Dragon Ball Sparking Zero Release Date "Leak" Fools a Few, Impresses Most

Some Dragon Ball fans starving for news about the new Budokai Tenkaichi game have fallen for a fake release date leak for the upcoming Sparking! Zero.

A fake visual teasing the release date for Dragon Ball: Sparking! Zero has gone viral, fooling some fans desperate for information about the upcoming anime fighting game but impressing others.

On social media platform X (formerly Twitter), a user who goes by the handle of @/DbsHype uploaded a fake promotional picture for Dragon Ball: Sparking! Zero that’s been spreading online. The image in question claims that the fourth installment of the Dragon Ball Z: Budokai Tenkaichi series will be released on Aug. 8, 2024. However, the image is presented in a questionably blurry fashion, as if to make it seem like someone quickly snapped a photo of it before they were caught in the act.

In the replies to DbsHype’s post, a user noticed that this specific image of Goku from the faux promo pic came from a Dragon Ball Super manga panel that was colored. Later, an X user who goes by the name of @/SouNand0 confessed to being the one behind the fake Sparking! Zero release date leak. “I was the one who colored Goku and edited the image, just to see who would take the bait,” SouNand0 said in the reply chain. Despite the disappointment, most Dragon Ball community members appear to be taking the fake image in stride, with many actually applauding SouNand0 for making such a convincing leak.

While the authenticity of the Dragon Ball: Sparking! Zero leak was always questionable, it’s understandable why Dragon Ball Z fans would ignore the red flags regarding the game’s release date. For more than 15 years, fans have been waiting patiently for a new installment in the Dragon Ball Z: Budokai Tenkaichi fighting game series. The last mainline installment, Dragon Ball Z: Budokai Tenkaichi 3, was released in 2007 for the PlayStation 2 and Nintendo Wii.

In early March of last year, a new Dragon Ball Z: Budokai Tenkaichi video game was announced at the Dragon Ball Games Battle Hour 2023 event. While information about the game was still scarce, English voice actor Sonny Strait (Krillin) confirmed in August that dubbing for the game was already underway. Then, at The Game Awards 2023 show, Dragon Ball: Sparking! Zero was officially revealed.

Dragon Ball: Sparking! Zero is currently in development. No official release date has been set for the game. However, anime fans can wishlist the game on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S and on PC (Steam).

Source: X (formerly Twitter)