Hunter × Hunter: Nen × Impact is an upcoming 2.5D fighting game developed by Bushiroad in collaboration with Eighting and published by Bushiroad in Japan and Arc System Works worldwide, set to release for the Nintendo Switch, Playstation 5 and Windows (via Steam) on 17 July 2025.[1]
Based on the Hunter × Hunter franchise, the game centres around 3-on-3 tag team style fights, where the player picks a team of three playable characters with unique abilities taken from the franchise, to fight a CPU or human opponent with their own team of three characters.
Gameplay
The gameplay centres around 3V3 battles against opponents either controlled by the CPU or by other players through either local or online multiplayer and is reminiscent of other games developed by Eighting namely Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3 and Tatsunoko vs. Capcom: Ultimate All-Stars. Players can pick 3 characters who they will take into battle, with the winner being the one who depletes all 3 of their opponent’s fighters. Players can switch their playable fighters out at anytime and can call upon fighters who are not in play to execute assists attacks. The rush button allows players to perform stronger combo attacks, though this ability has a cooldown period. Each character also has an “Nen Arts” meter that fills up through executing combos, which can be used to perform powerful one time attacks that are unique to each character.[2]
Singleplayer gamemodes include a story mode that allows players to reenact battles from the source material against CPU opponents, which also have additional objectives such as winning in a certain timeframe or executing a specific combo. Training mode allows players to hone their skills whilst Single mode utilises the “Heaven’s Arena” location from the source material as a series of increasingly more challenging CPU fighters, with each character having their own set of challenges. Completing these challenges provides unlockable content such as player icons and Greed Island Cards.[3]
Multiplayer gamemodes include Free Battle Mode for fighting human opponents in local multiplayer, alongside online battles with user friends. Ranked matchmaking is also included for players who want to test their skills in highly competitive matches online.[4]
Characters
The base game includes 16 playable characters, with 4 additional characters to be released through a planned season pass. The characters will be voiced in Japanese by the cast of the 2011 Hunter × Hunter anime series.[5]
Base Roster | Season Pass 1 |
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Development and release
The game was first revealed at Jump Festa on 15 December 2023,[6] with the first teaser trailer revealing the game's name as Hunter × Hunter: Nen × Impact releasing in January 2024.[7] A demo was available to play at the Evo Japan 2024 event on April 27.[8] Bushiroad will publish the game in Japan and Arc System Works will publish the game for the rest of the world.[9] The game was set to release in 2024, but was soon delayed to 17 July 2025 due to the implementation of rollback netcode, a mechanism that avoids the lag during online matches.[10][11]
In November 2024, the Australian Classification Board refused the game classification, preemptively banning the game from sale in the country due to "a scene of a visual depiction of implied sexual violence, where an adult male exposes himself to persons under the age of 18 years".[12][13]
References
- ^ "『HUNTER×HUNTER NEN×IMPACT』 globally releases on July 17, 2025, PRE-ORDERS OPEN". hunterhunter-ni.bushiroadgames.com/en/. 17 February 2025. Retrieved 7 March 2025.
- ^ "BATTLE SYSTEM SYSTEM HUNTER×HUNTER NEN×IMPACT Official site". hunterhunter-ni.bushiroadgames.com/en/. Retrieved 7 March 2025.
- ^ "HUNTER×HUNTER NEN×IMPACT Official site". hunterhunter-ni.bushiroadgames.com/en/. Retrieved 7 March 2025.
- ^ "HUNTER×HUNTER NEN×IMPACT Official site". hunterhunter-ni.bushiroadgames.com/en/. Retrieved 7 March 2025.
- ^ "Gon CHARACTER HUNTER×HUNTER NEN×IMPACT Official site". hunterhunter-ni.bushiroadgames.com/en/. Retrieved 7 March 2025.
- ^ Hodgkins, Crystalyn (7 March 2025). "Bushiroad, Eighting Reveal Hunter x Hunter Fighting Game". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on 16 December 2023. Retrieved 7 March 2025.
- ^ Hodgkins, Crystalyn (7 March 2025). "Bushiroad, Eighting Officially Reveal Hunter x Hunter Nen x Impact Fighting Game in Video". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on 6 January 2024. Retrieved 7 March 2025.
- ^ Hodgkins, Crystalyn (7 March 2025). "Hunter x Hunter Nen x Impact Fighting Game Releases for PS5, Switch, PC via Steam". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on 8 March 2024. Retrieved 7 March 2025.
- ^ Hodgkins, Crystalyn (7 June 2024). "Hunter x Hunter Nen x Impact Fighting Game Reveals Bisky Trailer, Release This Year". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on 8 June 2024. Retrieved 7 March 2025.
- ^ Flores Jr, Johnny (7 March 2025). "Hunter x Hunter Nen X Impact Confirmed For 2024 Release Worldwide". thegamer.com. Archived from the original on 2 August 2024. Retrieved 7 March 2025.
- ^ Cayanan, Joanna (7 March 2025). "Hunter x Hunter Nen x Impact Fighting Game's Release Delayed to 2025". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on 30 September 2024. Retrieved 7 March 2025.
- ^ Walker, Ian (2024-12-02). "Hunter x Hunter fighting game refused classification in Australia for 'implied sexual violence' against minors". Polygon. Retrieved 2025-01-06.
- ^ "HUNTER×HUNTER NEN×IMPACT | Australian Classification". Australian Classification. 18 November 2024. Retrieved 6 January 2025.
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