‘Nioh’ Alpha Demo Announced By Koei Tecmo; PS4 Exclusive Testing Begins April 26

It’s been more than 10 years since Koei Tecmo first announced Nioh, the upcoming action RPG many have described as Dark Souls with samurais, but consumers will finally get a chance to play the game later this month.

To give you some idea of just how long we’ve been waiting for Nioh, the game was originally announced by Koei three years before the company’s 2009 merger with Tecmo. The project is based on an unfinished script from legendary filmmaker Akira Kurosawa and was slated to be developed alongside a companion film directed by Kurosawa’s son, Hisao. Now, 10 years later, Koei Tecmo and Team Ninja say they’re finally ready to show Nioh to the general public. And fans won’t even have to wait for a local convention to get hands-on time with the game.

According to a new post on the PlayStation Blog, published by Team Ninja producer Peter Garza, Koei Tecmo and Team Ninja will give PlayStation 4 owners their first chance to play Nioh later this month. Beginning April 26, and continuing through May 5, anyone with an internet-connected PS4 will have a chance to download the Nioh alpha demo from the PlayStation Network. It’s not clear how much content we can expect to find in the demo but Garza’s “masocore” description doesn’t leave much doubt about whether or not it will be challenging.

As an extra bonus, Garza says anyone who manages to complete the Nioh alpha demo will be able to download the previously unannounced Mark of the Conqueror DLC; a special add-on for the game that won’t be available until the Nioh release date. It’s not clear whether or not the Mark of the Conquerer DLC will also be available for purchase at/after launch; however, we wouldn’t be surprised to see such an announcement a bit closer to Nioh’s debut.

For a closer look at Nioh, take a couple of minutes to check out the alpha demo announcement trailer released alongside today’s blog post. Then head down to the comments section and let us know whether or not you’re looking forward to the debut of Nioh.

Nioh is in development exclusively for PS4 and expected to debut sometime later this year.

Be sure to check back with iDigitalTimes.com and follow Scott on Twitter for more Nioh coverage throughout 2016 and for however long Koei Tecmo supports Nioh in the months following launch.