One of the biggest anime series of the past few years, Demon Slayer, is coming to gaming. A new game is currently in development at CyberConnect2, the studio behind Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot and the Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm series. There is no release date yet for the Demon Slayer game, but footage of its Versus mode has leaked online and it shows gameplay similar to that of the Ultimate Ninja Storm series.
The Demon Slayer anime originally premiered in 2019 and has grown in prominence ever since. The popularity of Tanjiro Kamado's story eventually led to Demon Slayer the Movie: Mugen Train, which subsequently became the highest grossing movie of all-time in Japan. With such success, it was only a matter a time before Demon Slayer became a game, and there are already two in the works. One is the mobile game Demon Slayer: Blood-Stench Blade Royale, which seems to be in developmental hell after failing to release in 2020. The other is Demon Slayer: Kimetsu No Yaiba - Hinokami Keppuutan, which will feature a single-player mode and a two-on-two Versus mode where characters from the series fight for supremacy.
The hallmarks of the Demon Slayer anime are its critically acclaimed action sequences, which blend digital effects with hand-drawn animation techniques. This style translates well into video game adaptation, and according to the leaked footage it seems CyberConnect2 is doing its best to make in-game fights as visually stunning as possible. The video of the Versus mode gameplay is only in Japanese, but there's no language barrier for watching Tanjiro and his sister battle it out in the snowy forest from the beginning of the anime.
It seems like the only playable characters in Versus mode in the current stage of development are Tanjiro and Nezuko Kamado, Inosuke Hashibira, Giyu Tomioka, and Zenitsu Agatsuma. Many fans in the comments of the video note the gameplay's similarities to the Ultimate Ninja Storm series, which features 3D fighting environments instead of the more common 2D experience. It also looks like the Demon Slayer video game will feature ultimate moves similar to the ultimate jutsu and ultimate impact moves from the Ultimate Ninja Storm games.
Demon Slayer: Kimetsu No Yaiba - Hinokami Keppuutan will hopefully be the first successful game to be made from the Demon Slayer brand. The game is scheduled to release in 2021, but fans can also expect an English dub of Demon Slayer the Movie: Mugen Train to be available this year as well.
Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba – Hinokami Keppuutan is in development for PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X.