{"rewrite":{"id":"r_a4db7d22e2d11b7aee09c391","clusterId":"c_2627ba361c330efcb31deb9e","slug":"shueisha-games-launches-steam-demo-for-hon-to-kagi-no-kisetsu-covering-chapter-1-in-full","model":"deepseek-v4-1-flash","headline":"Shueisha Games Launches Steam Demo for Hon to Kagi no Kisetsu, Covering Chapter 1 in Full","summary":"Shueisha Games released a Steam demo for the adventure game Hon to Kagi no Kisetsu on October 20, 2026, the opening day of Steam Next Fest. The demo contains all of Chapter 1, titled \"913.\" Developer iMel is handling the game, which is planned for release this winter on Nintendo Switch and Steam. Hon to Kagi no Kisetsu adapts Honobu Yonezawa's novel of the same name, published by Shueisha Bunko. It follows Jiro Horikawa and Shimon Matsukura, two high school boys on the library committee who take on mysteries that arrive in their ordinary lives. In Chapter 1, senior student Mari Uragami asks the pair to open an \"unopenable safe\" left behind by her late grandfather, and the grandfather's words serve as the clue. The game uses illustrations and full voice acting throughout, and in some scenes the player solves the mystery directly as Horikawa. Kazuki Ura voices Horikawa, Yuichiro Umehara voices Matsukura, and Arisa Sakuraba voices Uragami.","whyItMatters":"The demo lets players work the Chapter 1 safe mystery themselves as Horikawa, so even readers who know Yonezawa's novel have an experience the book cannot give them.","webCardHtml":"\u003cp\u003eShueisha Games timed the demo to Steam Next Fest, which opened on October 20, 2026 at 2:00 JST. The company also published a demo digest video for players who cannot run the build, showing the story\u0026#39;s opening and the game\u0026#39;s atmosphere.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe game carries Japanese, English, Traditional Chinese, and Simplified Chinese language support. It is a single-player title. Publisher and copyright lines list iMel alongside Shueisha and Honobu Yonezawa.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe source novel is the first entry in Yonezawa\u0026#39;s Library Committee Series, which has passed 400,000 copies in cumulative circulation. A second installment, Shiori to Uso no Kisetsu, is also on sale. Yonezawa won the 166th Naoki Prize and the 22nd Honkaku Mystery Grand Prize in 2022 for Kokurojo.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eiMel develops with Artemis Engine, a multi-platform engine built for novel and adventure games. Its prior work includes development on Tanetsumi no Uta and Lilac, plus port development for Stella of The End and ATRI.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe character notes describe Horikawa as trusting and often asked for favors, but with sharp insight. Matsukura is cynical and mature in his thinking, and stands out for his height and looks. Uragami is a third-year student and former library committee member with slightly sleepy eyes and a mischievous smile.\u003c/p\u003e","blueskyPost":"The Hon to Kagi no Kisetsu demo lets players solve Chapter 1 as Jiro Horikawa himself. That agency is a shift from watching a mystery unfold: the safe only opens if the player reads the grandfather's clue correctly.","twitterPost":"Hon to Kagi no Kisetsu turns the reader into Horikawa: the safe opens only if the player works out the grandfather's clue.","threadsPost":"The Hon to Kagi no Kisetsu demo hands the deduction to the player. In parts of Chapter 1 you solve the unopenable safe as Jiro Horikawa yourself, so the grandfather's words are a test you have to pass, not a line you watch the hero interpret.","newsletterBlurb":"Shueisha Games put a Steam demo for Hon to Kagi no Kisetsu live on October 20, timed to Steam Next Fest. It covers the whole first chapter, the safe mystery \"913,\" and lets players crack the case as Horikawa. The iMel-developed adaptation of Honobu Yonezawa's novel is due this winter on Switch and Steam.","attributionJson":"[{\"source\":\"4Gamer.net\",\"url\":\"https://www.4gamer.net/games/029/G102927/20261020012/\",\"title\":\"Hon to Kagi no Kisetsu, based on the novel by Honobu Yonezawa, launches a demo on Steam; includes all of Chapter 1, \\\"913,\\\" and lets players tackle the mystery themselves\"},{\"source\":\"ASCII.jp\",\"url\":\"https://ascii.jp/elem/000/004/444/4444172/?rss\",\"title\":\"Steam Demo for Honobu Yonezawa's 'Books and Keys' Season Now Available! Play the Entire First Chapter. Players Take On the Mystery Themselves in a Game-Only Experience\"}]","lintFlagsJson":null,"lintHits":0,"costUsd":0,"inputTokens":11610,"outputTokens":1494,"status":"published","repairAttempts":0,"nextRepairAt":null,"factsAttemptedAt":1792480028,"createdAt":"2026-10-20T07:01:54.000Z","publishedAt":"2026-10-20T07:06:05.000Z","updatedAt":"2026-10-20T07:06:05.000Z"},"cluster":{"id":"c_2627ba361c330efcb31deb9e","canonicalTitle":"米澤穂信氏原作「本と鍵の季節」，体験版をSteamで配信開始。第1章「913」をまるごと収録し，プレイヤー自身が謎解きに挑戦","representativeArticleId":"a_7a927e01c9714255b8a8cc51","sourceCount":2,"writtenSourceCount":2,"writeAttempts":0,"isSolo":false,"entitiesJson":"{\"anime_titles\":[],\"manga_titles\":[\"Book and Key no Kisetsu\"],\"work_titles\":[\"Book and Key no Kisetsu\"],\"studios\":[\"Shueisha Games\"],\"people\":[\"Honobu Yonezawa\"],\"type\":\"release\",\"domain\":\"games\",\"is_roundup\":false}","contentType":"news","status":"published","firstSeenAt":"2026-10-20T03:58:26.000Z","lastSeenAt":"2026-10-20T03:58:26.000Z","updatedAt":"2026-10-20T07:06:06.000Z"},"attribution":[{"source":"4Gamer.net","url":"https://www.4gamer.net/games/029/G102927/20261020012/","title":"米澤穂信氏原作「本と鍵の季節」，体験版をSteamで配信開始。第1章「913」をまるごと収録し，プレイヤー自身が謎解きに挑戦"},{"source":"ASCII.jp","url":"https://ascii.jp/elem/000/004/444/4444172/?rss","title":"米澤穂信原作『本と鍵の季節』Steam(R)で体験版の配信を開始！第1章をまるごとプレイ可能。プレイヤー自身が謎に挑む、ゲームならではの体験も"}],"entities":{"anime_titles":[],"manga_titles":["Book and Key no Kisetsu"],"work_titles":["Book and Key no Kisetsu"],"studios":["Shueisha Games"],"people":["Honobu Yonezawa"],"type":"release","domain":"games","is_roundup":false},"keyFacts":["Shueisha Games released the Steam demo for Hon to Kagi no Kisetsu on October 20, 2026, the first day of Steam Next Fest.","The Hon to Kagi no Kisetsu demo includes all of Chapter 1, \"913,\" in which Mari Uragami asks Jiro Horikawa and Shimon Matsukura to open her late grandfather's safe.","Hon to Kagi no Kisetsu is planned for release this winter on Nintendo Switch and Steam, developed by iMel and published by Shueisha Games.","Kazuki Ura voices Jiro Horikawa, Yuichiro Umehara voices Shimon Matsukura, and Arisa Sakuraba voices Mari Uragami in Hon to Kagi no Kisetsu.","Shueisha Games says the Library Committee Series, which begins with Honobu Yonezawa's Hon to Kagi no Kisetsu, has passed 400,000 copies in cumulative circulation."]}