Like any proper From Software game, Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice doesn’t explicitly lay out its full story. Instead, dedicated players must piece together information gleaned from text sources, character dialogue, and more. For even the most thorough players, though, one NPC remains a mystery: Hanbei the Undying. Fortunately, From is overseeing an official tie-in comic that will flesh out Hanbei’s enigmatic past.
Sekiro Hanbei the Undying Tie-In Comic
When it comes to Sekiro’s gameplay, Hanbei the Undying fills a small yet crucial role. As his name implies, Hanbei cannot be permanently killed. If he’s felled by a blade, he just rises again no worse for wear (at least physically). This unique curse also makes Hanbei a useful sparring partner, and that’s just the service he offers to the player. The player can freely practice their deadly sword skills on Hanbei as many times as they need to.
But how was Hanbei cursed in the first place? Who was he before the events of the game? How did he become such a formidably fighter? The tie-in comic will provide answers to these questions in suitably bloody fashion. Titled Sekiro Gaiden: Shinazu Hanbei, the comic is being illustrated by renowned Japanese artist Shin Yamamoto.
Graphics novel publisher Yen Press is handling US distribution, and the company also provided a brief story teaser:
“The Sengoku Era…A time when losing a battle meant losing it all. The Sword Saint, Isshin Ashina, aims for world domination…That is, until he encounters a certain Samurai…”
Specific distribution avenues are still being worked out, but the comic will be available via the Japanese Comic Walker website. The tie-in comic is scheduled to launch in roughly a month on May 27. Other details such as pricing and what formats will be available (digital vs. physical) aren’t yet known.
For more on Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice, be sure to read about its recently launched 1.03 update. We also looked at a cut Dragonrot Pellet feature which includes unused character dialogue.