Dragon Ball Sparking Zero sells 3 million copies in first day

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The latest Dragon Ball fighting game has ignited the industry with a killer kamehameha on the competition.

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Interactive entertainment proves once again that nostalgia is one hell of a sales pitch. This time the nostalgia effect has driven up sales of the latest Dragon Ball game to astronomical heights, making this the third quarterly hit for Bandai Namco--Tekken 8 in Q4, Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree in Q1, and now Dragon Ball Sparking Zero in Q3.

"Bandai Namco Entertainment America Inc. today announced DRAGON BALL: Sparking! ZERO, the first sequel in more than 15 years in the legendary DRAGON BALL Z: BUDOKAI TENKAICHI series, has surpassed a total of 3 million units sold worldwide in 24 hours after its launch," the company said in a press release.

The news isn't much of a surprise given Budokai Tenkaichi 4 had conquered both the PlayStation Store and Steam, indicating strong widespread sales.

Despite the success of its games, Japanese games company Bandai Namco is expected to cull its workforce and cancel/pause projects in an effort to reduce spending on production and development.

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Based on its current forecasts and projections, Bandai Namco expects the Dragon Ball franchise to generate nearly $1 billion in revenues throughout FY25. The franchise is expected to make around 145 billion yen, which equates to $960-$969 million based on current exchange rates.

The highest-ever period for Dragon Ball revenues was in 2020, where the world was sheltered in place against the COVID-19 pandemic and playing many more games.