When you begin to make your purchases in Beyblade, we strongly advise you to pick your beys within the same system. The Dynamite Battle and Burst Ultimate systems are very close, you can mix those two without any issues. However, mixing early models from the Dual Layer or God Layer eras with Dynamite Battle models could damage your Beyblades, and the battles will not be balanced.
Systems can be confusing when you’re completely new to Beyblade. Basically, there is a total of 7 systems (or subsystems to the Beyblade Burst system).
1) BURST SYSTEM (Single and Dual Layer)
The first Beyblades released in the Beyblade Burst Generation, they are now very difficult to find. The first models were single-layers, then followed by dual-layer Beyblades. Dual-layers are made of two different parts, making them thicker than the previous “single-layer” models. Many of the Beyblades appearing in the first season of the anime are dual-layers, such as the iconic B-34 Victory Valkyrie. With the “burst” being the generation’s gimmick, the burst rate in this system is high.
2) GOD LAYER SYSTEM
The God Layer system is essentially the toy line of the anime’s 2nd season, Beyblade Burst Mugen (Evolution in US and Europe). The Beyblades from this system are for the most part upgraded versions of the previous dual-layer models.
Forge discs have been changed, they are still made of metal but they are now displaying a more agressive design, with a specific number of blades depending on the model. Forge discs also became compatible with a “Disc Frame”, a plastic part surrounding the forge disc. Each disc frame has its own name and unique shape. If we look at God Valkyrie, the forge disc is “6“, meaning that it features 6 blades, and the disc frame is “Vortex“.
In this system also appeared “God abilities“, gimmicks added to specific models, some being more impactful than others.
This God Layer system is very interesting because the Beyblades have a fantastic design, pleasing to the eyes and fun to play. They are pretty small compared to the systems released later in the Burst generation, and have a much higher burst rate. If you’re looking for great looking beys and lots of burst finishes, then it could be the system for you. These models can be difficult to find.
3) CHO-Z LAYER SYSTEM
The Cho-Z layer system is the anime’s 3rd season toy line (Beyblade Burst Turbo in US and Europe). Still a very decent amount of burst finishes, and the Beyblades are getting bigger and heavier by the end of this season. Metal is introduced in the layers, resulting in bigger impacts and more spectacular battles.
A few things worth mentioning for kids : the Cho-Z layer system introduced the “Cho-Z Awakening System” with three models featuring Cho-Z Wings : Cho-Z Achilles, Cho-Z Valkyrie and Cho-Z Spriggan. Kids usually are great fans of Valt Aoi, the anime’s main protagonist, proud owner of the Valkyrie Beyblade. The Cho-Z Valkyrie Zenith Evolution model is in my opinion the strongest, or at least one of the strongest Valkyrie models in the whole Burst generation. Children can be frustrated to see their Valkyrie losing a majority of battles, so this system can be great because it delivers entertaining games with the likes of Cho-Z Achilles, Cho-Z Valkyrie and Cho-Z Spriggan all being pretty strong models. There is one catch though : the Cho-Z gimmick found on Cho-Z Valkyrie, Cho-Z Achilles and Cho-Z Spriggan (an anti-burst system ; you’ll see it explained in our Wiki pages) is almost impossible to trigger for kids, it simply requires too much strength. If you want your kids to have a chance at triggering the Cho-Z gimmick, get a Power Launcher from the Dynamite Battle/Burst Ultimate system.
The Cho-Z beyblades remain easy to assemble and play with nonetheless.
4) GATINKO LAYER SYSTEM
Gatinko Layer (players often refer to it simply as GT Layer) : this is the anime’s 4th season toy line (Beyblade Burst Rise in US and Europe). Again, decent amount of burst finishes. This system introduces a new layer, now assembled with 3 interchangeable parts : the blade, the weight, and the core. The blade is the part that makes contact with the opponent, the weight is an added metal part that provides balance and synergy to the combo, the core is the part at the center of the layer, on which you can see the bey’s spirit (Valkyrie, Dragon, Fafnir etc…)
With the layer now being made of three interchangeable parts, more customization options are available : you can heavily modify both performance and appearance of your beys.
The Gatinko layer system also features the Mugen Lock System, found on Prime Apocalypse, Regalia Genesis and Big-Bang genesis. This is a free-spinning mechanism designed to prevent the beyblade from bursting. The only way to burst those three models is to hit a “weak point”, a tab on the combination’s layer, while the center of the layer displays a red color. This system works really well and highly increases burst resistance.
The Gatinko layer system also introduced two electric drivers (the Power Core System), on Regalia Genesis and Imperial Dragon models. Electric drivers have very high stamina, but they can easily break, which can be very frustrating. The driver in itself is fine, but the electric system is often the subject of failure, within hours, days or weeks of use, depending on the copy.
The Gatinko layer system can be recommended for players who want a well balanced game overall (in spite of the Mugen Lock and Power Core systems), and beyblades which can be heavily and easily customized.
5) SUPERKING LAYER SYSTEM
The Superking Layer system is the anime’s 5th season toy line (Beyblade Burst Surge in US and Europe). The “Weights” from Gatinko are gone, but this system introduces the Chassis part, making the tops bigger and heavier, and also reducing the burst rate significantly. There are two types of Chassis : Single and Double. With a single chassis, a forged disc is still required and the beys will burst in the usual manner. A double chassis replaces the forge disc, creating a large layer assembled to the driver.
The Superking Layer system also introduced the Limit Break System, found on Hyperion Burn, Helios Volcano and Lucifer The End. This system features special forge discs designed to trigger a gimmick capable of changing the blade’s shape.
Overall, The Superking Layer system features a lower burst rate and intense battles with strong impacts, with models that are still fairly easy to customize, with only two interchangeable parts in the layer : the ring (the blade) and the Superking Chip (the core, representing the Beyblade Spirit).
6) DYNAMITE BATTLE LAYER SYSTEM
The Dynamite Battle Layer system (players often refer to it simply as DB Layer) is the anime’s 6th and final season toy line (Beyblade Burst QuadDrive in US and Europe). The Chassis is gone, the metal part from Gatinko comes back with a different shape, and becomes the “Armor“. The forged disc produced in this system are heavier than before. Layers now have two different modes : Low and High. The Low mode has better stamina, but High mode can still be useful in specific battles ; it can help to generate more movement, and can also be used to mitigate “spin-steal” (explained in our Key concepts article). We would suggest you to try these beys in low mode first.
Also, these beys are so large and heavy that the Takara Tomy standard stadium can feel too small to make interesting battles. Ring Out Finish can still be achieved but even the pockets can seem too small, thus making refereeing more difficult, depending on the rules used. Opinions will differ on that specific topic, but the Takara Tomy Dynamite Battle arena can feel like a breath of fresh air when playing the DB system : the arena is larger and so are the ring out pockets. The gameplay itself is very different from the standard version, different enough to force competitive players out of the usual “meta” (the meta could be described as a shortlist of top components to create the best possible combinations). In spite of the long running debate over those two stadiums, in 2023 it looks like a lot of tournaments are hosted with the DB Stadium.
Overall, the Dynamite Battle Layer system has a low burst rate, and stronger impacts than the Superking system.
7) BURST ULTIMATE LAYER SYSTEM
The Burst Ultimate Layer system (players often refer to it simply as BU Layer) is the last Beyblade Burst subsystem. It is very similar to the Dynamite Battle system, but it features a new “BU Blade“, adding gimmicks to the blade itself. This system also focuses on increasing burst resistance of the beyblades with new “BU Discs“, forged discs designed to prevent the bey from bursting.
Since this system was released after the anime final season, the models you’ll find are mostly remakes of famous beys that did not appear in season 6. If you are just starting your collection, you can mix the DB and BU systems without any problems.
The Burst Ultimate Layer system has very low burst rate, and still features the heavy impacts of the Dynamite Battle Layer system.
Thoughts on Beyblade Burst sub-systems
To conclude, keep in mind that earlier models are getting harder to find, and prices will keep going up. A few things to help you start your collection :
– if you want a higher burst rate and models that are easy to use for kids, aim for the God Layer or the Cho-Z Layer systems.
– If you want more customization options and keep the models relatively easy to use for kids, aim for the Gatinko Layer or the Superking Layer systems, the Gatinko system having a higher burst rate.
-The Dynamite Battle and Burst Ultimate systems are a very popular choice in tournaments, so those are the ones you want to go for if you’re thinking about joining or organizing tournaments . Note that their price remains stable at the time of writing (2023), and they are pretty easy to find, so the DB/BU systems are clearly the easiest and cheapest to collect. Finally, the gameplay can be slightly more complex, and young children (I’d say from 6 to 8 years old) may need help to create and assemble their first combos (some parts can be hard to remove and put back in place at times). Very young players may also have a slightly steeper learning curve with those systems because of the weight of the beys, which is approximately twice the weight of a God Layer bey. Kids get used to it though, so do not worry about it.