By David Craddock

According to the latest issue of Shonen Jump magazine, the popular manga series [i]Bleach[/i] is getting its very own fighting game on Sony’s PlayStation Portable. Being developed in house by Sony Computer Entertainment, [i]Bleach[/i] will be a 3D fighting game using cel-shading.

The backstory of [i]Bleach[/i] focuses on Ichigo Kurosaki, a perfectly normal boy who is able to see ghosts. When his family is assaulted by a type of ghost known as a “hollower,” a shinigami-ghost slayer-named Rukiya narrowly saves the boy and his family from certain death.

Inspired by this brave act of herois, Ichigo himself becomes a shinigami, which is where the story begins.

[i]Bleach[/i] also has a PlayStation 2 action game is currently slated for a winter 2004 release in the Land of the Rising Sun, and is expected to release sometime during spring 2005 in Japan for PSP.