The announcement of a sequel to the beloved adventure game Ōkami at The Game Awards last year sent waves of excitement through the fanbase, though concrete details about the project have been scarce. In a recent interview with IGN, project leads shed some light on the anticipated follow-up, confirming that it is indeed a direct sequel to the events of the original game.

Capcom producer Yoshiaki Hirabayashi affirmed that the Ōkami sequel is a "continuation of the story that we saw in the original game." When pressed about the character featured in the trailer at The Game Awards, director Hideki Kamiya playfully dodged with "I wonder...," but Hirabayashi quickly clarified that it was indeed the great god Amaterasu.

While this confirmation may not surprise fans, there has been considerable speculation about how the sequel would address the legacy of Ōkami, especially given the existence of Ōkamiden—a Nintendo DS sequel featuring Amaterasu's child, Chibiterasu. Ōkamiden received mixed reviews, partly due to its DS platform and the absence of key original team members like Kamiya.

Addressing the subject of Ōkamiden, Hirabayashi noted, "We know that there are fans out there that like the game, of course. And we also know the feedback on the game out there, of how the story was taken and now how perhaps parts of the story weren’t aligning with what people were expecting. With that, we also have the sequel now that, as we explained before, is a continuation from the story of the original base Ōkami. That's how we're going to phrase it."

The ending of Ōkami itself teases the potential for a sequel. Without revealing too much, it shows Amaterasu and another character embarking on a new journey to an unexplored location, leaving ample room for new challenges and adventures.

However, fans will have to wait patiently for more details, as the team revealed that the Ōkami sequel is still in its very early stages of development. Hirabayashi mentioned that the team announced it prematurely out of sheer excitement, adding, "It might take a little bit of time before we might talk again."

For those eager to learn more, the full interview with the leads of the Ōkami sequel is available [ttpp].