Forget Super Saiyans, Gods, and Frieza – this is who Dragon Ball Sparking Zero should focus on

After a 17-year break, the beloved Dragon Ball Z Budokai Tenkaichi franchise is finally returning with its spiritual successor Dragon Ball Sparking Zero. While the roster is set to be the biggest yet, the original Dragon Ball saga, and protagonist, Kid Goku, deserves some time to shine. 

Over the years, I’ve built up a pretty solid collection of Dragon Ball Z games, but nothing has felt quite as close to recreating the action of the anime and manga as the Tenkaichi trilogy. 

Between the comprehensive character rosters, destructible environments, and litany of great modes, the trilogy hooked me for years. The over-the-shoulder camera put me right in the action, and I loved wiping the floor with all the Dragon Ball Z villains. 

That said, the most vivid memory I have of the games isn’t from the Z saga. In fact, it’s simply the joy I felt when I unlocked Kid Goku as a playable fighter for the first time. 

Between all the beam-clashing and otherworldly threats I’d come up against, there was something magical about playing as the kid who started it all – and it’s time for him to make a reappearance.

Enter Son Goku

Spike / Bandai Namco

Kid Goku appears in all three Budokai Tenkaichi games, so it’s feasible for him to be playable in Sparking Zero. The original Dragon Ball is much more of an adventure tale than a battle Shonen like Z, and Kid Goku is obviously nowhere near as powerful as he eventually becomes in Z, GT, and Super. However, he still has plenty of standout moments that deserve the spotlight.

So, what if instead of kicking off the game’s story mode with the Saiyan Saga, players had the chance to step into a younger Goku’s weighted boots and take on his earliest opponents? 

Smaller scale but full of heart

One of Goku’s toughest challenges is when he faces Jackie Chun (who’s actually Master Roshi in disguise) in the final of the 21st World Martial Arts Tournament. It’s a formidable match on a much smaller scale than the fights in Z, just featuring simple hand-to-hand combat. Yet despite this simplicity, this fight is every bit as heartfelt and compelling as any of the future battles from Z, GT, and Super. 

It’s a showcase of everything Goku’s learned so far, and it hammers home the endless potential he’s got. To top it all off, it’s a finale that sets the bar for every tournament arc that comes after – and that alone is enough to make it iconic. 

Toei Animation

Aside from the world tournament, Goku goes on to fight adversaries like the menacing Mercenary Tao, and, of course, the final big bad, demon King Piccolo. While Budokai Tenkaichi 3 did have a dedicated Dragon Ball Saga included in its Dragon History story mode, it was relatively short, with just three fights and a neat bonus where Goku squared off against Arale (the protagonist of another Akira Toriyama series, Dr Slump) so getting to experience even more in Sparking Zero would be fantastic.

The kids got moves

Kid Goku may not have a spirit bomb to unleash or countless Super Saiyan transformations (though he can turn into a Great Ape) in his arsenal but, he’s still got some great moves he could unleash in Sparking Zero that have already been shown off in previous entries. There’s his trusty power pole, of course, that’s always enjoyable to use. 

His Rock, Scissors ‘N’ Paper attack inherited from beloved Granpa Gohan always packs a punch, as well as the standard Kamehameha. Finally, the Great Ape Fist (also known as ‘Penetrate!’) – in which Goku propels himself into the air with a reverse Kamehameha before landing a devastating punch on his opponent – is an incredibly cool Ultimate. After all, he defeated King Piccolo with it, so you can’t get more ultimate than that!

Spike / Bandai Namco

Kid Goku can’t soar through the skies in the Tenkaichi games but he can use his Monkey Tail as a propeller to hoover off the ground briefly – a tiny detail I’d love to see return. 

Ultimately, the younger version of the franchise’s protagonist isn’t as powerful or flashy as he becomes later on, but he’s still a massively beloved character who not only deserves his space on the roster but also to have a spotlight on some of his biggest moments. 

After all, if that young boy had never gone searching for the Dragon Balls in the first place, we wouldn’t have Sparking Zero to begin with.