Takechiyo travels forward in time in Nioh 3’s first DLC, landing in a version of Edo where his future self is already dead and the Crucible has retaken the city. Hell Rising arrives August 19, 2026 on PlayStation 5 and PC via Steam, dropping players into 1651 during the Keian era with a new open-field map, new weapons, and a new difficulty tier layered on top.
An unknown yokai that Takechiyo first met in his dreams is what leads him to the future Edo, where the castle town that once stood as proof of the shogunate’s authority has been reduced to a hellish wasteland scoured by the gales of the Crucible. Yokai, human rebels, and alchemists from foreign lands have all descended on it. One-eyed swordsman Yagyu Jubei and Spanish envoy Rodrigo join up with Takechiyo to work through another plot centered on the Spirit Stones.
New to the combat side is the hoko and shield, available for both the Samurai and Ninja Styles. Basic attacks pair the shield’s defense with the short spear’s offense, and there are more tactical options built in as well, including flinging the shield at enemies outright.
A new equipment category called the Hundred Demon Realms Picture Scroll arrives alongside it, aimed squarely at players who want more of a fight. Enemies occasionally drop a scroll as rare loot, but equipping one means first winning the automatically generated battle tied to it. Those battles can be replayed to randomly reroll one of the scroll’s special effects, which doubles as the way to strengthen and customize it.
For anyone heading into a third playthrough, the Enlightened One’s Journey is a new extreme difficulty setting where certain enemies randomly pick up a Curse buff that makes them considerably stronger. Clearing those enemies pays out divine-rarity items. Hell Rising also adds divine-rarity Grace set bonuses and special effects for build tuning, along with new Martial Arts, Ninjutsu, Guardian Spirits, and Soul Cores.
Hell Rising is included with the Nioh 3 Season Pass, which also covers a second expansion called Bloody Insurrection that hasn’t been dated yet. To go with the announcement, the Digital Deluxe edition is 23 percent off on the PlayStation Store and Steam, and the Standard edition is 36 percent off on Steam for a limited time.
