Guilty Gear and BlazBlue developer Arc System Works has announced Qliphah in Providence’s Shadow, a brand-new IP slated for launch on September 24 for PC (Steam/Epic Games Store), PS5 and Nintendo Switch.
Billed as a “tactical timeline RPG with hyper-stylish combat” Qliphah in Providence’s Shadow is set in 2030 Tokyo, in the aftermath of a calamity known as the “Collapse.” Since then, reality itself has started to erode, and grotesque entities known as Aberrations roam the dilapidated streets.
The story follows Souma Hoshigami, a young man who becomes a hybrid of a human and monster after being brutally attacked by an Aberration while working a delivery job, and Rena Hizuki, a lethal investigator from the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department’s Public Safety Department, Foreign Affairs Fifth Division (commonly known as the Public Safety Mutation Response Division). Together, they investigate the mysteries behind the Collapse and the emergence of Aberrations.
You progress by selecting different areas on a map centered around Tokyo’s Shibuya ward. Since the Collapse, various problems have contaminated society, including the spread of a dangerous drug called Tiny True, the growing popularity of body-consuming markings known as “Stigma” among adolescents, and the activities of a mysterious cult operating behind the scenes. You’ll conduct investigations across different locations, with story sequences presented in a visual-novel-style format using character sprites and CG illustrations. In areas where combat can occur, you can check enemy stats and item drop rates before engaging.
Combat uses a timeline-based system. Enemy attack timings and attack types are displayed on a timeline, and players insert their own skills into the gaps between them, chaining and stacking them into combos. Counter-attacks seem to play a key role in battle – whenever an enemy attacks, two yellow circles appear, and a successful counter is performed by attacking when the circles overlap. You can slow down or pause battles at any time while getting used to the mechanics or coming up with strategies, but when fighting at normal speed, combat will be fast-paced in a way that “rivals an action game.”
Qliphah in Providence’s Shadow is being co-developed by Arc System Works and UnitePlus. While Arc System Works is best known for fighting game IPs such as Guilty Gear and BlazBlue, the company has recently expanded its focus to include publishing indie games in Japan as well as creating new IPs. UnitePlus, meanwhile, was established in November 2025 through the merger of developer Aquria (known for its work on FuRyu’s CRYMACHINA) and APLUS, the studio behind titles in the Kunio-kun series.
Qliphah in Providence’s Shadow is scheduled to release on September 24 for PC (Steam/Epic Games Store), PS5 and Nintendo Switch.
