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Annapurna Interactive takes over as publisher for game by Katamari Damacy creator Annapurna Interactive announced on Thursday that it is publishing Katamari Damacy game creator Keita Takahashi, video game designer Robin Hunicke, annd developer Funomena's Wattam game. The company is taking over publishing from Sony Interactive Entertainment. While previously listed only for PlayStation 4, the game is now listed as coming to "consoles" and PC. Annapurna Interactive describes the game: From the imaginations of Keita Takahashi (creator of Katamari Damacy) and developer Funomena comes the weird, wild, wacky, whimsical world of Wattam. MAKE NEW FRIENDS: The Mayor invites you to explore the colorful world of Wattam and bond with over 100 unique and carefree characters. The connections you form open a treasure chest of possibilities - playing, switching, stacking, climbing, chasing, floating, exploding and/or dancing all in the name of fun. EXPERIENCE JOYFUL EXPLOSIONS: Th

Ozaki's "Glory Days" song serves as theme for 1st film opening on September 16 Toys Factory began streaming an official anime music video on Thursday for Hiroya Ozaki's "Glory Days" song. The video features footage from both the original Eureka Seven anime series alongside scenes from the upcoming first Psalms of Planets Eureka Seven Hi-Evolution anime film. "Glory Days" serves as the film's theme song. Some of the other music the film will feature include "Acperience 7" by Hardfloor, Hiroshi Watanabe's "Get it by your hands HI-EVO MIX" (a remix of a similarly named track from the original anime), and Naoki Satō's background music. The first film in the planned trilogy made its worldwide debut at Otakon on August 12. The first film will open in Japan on September 16, and will also open this fall in the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Australia, Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, and Thailand. Funimation is in charge of the North American release, and Madman Ente

Romance-action series centering on high school boy with superpowers launched in November 2015 This year's 18th issue of Shueisha's Young Gangan magazine revealed on Friday that Sakurako Gokurakuin's Brave Star ☆ Romantics manga will end in the magazine's next issue on September 15. The "romance-action story with shortcut superpowers" manga centers on Ayumu Takenami, the "Brave Star" who is one of the strongest of those with superpowers. He fights on the front lines every day, but rushes home to Japan to see the girl he likes. Gorakuin launched the series in November 2015, and Square Enix published the manga's second compiled volume (pictured at right) on March 25. Gokurakuin ended her Sekirei manga in August 2015. She began the series in 2004 and the series inspired two anime adaptations in 2008 and 2010. Funimation has released both anime in North America. Yen Press began releasing the Sekirei manga digitally in 2015, and began publishing the series in print in July.

Also: October 7 premiere revealed The official website for the for the anime adaptation of Natsumi Eguchi's Hozuki's Coolheadedness (Hōzuki no Reitetsu) manga began streaming the first full promotional video for the second season on Thursday. The video previews the theme song "Dai! Jigoku Jigobushi" by Jigoku no Sata All Stars (Hell's Affairs All Stars), a group of the series' cast members. The video has karaoke (in Japanese) for the song, which is about hell, and going to hell when you die. The website also revealed that the series will premiere at night on October 7 at 1:00 a.m. (effectively October 8) on Tokyo MX1, Sun TV, and BS11. It will air later the same night on KBS Kyoto and on October 9 on AT-X. It will also stream on Abema TV and other platforms. The anime will have two Blu-ray Disc and DVD box sets with a total of 13 episodes. The show's returning cast includes: Hiroki Yasumoto as Hōzuki Takashi Nagasako as Enma Daiō Yumiko Kobayashi as Shiro Hiro

Manga launched in 2014, Yen Press releasing manga in N. America The October issue of Kadokawa's Dragon Age magazine published the final chapter of Milan Matra's Demonizer Zilch manga last Friday. Hideyaki Yoshimura and Homura Kawamoto's Rengoku Deadroll and Yoshiko Hardboiled's Kōkō no Nichijō also ended in the issue. Yen Press licensed Demonizer Zilch, and it describes the story: Listless high schooler Haruomi Io is plagued by the memory of his late kid sister. One day, he's suddenly attacked by a group of girls calling themselves the "Seven Gospel Society." In the thick of a battle he never asked for, Haruomi is rescued by Zilch, a demoness who declares herself the "29th Branch." Upon sharing a kiss with his demonic savior, Haruomi finds a strange power coursing through his body! Will this incident lead Haruomi to cast off the doldrums and delve into a new world of superpowers and the supernatural?! Matra launched the manga in Dragon Age in 2014, and Kadokawa publi

Masako Nozawa reprises Kitarō role in December 13 film The official website for Yo-kai Watch Shadowside: Oni-ō no Fukkatsu (Yo-kai Watch Shadowside: The Return of the Oni King), the fourth film in the Yo-kai Watch franchise, revealed on Wednesday that Kitarō and other characters from Shigeru Mizuki's GeGeGe no Kitarō manga will appear in the film. Masako Nozawa, who has voiced Kitarō in the manga's numerous anime adaptations, will reprise the role in the film. Shown below (from left to right) are familiar GeGeGe no Kitarō characters Ittan Momen, Medama Oyaji, Konaki Jijii, Sunakake Babaa, Nezumi Otoko, and Neko Musume. The movie will also feature a Kitarō-themed "Kitanyan" appearance for Yo-kai Watch's lead character Jibanyan. Shigeru Mizuki's supernatural manga Kitaro (GeGeGe no Kitarō) began in 1959 under the name Hakaba Kitarō. The stories center on an inhuman boy who straddles the line between the human and supernatural worlds. The manga has spawned seven televi

Series about adulterous businessman launched last year This year's 20th issue of Shueisha's Grand Jump magazine revealed on Wednesday that Masakazu Yamaguchi's (Dengeki Oshioki Musume Gōtaman) Furin Shokudō (Adultery Restaurant) manga is getting a live-action drama adaptation. The issue didn't state whether the adaptation will be a special or series, or if it will air on TV or stream online. The manga centers on 35-year-old businessman Ryūichi Yamadera. Ryūichi travels around the country on business trips, and his sole pastime is trying different foods at local restaurants. He also ends up sleeping with the various married women he meets at the restaurants, while also being married himself. Yamaguchi launched the manga in early 2016, and Shogakukan published the manga's fourth compiled volume on June 19. The manga's fifth compiled volume shipped on Tuesday. Yamaguchi's Dengeki Oshioki Musume Gōtaman manga inspired the Dengeki Oshioki Musume Gōtaman: Gōtaman Tanjō-hen (

Anime about strange family to air simultaneously in Japan, Taiwan in spring 2018 This year's November issue of Shinchosha's Comic Bunch magazine revealed on Thursday that Yanai's Jikken-hin Kazoku: Creatures Family Days manga is getting a Japanese-Taiwanese collaboration anime adaptation that will launch in spring 2018. The anime will air in Japan and Taiwan simultaneously. The manga will launch in Comic Bunch in the magazine's December issue on October 21, and it will mark Taiwanese creator Yanai's Japanese debut. The series centers on a family where both parents are mad scientists, and where both brother and sister are modded humans called "creatures." The family members aim to become a "normal" family. Source: Comic Natalie

New Kino's Journey anime premieres on October 6 The official website of the new Kino's Journey anime, Kino no Tabi - the Beautiful World- the Animated Series, began streaming the anime's second promotional video on Wednesday. The video includes the first video of the character Ti and previews Nagi Yanagi's opening theme song "here and there." The website also announced that a Twitter campaign is offering three copies of the special "KinoWalker" booklet signed by original light novel author Keiichi Sigsawa and character designer Kouhaku Kuroboshi. People can retweet the campaign announcement until October 17 for a chance to win. The series is the newest television anime adaptation of Keiichi Sigsawa's Kino's Journey - The Beautiful World light novels. The anime will premiere on AT-X on October 6 at 10:00 p.m., and will then air later in the evening on Tokyo MX, Sun TV, KBS Kyoto, and BS11. Crunchyroll will stream the anime, and Funimation will dub the series. The ani

Paramount Pictures, J.J. Abrams' Bad Robot to produce, Arrival's Eric Heisserer pens script Paramount Pictures and J. J. Abrams' Bad Robot Productions are producing a live-action Hollywood adaptation of Makoto Shinkai's your name. (Kimi no Na wa.) anime film. Abrams (Star Wars: Episode VII – The Force Awakens) and Lindsey Weber from Bad Robot will produce the film alongside Genki Kawamura, the original film's producer. Academy Award-nominated screenwriter Eric Heisserer (Arrival, Final Destination 5) is penning the script. Paramount and Bad Robot will work with original producer TOHO, who will distribute the film in Japan. Regarding the new film, Shinkai said, "your name. is a film created with the innate imaginations of a Japanese team and put together in a domestic medium. When such a work is imbued with Hollywood filmmaking, we may see new possibilities that we had been completely unaware of. I am looking forward to the live-action film with excited anticipation." Kaw