'Dragon Ball Fusions' news: Bandai Namco announces 2016 release date

Dragon Ball FusionsBandai Namco

"Dragon Ball: Project Fusions" has now been officially renamed as "Dragon Ball Fusions," as and per a report from Gematsu, it is set to be released for the Nintendo 3DS before the end of the year. However, this release date has only been confirmed for the Japanese market and there is no confirmation yet of a North American or European release.

The game will play out as a 3D RPG title that will allow players to create their own avatars and then use them to execute the "fusion" technique from the series. Unlike the anime and manga, players will be able to do the fusion technique to merge with just about every character possible, leading to unique fusions such as combining Goku and Broly.

However, the more familiar fusions such as Goten and Trunks to turn into Gotenks will also be appearing in the game. It is undetermined if the player will be able to execute these fusions or if these are merely NPCs doing the actions for them during a cutscene. It is also unsure at this point of the Potara rings will also come into play, allowing players to execute an even more concentrated form of fusion. 

Bandai Namco also released a short teaser trailer along with the announcement of the release date. While the trailer does not showcase how the RPG elements or combat mechanics are done, there is a lot of footage of the sample character traveling across an open world akin in design to the "Pokemon" games. 

There is one sequence where the character is shown blasting energy at an unseen target although it is difficult to discern at this point, without any confirmation from Bandai Namco, if this is a cutscene or a part of the game's combat.

"Dragon Ball Fusions" will be released for the Nintendo 3DS later this year.