Less than a week away from Anime Expo. Let’s make sure to prepare for the Anime Expo. This list mostly serves as a reminder or a double check, making sure we could enjoy Anime Expo as much as possible.
Disclaimer: This is opinionated on what I believe should be brought as it may differ from person to person. Just because it’s not on the list doesn’t mean you shouldn’t bring it if you believe you’ll need it!
Supplies:
Clothes (1-4 days)
Cosplay
Shirt
Dress/Skirt
Socks
etc.
Hat/Umbrella
Sunglasses
Face Mask
Sunscreen/Sunblock
Battery Charger
Phone charger cable
Battery charger cable
USB Plug
Electronics
Phone
Laptop
Toothbrush & Toothpaste
Hygienic Amenities
Lotion
Shaver
Deodorant
Tissue/Wipes/Napkins
Reusable Water Bottle(s)
Luggage
Have some empty space to store items bought from AX
(Small) bag/purse
While the convention and other booths does provide a bag, sometime it’s better to have your own bag to hold stuff during the convention
Small foldable chairs
I have one from Daiso Japan from several years ago
Inconsistent enforcement from security/staff so keep in mind
Identification Card
Driver’s License
etc.
Cash (USD)
Some venders (notably Artist Alley) would charge tax/extra if you use digital pay/credit card
More options of payment is generally good, spend responsibility
Insulation Cooling Bags
Used to keep cold foods cool during the convention. I’m somewhat picky on what I eat so having one is nice.
I use PackIt for references
Poster Tube/Poster Case
Prints typically are 7 x 11” (~195.58 cm)
First-Aid
Plastic Bags
Reminder:
Items such as sharp objects and metal-related props are NOT allowed in the convention
Snacking:
Knowing what you eat is important, especially since it will fuel you throughout AX. As the convention is generally packed, being able to access food options, especially with reasonable prices and in a timely manner can be tricky. Some attendees resort to bringing personal lunches or snacks to consume throughout the day.
I was able to consult a local nutritionist for recommendations, notably for snack options during the convention.
For calories on average, 100 to 280 calories without Lunch should be consumed every few hours. Totaling around 600 calories for around 7 hours of consistent walking. Sometimes, higher calories intake can be ok.
When selecting snacking options, keep in mind of several factors including:
Portability:
Ziploc bags or individually wrapped snacks
Micronutrients:
Sodium
Avoid high sodium
Potassium
Macronutrients:
Carbohydrates
Proteins
Often paired with Carbs
Prioritize Carbs/Protein over Fats
Snack List:
Dried Fruits
Trail Mix
Granola bars
Soft and Chewy
Beef stick/jerky
High on sodium (Higher food retention)
Chips/Pretzel/Popcorn
Not nutrient rich
Can fill for a-bit, but lacks other nutrients
Crackers
Chocolate
Concern over heat melting, hygiene
Apple Sauce package
Mini Fruit Bars
Rice crackers
Dried Seaweed Snacks
Lower calories
Light
etc.
While it’s ideal to consume a proper lunch, not everyone would have such flexibility as time may be limited, inability to prepare lunch beforehand, or discouraging prices.
Liquid Intake:
I was able to consult on matters related to water intakes. While some of the numbers may be a bit more than standard, it is an ideal number to go for.
Electrolyte packs + use refill station
0 calories Gatorade or Water with Hydration packs/Ivy packs (sodium)
Drinks like Gatorade may be heavy to carry around
1 gallon of water per day (3.7 L)
~7-8 bottles (5ml) total, 1 every hour or so
Drink whenever you’re feeling thirsty, don’t push it.
Weather:
Day 1 (July 3): 26°C / 78°F
Day 2 (July 4): 26°C / 79°F
Day 3 (July 5): 28°C / 82°F
Day 4 (July 6): 28°C / 82°F
Last Minute Planning Reminder:
Have an idea on what you want to do each day, doesn’t have to be rigid scheduling
When Orchis, the Limitless was initially released, many thought she was a solid card and created a puppet deck revolving around Orchis and Lishenna. Puppet Portal’s game plan allows for early pressure while finishing off with Orchis on turn 6 and the eventual chip damage from Lishenna’s amulets. The main issue is if the opponent manages to out-heal the initial turn 1-5 damage, the game becomes an eventual stall battle with Lishenna amulets slowly grinding the game out with Puppet Portal not having a proper close out.
Now fast forward to the new expansion, Eightfold Abyss: Azvald, Puppet gets a new card to add to their deck:
Kyrzael, Killshot Enforcer, arguably one of Portalcraft’s best cards in this expansion. With 7pp, the card can:
Clear 2 random enemy followers
Dealing 5 damage to the enemy leader
Big Board + Ward
Heal 2
Draw 2
While it does not resolve Puppet Portal’s lack of OTKO, it does give Puppet Portal additional pressure post-Orchis turn, strengthening the deck’s end game.
Pretty much how I saw the new card just straight up improving Puppet Portal
Deck List:
Upon performing well in Rotation Ranked and achieving 5-0 in the Rotation Grand Prix, I was pushed to make this guide and share my thoughts of the deck itself.
The tweet below shows the deck I used to 5-0 in GP. With a lot of 1’s of cards, I was mostly experimenting on what tech cards work best for this deck against the matchups.
Going double puppet is an ideal pick in most cases as it helps Orchis and Lishenna’s destroyed follower game plan.
However, the choice to pick Forge Weaponry is a high-risk, high-reward card. It can be a solid card when your opponent cannot deal with your 2pp follower. Blossoming Flower Doll is an ideal follower for Forge Weaponry on turn 3. Blossoming Flower Doll combo with 0pp puppet allows you to have two of them on board, making Forge Weaponry a safer play.
I see Forge Weaponry as Badb. It’s good on the curve if you manage to have your 2pp follower live with 2 extra damage, but it can be a dead card if the 2pp follower gets cleared. In addition, your later turns are already filled with cards like Lishenna and Orchis, who take up the entire curve playpoint making Forge Weaponry a dead card in your hand.
Lishenna allows a flexible play where you can play her on a curve turn or later with her 10 follower destroyed condition. In some cases you can fulfill her 10 follower destroyed condition as early as turn 5.
In most situations, going Black amulet first is generally the play. With the meta revolving around many burst damage cards, healing 4-6 is usually irrelevant, with many existing decks capable of dealing over 20 damage in one turn as sometime it becomes a kill race.
With Lishenna, you need to be aware on what amulets to choose from and when is it a good time to play Lishenna.
Let’s imagine some scenarios:
Scenario 1:
1-2 Lishenna, 0 Orchis, 0 Kryzael
With Lishenna being your only primary win condition in hand, you can quickly get out tempo’d by the opponent late game. I would focus on playing aggressively early.
If you have only 1 in hand with no late-game cards in sight, depending on if the opponent’s game plan is on the way, you want to play aggressively with your sole Lishenna and her Black Amulet in hopes you can draw your late-game cards. If the matchup is slower, you can play a bit conservatively for Lishenna’s 10 followers destroyed condition. However, if the matchup is an aggro deck, White Amulet is generally the better play.
If you have 2 in hand, the first one can go Black amulet while the other should be held on until you reach the 10 followers destroyed condition.
However, White Amulet is the better play in some rare cases, especially if the matchup is an aggro deck like Handless Blood.
Sometimes, Lishenna is all you need to win games.
Scenario 2:
1-2 Lishenna, x Orchis, x Kryzael
In an ideal situation, with the ability to play Lishenna early while having a follow-up, the main question is which amulet combo is better? 2 Blacks or 1 Black and 1 White?
In most matchups, 2 Blacks are mathematically better than 1 Black & 1 White as it can help push for lethal follow-up with Orchis or Kryzael.
If you are fighting a heavy aggro deck, White can be prioritized over Black to help survivability
2 Blacks: 8 Damage, then 4 Damage = 12 damage
1 Black & 1 White: 4 Damage 4 Heal, then 4 Damage 4 Heal = 8 damage and 8 heals
If the matchup might take longer than usual such as control matchups or decks with a lot of healing, such as Gilnelise, saving the second Lishenna for the 10 follower destroyed condition is suggested on turn 8, assuming you do not have lethal that turn.
Orchis is a relatively straightforward card. You fuse 1 puppet for Lloyd and 3 puppets in total to have them both evolve. It is important to note that Lloyd does NOT need to be evolved to lock enemy followers, while Orchis NEEDS TO BE EVOLVED to give puppet followers storm.
Llyod locking two followers is incredibly powerful as it limits board space and leaves followers with LW conditions unable to be traded off
Understanding your opponent’s game plan is part of learning how to play puppet portal. By being aware of their damage reach, you can play more optimally or conservatively, depending on the situation. Here are the matchups I find with Puppet Portal.
Loot Sword’s big swing turns are turn 5 and 7. On turn 5, General Maximus creates a big board including loot-generating followers which can accelerate their loot game plan. Barbaros, Briny Convict Enhanced on turn 7 is Sword’s burst turn which has a potential damage of 10 due to the storm damage Barbaros provide and Dread Pirate’s Flag which deals 3 damage to a follower and enemy leader for 1pp. The damage can reach as high as 18 with Octrice’s spell on evo: Remnant of Hollowness (1 Fused – Deal 4, 4 Fused – Deal 8).
Portal’s game plan is to control the tempo to their advantage with Lishenna evo with General Maximus and Kryzael on turn 7 to prepare for Sword’s Barbaros turn. Sword with an empty board on 7pp cannot clear Kryzael and the two wards without relying on Octrice’s Spell: Remnant of Hollowness, Flags already in hand, using additional resources such as playing another Barbaros or trading Barbaros.
Sephie Rune:
Their Main Game Plan:
5 Test Subjects entering play where Sephie grants storm to Test Subjects (5/5)
Portal’s early game is very strong as it can pressure Sephie Rune before they fully ramp up with Test Subjects. You want to be careful about not overcommitting as Sephie Rune can heal with Gilnelise and Obsessive Scholar. Note that both followers require evolution points to be able to heal. If the game drags long enough, be wary of Olivia & Sylvia + Yukishima combo on turn 9+ and Gilnelise invocation.
Orchis come in clutch with Lloyd locking two followers, limiting Sephie Rune’s possible plays due to lack of board space. This play forcesSephie to be played prematurely to trade
Armed Dragon:
Their Main Game Plan:
4 Armed followers leaving play
Forte
Armed Dragon’s biggest advantage would have to come from Forte, Darkwing Ruler and her immunity to being attacked based on gaining stats due to Draconic Weapons giving her +0/+1.
Portal’s game plan to deal with Forte is to create a semi-wide board without board-locking yourself. If your opponent has 2 or more Draconic Weapons in hand, there is a fair chance that your opponent might play Forte on 6pp. Lævateinn Dragon, Blast Form can deal at least 7-10+ damage in one turn, which would be enough for lethal if Forte is not dealt with the turn before assuming 4 Armed Followers leaving play condition has been met.
Portal’s strong early game can react to Armed Dragon’s aggressive early game. You want to keep in mind the Armed follower count and try to delay the 4 Armed followers leaving play conditions. Orchis can also lock Armed followers, which delays that condition
One of Portal’s unfavorable matchup, Shadow has a lot of burn damage, especially from ghost spam and Cerberus. Shadow also has powerful cards like Abyssal Colonel, a 6/6 ward and storm follower, and last words heal and random removal. Abyssal Colonel can be played as a 2pp crystalize in which it can be cheated out with Istyndet, Soul Convict, which can destroy all cards in play, forcing the crystalize to play Abyssal Colonel earlier than expected. It is important to note that Abyssal Colonel is originally a 9pp card, so Shadow can crystalize for 2pp and follow up with Istyndet, who is also a 2pp card, making the opponent not anticipate it.
Portal’s game plan is to create an aggressive board where Shadow is forced to respond rather than freely attack the leader with ghost spam. In addition, trading followers is ideal over directly attacking the enemy leader as it prevents Shadow from being able to freely play Corral Souls or accelerated Krampus. Orchis can also lock last word followers, which delays the 10 Last Words condition. Just be aware that Shadow has ways to remove those locked followers, unlike Armed Dragon.
Once Abyssal Colonel is on the field, you must be mindful of what you play and trade due to his last word randomly removing 1 follower and healing the leader by 3. Indirect damage that is lethal will prioritize over the Colonel’s last word heal.
Most of my wins against LW Shadows rely on either Shadow having 10 LW relatively late or unable to draw the cards needed like Colonel or Istyndet.
Crystalize Haven, from personal experience, is pretty inconsistent, as you’re not always going to draw the Exodia combo every time. Puppet Portal’s early aggression heavily punishes Crystalize Haven, especially if Haven does not have the infamous combo of Holy Lightning Bird and Skullfane early on.
Just be aware of a possible Sapphire Priestess + Diamond Master evo combo which can clear the entire board of followers (excluding followers like Lishenna)
Lethal was found as early as turn 5 using Craftman’s Pride to get Enchanted Puppet to trade + Forged Weaponry on Cassim or Rosa. Evolving Rosa would deal exactly 9 damage.
Almost two months has passed since the Anime Expo Summer 2022. (It’s late I know I’m sorry). Many already want 2023 to happen, while others anticipate the mini-convention happening in November. I would like to give my thoughts and anticipations for the future.
While I did initially go to Anime Expo expecting a slow year, which in fact, it was. The previous two years were solely online due to the world events that have occurred during the past two years. First of all, I did not expect a high number of attendees this year. I had the debate of it being slightly less because of health concerns and the lack of Japanese guests and official events. However, I neglect the fact that Anime’s popularity also exploded in the past few years and a lack of estimation as I do not attend conventions besides Anime Expo. Of course, it also created some issues, especially in lines and areas where nobody could move in the crowd.
Fortunately, I didn’t experience much of the cluttered masses of people. However, I always wondered if AX actually advertised their other entrances. Besides the South and West main entrance, there’s the West side entrance. I entered through there all 4 days and didn’t wait as much as I thought I would. I waited about 30 minutes to get in, and the other days, despite arriving later than usual (~9:50 am), there was practically little to no line.
I also talked to a few friends on discord, and they mentioned some hidden entrances you could get in, but others said it was for premier fans only. One of those entrances is the backside garage line behind the convention center at West Hall. I remember going there and was told it was for premier fans only. But there’s no indication that the line is only for premier fans. In addition, the line isn’t even advertised on the map they distributed. Either I missed crucial information, or it was not communicated enough among staff and volunteers
Day 2 Linecon (before opening)Day 2 Linecon
Another big concern is the Artist Alley, one of the three Anime Expo main attractions located below the Exhibit Hall in the South Hall. In addition to occasionally having too many attendees at once, there was a massive accumulation of CO2 in the area. With a lack of proper ventilation, it poses an enormous issue.
With the exhibit hall being a heavy attraction, one main concern lies in the bottom left corner of the exhibit hall, specifically the MiHoYo and Yostar booths. With both booths being very popular yet very close to each other, I believe it’s an oversight or an underestimation of how many attendees would actually visit both booths. Both booths became very crowded throughout the entirety of Anime Expo which made visiting either and nearby booths a challenge.
While these are the best images I had at the timethe mihoyo and the yostar booth were very crowdedThere is usually some staff telling the attendees to keep moving. Most likely to prevent some sort of fire hazard
Of course, I don’t want to make this post primarily negative. Overall, I still did enjoy the general experience at the Anime Expo. I especially enjoyed the cosplay meetups. From what I’ve seen, the cosplay looks pretty diverse. I’ve seen some popular ones, such as Genshin, Demon Slayer, Chainsaw Man, and Spy x Family. I don’t believe there was one dominant franchise, which made the general experience much more refreshing.
(This is normally where I post some cosplay pictures, but I feel too lazy as a lot of them I took are good. Plus, not sure why videos don’t work)
Out of nowhere, Anime Expo announced a lite convention in Ontario, California. While it is an interesting move, we don’t know anything about it at the time of writing other than it being a two-day convention on November 12 and 13. While I plan on attending this event, I hope it will be a positive experience.
Overall, Anime Expo 2022 was a slow year in terms of overall activities. I didn’t expect Anime Expo to run the event perfectly after being unable to do so for the past 2 years. Hopefully, Anime Expo will learn from these mistakes and make next year a more enjoyable experience.
With Anime Expo getting closer and closer, we need to make sure we are fully prepared for a big event. Recent events caused Anime Expo to host its events only online for a few years, making many, including myself, crave an in-person convention for a very long time. While many are excited, it is also essential to be prepared to make the event as enjoyable as possible.
Preparation:
Sometimes you don’t want to be underprepared for the convention, but you don’t want to be over prepared either. Here’s a personal list on items that could be helpful for the convention:
Luggage for your belongings
Don’t overfill in case you want to buy stuff in the convention
Bring poster tubes or toploader posters if you plan on buying artwork or posters during the convention
Hygienic needs – Even though the hotels usually provide them for you, it’s recommended to bring your own belongings just in case
Reasonably sized backpack to use for the convention
Snacks
Preferably those that don’t melt in the heat
Face-mask
Bring plenty just in case
Extra: (Optional, but recommended)
Autograph boards
In case a guest you follow/like a lot attends AX
Small portable folding chair
Not 100% sure if AX security are willing to allow them as I get mixed response with the previous years
I use the one you can get at Daiso Japan (High chances that they might sell out)
Day 0 Pre-Planning
With Anime Expo requiring verification before being able to attend the convention, it’s also important to accommodate time for it. While it’s too late for me to recommend you a day 0 night at a hotel, it’s important to keep note in the future that day 0 exists to get all the preparation down without it directly affecting your convention time by waiting in additional lines. Luckily Anime Expo verification booth is available most of the entire day 0 from 6 am to 11:59 pm so you could come really late and still be able to verify before the actual convention date.
In addition to getting all the preparation done for Anime Expo, I would recommend figuring out lunch plans. While we’re all in a convention of something we all enjoy, it’s also important to stop and take a break. Even though food trucks exist outside of the convention, I personally am not a huge fan of them. Naturally, they would be very overpriced for what you would be getting, and the quality can be inconsistent.
You would also stumble across those who run their food carts repeatedly saying, “Hot dogs, Hot dogs.” I have never tried them, but I have heard about health concerns, so I would play it safe and avoid them altogether. I recommend preparing lunch beforehand, such as sandwiches or lunch sets from nearby marketplaces. You could also get pastries if your hotel does not provide breakfast. JW Marriot is one of the few popular hotels for AX attendees that do not offer complimentary breakfast. Of course, freshness and supplies have to be taken into consideration. Ultimately, I find this method a lot less stressful and saves money.
Weather
In addition to preparing for the convention, it’s also wise to check the weather. Below is the weather forecast for the AX weekend, according to Weather.com. Honestly, compared to 2019, the weather doesn’t seem as bad. I would still advise dressing properly, especially being considerate when in cosplay and preparing the usual accompanies.
Time References
For references, the times for AX will be listed here:
General Attendee: Day 1: 9 am – 6 pm
Exhibit Hall & Artist Alley: Day 1-3: 10 am – 6 pm Day 4: 10 am – 3 pm Non-participantspriority members can access 1 hour earlier
Entertainment Hall: Day 1-3: 10 am – 10 pm Day 4: 10 am – 4 pm
Here are some additional links for references to also aid in your planning:
While I wished I got this article out sooner, I finally got something out instead of not publishing any articles for at least a whole year (laugh). It’s important to keep a proper plan, especially when many of us have not attended an event for a long time. Hopefully, this procrastination guide helps reassure your procrastination preparation for AX. Most importantly, the point is to have fun and enjoy yourself. Have fun at Anime Expo!
Princess Connect, Re:Dive (Priconne for short), is an Anime produced under Cygames Picture, which is also the subsidiary of the main company that produced Priconne, Cygames. The Anime aired 13 episodes from April to June during the Anime Spring 2020 season.
After the Anime aired along with a season 2 announcement, 2DTalk staff, Producer, Xirius, and a newcomer, Pops finally had the time to discuss their final thoughts and anticipations on the Anime.
Producer: So, what were your thoughts on the Princess Connect anime? I find it enjoyable. For me, I definitely enjoyed the Anime a lot. The execution was nailed very well, especially since this is one of the few mobage or game adaptations that actually was really good.
Xirius: As a person who hasn’t delved deep into the Priconne story, I find the anime very entertaining, heartwarming, and enjoyable. Comedy was well executed, and the pacing was very smooth, for the most part. Action scenes are pretty flashy, which makes it quite a spectacle to watch. Slice of life moments, combined with the distinct, brightly colored animation, makes this anime very memorable.
Pops: I barely heard of Priconne before some friends asked if we all could watch the show together. After watching it, I can say that it was very enjoyable. It didn’t bring forth anything new or groundbreaking, but it showed itself to be fun to the average viewer. The mix of the slice of life genre with a fantasy action world, and colorful artstyle make this show very fun to watch.
Producer: What mobage and game adaptations need to understand, especially when they make it into an Anime, they need to create a balance of pleasing both the fans and the non-fans of that specific franchise, especially if Anime is one of the main ways to spread word of a specific franchise.
Producer: Some few bad examples would be:
Persona 5
Kantai Collection
Nekopara
Touken Ranbu (ufotable)
Azur Lane
What they all failed to accomplish beyond the not-so-great plot, is pretty much the lack of balance between both the fans and the non-fans. Most of them are leaning towards appealing mostly to the core fans of that franchise. While some franchises intention might be just for those core fans, I personally feel it’s a wasted opportunity to not try to bring in potential new fans.
Xirius: To add on that, another recent example of a mobage adaptation that mainly appeals to the core fans is the FGO Babylonia anime. As much as I like the FGO Babylonia anime, it is not a good adaptation in terms of getting the freshly new audience to understand & immerse themselves in the story. Most of the beginning story arcs (“Singularities”) are skipped in favor of adapting a highly requested (& highly loved) story arc. As a result, the adaptation only appealed to the fans of FGO, but not bringing in new fans.
Producer: Yeah it does feel weird seeing FGO just adapt one of the later chapters of FGO, but I heard that it can be treated as a standalone plotline. However, I don’t think that’s exactly the case, but I don’t play FGO so can you confirm?
Xirus: While some may believe that the singularities can be standalone stories, it is misguided as the overarching story builds upon the previous stories, from lessons learned, to the revelations. Furthermore, the eventual Final Singularity adaptation without potential new fans knowing the built-up context from previous Singularities would only serve to reduce the impact of the story climax.
Reflecting Back:
Producer: When I heard about the Princess Connect Anime announcement, I was expecting a similar adaption to the main story itself, but when I read the story, I wonder how they would also accommodate the non-Priconne fans. I also jokingly joke that the western Anime fans wouldn’t enjoy the Anime.
Producer: Once the anime aired, if I were to describe Princess Connect in one line as a player myself, it would be “I didn’t order this, but I love it!”
Xirius: After viewing the Priconne anime, I was impressed by the amount of effort the anime took to appeal to both core fans and potential new fans. The fun slice of life moments gave the characters their moment to shine, which helps the audience to get attuned with them easily. Additionally, those moments slowly develop the fantasy world, without being presented with large amounts of information all at once. This, in turn, allows the audience to immerse themselves to the fantasy world without being overwhelmed. Taking the extra mile to bring in the freshly new audience to the franchise signifies a successful mobage adaptation.
Kyaru gif. Sometimes the little details do show a lot.
Producer: While the Anime wasn’t an iteration of the main story, the story did definitely give a different take as it also did integrate non-main story characters into the Anime without forcing it in.
Xirius: Yeah. Especially since each episode is basically a “Girl(s)/Guild of the week”. For the most part, those are done well since the characters are introduced smoothly. After being introduced, the characters take the spotlight to present their personality. Some, even going as far to chew the scenery *chuckle*. (ex: Rima, Aoi)
Producer: While of course, it isn’t a perfect Anime, it doesn have some fair share of its flaws. One main complaint is that not every character that was revealed didn’t officially show up in the Anime.
Pops: One of the biggest writing aspects used was Priconne’s wide range of characters. Every episode would show off a few new characters for the viewer to take it. The episodes were put into a short arc where you can watch them without much context on the rest. This made it more approachable to casual viewers, and added a bigger world to the show.
Pops: However, having a wide range of characters is a double-edged sword. A wide cast of characters allows a more unique world, but it also decreases the amount of character development that those characters can have. The show took advantage of their strengths and were able to match the many characters with the writing, without having too much impact on their own development. This allowed the main characters to develop and flesh out through the side characters, further improving the enjoyability of the show.
Behind the Scenes:
A Behind of the Scene image directly from the Cygames Pictures article
Producer: Also, I managed to find these Priconne Behind The Scenes articles in English. Initially, I found them in Japanese, but wasn’t aware of an official English translation version of it until pretty recently.
Producer: Looking back at the article before and after watching the Anime, I definitely noticed some of the aspects that they were talking about, such as the CGI and understanding the “mindset” they mentioned in regards to the expressions of certain characters developing over time.
Pops: I read the articles. They reminded me that animation in general, requires a lot of planning and work. It is not easy to create quality animation. There is storyboarding, voicing, and many other parts that all require proper coordination. I hope that people will acknowledge that, and give some credit to even mediocre animations. I’m glad the animators of priconne have put in a lot of work to make the show enjoyable for many.
Xirius: As I read the articles, the look of the Princess Connect anime, it is reassuring that Cygames Pictures allow the CGI to be a contributing component of the whole anime, according to Yoshinori Nakano. Combining the strengths of 2D animation & 3D CGI animation to form this cohesive, high quality animation was quite ambitious. While some CGI parts do look janky, like the knights CGI, other parts, like the shadows CGI, show how CGI animation, when done right, can be an effective tool to bolster the animation presentation.
Producer: I also noticed that their objective with the Anime is, quoting from Shun Kashima, the managing director of Cygames Pictures, “to make it something that can be enjoyed by players of the game and new fans alike.” Similar to the earlier idea that Priconne did so well is also part of their main vision when producing the Anime.
Producer: While we didn’t go too much into details, I also highly recommend the reader to also check it out in the references on the bottom.
Season 2 Hopes & Expectations:
Producer: To be honest, I was already anticipating a season 2. laugh
Xirius: Same here. Especially considering that some of the characters in the opening didn’t get any screen time at all chuckles.
Producer: F in the chats for Kasumi, Nozomi and Monika. laugh
Xirius: Considering how the final episode for season 1 turned out, I’m hoping that season 2 will remain consistent in the storytelling without revealing too much. That being said, they should balance the fun, heartfelt moments to the heavy tone of the overarching story. I believe that Cygames Pictures will be able to not only deliver, but go above and beyond.
Producer: Yeah, I hope they continue doing what worked well for season 1 for season 2, unless they wish to take a 180. I sometimes wonder if the production originally planned for Season 1 to be longer. It does explain the “extra” characters not shown in the Anime.
Monika, one of the few characters that unfortunately did not show up in the Anime despite being teased
Pops: I do not want to get my hopes up too high. The 1st season was right above average in terms of overall enjoyability. The ending of it however, put on a heavier, overarching plot that went against the normally upbeat style. The overarching story has me expecting that the 2nd season will unpack and expand on those ideas. If the show failed to do so, it would be disappointing. If the show decides to keep it’s “1 substory per episode” type of writing present, then I hope they will at minimum have a story arc dedicated to conquering the overarching narrative.
Conclusion/Wrap up:
Xirius: The Priconne anime, while has its share of strengths and flaws, was very enjoyable. Knowing that a season 2 is on the horizon, I’m sure we cannot wait for its eventual release.
Producer: I’m pretty sure it’ll be as great or even better as season 1.
Xirius: Indeed. But it is best to temper our expectations at the end of the day. And as we get closer to its release, we’ll be onboarding the hype train. *chuckle*
Producer: True
Pops: I hope that the next season of Princess Connect will exceed my expectations.
A couple months ago, a friend of mine recommended me to a Japanese mobage called Princess Connect! Re: Dive. At first, it looked like a typical, generic anime-fantasy mobile game with female characters as a selling point. However, the game is developed by Cygames, who are well known for their unique and outstanding IPs, Granblue Fantasy & Shadowverse, even in the west. Even though I played a couple mobages (Fate/Grand Order, Girls Frontline to name a few), I was willing to try Princess Connect! Re: Dive. What makes this game stand out from the other mobages I played so far is the amount of voice acting, and cutscenes within the game. It is as if I was watching an episodic anime on a mobile game. While it in itself is not groundbreaking (since other mobages like Honkai Impact 3rd has its fair share of voiced cutscenes), it is executed well enough to make it stand out. From voiced anime cutscenes to unique ED songs, it really feels like I’m watching an episodic anime with a great amount of production value.
That being said, as a person who doesn’t speak Japanese, I wasn’t able to fully grasp the story of Princess Connect, leaving me relying on fan translations for better understanding. However, when I heard that Princess Connect is going to have an anime adaptation in Spring 2020, I was ecstatic since it will be easier to engage and understand the story and characters. Even though the anime is developed by CygamesPictures (Cygames in-house animation studio), I have some trust for that freshly new studio to deliver an entertaining anime. After all, the studio was behind the making of Manaria Friends, which has shown to have consistent good animation quality.
Manaria Friends, another CygamesPictures works
Since its anime debut on April 7, 2020, Princess Connect! Re: Dive (Priconne for short) garnered much attention from audiences ranging from the dedicated & hardcore fans, to the casual fans, while capturing the attention of the freshly new audience who never heard of Priconne. How does the anime achieve garnering attention and interest from those audiences?
First, the anime captures the attention of the hardcore audience (and, to some extent, the casual audience) by displaying familiar music, from the BGM, to the Opening Theme that was first shown in episode 2. Then, throughout the episodes, the anime displays the loading screen as the small transitions during certain scenes, which shows the in-game sprites of the characters. At the end of each episode, the anime shows the Kokkoro stamp, which not only alludes to the login bonus from the game, but also entices the viewers to stay tuned for the next episode.
Finally, the anime shows many cameos of various beloved characters from the game, from the most obvious, to the most subtle. Such familiarity through the use of music and easter eggs allows the anime to give reason for the dedicated audience to stay tuned for more episodes.
Kokkoro Stamp, known for keeping track of your logins in-game
How does the Priconne anime capture the attention of, not only the casual fans, but also, most importantly, to the freshly new audience who’ve never heard of Priconne? For starters, the anime portrays itself as a fantasy/slice of life, which serves as an easy entry point for the freshly new audience interested in the anime.
While some fantasy anime shows would try to squeeze all the lore and the rules of the world in the first few episodes, Priconne takes the slow, but casual approach of immersing the viewer to the fantasy world through the slice of life moments. The slice of life elements is shown through the lens of the main characters: Yuuki, Kokkoro, Pecorine, and Karyl (Kyaru). From those slice of life moments, Priconne manages to subvert the audiences’ expectations through well-placed comedic timing. As such, certain scenes are built up through a momentous crescendo, only to have an unexpected outcome, leaving a memorable moment for the audience.
It is through those moments, the anime manages to entice the casual and the new audience in looking forward to watch more future episodes.
Kokkoro’s [0x0] face. Simple, yet memorable for the whole audience.
I’m looking forward to every Monday for the next Priconne episode. So far, the anime hits all the right notes. The familiar music, easter eggs, beautiful animation, on-point comedic timings, memorable characters and moments entices me, as a casual fan, to stay tuned for the next episode. Should this anime become successful in attracting new fans, maybe Cygames would sow the seeds for a future localization of Priconne to the west. But that’s only a pipe dream. Until then, I’ll enjoy what the Priconne anime has to offer!
On March 20, 2020, due to a specific bug in an in-game event for the game, Idolm@ster Million Live: Theater Days (Mirishita for short). The bug was a calculation error in one of the new event, Platinum Star Twin Stages; This mechanic being an automatic selection deck of 5 unique idol cards that you own with the best stats in either Vocal, Dance, or Visual. In which, the number of stats in that said deck grants a certain amount of event points when you play a live. While I played the event personally, I was rather confused about this new stats-deck mechanic as it felt that it is done purposely to avoid being too similar to another event. As a result of the bug, the developers have decided to set the stats to maximum for the duration of the event and give out a specific set of compensatory items to all players:
7 Fes Masterpiece
6 SSR Masterpiece
180 SSR Lesson Tickets
360 SR Lesson Tickets
1,500,000 Money
2500 Jewels
The automatic stats deck mechanic that is said to be bugged.
Let’s break it down to how much these items are actually worth.
We’ll be comparing this draft of items to the Dream Flower currency which is basically unused gacha points, which is generally accumulated from specific banners either due to reasons such as, not having enough Jewels, simply doing free pulls, or just trying your luck on the first 10 pulls and moving on. The Dream Flower currency has a 1:1 Dream Flower to Jewels ratio per pull.
While it’s cheaper to obtain Fes Masterpiece from simply sparking duplicate Fes characters in the same banner, we will be doing a range for Fes Masterpieces specifically.
Here is the paid Jewel shop and their prices: Note: The price is noted after the increased of Japanese sales tax
The first half of the in-app-purchase screen
The second half of the in-app-purchase screen
We will base each around the most expensive pack available in-game, ¥10,000 for 8,400 Jewels.
With each 10 pull costing around 2,500 Jewels, getting the guaranteed character will take a total of 300 pulls, totalling up to 90,000 Jewels and will cost approximately ¥108,320.
10x, 8,400 Jewels pack (¥100,000)
4,200 Jewels pack (¥5,020)
2,650 Jewels pack (¥3,300)
Total: ¥108,320 for 90,850 Jewels
Dream Flower shop noting Fes & SSR Masterpieces
For 7 Fes Masterpieces, it will cost around ¥758,240 – ¥1,516,480
2100 Total Pulls or 4200 Dream Flowers
For 6 SSR Masterpieces, it will cost around ¥649,920
1800 Dream Flowers
Total: ¥1,408,160 – ¥2,166,400
Dream Flower shop noting SSR & SR Tickets
While we’ll be including the Lesson Tickets into the total, Lesson Tickets can easily be obtained from just playing the game compared to Masterpieces. Also, purchasing them via the Dream Flower currency isn’t worth it in the long run.
For 180 SSR Lesson Tickets, it will cost around ¥3,249,600
9000 Dream Flowers
For 360 SR Lesson Tickets, it will cost around ¥3,249,600
9000 Dream Flowers
Total: ¥6,499,200
Overall Total: ¥7,907,360 – ¥8,665,600
Due to the fact that Lesson Tickets are easily obtainable without spending money, I only included the range of price from only Masterpieces in the title.
The intent is to not spite the developers or the game itself, it is more to satisfy the curiosity about this compensation’s worth. This might arguably be the more expensive non-gacha compensation value given out in any mobages.
Glossary:
Spark/Sparking – Derived from Granblue Fantasy, a term where after you roll a set amount during a specific banner, usually being 300, you can select a specific character in that banner.
Masterpieces – Pieces that are converted from obtaining duplicate Idols. They can be used to uncap existing Idols for more stats and alternative outfits.
Lesson Tickets – Items used to level up specific Idols and raise their skill levels. They can be obtained from playing the story and just playing the game in general.
2020 Anime Spring Season is looking great for fans of Cygames as two of their notable IPs, Princess Connect and Shadowverse, are both receiving anime adaptations
Key Visual for Shadowverse (TV)
Key Visual for Princess Connect! Re:Dive (TV)
There hasn’t been much attention given to the Shadowverse anime, whose only real form of announcement was an updated trailer, revealed at the Shadowverse RAGE finals, where the Shadowverse E-sports official tournament is generally held (More info). It seemed that the initial announcement of the anime reception was… poorly received, from both Shadowverse players and fans. It’s highly likely that it was received poorly due to Shadowverse advertising it as some BIG NEWS(website now redirects you to the Anime page)which in fact may led to a lot of misinterpretation and misrepresentation. An example being, one of the top comments replied with an image, where the bottom text (obviously modified for meme purposes) mentioned keyphrases such as, “Refund!” and “Yeah, what’s going on?” Another reply simply memes on the situation where episode 1 would include a card, Bahamut, destroying everything in play. Replies like these conveys the general confusion and possible disappointment of this fan and possibly a large chunk of the fanbase judging by its likes and retweets. Also, there is no note of Shadowvere’s 9th Class, Portalcraft which hints that the Anime might’ve been in production before Portalcraft was released (2018), or Portalcraft is reserved for a surprise.
One response was this edited image conveying specific phrases such as “Refund!” and “Yeah, what’s going on?”
Another possible factor is the key visuals for the anime itself, where it seems the anime is going to be entirely different from the general plot of the game. When an average fan of Shadowverse thinks of an anime adaptation of the game, they usually think the anime will cover and take place in the main story. In addition there’s already an existing animated cutscene for the game. It is also possible that the anime meant to be a Yugioh-like anime with the potential motive to aim towards a different demographic, potentially towards a younger audience, in terms of e-sports or competitive play for Shadowverse.
— 「シャドウバース」TVアニメ・ゲーム公式 (@shadowverse_anm) March 15, 2020
Trailer for Shadowverse (TV)
For Princess Connect Re:Dive (Priconne for short) Anime (Trailer), personally, I have a lot of expectations and anticipation. Especially when the game itself has anime cutscenes, I had a couple of thoughts for the Anime such as, “How much content would differ from the game?” and “Will the non-main story characters get introduced in some way?” With only the trailer and some internal studio articles (May become translated in the future) revealed at the moment, all we could do is wait until it airs, which is on April 6th. While I believe Priconne will become a good Anime, I do not believe it will gain the same amount of attention in the West compared to Japan. With a lot of well-known series airing season 2’s such as, Kaguya-sama, Fruit Basket, and Sword Art Online, it may overshadow Priconne and other Animes. However, there is always the unexpected where Priconne may end up being the underdog of the season.
In a few hours after this publication (19:00 JST), Cygames Animation will be live streaming (Link). The stream is scheduled to present content in chronological order:
Shadowverse
Uma Musume: Pretty Derby
Murenase! Seton Gakuen (Seton Academy)
Princess Connect! Re:Dive
Cygames Animation Promotion Image included Schedule
Shadowverse has just announced two collaborations during their World Grand Prix and a tournament event that occurs at the end of the year where Shadowverse players can compete to win a huge prize of one million dollars (USD). In addition, announcements were made using this huge event as a platform to advertise. The specific announcement that caught my attention was the declaration that there would be a collaboration event taking place in the foreseeable future.
The two major events that were announced were the Idolm@ster Cinderella Girls collaboration and the Nier: Automata collaboration.
Idolm@ster Cinderella Girls Collaboration around Spring 2020
NieR:Automata Collaboration around Summer 2020
The Nier:Automata collaboration initially feels very random as there’s no particular collaboration of similar nature in any of Cygames other games. It is very likely that Shadowverse may begin to have more standalone collaborations following the One Punch Man and Haruhi collaborations. Because of this, surprise collaborations for the players may occur in the future. Although the Nier:Automata collaboration is an interesting collaboration, I took heavy heed to the upcoming Cinderella Girls collaboration. But, why exactly?
Well for starters, Cinderella Girls is owned by both Cygames and Bandai Namco. During the early days of Cygames’ projects, there were numerous collaborations with Cinderella Girls in the original Princess Connect, Granblue Fantasy and even Rage of Bahamut. However, after some time, there were no reruns or any activities that would indicate a rerun of these events; just complete and utter silence from both developers. Many speculate that there may have been internal conflicts which halted the distribution of reruns involving Idolm@ster or that there may have been issues involving their licencing contract. While I am not an expert in collaboration politics, I would personally leave the speculations as speculations. Originally, for the Cinderella Girls collaboration, they had a promotional event where sleeves were given out to players. However, the event was exclusively for Japanese players. The only way for an international player to receive the gift was to switch their language region on Steam to Japanese. Despite this, switching back to the original region does not preserve the Cinderella Girls sleeve in your local game and it is instead replaced with the default sleeve.
While there is no exact confirmation as to why such a function was made, it became extremely worrisome to many that Idolm@ster the franchise might ultimately be region-locked from western audiences similar to Touken Ranbu which suddenly required a Japanese IP address to play despite knowing that a western fanbase exists especially during the airing of the anime (which was animated by the highly recognizable studio, Ufotable) at a panel in AnimeExpo. Other simpler concerns are whether Idolm@ster collaborations will even be successful with western audiences, as noted by TEKKEN’s creator, also published by Bandai Namco, Katsuhiro Harada’s response to someone’s tweet requesting Idolm@ster character, Iori Minase, to appear as a guest in the TEKKEN franchise which is also owned by Bandai Namco. Despite Harada’s dedication, such as changing his twitter into Iori Minase on her birthday, he still upholds a reasonable business standpoint.
Edit (5/7/2020) – Unfortunately Harada did not change his twitter into Iori this year (5/5/2020-5/6/2020)
Harada changing his twitter profile and banner on the day of Iori’s birthday (May 5th)
Harada responding to a user’s response in Harada’s question of potential Tekken DLC characters
This surprise announcement involving a complete collaboration, containing content such as new cosmetic leaders and card skins, gives a slight hope to those who know and love the Idolm@ster franchise. It may just be that the higher-ups for Cygames and Bandai Namco have either resolved their issues or that they’ve just simply decided to finally bring back their older IPs in collaboration with newer ones. Either way, this Idolm@ster collaboration brings back the possibility that the series may once again begin running collaborations with other Cygames’ IPs along with the possibility that the series may have rerun collaborations with older games like Granblue Fantasy or Princess Connect.
Apologized for the lack of content in the past several days. While I do not have anything prepared to publish, I do want to inform our audience that we are still active. To keep it short, I would list, in no particular order, some upcoming content that will be released in the nearby future.
Shadowverse Collaboration Thoughts and Inputs
Mobage Gaming Logs (MGLs)
Specific Seasonal Winter Anime 2020 First Impressions
Anime-Expo related content
Optional DARK THEME
In the near future, I might consider figuring out how to improve the flow of future articles especially if it written by staffs aside myself.
2D Anime Talk 
