Beast of Reincarnation Has a Strong Connection With Blade Runner

Known worldwide as the studio that created Pokémon, Game Freak has been developing quality games since the early 90s, molding generations of gamers and becoming one of the most influential franchises of all time—and there are no signs of slowing down.

Game Freak's Nintendo Switch 2 exclusives, Pokémon Winds and Waves, will be hitting the shelves sometime in 2027, but before we resume our scheduled monster-catching adventures, Game Freak is showing off their versatility with their brand-new action RPG title, Beast of Reincarnation, which draws inspiration from a surprising place.

This isn't the pleasant tale of Ash Ketchum embarking on a journey to be the very best, like no one ever was, catching lovable Pokémon and making friends along the way—Beast of Reincarnation looks to be a much darker adventure, but luckily, you'll still have a companion by your side.

Emma and her loyal dog companion, Koo, have been shunned from society because they are afflicted with Blight, a parasitic plant plague that has taken over the world. As a result, Emma and Koo are forced to traverse post-apocalyptic Japan, defeating bosses to capture their powers, hone their skills, and ultimately, take down the Beast of Reincarnation.

While there are definitely still some Pokémon-esque gameplay features, including turn-based combat (mixed with real-time combat) and the ability to create an unbreakable bond with your creature companion as you demolish foes with superior skill and strategy, Beast of Reincarnation has many design features that are intriguing to say the least.

Game Director Kota Furushima recently did an interview with Game Rant's Nick Rodriguez to take a closer look at the dynamic between Emma and Koo, and talk about some of the studio's design choices and inspirations.

Some gamers have been comparing Beast of Reincarnation to Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice and NieR: Automata, and while Furushima didn't disagree with these comparisons, he revealed the game instead shares a strong connection with the Blade Runner movie: "I am a gamer myself, so I do get a lot of inspiration from other titles that I’ve seen. But if there’s one thing that I would say the game does have a strong connection with, it’s the movie Blade Runner. That movie has a sense of world-building that really hits home for me, so I looked toward it when developing Beast of Reincarnation, especially in the context of mixing reality in fiction. However, I would say that I used it more as a reference point than inspiration."

Secret Theme Behind the Story

Not only will Beast of Reincarnation show Game Freak's ability to branch out into different styles of storytelling and gameplay, it appears they've also taken the time to infuse some mystery into the game's story, with an underlying message. "I don’t have any fixed ideas behind designing the game, so I’d like to have players really discover their own experience through Beast of Reincarnation. However, I will say that there is a secret theme behind the story—I won’t delve into it, but players can figure it out themselves. It will probably be a challenge, though."

An official combat overview has also just been released, showing off powerful bosses, an exciting mixture of real-time and turn-based combat, time-slowing and plant-manipulating abilities, and a closer look at skill trees that will allow gamers to experiment with different playstyles as they explore post-apocalyptic Japan.

Beast of Reincarnation is scheduled to launch on August 4th, 2026, for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, and PC.