Dragon Ball Is Getting a MOBA

Proving that it can and will be adapted into just about any video game genre possible, the Dragon Ball franchise is now getting its very first MOBA game. It’s called Dragon Ball Project: Multi, and it’s coming to Steam as well as mobile platforms, Bandai Namco and developer Ganbarion announced this week. For Dragon Ball fans interested in seeing what a MOBA game based on the franchise looks like, some gameplay was revealed today, but you’ll get your chance to try it yourself soon thanks to some tests that are coming up this month.

For Dragon Ball fans who aren’t too familiar with MOBA games, it stands for “multiplayer online battle arena” and is a genre that encompasses many legacy staples like Dota 2 and League of Legends. In more recent years — and based off of some of the gameplay that was shown off for Dragon Ball Project: Multi today — a more apt comparison for this game would be likening it to Pokemon Unite, the Pokemon MOBA that released for the Nintendo Switch and mobile platforms.

Dragon Ball Project: Multi matches are played with two teams of four with the ultimate objective naturally being to claim a Dragon Ball.

“Experience the world of Dragon Ball through wrecking the battlefield with your own strength, or by conquesting the enemy objective with your friends and allies,” an overview of the game explained. “The Hero characters you take in control will grown in strength as the round progress to give you a chance to obliterate enemy players and bosses alike.” 

Characters like Goku, Vegeta, Future Trunks, Majin Buu, Zamasu, Krillin, Piccolo, Android 18, and more were shown off in the reveal from Thursday. Transformations such as Goku and Vegeta going Super Saiyan were included in the preview as well as a Great Ape transformation, though it’s unclear if these are temporary buffs or part of the power-up progression system that’s featured in other MOBAs where you progressively get stronger throughout the course of a match.

The playtest for Dragon Ball Project: Multi will get underway on August 19th at 11 p.m. PDT, Bandai Namco announced, with the test scheduled to run from then until September 2nd, so you’ll have plenty of time to play if you get in. There’s no option to sign up for mobile tests just yet, but you can head to the game’s Steam page here to request access and hopefully be admitted.