The Apothecary Diaries: The False Imperial Brother Launches March 18, 2027

The Apothecary Diaries: The False Imperial Brother, a game based on the TV anime The Apothecary Diaries, now has a release date: March 18, 2027. The date was confirmed in an official Steam news post, which also opened pre-orders and debuted a new gameplay trailer.

Pre-order and early-purchase bonuses

The announcement lists two bonus packs:

• Digital pre-order bonus: the Apothecary’s Tasteful Accessory Pack.
• Early-purchase bonus: anyone who buys the game by March 31, 2027 gets the Apothecary’s Starter Kit and Modest Accessory Pack.

Pre-orders are listed on the game’s Steam store page.

Three new original characters

The post introduces characters written specifically for the game:

• Guanyu, who acts with a traveling theater company.
• Yanxi, a senior official at the rear palace’s Bureau of Court Etiquette.
• Chenhan, a frequent visitor to the Verdigris House.

According to the announcement, each of them ties into the mysteries at the center of the story, and other characters will show up as well.

How the game plays

In the main story, Maomao works her way through a string of incidents. At set moments, control shifts to Jinshi or to Maomao (Cat), letting players investigate and gather clues that Maomao could not reach by herself.

Outside the main plot, a mode called “People Files” lets players meet well-known characters from the anime. Bringing them the medicine and other items they ask for raises their trust, and higher trust unlocks short episodes about each character. Later on, checking the People Files for The Quack Doctor and Luomen means the two can sometimes help Maomao while she mixes medicine in the rear palace medical office.

Every chapter also has its own completion goals. Meeting a goal awards a completion stamp, and earning all of them unlocks a full-size illustration.

Context

The announcement describes the title as the anime’s first adaptation as a console game. Its copyright notice credits KOEI TECMO GAMES and TOHO. Further details are on the official Japanese website.