Dragon Ball villains Cell, Buu, and Frieza might not be much of a threat to Super Saiyan God Goku With Cheese, but to normal, non-fighting characters they’re downright terrifying. Bandai Namco harnesses that terror in Dragon Ball: The Breakers, an asymmetrical survival game that pits seven non-powered players against one all-powerful anime bad guy.
In Dragon Ball: The Breakers, coming in 2022 to consoles and PC, seven players or “Survivors” are sucked into a mysterious area known as the “Temporal Seam.” An eighth player is cast as one of several iconic Dragon Ball villains, known as the “Raider,” tasked with obliterating the Survivors before they discover the Super Time Machine and escape. The villain player amasses power throughout the match, evolving into an unstoppable force. The Survivors must use vehicles, power-up items, scavenged weapons, and the power of cooperation to keep from being brutally murdered.
While villain players will be limited to known Dragon Ball heavies, Survivors will be able to create their own custom characters utilizing skins and decorative items earned both in and out of game. The Breakers will also link save data with Dragon Ball Xenoverse 2, so it’s likely custom characters from the action RPG will be able to play as Survivors here.
For a series that’s spawned fighting game after fighting game, Dragon Ball: The Breakers sounds like a nice change of pace. The asymmetrical gameplay, shades of Dead by Daylight or 2K’s Evolve, should make for tense situations that really highlight the awesome power of Dragon Ball’s baddies. The trailer alone gives me chills.
Dragon Ball: The Breakers is due out for PlayStation 4 and 5, Nintendo Switch, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, and PC next year. Those eager for an early look should keep an eye out for the upcoming Steam closed beta test, more information on which will be shared soon.