Qliphah in Providence's Shadow Pre-Order Trailer Highlights Counter Timeline Combat

Arc System Works and UnitePlus have released the second PV / Pre-Order Trailer for Qliphah in Providence's Shadow on September 3, 2026. The latest footage offers a broader look at its real-time timeline combat, dual protagonists, post-World Collapse Tokyo setting and early-purchase bonuses.

The game is officially scheduled to launch on September 24, 2026 for PlayStation 5, Nintendo Switch, Steam and Epic Games Store. Digital Nintendo Switch pre-orders also opened on September 3, joining the platforms where reservations were already available.

Quick Summary

• Official global title: Qliphah in Providence's Shadow
• Japanese title: 神貌のクリファ
• Japanese romanization: Kanbaku no Qliphah
• Official genre: Tactical Counter Timeline RPG
• Publisher: Arc System Works
• Developer: UnitePlus
• Steam also credits: Arc System Works and UnitePlus as developers
• Game Designer / Director: Satoshi Hirayae
• Key Visual / Character Illustration: Rolua
• Latest material: second PV / Pre-Order Trailer
• Trailer date: September 3, 2026
• Official release date: September 24, 2026
• Platforms: PlayStation 5, Nintendo Switch, Steam and Epic Games Store
• Players: 1
• Status: pre-order / pre-purchase available
• Indonesian Steam price: Rp280,000 as checked on September 3, 2026
• United States digital price: $24.99
• Japanese digital price: ¥2,970 including tax
• Japanese physical price: ¥3,520 including tax
• Japanese rating: CERO C
• United States rating: ESRB Teen
• Protagonists: Rena Hizuki and Soma Hoshigami
• Rena Hizuki: age 28, voiced by Ikumi Hasegawa
• Soma Hoshigami: age 20, voiced by Tosei Izuki
• Setting: Tokyo after the World Collapse
• Primary threat: Anomalies appearing as reality erodes
• Investigations: Tiny True, Stigmas and a mysterious cult
• Battle system: Tactical Counter Timeline
• Timeline: displays enemy attack timing and type
• Time control: action can be slowed or temporarily paused
• Counter Skills: divided into red, blue and yellow
• Counter principle: match a skill's color with an enemy action on the timeline
• Buddy Counter: some attacks require both protagonists
• Down Gauge: counters can break certain enemies into a vulnerable state
• Mystic Art: finishing attack for maximizing burst damage
• Exploration: locations and events change with time and elapsed days
• Story Mode: presented in a visual-novel format
• Voice acting: narrative is nearly fully voiced
• Voice language: Japanese only
• Mystic Pass: hidden passwords used to unlock information or rewards
• Early Purchase Bonus: three skins each for Rena and Soma
• Extra Battle: Voidfall includes 16 high-difficulty encounters
• Nintendo Switch digital pre-orders: opened September 3, 2026

Pre-Order Trailer, Steam and Gameplay

The New Trailer Shows the Combat Flow More Clearly

The Pre-Order Trailer is the game's main new video following its initial announcement in June. This time, the footage spends more time demonstrating how Rena and Soma study incoming attacks before deciding how to respond.

Skills move toward their activation point on the central timeline. Players can insert their own abilities into that flow, arrange attacks and support actions, and attempt to interrupt an enemy before its skill actually activates.

It may resemble a fast action RPG at first glance, but its underlying design is closer to real-time command combat built around reading information and preparing the correct response.

Counter Colors Determine How Enemy Attacks Are Interrupted

Counter Skills are separated into three colors: red, blue and yellow. When an enemy action appears on the timeline, placing a matching-color skill over the attack activates a counter.

Attack skills also have cooldowns. Using one before it has fully recovered reduces both its damage and effective counter window, preventing players from repeatedly relying on the same ability without considering their rotation.

Some enemy moves require a Buddy Counter involving both Rena and Soma. Certain skill combinations also trigger additional effects when the protagonists act in sequence, creating a mechanical reason to keep switching between them.

Down Gauge and Mystic Art Create Burst-Damage Windows

Successful counters do more than cancel attacks. Regular enemies can be launched for follow-up attacks, while stronger opponents may carry a Down Gauge that is depleted through well-timed counters.

Once an enemy is downed, attacks are guaranteed to land as critical hits. Players can build critical damage during that window before ending the sequence with a Mystic Art to maximize the payoff.

Only Rena can perform a Mystic Art at the beginning of the game. Soma gains access to one later in the story, expanding the available finishing options alongside character progression.

Rena and Soma Investigate a Collapsing Tokyo

The story takes place after the World Collapse, a disaster that leaves Tokyo in a state where reality itself is gradually being eroded. Soma, a young courier, is attacked by an Anomaly and becomes an “In-Between,” caught between human and monster.

He is discovered by Rena, an investigator with the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department Public Safety Bureau's Foreign Affairs Fifth Division. Because of his condition, Soma is no longer treated as an ordinary citizen and is instead taken into custody as “Lost Property.”

The pair investigate the mysterious narcotic Tiny True, body markings known as Stigmas, and a cult operating behind the anomalies while searching for the truth behind Tokyo's transformation.

Exploration Changes With Time While Mystic Pass Hides Secrets

Progress is not limited to battles. Players select destinations on a Tokyo map, with available events changing according to location, time of day and the number of days that have passed.

Narrative sequences then shift into a visual-novel format, with the story presented using nearly full Japanese voice acting.

The game also includes Mystic Passes, passwords that reveal hidden information or rewards. Clues can appear on the in-game social feed or as rare battle-result rewards, and the developer explicitly encourages players to share discoveries through real-world social media.

Early Bonuses Include Six Skins and Voidfall

The pre-order and early-purchase bonuses include three skins for each protagonist. Rena receives Demon Blade Rena, Scarlet Tiger Rena and Azure Dragon Rena, while Soma receives Demon Eye Soma, Scarlet Tiger Soma and Azure Dragon Soma.

The other major bonus is Extra Battle: Voidfall. It adds a new selectable map location containing 16 high-difficulty battles, with multiple skills and skins available as completion rewards.

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The official website lists the Steam, Nintendo eShop and Epic Games Store digital bonus period through December 24, 2026, while PlayStation Store is listed through September 23, 2026. Steam also states that Voidfall is planned to be sold separately later.

September 24 Launch With Regional Steam Pricing

Arc System Works officially lists September 24, 2026 as the release date. Physical PS5 and Nintendo Switch editions in Japan cost ¥3,520, while the Japanese digital edition is ¥2,970.

On PC, current Steam regional data lists the Indonesian price at Rp280,000, while the United States price is $24.99.

There is a storefront-date discrepancy worth noting: Steam may display September 23 in some regional views, while its backend data records a September 24, 2026 release at 01:00 UTC and Arc System Works consistently states September 24. This article therefore uses the publisher's September 24 date.

Why This Matters

1) The timeline turns enemy information into the core strategy

Players are not limited to reacting to animation cues; they can see the timing and type of attacks before choosing a counter.

2) Combat supports both deliberate and aggressive play

Slow and pause functions allow careful analysis, while mastery of the system enables much faster chains of counters and attacks.

3) Both protagonists matter mechanically

Rena and Soma are not simply alternate story viewpoints, as Buddy Counters and skill combinations reward active use of both.

4) Voidfall gives the battle system a dedicated challenge

Its 16 high-difficulty encounters provide a separate place to test skill setups and mastery of the Counter Timeline mechanics.

Game Information

For now, the additional important information currently known includes:

• Qliphah in Providence's Shadow is a new RPG IP from Arc System Works and UnitePlus
• its Japanese title is 神貌のクリファ, read as Kanbaku no Qliphah
• the publisher's official release date is September 24, 2026
• Steam can currently display September 23 on some storefront views because of regional time handling
• Steam backend data records a release time of September 24, 2026 at 01:00 UTC
• physical editions are available in Japan for PS5 and Nintendo Switch
• digital editions are available for PS5, Nintendo Switch, Steam and Epic Games Store
• the Japanese digital price is ¥2,970 including tax
• the Japanese physical edition costs ¥3,520 including tax
• Steam regional data lists Indonesia at Rp280,000 as checked on September 3
• the United States Steam price is $24.99
• Steam lists single-player, achievements, Steam Cloud and Family Sharing support after release
• full controller support is recorded in Steam metadata
• the nine supported text languages are English, French, Italian, German, Spanish - Spain, Simplified Chinese, Traditional Chinese, Japanese and Korean
• Indonesian is not currently listed among the supported languages
• full audio is available only in Japanese
• Steam minimum requirements list Windows 11, Intel Core i5-2300 / Ryzen 3 1200, 4 GB RAM, GTX 750 Ti / Radeon R7 360, DirectX 12 and 8 GB storage
• Steam recommended requirements list Windows 11, Intel Core i7-4770K / Ryzen 5 3600, 8 GB RAM, GTX 1660 Ti / Radeon RX 6600, DirectX 12 and 8 GB storage
• Epic Games Store lists Windows 10 as minimum and Windows 11 as recommended
• Epic lists DirectX 11, meaning its API requirement differs from the Steam page
• the United States rating is ESRB Teen
• the Japanese rating is CERO C
• Satoshi Hirayae serves as game designer and director
• Rolua handles the key visual and character illustrations
• the opening animation remains unannounced on the official website
• the opening vocal artist is also still unannounced
• the six bonus skins are split evenly between Rena and Soma
• Rena receives Demon Blade Rena, Scarlet Tiger Rena and Azure Dragon Rena
• Soma receives Demon Eye Soma, Scarlet Tiger Soma and Azure Dragon Soma
• Extra Battle Voidfall contains 16 high-difficulty battles
• Voidfall rewards include multiple skills and skins
• Steam states that Voidfall is planned to be sold separately later
• Nintendo Switch digital pre-orders officially opened on September 3
• selected Amazon Japan editions include a digital original wallpaper retailer bonus
• screenshots and footage shown before launch remain development material
• official information is available through the Qliphah in Providence's Shadow Official Website
• publisher updates are available through Arc System Works Official X
• the initial pre-order announcement is available through the Official X Post
• the second PV is available through the Official Pre-Order Trailer
• the PC version is available through Steam
• the PS5 version is available through PlayStation Store
• the Nintendo Switch version is available through Nintendo Store
• another PC version is available through Epic Games Store

Closing

The Qliphah in Providence's Shadow Pre-Order Trailer provides a clearer picture of how Tactical Counter Timeline combat combines command-based decision-making with the speed of real-time battles. Counter colors, Buddy Counters, Down Gauges, Mystic Arts and character switching all make reading the timeline central to the experience.

The game launches on September 24, 2026 for PS5, Nintendo Switch, Steam and Epic Games Store. Its opening animation and opening vocalist remain unannounced, while pre-orders and early-purchase bonus periods are already active according to each platform's schedule.