Amazon is currently having a pretty ridiculous sale on FUNimation’s Dragon Box sets for the Dragon Ball ZTV series — the first six sets are $23.99, and pre-orders for the seventh (and final) set are down to $31.99!

• Dragon Box 1 @ Amazon ($23.99)
• Dragon Box 2 @ Amazon ($23.99)
• Dragon Box 3 @ Amazon ($23.99)
• Dragon Box 4 @ Amazon ($23.99)
• Dragon Box 5 @ Amazon ($23.99)
• Dragon Box 6 @ Amazon ($23.99)
• Dragon Box 7 @ Amazon ($31.99)

It goes without saying that, for our audience, we could not possibly ask for anything better than this. By all accounts, if you have not already fleshed out your collection, you no longer have an excuse! As our buddy TanookiKuribo pointed out, the prices for these sets are below what we used to pay for three-episode single-disc volumes over a decade ago!

Amazon Japan has revealed the cover art for the upcoming Dragon Ball Z Special Selection DVD which is scheduled to be released 05 August 2011 for ¥1,000 (~$12.50). The release will consist of a single DVD containing the Bardock TV Special and Trunks TV Special. The actually DVD case will come packaged in a larger promotional cardboard box, as pictured below on the right. The DVD will come with two exclusive Dragon Ball Heroes special promotional cards featuring the DVD box art drawn by Tadayoshi Yamamuro which will be available only with this release.

The DVD will also come with a few extras, including a special comment from Akira Toriyama, a preliminary image archive collection covering the two TV specials, and a special Dragon Ball Heroes image of some sort. I imagine there will be some more information available on these extras as the release date approaches, so we will be sure to keep you updated!

Namco-Bandai has confirmed that the game previously known as “Game Project Age 2011” will be titled Dragon Ball Z: Ultimate Tenkaichi for its North American release, set for later this year on 25 October 2011 on both the PS3 and 360.

THE FANS HAVE DECIDED! NAMCO BANDAI GAMES LAUNCHES DRAGON BALL Z® ULTIMATE TENKAICHI THIS OCTOBER

Formerly Untitled ‘Dragon Ball Game Project’ Coming to the Xbox 360 and PlayStation®3 System

SAN JOSE, Calif., (June 30, 2011) – Leading video game publisher and developer NAMCO BANDAI Games America Inc. announced the official release date and fan-decided name for Dragon Ball Z® Ultimate Tenkaichi for the PlayStation®3 computer entertainment system and Xbox 360® video game and entertainment system from Microsoft. The game will launch on October 25th, 2011 in stores across North America. Prepare to dive into the world of Dragon Ball Z with Earth-shaking combat, a massive character selection, faithful manga-style graphics, and exciting new features.

“Fans of the Dragon Ball series of games are among the most passionate gamers and anime experts in the world,” said Vice President of Marketing at NAMCO BANDAI Games America Inc., Carlson Choi. “That’s why we reached out to them through our social channels and forums last month to find out what the name should be for the deepest, richest and most intense Dragon Ball game yet. The fans have spoken, and today we’re happy to announce that Dragon Ball Z Ultimate Tenkaichi will be hitting stores across the country this October.”

The upcoming Dragon Ball Z Ultimate Tenkaichi is currently in development by Spike Co. Ltd., who are honing their considerable talents to create a new landmark game for the Dragon Ball Z franchise. The game features upgraded environmental and character graphics, with designs drawn from the original manga series. Destructible battlefields, including massive craters and ki blasts cutting across the sky deliver a more dynamic experience and immediate sense of urgency to the exhilarating fights. An enhanced story mode drops players into the rich Dragon Ball Z universe, filled with beloved characters and powerful enemies. An accessible battle system allows gamers of all ages to hold their own in fast-paced battles, while still retaining tactical depth for hardcore fans.

Dragon Ball Z Ultimate Tenkaichi will be playable at the NAMCO BANDAI Games booth #5136 and the FUNimation booth #4135 at this year’s San Diego Comic-Con. More information related to Dragon Ball Z can be found at: http://www.namcobandaigames.com/console/dragon-ball-z-ultimate-tenkaichi.

The name was decided in part based on a survey the company conducted a few weeks back asking for fan input. The title change was inadvertently leaked / hinted at a little over a week ago when online retailer Play.com put up a listing for the game under said title. A new trailer has also been provided with the press release:

A trailer for the European market has also been unveiled, pegging the game down for release over there on 28 October 2011.

The Japanese website for “Game Project Age 2011” remains unchanged, as does Namco-Bandai’s general portal for the franchise’s video games. When a title change is announced for its native market, we will absolutely let you know!

As expected based on the last few Dragon Box releases from FUNimation, the release date for the seventh (and final) Dragon Box for the Dragon Ball Z TV series has been pushed back approximately one month. The set is now due 11 October 2011, as indicated on its RightStuf catalog page.

Included as “extras” on the two Dragon Box releases for the Dragon Ball Z TV series in Japan back in 2003, the Bardock and Trunks TV specials never went on to receive individual disc releases like the rest of the TV series and movies. They, along with things like the Dragon Ball GT TV special and the original Plan to Eradicate the Saiyans, remain Dragon Box exclusives to this day.

That all changes, at least partially so, later this summer. By way of the latest V-Jump issue (once again courtesy of Peking Duck), we have learned that the Bardock and Trunks TV specials will receive their own individual R2 DVD release called the Dragon Ball Z Special Selection DVD in Japan 05 August 2011 for a reduced price of ¥1,000.

We noted a few weeks back that while “something” related to Dragon Ball Heroes appeared to be coming soon in V-Jump, contrary to other reports, Naho Ooishi‘s (Dragon Ball SD) name was not attached to whatever that project happened to be. Just a couple days ago, her name did indeed show up attached to the project, however. The V-Jump preview website has updated with more information:

In the August issue (due out in Japan this week), a “special manga” from the author will appear, though all it states is that, in the story, some “super warriors” will attack. There will also be a special “Dragon Hero Times” extra included with the magazine, and everyone who applies (presumably through an included postcard, special e-mail address, or what have you) gets a free “Ultimate Bag”.

UPDATE: By way our Japanese buddy Peking Duck, we now know the new manga as Dragon Ball: Episode of Bardock, a three-part short by Naho Ooishi based on a new “What If?” story in which Bardock becomes a Super Saiyan, tying in with his new transformation in Dragon Ball Heroes (see below). The series will span over three issues of V-Jump.

While the third card in the promotional image above on the V-Jump website is obscured, it has since been revealed to be Super Saiyan Bardock, who will presumably show up soon in the card-based arcade game.

New Super Saiyan 3 transformations for both Broli and Vegeta showed up in the card-based arcade games (previously Dragon Battlers) before appearing in the Raging Blast console games over the last two years, making this new transformation for Bardock at least a semi-likely candidate for this fall’s new fighting game.

Play.com has a new listing for what is clearly Game Project Age 2011, the new fighting game developed by Spike for Namco-Bandai due out on the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 this fall. What sets this listing apart from others is the fact that the name “Ultimate Tenkaichi” is already attached to it, a name that showed up a couple weeks back on a survey from the publisher. The listing also pegs the game for 01 November 2011, at least in Europe, though the Raging Blast games were released within the same week across all regions.

Does this confirm the name “Ultimate Tenkaichi” for non-Japan regions? Will the “Tenkaichi” branding have any impact on the name of the game in Japan, where it has never previously been used? It seems as if we will known soon enough!

Last year Play.com had listings for two games that never (or have yet to have) surfaced: “Spike“, a game for the Nintendo Wii, and an un-named Nintendo 3DS game. With the former was a head-scratcher, Namco-Bandai had at least announced shortly after the 3DS’ reveal that they had plans for a game on the portable system.