game that is usually dismissed by general gamers, is an unprecedented accomplishment.

Technically, many children, like the fat balding fucks we are now, have grown up on.

Specifically Kai, which was Z "remade", and condensed, which aired from 2009 to 2015+, airing on Nicktoons and Cartoon Network.

Also Super aired, though Super is abit shit. Not the worst thing ever, but compared to DB/Z it was very shit. Some parts straight up terrible.

The basic concepts of the series, I can't see diminishing over time. If a kid 30 years enjoyed it a kid now will enjoy it.

It's also very established now that it's highly unlikely to fade by any considerable amount.

@uninspiredcup said:

@Jag85 said:

@uninspiredcup said:

@blaznwiipspman1 said:

@uninspiredcup: and so what if they did? Times change. Back in the day things were done differently from today. Again, refer to all the skanks in the gym comment. If your great grandma could see the skanks of today and what they wear, getting a beat down would be putting things mildly. It hasn't even been that long since "inter racial" marriage became common or accepted. Back then black face / pink lips was also acceptable in Japanese art, now they know better.

Times change my man. You need to stop griping about this nonsense...lest all women wear floor skirts and corsets. Men wear top hats and suits.

Daima has restored Mr.Popo's honor.

According to Toriyama, Popo's design is based on Indian and Arabic cultures. In Arabic art, some jinns (a.k.a. genies) were depicted with black skin. In Indian mythology, the Hindu deity Mahakala is depicted with black skin and red lips.

What was Staff Officer Black based off?

Probably these guys:

Dragon Ball is not some niche anime game though. It's one of the biggest fighting game franchises, having sold more copies than Tekken and Street Fighter. DB has always been among the top-selling fighting games ever since the PS2 era. Other anime fighters are indeed quite niche, but certainly not DB.

The problem with One Piece games is that it's trickier to adapt into a video game. Dragon Ball is essentially a martial arts anime, so it's pretty straightforward to adapt into a fighting game. In contrast, One Piece is a pirate-themed action-adventure anime, which is tricker to adapt into a video game that captures the magic of the show.

I think the One Piece comparison I made has taken hold of the conversation. I'm saying anime games in general are a smaller selling base than regular AAA games, and that really can't be argued. If you look at the top fighting DB games before Sparking Zero, the only other DB game is ranked at 10th in sales (fighter Z). An anime game for the 1st time ever has surpassed top selling FPS games. An anime game for the 1st time in the history of gaming has become the best selling fighting game of all time. That's what i'm saying.

Nostalgia