The gameplay is inspired by concepts from several other fighting games. Namely, the control scheme and team mechanics are lifted from the Marvel vs. Capcom series and the overall presentation is reminiscent of other Arc System Works games, with the recent one being Guilty Gear Xrd, due to this game utilizes a same video game that was used in the said Arc System Works’ first 2.5D game, the Unreal Engine. Players each select three characters to form a team, from an initial roster of characters from the Dragon Ball franchise. One character is controlled and can be switched with one of the other characters at any time. Players can also call one of their other characters to perform an "Assist" move, allowing simultaneous attacks and combos with the entire team. All three characters on the same team must be defeated for a player to win the game. If neither team has been defeated before the time runs out, the team that has sustained the least damage overall wins.
In addition to the unique moves of each character, players have several universal moves available. With the "Vanish Attack", the player can expend Ki to instantly teleport behind an opponent's character and strike them in the back. This has multiple uses, from bypassing enemy projectiles to moving quickly around the stage, or extending a combo. The "Dragon Rush" move can break through an opponent's guard and if successful, offers a choice between an aerial combo or forcing the opponent to switch to a different character. The "Super Dash" flying attack will home in on the opponent's lead character and is able to pass through weaker projectiles. Lastly, players can "Ki Charge" to manually increase their Ki gauge, similar to previous Dragon Ball fighting games.
The game includes several other features, such as "Shenron System", that allows players to gather the Dragon Balls one by one as the fight progresses. A random Dragon Ball will be given to a player that successfully performs a light autocombo. Specific Dragon Balls can be obtained by successfully performing a multi hit combo, with the amount of hits determining which ball is given. Once all seven are assembled and a player performs a light autocombo with maximum Ki, Shenron appears to grant a wish and allows players to choose one among the following benefits: give the fighter a second Sparkling Blast, revive a fallen ally, recover a fighter's health or regenerate health for the rest of the match. Another feature is the "Dramatic Moments", special cutscenes that appear at the start and the end of a fight depending on the characters involved and stage, related to events from the Dragon Ball series, which can be applied after using Standing Hard normal attack or Vanish (as of Season 2) as the finisher/combo ender.[5]
Season 3 allows players to choose three different Assist types before the match. Also in the said season, Sparkling Blast properties and its time limit enhanced even further if one of the player's team members are down.
Dragon Ball FighterZ features a ranking system in both its arcade mode[6] as well as in online multiplayer, where players increase their rank with subsequent wins.
