Dragon Ball 40th Anniversary Event to Reveal What’s Next for the Franchise After Death of Creator Akira Toriyama — Including a New Game

Dragon Ball Genkidamatsuri volition beryllium held connected January 25 arsenic portion of the 40th day celebrations of the manga that kicked the franchise disconnected successful 1984. However, that’s not all. The escaped lawsuit (set to beryllium livestreamed) this Sunday volition bring fans breathtaking caller announcements for a franchise whose aboriginal has been successful limbo since the decease of creator Akira Toriyama backmost successful 2024. A caller video crippled uncover has been confirmed.

The archetypal Dragon Ball anime started successful 1986, but it was Dragon Ball Z (1989-1996) that was galore overseas fans’ introduction constituent to the bid and played a large relation successful popularizing Japanese anime abroad, particularly successful the U.S. At home, the power of Dragon Ball could beryllium felt successful consequent shonen bid similar One Piece, Naruto and Bleach. Dragon Ball is besides known for its video games, letting players execute their favourite Saiyans’ flashy attacks. Almost each large console since the NES days has had astatine slightest 1 Dragon Ball game, adjacent if not each of them made it extracurricular Japan.

However, the aboriginal of Dragon Ball has been uncertain since the decease of its creator, legendary manga creator Akira Toriyama (who is besides known for his quality plan enactment for games similar Dragon Quest and Chrono Trigger). Toriyama passed distant successful 2024, leaving galore saddened that we volition ne'er acquisition immoderate caller Son Goku adventures from the pen of the archetypal creator.

Dragon Ball’s 40th day lawsuit volition not lone observe the franchise’s iconic characters but volition besides uncover what’s adjacent for Toriyama’s beloved creations. Dragon Ball Genkidaimatsuri’s main lawsuit volition beryllium held astatine Makuhari Messe adjacent Tokyo connected January 25, 2026. The in-person lawsuit volition diagnostic respective exhibitions, a full big of merch booths, crippled areas and more. For those who can't marque it, the main signifier announcements, speech shows and performances volition beryllium livestreamed connected YouTube by Toei Animation.

The lawsuit volition footwear disconnected with immoderate exclusive announcements from Son Goku’s Japanese VA Masako Nozawa and Dragon Ball bid enforcement shaper Akio Iyoku. It’s imaginable that this could beryllium a caller anime bid oregon OVA. Dragon Ball Daima aired successful Japan successful 2024, but Toriyama’s decease made it unclear whether the bid would get a follow-up. Rumors of a Dragon Ball animated movie, acceptable to merchandise successful 2027, person besides been circulating astir instrumentality communities for a while, and Sunday’s lawsuit mightiness yet amusement if determination is immoderate information to this gossip. Given the planetary occurrence of films from anime bid similar Demon Slayer and Chainsaw Man successful caller years, present could beryllium a bully clip for a Dragon Ball movies announcement.

What we bash cognize for definite is that Dragon Ball is getting a caller video game, thing that has been teased since precocious past year. At 11am (JST) connected January 25, Dragon Ball games shaper Masayuki Hirano, Sparking Zero! shaper Jun Furutani and others are acceptable to uncover the caller game. The astir caller games successful the franchise are squad warring crippled Dragon Ball Sparking Zero! (which kamehameha’d onto consoles successful 2024) and FTP mobile rubric Dragon Ball: Gekishin Squadra (2025). Although Sparking Zero! was praised upon merchandise for its immense formed of implicit 180 playable characters (delivering a large nostalgia deed which genuinely allowed fans of adjacent the astir obscure characters to marque their imagination team), the crippled has unluckily suffered with balancing issues, bugs and online mode instability.

Although galore Dragon Ball titles person been warring games, the bid has besides flirted with different genres specified arsenic strategical paper games (2024’s Dragon Ball Super Card Game Fusion World), card-based RPGs (Dragon Ball Z: Harukanaru Densetsu connected the DS) and adjacent a MMORPG (2010’s Dragon Ball Online) successful the past. It’s imaginable that the caller crippled mightiness research a antithetic genre (perhaps an open-world RPG?), oregon it could beryllium a warring crippled acceptable successful a antithetic arc of Dragon Ball, perchance featuring the chibi formed of Dragon Ball Daima.

Sunday January 25 volition surely beryllium a large time for Dragon Ball, and diehard fans won't privation to miss the livestream.

Verity Townsend is simply a Japan-based freelance writer who antecedently served arsenic editor, contributor and translator for the crippled quality tract Automaton West. She has besides written astir Japanese civilization and movies for assorted publications.