Following Summer Game Fest, Bandai Namco Entertainment presented 'Dragon Ball Xenoverse 3,' the newest title in the Dragon Ball Xenoverse series, at TGS 2026, held at Makuhari Messe from September 17 to 21. Set in AGE 1000, roughly 200 years after the original Dragon Ball story, this title focuses on creating a new Super Warrior by combining various races and techniques from Dragon Ball to suit your personal preference. Notably, move animations are no longer tied strictly to race; instead, they change based on your selected Battle Style, giving players even greater freedom in crafting their customized Super Warrior.
Hands-on Demo: Dragon Ball Super Warriors Running Wild in Their Own Unique Styles
Dragon Ball Xenoverse 3 is built around two main pillars: a single-player campaign lasting around 25 hours or more and online content. In this hands-on demo, only online PvE was available to play, but the full release will also support 1v1 PvP and 4v4 PvP. The demo featured three missions: a 50-man sparring match where four players join forces to defeat 50 enemies, a defense mission to protect communication gear placed at three locations, and an interception mission to infiltrate a laboratory and sweep out hostiles. The official release will feature an even broader variety of missions.
Before jumping into a mission, the customization section revealed a solid structure promising endless combinations, even in its in-development state. In Dragon Ball Xenoverse 3, players explore the world of AGE 1000, meeting various classic characters; meeting specific requirements allows those characters to become the player's mentor. Unlocking a mentor's Skill Board allows players to acquire Battle Styles, Super Attacks, Ultimate Attacks, and other elements, evolving into a Super Warrior capable of wielding a vast array of techniques.
As mentioned earlier, Xenoverse 3 ties move animations and characteristics to Battle Styles rather than races, bringing out the fun of mixing and matching options even more. On top of that, players can combine Super Attacks and Ultimate Attacks however they like independently of their Battle Style, giving the thrill of seeing seemingly mismatched techniques click together seamlessly. The reason combat flows so naturally despite mixing diverse skills is simple: alongside the series' signature fast-paced, three-dimensional movement, the system was revamped to use 'Ki' instead of consuming Stamina for both dashing and skill usage.
In Xenoverse 2, sharing a single resource pool for both dashing and skill usage made it tricky to maneuver freely and pull off stylish combat until players got fully accustomed to it. Focusing on high-speed aerial movement left no resource for skills, while overusing skills meant players couldn't perform evasive maneuvers in emergencies. In Xenoverse 3, dashing consumes Ki while skills are governed by cooldowns instead. This adjustment makes it much easier to manage combat tempo smoothly while unleashing your own action sequences. While the thrill of relentlessly overwhelming a vulnerable foe with max Ki is slightly toned down, players are far less likely to be rendered completely defenseless, allowing newcomers to catch their breath and try out various tactics.
Beyond building a unique playstyle, another major highlight was the 'Soul' system, which creates diverse variables using classic characters. 'Soul Assist' works like a fighting game striker, summoning an ally for joint attacks or granting various buffs, while 'Soul Change' channels a mentor's Soul into your own body to temporarily harness their power—a brilliant mechanic that captures both the flavor of the original Dragon Ball work and the punch of game special moves. Accompanied by intense visual effects reminiscent of a Super Saiyan transformation, fully restoring all gauges as your character transforms into an iconic original fighter delivers a thrilling sense of catharsis. Moreover, by impactfully capturing the iconic special moves of legendary characters, it fulfills the expectations of longtime fans.
Meanwhile, it was also impressive that unique Awakening skills were added for each race to allow players to further hone their custom Super Warriors. Saiyans can transform into Super Saiyans, while other races can also turn the tide of battle using Awakening skills tailored to their unique traits and powers. However, since Awakenings cannot be used simultaneously with Soul Change, players must choose according to their playstyle.
In this demo, only four races—Earthlings, Saiyans, Namekians, and the Frieza Race—were revealed alongside a small fraction of classic characters. Even so, the sheer volume of combinations meant players couldn't even explore all the customization options. The missions added tension with demanding conditions, such as failing if total team downs reached three. In the latter half of the final laboratory mission, powerful enemies were deployed, requiring players to react by mixing high-speed movement, rushes, Ki blasts, guards, and skills to avoid counterattacks. This provided a true taste of the signature, multi-dimensional combat moves characteristic of the original Dragon Ball work. Even with only a fraction revealed, the demo fully showcased satisfying action and rich customization, drawing keen interest to the infinite possibilities the full release will hold.
Q&A
Q: At the recent State of Play, Androids were announced as a new playable race. What was the reason for adding Androids as a new race? Also, Androids in the original series have unique traits, such as their Ki being undetectable. How did you implement these elements into the game?
Producer Masayuki Hirano = Looking back at 1 and 2, we included various races like Cell, Frieza Race, Namekians, and so on. However, Androids were absent. So we decided to add them this time around. As seen in the original series, Androids have very significant traits regarding Ki and Ki supply, and we plan to showcase these aspects in various ways through abilities. Please look forward to it.
Q: You revamped the system to use Ki instead of Stamina from the previous game. Is there a specific reason for this change?
Producer Masayuki Hirano = The reason we introduced cooldowns is that when observing long-time players of the previous game, they tended to find Stamina-optimized builds and strictly hone their skills around that framework. That felt like it narrowed the breadth of combinations. So as we pondered how to enable more diverse builds, we switched to cooldowns. However, since that could potentially disrupt the fast-paced combat tempo of chaining skills, we kept the skill cooldowns relatively short. Additionally, skill cooldowns can be reduced through abilities or Skill Boards, so we hope players experiment with various setups during actual gameplay.
Q: In the past, combat felt like obtaining powerful skills and relentlessly chaining them together, but this time the tempo seems to have shifted toward mixing in normal attacks appropriately. What playstyle approach do you recommend? Also, why did you set the time period roughly 200 years after the original story?
Producer Masayuki Hirano = To answer the first question, the core point of this game is being able to fight in whatever way you desire. So I recommend approaching it by building your Super Warrior in the style you enjoy most. We hope players develop their characters and refine their styles to their heart's content.
To achieve that, we put a lot of thought not only into attacks but also into evasion mechanics for this title. 'How can we structure it so that no matter which approach you take, it always delivers that quintessential Dragon Ball action?' That was our main focus. Although we couldn't show it in this demo build, depending on your abilities, a Just Guard can change into a parry, among many other skills, abilities, and elements we've prepared.
Secondly, regarding why we chose a setting 200 years in the future, it was primarily because we received advice and concepts regarding the future setting and a new world state when discussing with Mr. Akira Toriyama. In 1 and 2, we traveled to the past quite a lot, which is also an important aspect of the IP. However, when discussing this project, we exchanged many ideas about the future, and having received settings and various proposals related to that, we decided on setting it in the future.
Q: You introduced Soul Change as a new system, but why are players required to choose between it and racial Awakenings rather than using both together?
Producer Masayuki Hirano = It is both a customization element unique to this title and tied to the narrative. After all, Xenoverse 3 centers on cultivating your very own Super Warrior, and we want to present the narrative journey of discovering that Awakening within the main story. We would appreciate it if you experience and confirm it for yourself in game.
Q: It was also unique that move animations change based on Skill Trees rather than race or gender. As a result, an immense range of possibilities was visible even during the demo. What was the most difficult part during implementation?
Producer Masayuki Hirano = Having animations and various mechanics change based on school/style is one of the fun aspects of this game. To achieve that, we had to review and adjust the customization system in its entirety, and the hardest part was balance adjustment. Even when trying to make every skill viable, balancing power levels turned out to be tricky, requiring constant tuning. Moreover, we had to consider variables across numerous setups rather than just a single skill set, which made it even more challenging—not to mention the move animations themselves.
So while we are fine-tuning balance in various ways, it won't be done in a way that crushes the dream of building the ultimate Super Warrior. Ultimately, we are polishing things so that players can create their own extraordinarily powerful Super Warrior, almost like combining Broly with several of the strongest characters.
Q: Finally, do you have a message for Korean players?
Producer Masayuki Hirano = There is still a lot of unannounced information, including details about the story. As these aspects are revealed step by step, the perspective on Xenoverse 3 will change, and I am looking forward to that time. We still have so much more to show, so please keep your expectations high.
