Tupac Shakur will appear in Stranger Than Heaven as Amaru, a man hiding in Japan. SEGA says the portrayal was made with permission and ongoing supervision from Amaru Entertainment, the late artist’s estate, and that RGG Studio used archival footage and photographs to design the character without AI.
The announcement draws a clear line around the digital likeness
That wording answers two immediate questions about a posthumous performance: who authorized the likeness and whether generative AI shaped it. It does not yet explain how extensive Amaru’s role will be, how the performance was assembled, or who provides any spoken dialogue. SEGA says more details about the role will come later.
The cast reveal also includes late Japanese actor Bunta Sugawara as crime boss Genzo Iwaki. His family approved the appearance, Toei supplied archival material, and actor Takashi Ukaji performs the voice. The two cases show that RGG is using different production arrangements rather than describing every archival appearance with one process.
A 50-year story with a deliberately unusual cast
Stranger Than Heaven follows Makoto Daito from 1915 to 1965 across five cities. The newly detailed cast also includes Snoop Dogg as merchant Orpheus, Dean Fujioka as Yu Shinjo and Tori Kelly as singer Suzy Day. The game launches January 15, 2027 on Xbox Series X|S, Xbox on PC and Xbox Cloud, with Xbox Play Anywhere and Game Pass availability.
