New Dragon Ball FighterZ patch to buff most characters, introduce new tagging mechanic

Bandai Namco hosted the first Dragon Ball FighterZ Show in several months, sharing a long list of updates coming to the game, including tomorrow’s huge patch that will add multiple system changes, new mechanics, and buff basically every character on the roster.

The biggest system change is the inclusion of a new mechanic added to the Z Change, or the ability to swap between characters mid-match. This feature will now let players tag out while using special moves, which was previously not an option. 

While this might sound small, for a fighting game where tag options are a core mechanic, this might completely shift the power dynamic on the roster and how players approach playing the game. Certain characters will now have more options, moves could be more viable to use because you can tag out while using them, and much more. 

We won’t know exactly how much Z Change will differ until after this update drops, but Bandai did note that this new method of tagging will have “different properties” compared to normal Z Changes. 

Additional changes have been made to Guard Cancels and Guard Cancel Vanishing. Normal Guard Cancels can now be performed in the air for no additional energy cost and players can now spend two bars of their meter to perform a vanish out of a Guard Cancel.

While it isn’t a sequel and won’t be adding new features or the highly requested rollback netcode update, Bandai and ArcSysystemWorks have done a lot to breathe new life into the game. Many of the top DBFZ players are already treating this as an entirely different title that will shift the focus of the game from playing defensively towards a much more offensive style.

Unfortunately, DBFZ producer Tomoko Hiroki did dash players’ hopes for rollback coming to the game anytime soon, stating that it is “currently difficult for us to improve the netcode, but we would like to do our best to provide a place where everyone can have fun and fight as much as possible.”

Despite the lack of updated netcode, changes to characters like Super Saiyan Goku, Broly, and more, along with the general system and mechanic adjustments, has players excited to jump back in. You can view all of the patch notes, updates, and some gameplay on the official Bandai Namco Esports YouTube channel ahead of tomorrow’s launch.