Dragon Ball Xenoverse 3 Is Well Worth The Nine-Year Long Wait, As New Soul

What the report says

Many are the games based on the Dragon Ball franchise created by the beloved Akira Toriyama that have become almost as popular as the manga series and the TV shows, but few of them have reached the popularity of the Dragon Ball Xenoverse series. With the second entry in the series getting supported for nearly a decade, it looked like another entry in the series would never see the light of day, but this won't be the case, as Dragon Ball Xenoverse 3 is in development for PC, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X, and Xbox Series S for a 2027 launch.Having been a fan of Dragon Ball for over 30 years, I jumped at the opportunity to test the new entry in the series during gamescom 2026.

While the hands-on time granted by Bandai Namco during the event was short, it was more than enough to highlight how Dragon Ball Xenoverse 3 will allow players to live out their power fantasy in the Dragon Ball universe in a very engaging way, even without having to control their favorite character.Ahead of the hands-on session, which was limited to a single-player mission which saw me go against Broly using a pre-made character, Bandai Namco hosted a quick presentation which highlighted how Dragon Ball Xenoverse 3 will expand the series' customization options while still keeping the series' iconic characters on the forefront, as it will be possible to summon classic characters in the game's age, interact with them and have them join the player created character in battle via the Souls system.This Souls system is set to be the beating heart of the customization mechanics of Dragon Ball Xenoverse 3.

With Soul Assist's offensive and supportive abilities and the Soul Switch mechanics that will let custom characters turn into beloved series characters like Goku and Vegeta, and the Awoken Skill, a powerful ability that changes depending on the race of the character, the game will allow for a greater diversity of play styles. In addition, fighting like one of your favorite characters will be easier than ever, thanks to the new Fighting Styles which replicate all motions of a given character, and with abilities attached to gear, abilities that aren't limited to stat increases but to significant gameplay changes such as increased range of long-range attacks, the customization options feel so vast that I believe it will be very difficult to find similar characters.Unfortunately, none of this was on show during the Dragon Ball Xenoverse 3gamescom 2026 demo, as it comprised a single mission pitting the player against several enemies ahead of the final confrontation with Broly, the Legendary Super Saiyan.

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Despite not having played Dragon Ball Xenoverse 2 in a very long time, I immediately felt right at home, thanks to the familiar controls and the overall experience generally being very welcoming. Having picked a Saiyan character, I did not fail to turn into a Super Saiyan with the Awoken Skill as the battle went on, allowing me to live that power fantasy that goes well over 9000 that only Dragon Ball can deliver.Though my time with Dragon Ball Xenoverse 3 was short, I thoroughly enjoyed it. Hopefully, it won't take much longer to see how far the customization mechanics can be pushed, and the vast array of crazy content the game is sure to deliver after it launches on PC, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X, and Xbox Series S sometime in 2027.About the author: Francesco De Meo has been covering video games and technology since 2012, starting his career at small outlets like Gamersyndrome and GeekSnack. 
 
 After joining Wccftech gaming section in 2015, he quickly expanded his video gaming coverage with in-depth reporting, interviews with iconic industry figures such as Grasshopper Manufacture founder and No More Heroes creator Goichi "Suda51" Suda, Resident Evil series creator Shinji Mikami, Team NINJA's president and Nioh series director Fumihiko Yasuda, and Silent Hill creator Keiichiro Toyama, reviews and on-the-ground coverage of major industry events such as Gamescom and E3.
 
 When he's not reporting or reviewing, Francesco can be found playing the genres he loves most, spending time with his six cats, reading, writing music, playing guitar and drumming for his progressive rock band.

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