Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice to Receive Free October Update

Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice, FromSoftware’s shinobi-themed entry in the “Soulsborne” genre that the studio essentially created, will receive a free update on October 29 that adds several new features to the game.

An Activision blog post details what players can expect when they download the update on PS4, Xbox One, or PC. Two new features will become available at the sculptor’s idols, which are the Sekiro equivalent of bonfires or lanterns in other FromSoftware games. Reflections of Strength will allow players to have a rematch with any boss that they’ve already defeated, while Gauntlets of Strength will provide a variety of difficult, single-life challenges. If players fail at any point during the gauntlet, they will have to start over from the beginning.

The update will also include three new costumes for Wolf. The Tengu and Old Ashina Shinobi outfits will be unlocked through Gauntlets of Strength, while the final outfit will be granted upon beating the game one time. The outfits are purely cosmetic, however, and will not augment Wolf’s abilities in any way.

And finally, the update will also add Remnants, a feature that should be a big help to newer players. Remnants will record the actions Wolf takes for 30 seconds, and players can upload them with a text description to explain what is taking place. Other players will be able to view these Remnants to learn new combat and traversal strategies, and rate them should they prove useful. In the event that a Remnant is rated, its creator will have their HP automatically restored. The blog doesn’t specifically mention how Remnants will appear in the game world, but the mechanism will probably be similar to Messages in Dark Souls or Notes in Bloodborne.

Aside from the features coming in the new update, the blog post also reveals that Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice has sold over 5 million copies since its launch on March 22, 2019. That is a very impressive figure for a game that is considered one of the most challenging of the modern era. Those sales should bode well for Elden Ring, which FromSoftware is currently developing for PS4, Xbox One, PC, and presumably PS5 and Xbox Series X. Fantasy author George R.R. Martin, whose A Song of Ice and Fire novels were famously adapted into the Game of Thrones HBO series, collaborated with Game Director Hidetaka Miyazaki on the lore for Elden Ring.