Toei Animation, one of the longest-running and most esteemed animation companies in Japan, and RPG game developer Gust are officially teaming up on a from-the-ground-up original production, as revealed in a newly-launched site. Before its inevitable launch this fall, Toei and Koei Tecmo — Gust’s parent company — will host an event fleshing out the finer details on this surprise project on September 16th.
Alongside Gust’s own Akira Tsuchiya (game creator, director, and composer of the Ar tonelico video-game series), the main cast that will be responsible for the five silhouetted main characters will also be present. Anyone keen on getting the chance to see the announcement live are able to enter the event, for free, which will be held at the Shinjuku Wald 9 theater in Tokyo.
This eccentric collaboration could mean a potential number of things with Akira Tsuchiya attached to the project. Given that Gust’s development schedule is constantly updating with a slew of new titles every year, perhaps this could very well be a new IP with Toei Animation providing animated cutscenes and/or character designs. However, that aforementioned schedule could also point in the direction of Tsuchiya creating a foundation for Toei to animate around as a fully-fledged TV series.
Though information is scarce, we’ll keep you updated when details are made available.
The “high-school idol” anime Love Live! has become quite the phenomenon since its very first anime incarnation debuted in January of 2013, due in no small part to its eclectic variety of catchy tunes, the memorable ensemble of μ’s, and even a highly successful mobile game that has been installed across over 1 million unique devices. That surge of popularity may have eventually marked the retirement of μ’s, but spawned a successor group known as Aqours whom are the central characters in the anime Love Live! Sunshine!! which debuted on July 2nd.
With only three episodes remaining in Sunshine!!‘s initial run, it begs the question of whether fans will get the chance to witness another 13 episode run akin to Love Live!‘s initial success. According to the series’ official Twitter account, Tokyo MX will be immediately re-running Sunshine!! every Tuesday beginning October 2nd which could signify the first step in continuing Aqours’ journey. Given the fact that the original Love Live! didn’t return with its second season until April 2014 — more than a year after the first season’s air date — it’s safe to say if a second season does manifest, it won’t be for some time.
To keep feeding fans their daily dose of high-school idol goodness, quite literally, the official Love Live! Twitter announced a collaboration to bring Kunikida Hanamaru’s favorite bread treat to real life. According to the following tweet, more details will announced in due time when you can get your hands on this delightful, giraffe-adorned treat.
Additionally, the music track that will accompany Love Live!Sunshine!!‘s finale, “Mijuku Dreamer,” will be on sale starting September 14th, alongside “Yozora o Terashitai.” Lantis’ YouTube channel has uploaded a 60-second excerpt of the single, as well as a preview of the album’s cover.
Collectors of all things cute and cuddly will be ecstatic to hear that the famed plush retail powerhouse, Build-a-Bear Workshop, is teaming up with the Pokémon Company on a new line of Eevee stuffed toys to stampede across all of their North American and UK locations. Starting in September, these precious Eevee plushies will be available for purchase both in-store and online starting at $28 USD.
Build-a-Bear is sweetening the deal, however, with a $62 online-only edition of the Eevee plushie that will include a pokéball onesie, Eeveelution cape, a sound chip featuring five unique sound clips, and even an exclusive trading-card. It is worth noting that while the previously-mentioned cape can be purchased separately, the onesie is only available with the online bundle.
Keen Pokémon aficionados will notice this isn’t the first time Build-a-Bear has collaborated with Nintendo’s adorable variety of creatures as the company has released a series of Pikachu plushies in the past.
Unfortunately, as of writing this article, the online exclusive set is out of stock, but be sure to keep an eye out for a possible restock or stop by your nearest store in September!
Even as we approach the tail end of 2016, Nagano-based developer Gust is showing no signs of stopping on their intense release schedule with Atelier Firis: The Alchemist of the Mysterious Journey and Nights of Azure 2 due out on September 29th and December 22nd in Japan. While mystery still shrouds the inevitable release date of their third PlayStation 4/PS Vita title, Blue Reflection: Sword of the Girl Who Dances in Illusions, Gust has provided an armada of new information for its “heroic RPG” endeavor.
Hanasaku Iroha and resident Atelier series character designer, Mel Kishida, will be attached to illustrate and supervise character designs with Atelier Escha & Logy‘s Junzo Hosoi producing. As for series organization, Blue Reflection hosts a powerhouse of writing talent with Keiichi Sigsawa (Kino’s Journey), Yusaku Igarashi (Nogizaka Haruka no Himitsu), and Kouji Natsume (Girly Air Force).
Hinako ShiraiRaimu ShijouYuzuki Shijou
Touting itself as venturing into a new genre of RPG, Blue Reflection will allow players to take control of modern-day protagonist Hinako Shirai (voiced by New Game!‘s Yuki Takada) whom is emotionally reeling from her inability to perform at an overseas ballet competition due to a foot injury.
Despite having locked herself away from opening up to anyone, she still remains hopeful that, one day, her foot will heal. As she makes her daily commute, Hinako is thrown into the wild by sisters Raimu and Yuzuki Shijou (voiced by Venus Project: Climax‘s Sawako Hata and Sore ga Seiyuu!‘s Marika Kouno) by granting her the mysterious “Reflector” power.
Pictured from left to right: Yuzuki Shijou, Raimu Shijou, and Hinako Shirai
Through this experience, Hinako will undergo a hopeful, yet rigorous transition from your ordinary high school student to this magical girl persona. Hinako may not understand the situation she is in — nor the enemies she is fighting — but information provided by Gust states that she is doing it to “fulfill her own desire” in hopes of one day being able to dance ballet once more.
However, not only will Gust’s traditional battling take center stage, so will communicating with fellow students of Hoshinomiya Girls High School. Information on this feature is bleak, though speculation is that it will be similar to the Persona series’ trademark Social Links system. As you learn about the variety of students and their unique dispositions, Hinako’s heart will “gradually change.”
Blue Reflection: Sword of the Girl Who Dances in Illusions does not have a known release date, nor release window, though the title will release on PlayStation 4 and PlayStation Vita. As of August 23rd, Gust confirmed that the development on Blue Reflection is 30% complete meaning that their ambitious new IP possibly won’t steal your heart until 2017.
Publisher Koei Tecmo had revealed last month that Dead or Alive Xtreme 3 would receive VR support, parallel with the release of Sony’s PlayStation VR on October 13th. Courtesy of Gamer.ne.jp, we now have an actual glimpse at the new modes and what they will offer in the impending update.
With the introduction of this VR update, players will be able to access a new perspective on the already present “Event Paradise,” “Gravure Paradise,” and “Photo Paradise” modes dubbed as “VR Paradise.”
Attendees at a recent event, hosted by Koei Tecmo, were allowed to demo the Gravure Paradise option where participants can freely move around characters such as Marie Rose, Kasumi, and Nyotengu — both featured in the images below — as they take on several unique poses. Moving the Dualshock 4 into the camera’s range will grant players the access to touch characters, as well.
If your lifelong fantasies include getting up close and personal with your favorite Dead or Alive characters, this update could be right up your alley. While Dead or Alive Xtreme 3 has not been released stateside — both its PlayStation 4 and PlayStation Vita incarnations — the Asia copy of the game has an English language option so you can enjoy all those wonderful jiggle physics without cumbersome Japanese text.
Fancy yourself a diehard fan of Gen Urobuchi’s acclaimed anime series Psycho-Pass? Have you ever wished to personally own an actual, functioning Dominator? Fortunately for you, Tokyo-based electronics manufacturer Cerevo is issuing out the handgun wielded by the Public Safety Bureau for consumers to purchase; sans the option to fire deadly, explosive rounds at random bystanders, of course.
As seen in the video above, however, the Cerevo-developed Dominator does come shipped with the feature where users can enable the firearm’s iconic transformation between its non-lethal and lethal modes. Additionally, it will be accompanied with a companion app that will allow custom tweaking of the transformations. The level of care put into making a real-life Dominator is astounding with Psycho-Pass‘ director Naoyoshi Shiotani and fellow Nitroplus designer Makoto Ishiwata attached to oversee the production.
As if that wasn’t enough, the Dominator has a built-in camera that works in tandem with the companion app to stream images directly to your phone — allowing the opportunity for you to see how naughty or how nice your friends have been this year.
While completely optional, consumers can choose between two separate versions of the Dominator for your liking. The Standard version will run you a hefty $799 USD with a synthetic resin grip while the Special Edition costs an extra $100, spicing it up with extra goodies such as 100+ voice clips provided by voice actress Noriko Hidaka and a polished, rosewood grip. It’s confirmed that while Stephanie Young will not provide a secondary, English track for the Dominator, the companion app will be available in both English and Japanese.
Those hopeful to get their hands on this one-of-a-kind collectible can go to Cerevo’s official website to purchase either version of the Dominator, as well as a $129 protector case and a $99 display stand. If you’ve got the cash to afford such an extravagant item, this would make for an excellent addition to your Akane Tsunemori or Shinya Kogami cosplay!
Hashtag Burgers is driving a new burger restaurant, Down N’ Out, in the Sydney CBD that serves “Pokeburgers” in addition to their original menu choices. The burgered characters are the cute generation one starters, Charmander, Bulbasaur, and Squirtle.
According to Mashable Australia, Hashtag Burgers’ Ben Kagan, the flavors of the burgers match the Pokemon’s personalities.
“The flavours and the ingredients match the Pokémon’s style, character and colour. The Charmander is a little bit spicy, there’s kind of a volcanic cheese dripping off it,” said Kagan.
“The Bulbasaur is grassy and cleaner, but it tastes like a Big Mac actually – which is quite nice. The Pikachu is a bit sillier, with our ‘tiger fries’ through it.”
If you want to try these Pokeburgers, then you’d better hurry because they’re in limited supply! And in keeping with the theme of Pokemon, the burgers will be distributed at random, almost like the uncertainty of catching Pokemon, and not knowing what you’ll run into in the tall grass.
Each Pokéburger will cost A$15 (US$11.39) and they’re available in “limited quantities” until Sept. 3.
It has been revealed in the 38th issue of Shueisha’s Weekly Shonen Jump magazine that Tite Kubo’s Bleach manga is be getting a live action film in 2018. The 38th issue featured the final chapter of Bleach, chapter 686, and a special color page. The issue officially came out in Japan on Monday, August 22nd.
Bleach is a long running action shounen manga written and illustrated by Tite Kubo. The series first began publication in August 2001 in Shueisha’s Weekly Shonen Jump magazine where it has been featured every week. Since its debut a total of 73 compiled bolumes. The series has become one of Japan’s most popular and well known series. There has been numerous adaptations of the series across various media, including a TV anime adaptation by Studio Pierrot (Naruto, Tokyo Ghoul) that ran from 2004 till 2012, which was directed by Noriyuki Abe (Yu Yu Hakusho, Ghost Stories). Apart from the anime TV series, there has been many Bleach anime films, OVAs, various video games, a few light novels and manga spin-offs, and even a series of musicals that ran from 2005 till 2012.
Here is a synopsis of the series from MAL:
15-year-old Kurosaki Ichigo is not your everyday high school student. He has from as far he can remember always had the ability to see ghosts and spirits. A fateful day arrives as Ichigo encounters the shinigami Kuchiki Rukia, who saves him and his family from a Hollow at the cost of injuring herself. During this encounter, with Rukia unable to defeat the hollow she transfers her shinigami powers into Ichigo. In the aftermath, unable to continue with her job, Rukia allows Ichigo to take on the role of a shinigami in her place as they together defeat the Hollows plaguing Ichigo’s town.
Ri:Zero kara Hajimeru Isekai Seikatsu has turned out to be one of the most popular anime of the season, and of course, with popular anime comes figures. With this, Good Smile Company recently released their nendoroid of Rem, a blue haired demon girl and one of Subaru’s greatest allies.
Rem’s nendoroid stands 3.9 inches tall and is made entirely of ABS and PCV and includes an accessory of Rem’s weapon and platter. The final product is designed by artists Nendoron and Toytec, the primary designers of Good Smile’s nendoroid line.
This sleepy kitty’s adorably well-timed meow responses are convincing the world that he understands Japanese.
Who doesn’t love cat videos? They give us a taste of a life free of responsibilities; getting taken care of, spoiled, napping all day, it’s the life we all wish we could live. This cute cat in Japan is showing us just how spoiled they really are, with a pre-naptime conversation with their owner about what meal to expect when they awake from their slumber. The well-timed silences and meows make it seem like this cat really does understand Japanese.
This isn’t random however, according to the video’s title, the cat can’t sleep unless the owner has a conversation with them first!
The cute conversation paired with the sweet lullaby music and the kitty’s blissful slumber at the end of the video are melting everyone’s hearts across the internet, with viewers leaving comments like:
“OMG – that moment when he falls off to sleep after talking is just too cute!”
“I wish I could go off to sleep while talking to someone like this.” “I can’t believe the way he’s speaking so perfectly!” “This is so adorable! I have seven cats and none of them talk to me like this.” “He totally understands everything his owner is saying!” “I love how he chooses his meal: ‘Chicken?’ – Silence ‘Fish?’ – ‘MEOW!’”
Japanese retailer HMV Anime has revealed that a new OVA of Fujino Oomori and Suzuhito Yasuda’s Dungeon ni Deai wo Motomeru no wa Machigatteiru no Darou ka? (Is It Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon?) light novel series is slated to come out on December 7th.
Dungeon ni Deai wo Motomeru no wa Machigatteiru no Darou ka?, also known as DanMachi for short, is a Japanese light novel series, written by Fujino Omori and illustrated by Suzuhito Yasuda. SB Creative has published six volumes since January 2013 under their GA Bunko imprint. It has received a spin-off light novel series and three manga adaptations. An anime television series adaptation by J.C.Staff aired in April 2015.
Commonly known as the “Dungeon,” the city of Orario possesses a huge labyrinth in the underground. Its strange name attracts excitement, illusions of honor, and hopes of romance with a pretty girl. In this city of dreams and desires, new adventurer Bell Cranel has his fateful encounter with the tiny Goddess Hestia.
Thus begins the story of a boy striving to become the best adventurer and a lonely goddess searching for followers both hoping to reach their goals and perhaps have some romance in the side.
Japanese mobile phone operator NTT Docomo have revealed the results of its popularity poll for the summer 2016 anime season courtesy of its streaming service dAnime Store. The poll was open between July 29th to August 5th.
Here are the results:
20. Amanchu!
19. Masou Gakuen HxH
18. Days
17. Tales of Zestiria the X
16. D.Gray-man Hallow
15. Servamp
14. Hatsukoi Monsuta
13. Taboo Tattoo
12. Danganronpa 3: Zetsubou Hen
11. Danganronpa 3: Mirai Hen
10. Rewrite 9.Qualidea Code
8. Shokugeki no Soma 2nd Season
5 (tie). Love Live! Sunshine!!
5 (tie). Fukigen na Mononokean
5 (tie). Arslan Senki: Dust Storm Dance
4. Kono Bijutsubu ni wa Mondai ga Aru!
3. New Game!
2. Handa-kun
1. Amaama to Inazuma
It’s been just a little over two years since the first Moon Animate Make-Up Sailor Moon fan project debuted. The same team has released a sequel with even more fan participation. This project crowd-sourced over 300 animators to come together to re-animate season 2, episode 68 of the classic Sailor Moon anime, “Protect Chibi-Usa: Clash of the Ten Warriors!”
From October 2015 to July 2016 the contributing animators worked hard to create a mesh of unique styles of animations into one respective episode.
Here is the original tumblr post calling for animators!
Revered Key writer, Jun Maeda (the man behind the heart-breaking classics like Clannad and Kanon, has revealed that he is in need of a heart transplant. This tragic event has tastelessly been compared to his other project, Angel Beats!, due to the resemblance of the sad circumstances.
Maeda initially checked into a hospital near the end of February. The 41-year-old writer was soon discharged months later after receiving treatment for a heart disease, idiopathic dilated cardiomyopathy. A month later, however, Maeda had tweeted that he would need a heart transplant:
“I’m back from my medical examination. Seems like what the doctors told me before, that I’m going to need a transplant, still holds true. It looks like I can’t go on living with my own heart. It’s going to cost a lot, and for the surgery I’ll need to be hospitalized, which is something I’m so tired of now.”
Maeda reassures his avid fans that he still has a long life to live, however it seems as though his own life might be turning into one of his works.
The beloved classic that is Elfen Lied is added to the UK Netflix. This mix of thriller, horror, and fantasy is the perfect mesh to match the sinister story and wonderfully written characters. In a war between the Diclonius and the humans who are afraid of the power these creatures possess. The Diclonius are a newly evolved species, very similar in appearance to Humans, but possessing psychokinetic abilities able to rip people apart. Humans, in fear that Diclonius will rise as the dominant species, fight to ward them off.
If you haven’t dug into this classic, now is a great chance to enjoy the beautiful mutants in the world of Elfen Lied.
When I first saw the title and the concept, I thought I had found my big moe fix for the season. With that title, it seemed like they were trying to bring K-On!‘s spirit into this anime, which got me kind of excited. K-On! is still the standard at which I measure comedy/school/slice of life moe anime’s worth, but most don’t come close to it. How would a show do when it wants to be exactly like K-On?
Story and Characters:
Hane Sakura is an absent-minded girl who lives without much of a purpose in her life. In high school, she wants to become more involved and she decides she wants to join a club. A fellow classmate, Onsa Amano, passes by her on the way to school on a motorcycle. This inspires Hane so she goes with Onsa to the school’s Bike Club, in which the only member is a silent, Stig-like girl, Raimu Kawasaki. After Raimu takes Hane on a motorcycle ride, Hane begins to take motorcycle lessons as she is a total beginner to the motorcycle world. Along the way, she meets another bike rider, Rin Suzunoki, who has a huge love of anything made by Suzuki, and Hijiri Minowa, a rich girl that dreams of becoming a delinquent. Hijiri herself can’t ride, but she travels in a sidecar with her half-Russian, half-Japanese butler, Hayakawa. The anime follows these girls as they hang out in the Bike Club.
Right from the get-go, everything is copy-pasted from K-On!: the air-headed protagonist, the tomboyish girl (Onsa), the girl the tomboy teases (Rin), the rich girl (Hijiri), and the way these characters meet in the club. Later on, they get a new club member in their second year, Chisame Nakano, who shares the same last name and general personality of Azusa Nakano from K-On! Unfortunately, part of what made K-On! great was not to be found here: chemistry. Say what you will about K-On!, but those four girls, later five, made a good coherent unit. Granted, in Bakuon!!, they’re not working towards a common goal, but you can still have good character chemistry even without working together towards something. Also, by following in K-On!’s footsteps, they’ve invited comparisons and the same magic that made K-On! good was not present in Bakuon!! For the most part, Bakuon!! was never that good at any one time. There was even a point when I asked myself: “Why are you still watching this? This is terrible.” In addition, this anime should have an ecchi tag for all of the fanservice that happened throughout the anime at random times. Since the anime is about motorcycles, I feel like you had to be a motorcycle enthusiast yourself from the beginning to stick with it. However, there was one other reason I stuck with Bakuon!! through to the end…
Every single episode of Bakuon!! had something to look forward to: absolutely wacky plot points. The only thing that made this anime interesting at all, unless you are into motorcycles, was the random things that happened in each episode. Whether it was a sultry talking motorcycle that made comments like, “I’ve taken riders’ virginity”, to Hane meeting up with Jesus on several occasions, to Onsa contracting an unhealthy relationship with Suzuki motorcycles after licking Rin’s drool off her hand. Every episode had some kind of moment that made you wonder if the people who wrote the scenarios were on drugs. For that reason alone, I stuck with Bakuon!! through the whole season just to see what crazy thing would happen next. The issue with that was I was sitting through sixteen minutes per episode of drivel, for those eight minutes of glory.
Our Lord and saviour has spoken!
As the anime went on, they developed the characters a bit which made the second half a little more enjoyable than the first half. It was either that, or I just got used to these characters. The anime as a whole will take time to grow on you, but the characters take a lot longer. There’s not a whole lot that’s special about these characters. In the end, one of my favourite characters was Raimu even though she never spoke a word. Raimu let her actions speak for her, and she was the cause of a lot of mystery throughout the series as a whole. She was the only character with a backstory, and a lot about her, and her past, was a mystery since she never said anything. As the anime went on, more about Raimu was revealed, and it only made you like her more. I suppose that was another reason why I continued with this anime; I wanted to learn more about Raimu and the lead-up to the answer was pretty good.
Bakuon!!‘s story (pacing) and characters are mediocre, with the exception of the absolutely random nature of the episode’s plot points, and Raimu’s story.
Art and Animation:
The art and animation isn’t anything too special. There is more detail placed into the motorcycles of course, and there is the nice-looking mid-episode art cards, but those are the only exceptions. The character art suffers a little bit as a result, and I’ve seen a lot better from other anime. Animation is better again during the times they’re on their motorcycles.
Sound and Music:
The opening (“FeelxAlive” by Sayaka Sasaki) and ending (“ぶぉん！ぶぉん！らいど・おん！” [Vroom! Vroom! Ride On!] ) songs are fast, upbeat songs that get you in the mood for watching an anime about motorcycles. They’re definitely the standout music pieces, as not much else really pops out at you. Perhaps during one of the episodes where they race, but that’s about it. The main characters are voiced by rookies, or voice actors that haven’t had too many main roles. The only exception is Rin, who was voiced by Nao Toyama (Chitoge from Nisekoi, Kongou from Kantai Collection). As with most of her roles, she nails her character pretty well. Unfortunately, nobody else really stood out.
Final Verdict:
Bakuon!! is fine if you’re a motorcycle lover since there aren’t too many anime out there that portray motorcycles in a positive light. If you’re watching it for any other reason, you’re probably better off skipping it. There’s not a lot here to really keep you interested, aside from those aforementioned scenarios, and there are a lot better slice of life anime you could be watching. I am still on the lookout for anime that can match K-On!‘s quality when it comes to cute girls doing cute things. Imitation is the greatest form of flattery. Unfortunately, Bakuon!! didn’t even come close to the magic of the anime it tried to copy.
+ OP and ED get you in the right mood
+ Raimu, and her story
+/- Absolutely wacky plot points are great…
– …but the rest of the episode is often uninteresting
– Poor rip-off of K-On!: every character in Bakuon!! doesn’t come close to being as good as their K-On! counterpart
Do you find this an accurate description of Bakuon!!? Let me know in the comments!
I’m sorry, but your show just did not resonate with me.
Back in June it was revealed that a hug pillow of Rem went on sale with plans to be released in August for a total of ¥12,000 ($113.00 USD). Due to the recent episodes where Rem steals the spotlight, Rem’s pillow has been delayed due to unanticipated high demand.
Re: Zero Kara Hajimeru Isekai Seikatsu (Re: Life in a Different World from Zero) is a fantasy light novel series written by Tappei Nagatsuki with illustrations by Shintarou Otsuka. The series started in early 2014 being published under Kadokawa’s MF Bunko J imprint. To date a total of 8 volumes have been published. There have been two manga adaptations produced thus far. The first manga is drawn by Daichi Matsue and published under Monthly Comic Alive where the series ended at 2 volumes. The second series is by Makoto Fugetsu with the first volume releasing in March under Square Enix’s Big Gangan magazine.
Suddenly high school student Subaru Natsuki has been summoned to another world on the way back from the convenience store. With the biggest crisis of his life being summoned to another world and no sign of the one who summoned him, things become worse when he is attacked. But when he is saved by a mysterious silver-haired girl with a fairy cat, Subaru cooperates with the girl to return the favor. When they finally manage to get a clue, Subaru and the girl are attacked and killed by someone. Subaru then awakens in the place he was summoned and notices he gained the ability “Returns by Death.” A helpless boy that only has the ability to rewind time by dying. And beyond the despair can he save the girl from the fate of death?
A new visual for the upcomingSword Art Online the Movie: Ordinal Scale anime film has been revealed in the recent issue of Dengeki G’s magazine. The film itself is set to release in Japan in Spring 2017.
In addition to this, the official website for the upcoming Sword Art Online the Movie: Ordinal Scale has revealed that the anime film will have its theatrical is scheduled for a Spring 2017 release in North America.
The first full theatrical trailer has been released with English subtitles, which introduces the series’ new focal game: Ordinal Scale.
In addition to this, a new visual for the upcoming Sword Art Online the Movie: Ordinal Scale anime film has been featured in the July 2016 issue of NewType as a poster. This issue can be purchased here (get 5% off with coupon code MOE-N3Y-4YW0QK).
The film will release in Japan in over 150 theatres. In addition, the International website of the movie has also echoed that the film is set for a Spring 2017 release. The Spring 2017 season of anime generally runs from late March until June.
Yoshitsugu Matsuoka (Sora in No GameNo Life) will be back to voice Kirito
Haruka Tomatsu (Haruka Takayama inSakura Trick) returns as Asuna
Kanae Itou (Ruiko Saten from Toaru Kagaku no Railgun) voicing as Yui
Ayahi Takagaki (Mikako Satsukitane in Sora no Otoshimono) will voice Lisbeth
Miyuki Sawashiro (Celty Sturluson fromDurarara!!) is back as Sinon
Ayana Taketatsu (Kirino Kousaka from Oreimo) voicing Leafa
Hiroaki Hirata (Sanji from One Piece) will return to voice Klein
Hiroki Yasumoto (Germany from Hetalia) as Agil
Koichi Yamadera (Togusa in Ghost in the Shell) will reprise his role as Akihiko Kayaba
The film will feature the new VMMO Ordinal Scale that utilises the new Augma Augmented Reality device. Players rank up in the game by defeating monsters and using special items.It will have an original story, not adapting of Kawahara’s any previous work; set after the Mother’s Rosario arc, which was the third and final arc to be animated in Sword Art Online II. The arc itself was featured in the light novel’s 7th volume.
The Director of first two seasons, Tomohiko Ito (Silver Spoon, Seikimatsu Occult Gakui), will return to direct the film alongside Anime Character Designer Shingo Adachi (Working!!, Galilei Donna). Yuki Kajiura (Mahou Shoujo Madoka Magica,Fate/Zero) will also return to compose the music and A-1 Pictures (Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso, AnoHana) will be back to animate the film. Reki Kawahara will be writing the movie’s original story.
Previous visual:
Sword Art Online is a Japanese light novel series written by Reki Kawahara and illustrated by abec. The series takes place in the near-future and focuses on various virtual reality MMORPG worlds. The light novels began publication on ASCII Media Works’ Dengeki Bunko imprint from April 10, 2009, with a spin-off series launching in October 2012. The series has spawned eight manga adaptations published by ASCII Media Works and Kadokawa. The novels and four of the manga adaptations have been licensed for release in North America by Yen Press.
An anime television series produced by A-1 Pictures aired in Japan between July and December 2012. An Extra Edition episode aired on December 31, 2013, and a second anime series, titled Sword Art Online II, aired between July and December 2014. A video game based on the series, Sword Art Online: Infinity Moment, was released on PlayStation Portable in March 2013, with a second game, Sword Art Online: Hollow Fragment for PlayStation Vita (PS Vita) released in April 2014. A third game, Sword Art Online: Lost Song, was released on PlayStation 3 and PS Vita in March 2015.
In the near future, a Virtual Reality Massive Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Game (VRMMORPG) called Sword Art Online has been released where players can control their avatars through brain waves using technology called “NerveGear.” When players enter the game, they discover they cannot log out, as the game creator is holding them captive. To escape, players must beat the game by defeating each boss on all 100 floors; however, if they die in the game, they die in real life too. Their struggle for survival starts now…
During the the recent MF Bunko event, the staff of the publication announced that an anime movie based on Yuu Kamiya’s No Game No Life manga is in production and it has recently been revealed that upcoming film will be a prequel to the 2014 anime series.
Kamiya mentions that the announcement image of the movie (above) actually features Riku and Shuvi, from volume 6. The 6th volume is set before the events of the main light novels and anime series. The anime itself adapted volumes 1 through 3.
In the movie’s initial announcement little details were revealed, however the staff did mention that the movie will include new material. The extent of the new material, whether the film will be entirely new footage or just a recap of the anime with a few new scenes, was not specified.
No Game No Life is a light novel series written and illustrated by Yuu Kamiya. The series began in 2012 in Media Factory’s MF Bunko J imprint and to date a total of 8 volumes have been released. The series received a manga adaptation last year from Kamiya and Mashiro Hiiragi, where it is currently running in Media Factory’s Monthly Comic Alive magazine. An anime adaptation of the series was produced in Spring 2014. It was animated by Madhouse (Death Note, Hunter x Hunter) and directed by Atsuko Ishizuka (Sakurasou no Pet na Kanojo).
Here is a synopsis of the series:
The story of No Game, No Life centers around Sora and Shiro, a brother and sister whose reputations as brilliant NEET (Not in Education, Employment, or Training) hikikomori (shut-in) gamers have spawned urban legends all over the Internet. These two gamers even consider the real world as just another “crappy game.” One day, they are summoned by a boy named “God” to an alternate world. There, God has prohibited war and declared this to be a world where “everything is decided by games”—even national borders. Humanity has been driven back into one remaining city by the other races. Will Sora and Shiro, the good-for-nothing brother and sister, become the “Saviors of Humanity” on this alternate world? “Well, let’s start playing.”
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