Players know going into DLC 3 of Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot that the story is going to be much darker compared to what the base game showed. In this timeline, Goku dies of a heart disease, and the remaining Z Warriors just aren't enough to handle the threat of Androids 17 and 18 when they arrive. Teen Gohan and a baby Trunks are all that survive, and the two grow up and train together, hoping to become strong enough to destroy the androids and save their broken world. That said, the ending of this story in the DLC is surprisingly positive, making Future Trunks' fate in Dragon Ball Super that much more frustrating.
There will be major spoilers ahead for both the ending of Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot DLC 3 and the ending of the Future Trunks saga in Dragon Ball Super. Players and viewers wanting to experience those things for themselves should take this as a chance to turn back and read this after finishing the DLC and story arc. Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot has always distanced itself from Dragon Ball Super, but comparisons between the two are inevitable, especially when it comes to a fan favorite character like Future Trunks and his struggling timeline.
Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot - DLC 3 Ending
While many expected the third DLC for Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot to end with Trunks hopping into the time machine before going back to help the Z Warriors in the main timeline fight the androids, players were pleasantly surprised to see that the story actually continued well beyond that. Players get the chance to see Trunks return to his timeline and exact his well-earned vengeance on Androids 17 and 18, and then eventually deal with Cell before the beast can steal his time machine and wreak havoc on the main timeline. Finally, the DLC ends with Trunks, Supreme Kai, and Kibito putting a stop to Dabura and Babidi's dastardly plans to revive Majin Buu.
What is so notable about this ending is the progression of the world around Trunks, though. At the start of the DLC, the world is in ruins. Certain secluded spaces out in nature seem relatively untouched, but anywhere that was once a city or home is instead decrepit and devoid of life. The few living people that players do come across are either hopelessly optimistic or just plain hopeless. After defeating the Androids, however, the people start to rebuild. It still isn't the same as the main timeline, but bustling metropolises like West City start to show some real signs of life.
Dragon Ball Super - Future Trunks Saga Ending
While many did enjoy the Future Trunks Saga in Dragon Ball Super for the most part, its ending is one that most fans simply don't like. After Zamasu and Goku Black fuse together, the foe proves to be too much for even Vegito Blue to take down before their transformation wears off. Everything comes down to Trunks once again, who uses the hope of all the survivors left on Earth to tear Fused Zamasu in half with the Sword of Hope. Unfortunately, not even this is enough to undo the immortality granted to Zamasu by Super Shenron.
Zamasu becomes Infinite Zamasu, a permeating force of evil that is so powerful it starts to reach across timelines. Seeing no other recourse, Goku calls the Omni King Zeno to his side, and Zeno erases the entire timeline in disgust. Naturally, Goku, Vegeta, Future Trunks, and Future Mai are able to make it back to the time machine before this happens, but the same can't be said for all the others still alive on Earth and elsewhere in the universe.
Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot Contextualizes Zeno's Erasure of the Future Timeline
When watching the show as a standalone entity, it's easy to dismiss Zeno's actions since the timeline was admittedly falling apart. That said, Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot paints a different picture. Before Zamasu arrived to terrorize his home, Future Trunks and the people of his timeline had finally started to rebuild. Players get to see suffering families reunited and civilization returning to a semblance of normalcy. For all of this to be ripped away by the Omni King in a second is hard to imagine.
And yet this is exactly what happened. The hope that Trunks has always fought for ultimately amounted to nothing, and the people he strove to protect were wiped out all the same. It may not have been at the hands of the androids, Majin Buu, or Zamasu, but they are gone nonetheless. The happy ending that players secure for Trunks in Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot DLC 3 is promptly ripped away by the ending of the Future Trunks saga in Dragon Ball Super.
The Dragon Ball Super Manga is Even Worse
It gets even more unbearable if players follow the events of the manga instead of the anime. For the most part things play out the same, but when the Omni King is called, he takes things a step further. Rather than erasing Universe 7 of the future timeline, Zeno erases the entire multiverse. Beings that were never affected by Zamasu like the Pride Troopers or the Saiyans of Universe 6 are all gone in a moments' notice. Dragon Ball Super touches on the severity of this when Zeno starts to erase entire Universes during the Tournament of Power, but not during this saga.
Unfortunately, things aren't likely to change for Future Trunks. Even if players are lucky enough to get a Dragon Ball Super: Kakarot, the story will probably stay true to the manga and anime for the most part. There have been minor changes made to the story of Dragon Ball Z so that it fits the narrative of Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot better, but nothing as big as this.
Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot is available now on PC, PS4, and Xbox One, and releases on September 24th for the Nintendo Switch.
