Interest

Japan's Anime, Manga, Game Creators Celebrate April Fools' Day: Part IV

It was April 1 in Japan, and the anime, manga, and software creators marked the occasion with a slew of April Fools' spoofs and jokes. Here are some of those that have cropped up this year — click on the thumbnail images to see the original!

Google Chrome/YouTube

Google presents Chrome Multitask Mode and the YouTube DVD Collection:

Thanks to enurtsol for the tip!

Muv-Luv (& Macross, Gundam, Evangelion…)

The May issue of Kadokawa Shoten's Newtype magazine is announcing that The Super Dimension Guardian Muv-Luv, a seven-film anime adaptation of the bishōjo game Muv Luv, will launch next year. The multi-page feature includes a splash-page illustration reminiscent of Gundam's Yoshikazu Yasuhiko, as well as upgraded character and mecha designs with homages to certain anime titles. A new film will open throughout Japan every April 1 from 2013 onward.

Naisho no Naisho!/Futari wa Precure

Visual Art's game brand Iris announced that it is revamping its latest project "due to unavoidable circumstances": Naisho no Naisho! is now Futari wa Pure Girl!, an erotic adventure game spoof of the magical girl anime Futari wa Precure.

Naruto (Weekly Shonen Jump)

Kakashi's ninja mask is selling like hotcakes, as word-of-mouth spread throughout the ninja community about its unmatched effectiveness … as an anti-pollen guard against hay fever.

Naruto (Manga UK)

"… Today's Mail on Sunday reported the unfortunate activities of one Dave Kishimot (21), an anime fan from Chipping Ongar, arrested on Saturday night for trying to break into a video store on his local high street.

"Mr Kishimot told police that he had been partway through an attempt to watch the entire anime series Naruto, from start to finish.

"'It was much longer than we thought,' he confessed. 'The original series alone takes ninety-one hours. And Shippuden is another hundred! And that's before we got to the bloody movies.'"

Thanks to dlaczego for the tip!

Navel/Uta no Prince-sama - Maji Love 1000%

Bishōjo game brand Navel is branching out with Navel no Prince-sama - Maji Nave 2001%, a project that brings together the male characters from Shuffle!, Tick! Tack!, Really? Really!, Soul Link, and other Navel titles.

Nico Nico Douga

The streaming website Nico Nico Douga featured links that flew away from visitors' cursors. The website also announced its newest innovation: universal touch interface in its video player for all personal computers.
(To turn off the scrolling comments, select the word balloon icon on the bottom right corner of the video.)

One Piece

To celebrate the liberation of Princess Shirahoshi, Mermaid Cafe announced that it will sell the secret to staying forever young: Tears of a Mermaid Princess facial oil.

Otomate TV

Otomate, Idea Factory's brand aimed at female players, held 24-jikan Otomate TV, a spoof of Japanese television's 24-hour fundraising marathons with character crossovers from Otomate's various titles.

Thanks to Sakura-Alchemist for the tip!

Owari no Chronicle

A television anime adaptation of Owari no Chronicle, a fantasy light novel series by Minoru Kawakami's (Horizon in the Middle of Nowhere), has been green-lit. It will premiere in April of 20xx.

Thanks to Ask John for the tip!

There are many more anime/manga/game April Fool's Day celebrations out there, so if you know of one we've missed, feel free to let us know in our forums or by email (newsroom at animenewsnetwork.com).