Demon Slayer had quite the year in 2025, with the first of its finale trilogy, Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle, becoming the biggest anime film of all time. While details regarding the next chapter in the Hashiras’ fight against Muzan remain a mystery, Ufotable is still making sure to keep the Demon Slayer Corps at the forefront. For those who might not know, the Chinese zodiac has named 2026 the “Year of the Horse,” and anime franchises are preparing to ring in the new year. Taking a page from the horse anime franchise, Umamusume: Pretty Derby, Tanjiro and company are looking a little different.
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Alongside sharing new art of horse-themed demon slayers, Ufotable shared a message to fans to say goodbye to 2025 and welcome 2026. Here’s the statement that the Demon Slayer studio shared with fans, “We extend our heartfelt gratitude to all of you for your tremendous support throughout this year. We are deeply grateful for the warm encouragement from each and every one of you who has walked alongside us with *Demon Slayer*. We pray that the new year brings wonderful moments for all of you, and wish you health and happiness. Please have a happy New Year.” While this might not be an official crossover, the new art shows what Tanjiro and his allies might look like if they joined the “Pretty Derby.”
The Year of The Horse
Umamusume: Pretty Derby obviously is an anime franchise, with a television series and movie falling under its umbrella, but where the unique story has found the most success is with the gaming medium. Umamusume’s mobile game has garnered over thirty million downloads worldwide, with players spending billions of dollars to collect some of the most noteworthy characters in the franchise. With each character based on a real-life horse, many fans have even gone to the extreme of visiting real-world stables to get a peek at the animals that inspired some of their favorite anime characters from the franchise.
Like Umamsume and many other anime franchises out there, Demon Slayer has had mobile games of its own that incorporate a Gacha system. Anime franchises typically work well within this certain kind of game, thanks to the “gacha” genre routinely asking players to collect some of their favorite characters. With the Demon Slayer Corps’ universe having plenty of heroes and villains alike to add to a potential digital library, it makes sense the popular franchise would do well in the digital landscape.
As for when we can expect word on the next Demon Slayer movie, that question remains a mystery. Many fans of the shonen franchise were disappointed when the Ufotable production had no reveals at the recent Jump Festa, though we wouldn’t be surprised if the “Year of the Horse” gave us a hint as to when we can expect Tanjiro and company to return.
What do you think of this hilarious Demon Slayer New Years tribute? Leave a comment below and join the conversation now in the ComicBook Forum!
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a PlayStation 2 console and controller over a field of game box art.
