Sekiro Anime Adaptation Will Be Fully Hand-Drawn

When Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice first hit shelves in 2019, it didn’t just test gamers’ reflexes—it defined a generation of action-adventure gameplay. Developed by FromSoftware, the title set in Sengoku-era Japan earned Game of the Year and sold over 10 million copies, cementing itself as one of the most punishing yet rewarding experiences in gaming history.

Now, in a move no one quite expected, the one-armed shinobi’s tale is being reborn as an anime. Titled Sekiro: No Defeat, the project was unveiled at Gamescom 2025, leaving fans buzzing with equal parts excitement and disbelief.

Sekiro: 100% Hand-Drawn

While most modern anime lean on digital shortcuts, Sekiro: No Defeat is breaking the mould. The production team—helmed by Kadokawa, Crunchyroll, Qzil.la, and ARCH—confirmed that the series will be entirely hand-drawn, frame by painstaking frame.

The announcement stunned industry veterans. In today’s fast-paced production pipeline, fully hand-drawn projects are almost extinct. Yet the Sekiro adaptation doubles down on artistry, promising every blade clash, every parry, and every haunting Sengoku landscape inked with pure craftsmanship.

“Every ounce of our artistic vision is being poured into this,” director Kenichi Kutsuna declared. “We want every stroke to leave a lasting impression.”

The Team Behind the Ink

The project brings together some of anime’s most seasoned talent:

• Director: Kenichi Kutsuna (Bleach, Fullmetal Alchemist, Blue Exorcist)

• Scriptwriter: Takuya Satou

• Character Designer: Takahiro Kishida (Baccano!, Durarara!!)

• Action Animation Director: Takashi Mukoda

• Art Director: Yuji Kaneko (Little Witch Academia, Devilman Crybaby)

• Composer: Shuta Hasunuma

Voice continuity also matters: Daisuke Namikawa will reprise his role as Wolf, alongside Miyuki Satou as Kuro and Kenjiro Tsuda as Genichiro, ensuring the emotional beats land as fiercely as the battles.

For Sekiro, a game defined by patience, precision, and rhythm, hand-drawn animation feels almost poetic. Every sword swing carries weight. Every still moment of quiet snow or rustling bamboo can breathe.

It’s more than nostalgia—it’s a deliberate choice to reflect the game’s philosophy: mastery through discipline. Just as players endured countless defeats to earn victory, the animation team is committing to painstaking work frame by frame.

The debut trailer teased scenes fans know all too well—Sekiro clashing with Genichiro atop Ashina Castle, blades sparking with ferocious intensity. But this time, it’s not pixels—it’s ink.

Release Date: Sekiro: No Defeat will stream exclusively on Crunchyroll in 2026. With its commitment to hand-drawn artistry, the adaptation may become one of the most ambitious anime projects of the decade.

Sekiro was always about more than winning battles—it was about resilience, beauty, and the art of never giving up. With Sekiro: No Defeat, those lessons are being re-etched in hand-drawn strokes, a love letter to both old-school anime craft and the enduring spirit of the shinobi.

Get ready to die—and be reborn—in ink.

The Uncommon Breed

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