A two-tailed cat spirit is setting off through forest-covered ruins early next year. TamagawaSoft’s handcrafted 2D platformer isekizima: Ruins and Tails Journey will launch on Steam for Windows PC on Tuesday 19 January 2027, with a Nintendo Switch version is also planned for future release.
Players take control of Kijino, a nekomata, which is a two-tailed cat spirit from Japanese folklore. The journey covers more than 30 stages, from quiet woodland paths to caves beneath the island, and is accompanied by over 40 folk-inspired tracks composed to suit the scenery of each area.
Skeleton pirates, slimy monsters and ghostly enemies stand in the way, and Kijino fights back with combos of punches and kicks that leave claw-like flashes in the air. Each hit feeds the flames in Kijino’s two tails, building up a special attack that can sweep through several enemies at once.
Getting around the island involves running, jumping and dashing past obstacles, and new ways to travel open up as the journey continues. Kijino can swing across gaps on a grappling wire, ride minecarts along tracks into the caves and take control of a golem. TamagawaSoft says the controls are easy to learn, and players can retry straight away from the last checkpoint after a mistake.
Along the way, Kijino meets new friends, with the story told through their expressions and in-game illustrations. There are hidden treasures to find and outfits to collect for customising Kijino’s appearance.
Newcomers can play at a steady pace, while those wanting more of a challenge can turn on three optional settings, which include making enemy attacks fiercer and capping max HP at its starting value. There are also 47 Steam achievements, some of which encourage different approaches, such as reaching the goal without defeating any enemies.
A free demo is available now on Steam, offering around one to two hours of gameplay, The isekizima: Supporter Pack – Soundtrack + Artbook will launch on Steam on the same day as the base game. It includes the complete original soundtrack of 43 tracks in MP3 format, a digital artbook of 184 images in JPG and PNG format, and one bonus outfit. The artbook covers concept art, character designs, rough sketches, guest artwork and story illustrations, among other material.
