New Hakuoki: Edo Blossoms Gameplay Trailer Shows Off Corruption Feature

This week, Idea Factory International released a new game play trailer for Hakuoki: Edo Blossoms, in preparation for the game’s release on the PlayStation Vita next month. Edo Blossoms is the sequel to Hakuoki: Kyoto Winds, continuing the story of Chizuru Yukimura’s quest to find her missing father while simultaneously building relationships with members of the legendary Shinsengumi. Along with opening up new routes with a total of 12 different bachelors and countless extra endings, the game also offers a new “Corruption” feature, which allows the player to decide just how much the bachelor they pursue suffers from the demonic curse put on the entirety of the Shinsengumi.

The very basic explanation that leads to the plight of “Corruption” is this: something has infected your man, and now he needs to drink blood in order to stop himself from going Full Demon. The player can decide whether or not to offer Chizuru’s blood up to satisfy the urge, use medicine to calm the pain, or straight up let them suffer through it, causing them horrible amounts of pain. Yikes.

This, of course, means that more paths diverge in different directions than they did when Corruption wasn’t really much of an option. Given that the game is pretty well-known for its painful endings, this feature may make it even more challenging for players to reach a ‘Good End’ than ever before.

The trailer also gives players a deeper look at the new routes available, which include paths for Susumu Yamazaki, Shinpachi Nakagura, and Keisuke Sanan. Almost all of the game’s characters are based on real-life people from Japanese history, taking place during the end of the Bakumatsu period in the late 1860’s. The story synopsis released by Idea Factory International goes a little like this:

It was a bittersweet homecoming for Chizuru and the warriors of the Shinsengumi, as the city of Edo resembled very little of its former self, engulfed by the harrowing winds of change that were sweeping through the country. As the Shinsengumi’s survival came under threat, they were faced with a choice: discard their principals, or give up their lives. Some of them had no choice, and they cloaked themselves in darkness to protect the Shinsengumi’s greatest secret: the Furies.

Hakuoki: Edo Blossoms releases for the PlayStation Vita and PC on March 13th in the staes, and March 16th in Europe.