Dragon Ball Xenoverse 2, the action-RPG inspired by Akira Toriyama’s legendary manga series, has become a phenomenon. Ever since its launch in late 2016, the game has steadily sold copies on all platforms, and while it hardly ever topped sales charts it has not slowed down; reaching more than eight million copies sold worldwide. Any other game would probably have a guaranteed sequel, but given the structure ofXenoverse’s content and DLC, this poses a challenge forBandai Namcosimilar to what Rockstar faces withGrand Theft Auto 5.
InDragon Ball Xenoverse 2, players get to live out a fantasy unlike any otherDBZgame. Instead of controlling Goku, his friends, and his enemies, they can create their original characters as time warriors of different species and have them fight alongside the main characters. The combat plays out like a modernized version of theBudokaiTenkaichiseries, and just like those it features a huge amount of playable characters from throughout the series.
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Dragon Ball Xenoverse 2launched about halfway through the lifespan of theDragon Ball Superseries, but since then the manga has kept going with new stories.There was also the movieDragon Ball Super: Broly, and another movie will be coming out in 2022. This means the new transformations, attacks, characters, and powers from late in the series weren’t included. Characters such as Zamasu, Kale, Caulifla, Jiren, or the rebooted Broly were all unplayable despite fans growing to like them.
In the past, when something like this happens players could be sure they would get a sequel featuring more content from later in the series. For example, some games only covered up to the Cell saga or ignoredDragon Ball GTbecause of when they came out, but later characters appeared in future iterations. Most classicDragon Ballgames were released as trilogies, each game featuring more characters than the last. WhileDragon Ball Xenoverse 2is a sequel itself, there isn’t the same need for yet another game given Bandai Namco could instead add characters as DLC. That is exactly what it has done with 12 packs so far, whichhas made the wait forXenoverse 3longer than fans are used to.
Dragon Ball Xenoverse 3 Is In a Similar Spot as GTA 6
As things stand,Dragon Ball Xenoverse 2is in a similar camp to Rockstar’sGrand Theft Auto 5. These titles have both gotten so big and popular that supporting them makes more sense for their creators, taking advantage of auserbase that loves the games and buys their DLC and microtransactions. Even though fans might want aXenoverse 3, Bandai Namco is in a position where it has no real reason to rush into development.
An eventualGrand Theft Auto 6orDragon Ball Xenoverse 3would be great news for fans of either series, but represent financial risks for Rockstar and Bandai Namco.Grand Theft Auto 5is one of the best-selling games of all time andis among the most played and downloaded games every year. Losing access to the fans who playGTA Onlineevery day should tempt Rockstar to take things slow.
The situation with the eight million players who still enjoyXenoverse 2is similar. Bandai Namco would have to sell a new game again and build that userbase back up, when it could instead keep adding DLC characters. The question would bewhat Bandai Namco could add in terms of gameplay or storythat justifies an otherwise unnecessary risk. If anything, a prospective sequel should be something that only the PS5 and Xbox Series X/S could provide.
Dragon Ball Xenoverse 2is available now for PC, PS4, Stadia, Switch, and Xbox One.
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