Bleach is the latest manga/anime franchise to have its most popular characters join the roster of Jump Force, Bandai Namco's recently announced 3D fighting game. Three Bleach characters will be playable in Jump Force, two protagonists and one antagonist. Ichigo Kurosaki and Rukia Kuchiki, the stars of the series' first arc, will be joined by Bleach's most notorious villain, Sosuke Aizen.

According to Bandai Namco, all three Soul Reapers (or ex-Soul Reapers) will be entirely playable in Jump Force. Since Bandai Namco confirmed early that not all characters would be playable, with some only fitting into a support role, playability is a big question on many players minds. It seems these are the three candidates from Bleach though there is always the possibility of more joining the fight in a support role.

Exactly what players can expect from Jump Force's gameplay with regards to these Bleach characters is anyone's best guess. Whether players will be seeing Ichigo's Final Getsuga Tensho and Mugetsu is a mystery, but it'd be disappointing to a lot of fans if it wasn't featured. A gameplay trailer for Ichigo and the others will hopefully be coming soon.

In addition to revealing the three Bleach characters for Jump Force, Bandai Namco also announced a new map. Come launch, players will be able to battle in Hong Kong, described as "one of the world's most modern and dynamic cities." The Hong Kong map will be intertwined with elements taken from the One Piece franchise, since every Jump Force map mixes a real-world location with a Jump manga/anime series.

Bleach is just the latest addition to Jump Force, which has previously confirmed the inclusion of characters from Dragon Ball, Naruto, One Piece, and Death Note. Bleach was one of the most highly requested series to be included, but there are several more yet to be confirmed. Other Jump series that fans are hoping to see included are Jojo's Bizarre Adventure, Hunter X Hunter, and My Hero Academia. But there are dozens of other popular Jump franchises that Bandai Namco could delve into, too. Expect lots of Jump Force news in the months to come.

Jump Force releases 2019 for the PC, PS4, and Xbox One.