Dragon Ball FighterZÂ received a big patch yesterday, with lots of changes to the main gameplay mechanics before Jiren and Videl release today on the 31st. The patch notes are as follows:
Recoverable life
– Recoverable life after taking damage has been decreased (outside of invincible moves)
Ki gauge
– Will now receive less ki gauge when being hit by a super or a Meteo Super, but when receiving damage outside of supers will now receive more ki gauge
– After using meter, it will now temporarily be more difficult to build meter again
Launching attacks
– If applicable to camera changing, will now follow the camera regardless of height when it happens
Invincible special moves
– Can no longer call assist or switch characters unless it’s on hit.
EX special moves
– The opponent will now have less recoverable life after being hit by one.
Supers
– When being hit after a Super (except for Ultimate Z Change/DHC), damage will now be reduced outside a few select supers
– It is now easier to connect with Ultimate Z Change/DHC
Certain Meteor Super moves
– Lowest ceiling of guaranteed damage has been increased
Sparking!
– Can now be used while guarding on the ground and in the air
– While in Sparking, the recoverable life your opponent has after taking damage has been reduced (not counting invincible moves)
– It now starts up slower except when canceled from an attack
Vanishing Move
– When canceled from an attack, the camera will now follow better
Z Reflect
– After deflecting an attack, will now be invincible to the opponent’s Sparking! activation
Certain throw moves, Dragon Rush
– Fixed so that throws and Dragon Rush won’t connect several times in one combo
Dragon Rush
– On hit, the meter gain and damage has been decreased.
– After doing it in a combo, no more camera-shifting moves will be possible, like Smash Attacks.
Airborne Dragon Rush
– After using it in a combo, the final hit will cause a slide down on the opponent
Guard Cancel Change
– Will now be invincible until it hits your opponent or is very close to them
– Recovery on block increased.
Grounded Backstep
– Increased distance
Shenlong: Revive my teammate
– Revived teammate’s health has been increased
Shenlong: Make me invincible
– The recovery speed of your life has been increased.
Ukemi (quick-rise)
– More difficult to get hit by airborne opponents
Grounded Wakeup Timing
– Can now do Ukemi at any point until your opponent is completely lying down
Dramatic Finish
– Has been changed to be activated from Standing Heavies and Vanishing Moves as well.
These changes are going to affect the meta of the game in a big way, so let’s break down how. Generally speaking, oppressive offensive tactics should be seen less, at least as we have seen them so far. Dragon Rushes have been seen as a little too powerful since the game’s release, but with the amount of meter gained, damage dealt, and the last hit causing a sliding knockdown, we shouldn’t see them as much as we have before.
Comebacks should be more possible than they were before as well. While comebacks were seen once in a while, generally speaking, they were extremely hard to accomplish. With less recoverable health across the board, characters should be able to go down quicker and not tag out to recover health as frequently, thereby making matches go faster as well. Also, Sparking can now be activated during blockstun, making it easier for characters under offensive pressure to get their opponent off their back and mount their own offense.
Meter gain has also been adjusted. After a super combo you will not be able to gain meter immediately, preventing situations like Piccolo looping multiple Hellzone Grenades back to back.
The last, biggest change is that assists cannot be called unless your character lands an attack. That means using risky moves like Adult Gohan’s uppercut and covering it with assists like Yamcha’s will no longer work. Players will have to commit to riskier moves and plan their offense more carefully.
Overall these changes are for the better of the game, and they should result in a more varied meta and less repetitive tactics seen in major Dragon Ball FighterZ tournaments.
