The power of a Super Saiyan meets the speed of an NVMe SSD. It sounds like marketing fluff, but if you’ve actually tried playing Dragon Ball Z PlayStation 5 titles recently, you know the difference isn't just "better graphics." It’s the loading. Or rather, the lack of it.
I remember sitting on my couch in 2020, waiting for Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot to load a single zone on the PS4. I could have literally made a sandwich in the time it took Goku to fly from Southeast Mountains to the Orange City. Now? It’s nearly instantaneous. But picking the right game for your PS5 isn't just about buying the newest box on the shelf. There’s a weird mix of native ports, backwards compatibility, and upcoming heavy hitters that makes the current landscape a bit confusing for the casual fan.
Why Dragon Ball Z PlayStation 5 Upgrades Actually Matter
Let’s be real for a second. Most DBZ games are flashy. They’ve got particle effects everywhere. When you fire a Final Flash, the screen should vibrate with that intensity. On the older hardware, you’d often see frame drops during the most chaotic moments of a 3v3 match in FighterZ.
The PS5 changed that.
The native PlayStation 5 version of Dragon Ball FighterZ, which finally dropped with rollback netcode, is the definitive way to play. Rollback is the big buzzword here. Basically, it makes online play feel like you’re sitting right next to your opponent by predicting inputs. If you’re still playing the PS4 version via backwards compatibility, you are handicapping yourself. The native version runs at a locked 60 FPS with much crispier textures, making those Arc System Works animations look even more like the actual anime.
Kakarot and the 60 FPS Revolution
If you prefer the RPG side of things, Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot on PS5 is a different beast entirely. It’s not just a resolution bump.
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The PS5 version introduces enhanced environmental details. Think better foliage, more realistic water physics, and—most importantly—the 60 FPS performance mode. Playing an open-world DBZ game at 30 FPS feels sluggish once you’ve tasted the fluidity of 60. It changes how the combat feels. Dodging a blast from Raditz feels more responsive. It’s snappy.
- Native PS5 Version: Free upgrade if you own the PS4 digital copy.
- Loading Times: Down from 30-40 seconds to under 5.
- Visuals: 4K support that actually holds its target.
There was a weird bug at launch where some players couldn't transfer their saves from the PS4 version to the PS5 one. Bandai Namco eventually patched this, but it’s a reminder that these transitions aren't always seamless. Always make sure your cloud saves are synced via PlayStation Plus before you delete the old version of the game.
The Elephant in the Room: Sparking! ZERO
We can't talk about Dragon Ball Z PlayStation 5 experiences without talking about Sparking! ZERO. This is the spiritual successor to Budokai Tenkaichi 3, a game people have been obsessed with for over fifteen years.
This isn't a cross-gen game.
It was built specifically for this generation of hardware, which is why the destruction looks so insane. In the trailers and early gameplay showcases, we’ve seen mountains literally crumble and the ground stay scarred after a massive energy beam hits it. Previous games used "fading" debris to save memory. The PS5 has enough RAM to keep that destruction visible longer, which adds to the immersion. You actually feel like you're wrecking the planet.
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The character roster is also massive. We’re talking over 160 characters. Using the DualSense controller, you’ll likely feel the "rumble" of a transformation through the haptic feedback. Imagine the haptics mimicking the heartbeat of a character going Ultra Instinct. That’s the kind of immersion we’re seeing in modern development cycles.
Xenoverse 2: The Game That Refuses to Die
It is honestly impressive. Dragon Ball Xenoverse 2 came out in 2016. We are a decade out from its announcement, and it just got a native PS5 port in May 2024.
Why bother? Because the community is still huge.
The PS5 version of Xenoverse 2 allows for faster movement through Conton City. If you’ve played the original, you know how annoying the stuttering could be when too many players were on screen at once. The hardware in the PS5 brute-forces past those bottlenecks. It’s the same game, sure, but it’s the "cleanest" version of it. No more jagged edges on the character models.
Is it worth rebuying these games?
Honestly, no.
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Unless you are a die-hard collector, don't pay full price for a native PS5 version if you already have the PS4 disc. Most of these titles—Kakarot, FighterZ, Xenoverse 2—offered free or very cheap upgrade paths. The only time you should be dropping $60+ is for a brand-new entry like Sparking! ZERO.
The nuance here is in the DLC. If you bought DLC on the PS4, it almost always carries over to the PS5 version, but you have to manually "purchase" (for $0.00) the PS5 versions of those DLC packs in the PlayStation Store. It’s a tedious process, but it saves you from losing your content.
Breaking Down the Technical Specs
If you’re a spec nerd, here is the reality of what the PS5 is doing for your DBZ library.
Most of these games utilize the system's "Boost Mode" even if they haven't been patched. This means more stable frame rates. However, the native versions (marked with the PS5 logo) use the Kraken compression technology to shrink file sizes. Ironically, the PS5 version of a game is often smaller in gigabytes than the PS4 version, despite having better textures. It’s a weird bit of tech magic that saves space on your SSD.
Essential Next Steps for Dragon Ball Fans on PS5
- Check your Library for the "Free PS5 Upgrade" tag on Kakarot and FighterZ. Don't play the backward-compatible version by mistake.
- Go into your system settings and ensure "Game Presets" is set to "Performance Mode" to prioritize 60 FPS over 4K resolution. In a fast-paced fighter, frames win every time.
- If you’re playing FighterZ, go into the settings and enable the new Rollback Netcode. It’s often a toggle or a specific version of the lobby you have to join.
- Clear out at least 100GB of space for Sparking! ZERO. High-fidelity assets and large-scale destructible environments are going to eat up storage quickly.
- Invest in a DualSense Charging Station. Between the haptic feedback and the adaptive triggers (which some games use for "charging" ki), the battery life on the controller drains significantly faster than it did on the DualShock 4.
The transition to current-gen has been slow for Goku and the gang, but we’ve finally reached a point where the hardware matches the speed of the source material. You aren't just playing a game anymore; you're playing the anime at a fluid 60 frames per second. That’s something the 12-year-old version of us would have never believed.