To celebrate the arrival of Pokémon Legends: Arceus on the Nintendo Switch later this week, YouTube channel 'Channy and Kimberly' (an animation producer & director duo) have released a beautiful cinematic trailer, inspired by anime from the 1980s.
A lot of comments have already noted how it looks similar to Studio Ghibli's famous works. The same animators have previously published anime-inspired videos featuring Persona, Mario Kart, Animal Crossing, and even Pokémon Sword and Shield.
We'll admit, it looks so impressive it seems like something that could easily be dropped into the actual game and used as an opening trailer. The music (a rearrangement of the original Pokémon theme by Kromosohn) is also amazing.
What are your own thoughts though? Excited to get your hands on Pokémon Legends: Arceus later this week? Tell us below.
[source youtu.be]
Comments 20
Pokémon is not my thing, but I do appreciate looking at vintage cartoon (anime) styles
That was good enough to be in the actual game. Nintendo should hire this person
I'm not a fan of these "old anime styles" like wannabes.
This is what an 80's anime movie looked like: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=92a7Hj0ijLs&ab_channel=MadmanAnime
@Bizzyb https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C1Y_d_Lhp60
So...Arceus just sold out @ Amazon.com
https://www.amazon.com/Pokemon-Legends-Arceus-Nintendo-Switch/dp/B0914YGQSH
Amazing.
@Olmectron Yeah, it's made to look like hand drawn. But it obviously is computer generated.
I love good 3D / CGI animation, when done correctly it can very much feel alive.
But this just feels dead and soulless to me.
@Bizzyb Gamefreak is finished
I wanted to like this, but something felt off about it.
The animation at its core was just lacking, you can mimick the drawing style and try and reproduce the look of old cel animation and film, but the animation just isn't right.
The painted backgrounds are the strongest part though, they look the part very well.
Something about it seems unpolished. It's like they animated together a bunch of pictures hand-drawn in Microsoft Paint.
@Bizzyb if Nintendo released this trailer officially, fans would complain that even animated cutscenes in Pokemon are "outdated".
People are even booing at the clip as it is, with traditionally irresponsible word choices that make all 2D/CG hybrid animation sound inferior. This is a [relatively] amateur work, and pretty damn impressive as those go.
I do love the anime art styles from the 1980s and the 1990s (and to an extent, the early 2000s). I always considered it the Golden Age of Anime.
A lot of anime today just looks flat in comparison, whereas back then, even the smallest details in characters, environments, lighting, and shading were drawn in.
Not to say that there isn't some beautiful anime today (and some anime with flat designs I do enjoy), but nothing will top the anime designs from the 1980s through the 1990s.
@RubyDevilNine Nintendo has said that BOTW was influenced by several studio Ghibli films and as well as a few Western RPGs.
In fact the first BOTW trailer is remarkably similar to a scene from Princess Mononoke
This looks really nice. People saying it looks unpolished and lacking just indicates how spoilt we are today. A lot of work clearly went into this.
@RubyDevilNine Well, this isn't a game, but an amateur production. The same level of critique doesn't apply here as it would to a AAA game.
"A lot of comments have already noted how it looks similar to Studio Ghibli's famous works."
...But we're not saying it in this article, because people will call us out for saying everything looks like a Studio Ghibli film.
You may have snuck your way around this one, but I got a shot ready for the next time you say something looks like Studio Ghibli...
@AstroTheGamosian
I consider Gundam 0083 to be the pinnacle of anime animation quality.
That OVA looks better than anything coming out of Japan these days.
@nhSnork These aren't "outdated". A lot of 80's anime movies, specially from Ghibli Studios who they are making a parody of with the Snorlax logo, look a lot better than this.
Computer animated action trying to emulate hand-drawn animation is never good.
A very good "retro anime style" intro from a Nintendo game:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SwdwOhPWaJM&ab_channel=JohnM4trix
@TheRedComet One anime from the late 1990s - early 2000s that I particularly liked was "Lost Universe." It was created by the same guy who created "Slayers." In fact, "Lost Universe" is said to take place in a parallel universe to "Slayers." If you haven't seen it, I do recommend it.
Another one I liked, from the 1980s, was "Megazone 23." I saw most of "Part 1" but have yet to see "Part 2" or "Part 3." But I will admit, I'd like to find the ADV Films English dub of it, if I can. I immediately recognized Yui Takanaka's voice actress as Allison Keith, who voices Misato Katsuragi in the ADV Films dub of Neon Genesis Evangelion (and reprised the role in the Rebuild of Evangelion movies, for both Funimation's and Amazon Prime Video's respective dubs).
@RubyDevilNine not to discredit the animator for the work they out in but I’m pretty sure some of the early scenes in this video were made rotoscoping the original animation from mononoke
Abit short lived, but looks pretty.
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