Anime Expo 2024 was, as always, a massive event that offered a number of new announcements for anime fans. Amid announcements and world premieres for some of the biggest anime and manga franchises, including Trigun, Fire Force, GUILTY GEAR, and so many more.
One of the most exciting, and perhaps unexpected of these announcements was that Bleach would be returning to consoles with a brand-new game.
Bleach’s First Console Title Since ‘Brave Souls’ Shows a Lot of Promise
The last Bleach game that made it to consoles was Brave Souls, which originally dropped on 2016. The game was relatively well-received at the time, and garnered a lot of love from critics and diehard Bleach fans. While there was already a mobile game in the works, Bleach: Soul Resonance, which has had an incredibly successful pre-registration period after launching in China with over 8.6 million sign-ups since early January 2024.
In its gorgeously flashy announcement trailer, Bleach: Rebirth of Souls looks to be an adventure-driven fighting game with graphics that beautifully captures Tite Kubo’s signature artstyle. The game’s official announcement trailer also showed off a number of fan-favorite characters that will be featured throughout, with some obvious picks like Rukia and Yoruichi. Bandai Namco has said the following about Rebirth of Souls on their official webpage:
“Awaken the blade within you and reverse your fate in BLEACH: Rebirth of Souls!
Engage in thrilling battles with powerful sword abilities and characters from this legendary anime franchise.”
Fan reception to the upcoming title has been overwhelmingly positive, with many excited to finally see the franchise receive a new entry after so many years, and based on the trailer and comments made during Anime Expo 2024, it seems the game is something of a passion project for the team. Developed by Tamsoft Corporation (Melty Blood: Type Lumina, Senran Kagura Shinovi Versus), the game is slated to be released on Xbox Series X|S, PS4, PS5, and PC – however, there is no official release date at this time.
