Fortnite To Add Characters from The Best Anime Series

Fortnite recently added some great crossover characters that include Darth Vader and Indiana Jones, and now the game is set to add characters from the best anime.

By Jason Collins | Published

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Epic Games’ Fortnite has undoubtedly assembled the largest collection of disparate IPs in a single game, offering gameplay opportunities gaming fans could only dream of — like Batman wielding a lightsaber in a fight against Master Chief, Kratos, and T-800. And while the latter is getting yet another game, Fortnite just announced the reveal of their most recent, and probably the most historic collaboration yet — in a Tweet image depicting a golden silhouette of a dragon.

“Rise, Shenron!” cried IGN, whose report brought us the great news about the collaboration between Fortnite and the best anime series ever made — Dragon Ball Z. For those that aren’t familiar with DBZ, if such individuals even exist, the golden dragon in Fortnite‘s tweet is Shenron, a magic dragon from the Dragon Ball franchise that grants a single wish to anyone that collects all seven Dragon Balls. Besides Shenron, Epic hasn’t disclosed any further details regarding the collaboration, except the reveal/release date, August 16.

Regardless, it’s fairly safe to assume that Dragon Ball characters will be arriving in Fortnite in less than a week, though no specific skin was mentioned. Goku, the DB franchise’s protagonist, is most likely to appear. Other prominent characters such as Vegeta, Frieza, and Piccolo. We’d also like to see Gohan, the most powerful character of the Dragon Ball franchise and the protagonist of the most recently released DBS movie.  

Collaborations are usually accompanied by an in-game event that mimics the visiting franchise’s narrative elements, so we can expect to collect Dragon Balls and perhaps even summon Shenron himself. Another reactive functionality could be tied to the kill count, and after reaching a specific number, players’ characters could turn into Super Saiyajins — something Epic should consider adding to Fortnite since the introduction of Super form was a massive turning point in the series’ narrative.  

The introduction of Dragon Ball Z characters, most specifically Goku, has been something that the fans have been creating concept art for ever since the game started collaborating with other franchises. And now, their wish has been granted, adding more symbolism to the previously mentioned Tweet of a wish-granting dragon. However, some Dragon Ball fans also expressed concerns over the fact that their favorite character will now run around shooting assault rifles and handguns at other players.

And part of that fandom is right; the use of firearms conflicts with Goku’s beliefs, considering that the multiversal fighter abhors the use of weapons. Instead, he shoots massive energy beams from his hands, which are capable of obliterating entire planets. Overkill for a franchise such as Fortnite, but they could tone it down a bit to make it more appropriate. That way, playing Goku will retain its charm instead of running around like the same default character that has been re-skinned more than 2,000 times.

Still, this is a fantastic moment for both fandoms, which are finally going to be united on Fortnite’s playground. As stated above, the only thing that’s known at the moment is the fact that Dragon Ball is coming to Fortnite — all other details are speculative and should be taken as such.