Back at E3, we got our first taste of Dragon Ball Xenoverse 2 with a look at some new footage. Unfortunately, we didn’t get to go hands-on with the title, but that changed this weekend at San Diego Comic-Con. While we still have yet to check out campaign mode, Bandai Namco was kind enough to let us test out the the versus mode. Here’s what I learned as I was kicking some Namekian tail as Gogeta:

Don’t fix what isn’t broken.

Instead of choosing to revamp the combat, Xenoverse 2 is all about fine tuning the overall experience. Bandai believes that most fans enjoyed the combat, so those who played the original Xenoverse will feel right at home. That means you’ll still be fighting in open environments (either in the skies or on the ground) where you’ll easily be able to pull off some intense special attacks that are straight out of the manga. The first iteration was really good about being accessible to all sorts of players, and it seems like the same can be said of the sequel.

As part of the fine-tuning process, Bandai also wanted to make the animations much smoother. Stringing combos together is fairly simple, and because the animations have been worked on, the combat actually feels quicker–which if you know Dragon Ball, that’s good news. What good is a Kamehameha blast from Goku if you can’t quickly string other attacks along for the combo? In short, expect more explosive combat that captures the essence of the source material perfectly.

Get ready for some cake.

Who doesn’t love cake, right? Well, that’s Steve Aoki’s sentiment when he throws the delicious dessert into the crowd at his concerts. Why am I telling you this? The famous electro house musician has actually remixed several of songs for the game: “We Gotta Power” and “Cha-La Head Cha-La.” Sounds like a strange collaboration for sure, but apparently Aoki is a big Dragon Ball fan; he didn’t hesitate to join the project.

That’s not all, though: the DJ will also be making an appearance in the game! As soon as I heard that, I instantly thought of a DB game where I could toss cake at my opponents. Unfortunately, however, he’s only an NPC. Thus all my dreams were shattered. But still, it’ll be funny to bump into Aoki in the game.

Super world.

Those who enjoyed the deviation from the manga’s storyline in Xenoverse will be happy to know that the sequel continues the trend. In Xenoverse 2, you’ll once again be creating a custom character that travels back in time. By the looks of it, you probably don’t even have to have played last year’s DBX to enjoy the new one. However, the game’s campaign will apparently travel back in time to the first game’s timeline at some point, and those who have a save file from said title will actually see their old character. A nice little touch for those who are now fully invested in this series.

You can also expect new characters and boss fights to be introduced to the Dragon Ball universe. As for the hub world where you time travel from, it’ll actually be seven times larger than it was before. What it will be filled with, however, is still a mystery. But there is good news, to compensate for the massive size, you’ll be able to fly around and use vehicles in the hub world. Seems unimportant, but it was sorely missing in the first game.

Outside of that, you can also expect a whole lot more customization options for your new character, including more race choices. That may not sound exciting, but remember that in the first game, your specials were tied to the race you chose to be (ie. Saiyan, Namekian, Human, etc).

You can expect more information about the campaign the closer we get to the October 25 launch date. What do you guys think about Bandai Namco bringing Steve Aoki into the fold? What improvements do you want to see in Xenoverse 2? Let us know your super comments below!

Image: Bandai Namco