Fossilized Wonders

Fossilized Wonders
Developer(s)Team Shanghai Alice
Publisher(s)Team Shanghai Alice
SeriesTouhou Project
Platform(s)Microsoft Windows
ReleaseAugust 2025
Genre(s)Bullet hell
Mode(s)Single-player

Touhou Kinjoukyou ~ Fossilized Wonders (東方錦上京 ~ Fossilized Wonders., lit. "Crowning Glory Capital") is an upcoming bullet hell video game developed by Team Shanghai Alice, and is the twentieth official game, and 33rd overall of the Touhou Project series.

It was announced on April 12, 2025; received its demo release on May 5, 2025, at Reitaisai 22; and is expected to release in August 2025 at Comiket 106 alongside a Steam release.[1][2][3]

Gameplay

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Reimu fighting the Stage 1 boss, Ubame Chirizuka

Fossilized Wonders is a vertically scrolling danmaku video game where various enemies fire projectiles the player must dodge and fire bullets back at the enemies with. The game's life system allows multiple hits before a game over, and its Spell Card system has cards releasing powerful attacks limited in quantity. Defeating enemies increases the player's score, where there is an integrated high score system, and can drop power-ups such as extra lives and bombs. At the end of each stage is a boss with significantly more health the player must fight before advancing to the next stage.

Fossilized Wonders introduces a new mechanic to the series, where the playable character combines various different types of Stones that affect their shot type.[2][4][5]

Characters

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Similar to older entries in the series, only Reimu Hakurei and Marisa Kirisame are playable.

Playable characters

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  • Reimu Hakurei (博麗 霊夢), the miko of the Hakurei Shrine
  • Marisa Kirisame (霧雨 魔理沙), a human magician from the Forest of Magic

Boss characters

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  • Ubame Chirizuka (塵塚 ウバメ), the stage 1 boss and chief of the Yamanba.
  • Chimi Houjuu (封獸 手包), the stage 2 boss and a Chimi. She shares a surname with Nue Houjuu.
  • Nareko Michigami (道神 馴子), the stage 3 boss and a Dousojin.

Development

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ZUN plans on making Fossilized Wonders a traditional bullet hell shooter, where the only playable characters are Reimu and Marisa.[2][3]

ZUN has used generative AI for varying background elements for Fossilized Wonders, a decision Touhou fans have widely criticised.[6]

References

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  1. ^ "東方Project第20弾 「東方錦上京 〜 Fossilized Wonders.」". 東方Projectよもやまニュース (in Japanese). Archived from the original on 2025-04-12. Retrieved 2025-04-12.
  2. ^ a b c "ZUN Reveals 20th Entry in Touhou Project Main Game Series". Anime News Network. April 12, 2025.
  3. ^ a b "東方Project新作『東方錦上京』発表。第20弾タイトルの主人公は霊夢と魔理沙。5月の例大祭にて体験版を頒布". Famitsu (in Japanese). April 12, 2025.
  4. ^ Yokoyama, Keiichi (April 12, 2025). "東方Project第20弾『東方錦上京 〜 Fossilized Wonders.』発表、8月発売へ。初心に返って霊夢と魔理沙が異変に挑む、オーソドックスな東方新作". Automaton (in Japanese). Archived from the original on 2025-04-12. Retrieved 2025-04-12.
  5. ^ "東方Project新作『東方錦上京 ~ Fossilized Wonders.』発表、8月発売。霊夢と魔理沙が今まで解決してきた異変の力で戦う!?". Dengeki Online (in Japanese). April 12, 2025.
  6. ^ "Touhou Project's 20th mainline entry uses AI art in demo, causing mixed reactions". automaton-media.com. Retrieved 2025-05-15.
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