Koei Tecmo put out a gameplay trailer on Wednesday for The Apothecary Diaries: The False Imperial Brother, and it came with a release date. The game arrives March 18 on Nintendo Switch 2, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 5 and PC through Steam.
It is a mystery game. You play as Maomao, which is the only sensible choice for a series built around a character who solves problems by tasting things and noticing what everyone else misses.
What the trailer shows
The footage runs through the three loops the game is built on: exploring, compounding and investigating. Maomao moves through locations, mixes medicines, and pieces together how a case fits together before the answer is spelled out.
There is also a Digital Deluxe Edition, which includes costume packs. Koei Tecmo has not detailed how many costumes or what they look like, and no price has been announced for either version.
The choice of platforms is worth noting. Switch 2 and Switch both being on the list means the game will run on the older hardware too, which is not automatic this generation. Adding PS5 and Steam gives it the widest spread Koei Tecmo's licensed titles usually get, and for a series with a large Western readership that makes sense.
The franchise behind it
The Apothecary Diaries started as a web novel. Hyuganatsu began posting it on Shōsetsuka ni Narō in October 2011, and Shufunotomo turned it into a print series in August 2014 with illustrations by Touko Shino. Nekokurage's manga adaptation launched in Square Enix's Monthly Big Gangan in May 2017 and is still running. Square Enix Manga & Books handles both the manga and the novels in English.
The anime arrived in October 2023 and ran for two cours. Season 2 followed in January 2025 on Nippon TV's FRIDAY ANIME NIGHT block, also two cours, with Crunchyroll streaming and dubbing both. Season 3 premiered on October 2, and its second cours is set for April 2027.
Then there is the film. The Apothecary Diaries: The Deceased Empress' Treasure opens in Japanese theaters on December 11 with a brand-new story written by Hyuganatsu. Some English-language coverage has used the title The Late Lady's Treasure, which is how we first reported the Crunchyroll theatrical pickup, so expect to see both floating around. Amazon Prime Video is also producing a live-action series for a worldwide 2028 release. Beyond screens, there is an Apothecary Diaries attraction at Universal Studios Japan that returns in February 2027, which tells you how far the franchise has spread beyond publishing.
Why a game makes sense here
Most anime tie-in games are action titles bolted onto a fighting franchise, and they tend to be forgettable. This one is not that. The Apothecary Diaries is a mystery series where the protagonist solves problems with knowledge, and a game built around investigation and compounding fits the source material far better than a combat system would.
The risk is repetition. Investigation loops get old fast if the cases are thin, and Maomao's appeal comes from her personality as much as her deductions. A game that reduces her to a cursor clicking on clues will miss the point, and Koei Tecmo's track record with licensed adaptations is uneven.
The trailer is encouraging on one count: it shows her actually working, mixing ingredients and reading a scene, rather than standing in a combat pose.
Timing
March 18 puts the game between the second cours of season 3 and the film's home release window, which is a sensible spot to catch the audience while the anime is still airing. It also lands in a crowded spring, and licensed games usually need a clear runway to find buyers.
For anyone who has only seen the anime, the game is a way into the parts the show has not covered yet. For readers who started with the novels, the interesting question is which cases Koei Tecmo chose to adapt, and whether the writing holds up without Hyuganatsu's narration carrying it.
Source: Source: Anime News Network
Featured image: Trailer still for The Apothecary Diaries: The False Imperial Brother showing Jinshi, Maomao and her cat, via Anime News Network.
