Singer and Seiyuu Aya Hirano has revealed that she will return to voice Haruhi Suzuimya in the Haruhi Hunting Campaign. She has also confirmed that the campaign is a setup for a Haruhi Pachinko machine, which she will also narrate and perform in as Haruhi.
Hirano confirmed that she will be voicing on a video for the Haruhi Pachinko machine, which is due in July. She commented that it was fun returning to the role after a long time and how the Haruhi Hunting campaign is a wonderful project that everyone in Japan can participate in. She also teases that she is also recording to voice in a unannounced game. More information will be followed up soon.
The promotional video for the Haruhi Hunting website released a couple days ago. The campaign involves people hunting down 707 images of Haruhi and co, all around Japan. If a person has found an illustration they must navigate to this page and upload a photo of the illustration. You can also take the photo and upload it from your computer. The campaign itself is a collaboration between Newtype magazine and Pachinko manufacturer Sankyo.
The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya is a light novel series written by Nagaru Tanigawa and illustrated by Noizi Ito. The novels began in 2003 and were originally published as short stories in Kadokawa Shoten’s The Sneaker magazine. Since then the short stories have been compiled into 11 light novel volumes, with the latest releasing in May 2011 (which was translated in November 2013). There has been many manga based on the series since its release. An anime adaptation from Kyoto Animation aired in 2006 and in 2009. The series was followed by the animated film The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya in early 2010. In conjunction with the anime series, two online mini-series were also released: Nyoron Churuya-san and The Melancholy of Haruhi-chan Suzumiya. In December last year it was announced that an anime adaptation of The Disappearance of Nagato Yuki-chan is currently in production.
Aya Hirano is returning to voice the iconic Haruhi Suzumiya for the Haruhi Hunting campaign and pachinko machines. The unannounced game could be Haruhi related. More information will be out soon.