Netmarble’s adventure-and-crafting game Bloomwalker has now been linked officially to Level-5’s Ni no Kuni universe. The connection was revealed in the latest trailer shown at Tokyo Game Show 2026, after the game first appeared at Gamescom in 2025.
That original presentation made Bloomwalker’s Studio Ghibli influence easy to recognise, particularly its resemblance to Howl’s Moving Castle. The new information makes its visual relationship with Ni no Kuni feel considerably less coincidental.
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The trailer first introduced the project under the name Project Bloomwalker. Its painterly presentation and fantasy setting remain strongly reminiscent of Ghibli animation, with several ideas that echo specific films.
- A mobile, living house and a small sentient flame that assists with cooking recall Howl’s Moving Castle.
- A huge magical cat with an unsettling grin evokes My Neighbor Totoro.
- The story’s focus on cleaning pollution from a forest brings Princess Mononoke to mind.
The connection to Ni no Kuni also has a straightforward business explanation. Netmarble developed and produced the mobile spin-off Ni no Kuni: Cross Worlds in 2021. The first two main Ni no Kuni games were made with Studio Ghibli’s involvement, which helps explain why Bloomwalker looks so familiar to fans of the series.
What the Tokyo Game Show trailer revealed
The new footage is the first substantial look at Bloomwalker since its initial reveal. The key detail appears at the very end: its copyright information includes both Ni no Kuni and Level-5.
That is the first indication that Bloomwalker has an official relationship with Ni no Kuni. However, the exact nature of the connection has not been explained. It is also not clear how much involvement Level-5 has in development.
The last mainline entry in the series was 2018’s Ni no Kuni II: Revenant Kingdom. Netmarble’s earlier Ni no Kuni: Cross Worlds was made without Level-5’s development assistance, so one possibility is that Level-5 has licensed the intellectual property to Netmarble for Bloomwalker. That remains speculation rather than a confirmed arrangement.
A new test for Netmarble
The announcement may interest Ni no Kuni fans looking for another game in the series’ distinctive fantasy world. It also arrives after criticism directed at Level-5 following a presentation containing extensive generative-AI material that aired on 10 September.
Netmarble will still have to demonstrate that Bloomwalker can meet expectations. Its previous Ni no Kuni game included blockchain elements, which were not removed until this year, as shown on the official game site.
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