The anime adaptation for the mobile game Arknights was announced recently, and while there’s been a key visual announcement the release date still remains a mystery. While waiting for further details, let’s take a look at what to expect from the series – based on the game. Details regarding the story, art, and character voices will be discussed as those are the key factors of the game that are going to be adapted into the anime. Expect some spoilers ahead.
The anime adaptation of Arknights is titled Arknights: Prelude to Dawn. Yuki Watanabe is directing it at Yostar Pictures along with Masataka Nishikawa as the assistant director.
Arknights is a free-to-play tower defense gacha game developed by Hypergryph. Yostar published the game worldwide and the global version celebrated its 2nd anniversary on January 16, 2022. Players take on the role of The Doctor and command parts of Rhodes Island – a faction made out of the “Infected”. And just what are they?
Synopsis
The main story of Arknights is set in the post-apocalyptic world of Terra and it mainly revolves around two different societies – the Infected and the non-Infected. The Infected are diagnosed with Oripathy, a disease caused by exposure to Originium, a mysterious substance that plays an important role in the story. Those that are infected with Oripathy have mutated appearances showing a rough skin texture and black crystals forming outside the skin. They also have the ability to cast Arts – a mystical power that utilizes Originium.
On the other hand, the non-Infected people discriminated against and abused those infected with the disease. As such, a group of Infected gathered and formed a terroristic group called the Reunion which seeks to end all discrimination by wiping out the non-Infected. They play the antagonistic role of the main story.
However, you will be fighting alongside Rhodes Island, a group of Infected but with different goals. They seek to protect the non-Infected and the Infected alike as well as to fight the Reunion and find a cure to the disease.
Story and Lore
Arknights has a very rich story and lore that it is one of the best features the game has. The characters are well written and synced with the story, which is filled with unexpected twists and turns. The worldbuilding is also detailed which makes the story much more extensive.
However, the story in the game had a slow start – having long gaps in between chapters until the intensity rises. Although, there’s a certain point in the story where things start to get interesting and the pacing of the story becomes stabilized – hopefully the anime manages to avoid these issues.
Art and Animation
The art and design in the game are simply gorgeous. Character designs are very detailed and appealing. AT first sight, the character designs may be a bit overwhelming, but in reality, they are very in line with who the characters are. It is somehow contradictory to see small “chibi” versions of those characters in the gameplay, but the design in the character’s panel is surely something else.
Want to see what I’m simply talking about? Then take a look at one of the main character Amiya’s in-game art and illustration:
Assistant director Masaki Nishikawa also shared in an interview that the TV anime will be similar to the game’s 1st-anniversary animation “Holy Knight Light”. You can check it out here:
Character Voices
Let’s not forget how stacked the voice cast is in the game. We still don’t know if they will reprise their roles in the anime, but we can only hope. As with most gacha, there are so many characters and it will be interesting to see how and when the anime adaptation will introduce them.
Here are some of them, mainly from the first few chapters of the game:
- Tomoyo Kurosawa as Amiya
- Yōko Hikasa as Kal’tsit
- Atsumi Tanezaki as Doberrman
- Ryō Hirohashi as Jessica
- Mai Nakahara as Blaze
- Ayane Sakura as Nearl
- Ayane Taketatsu as W
- Shizuka Ishigami as Ch’en
- Kiyono Yasuno as Hoshiguma
- Sora Tokui as Swire
- Yui Ishikawa as Liskarm
- Manaka Iwami as Exusiai
- Ai Kakuma as Franka
- Azusa Tadokoro as Texas
Also read:
Arknights TV Anime Reveals Main Staff and Key Visual
So what should we expect from the anime adaptation of Arknights? One thing we can be sure about is that the story is going to be massively entertaining. The setup is definitely promising, but we still don’t have enough details to make educated assumptions. As for the art and animation quality, it is yet to be seen first-hand through the very first trailer, that is hopefully coming soon.
Source: Arknights Official Website
© Yostar, Hypergryph