You Won't Have to Wait Long for The Apothecary Diaries' PS5 Game

Update [Wed 21st Oct 2026, 3:15pm]:

I now have the English language press release for The Apothecary Diaries: The False Imperial Brother.

As mentioned earlier today, the game will launch on 18th March worldwide.

In addition to the standard release, there’ll be a Digital Deluxe Edition, featuring “a Formal costume pack for Maomao and Jinshi, a Fantasy costume pack for Maomao, and a Fashion accessory pack for Maomao the Cat”.

Anyone who purchases the game physically or digitally before 31st March will be entitled to the ‘Apothecary's Starter Kit and Modest Accessory Pack’ for free. Pre-orders will also come with the ‘Apothecary's Tasteful Accessory Pack’.

So plenty of bonuses here for those planning to day one. I’ve included the English trailer and a few new screenshots within.

Original Story: Light novel, manga, and anime sensation The Apothecary Diaries is coming to the PS5 on 18th March, according to a new Japanese trailer.

While I’m still waiting for English PR – and will update once Koei Tecmo sends that through – a new trailer confirms that characters Jinshi and Maomao the Cat will be playable at certain points in the campaign, alongside the protagonist herself.

The trailer shows off the title’s various gameplay elements, including potion crafting minigames, exploration, and interrogation. Honestly, as far as anime-inspired tie-ins go, this looks surprisingly high quality.

At Tokyo Game Show earlier in the year, I got to speak to dev Gust and Toho about the title, and you can read my full interview through here. You probably won’t be surprised to learn this project started as ‘Atelier Maomao’, however, given the dev’s background.

Personally, this is among my most anticipated 2027 games, and while the start of next year is looking intensely busy, I’ll definitely be setting aside time to enjoy this original story, conceived by original author Hyunganatsu.