is a Japanese

multimedia Multimedia is a form of communication that uses a combination of different content forms such as text, audio, images, animations, or video into a single interactive presentation, in contrast to tradition ...

project created by

Key Key or The Key may refer to: Common meanings * Key (cryptography), a piece of information that controls the operation of a cryptography algorithm * Key (lock), device used to control access to places or facilities restricted by a lock * Key (map ...

and

Visual Arts The visual arts are art forms such as painting, drawing, printmaking, sculpture, ceramics, photography, video, filmmaking, design, crafts and architecture. Many artistic disciplines such as performing arts, conceptual art, and textile arts al ...

in October 2020, which also includes toy figurines by Kotobukiya, a short story serialization and a web novel. A 12-episode

anime is Traditional animation, hand-drawn and computer animation, computer-generated animation originating from Japan. Outside of Japan and in English, ''anime'' refers specifically to animation produced in Japan. However, in Japan and in Japane ...

television series by

Bibury Animation Studios is a Japanese animation studio founded on May 1, 2017. History Bibury Animation Studios was founded on May 1, 2017 by Tensho, an animation director and director of ''Kin-iro Mosaic'', the ''Grisaia'' series, and '' Rewrite'', both for the anima ...

aired from July to September 2022. A four-volume kinetic novel series written by Tōya Okano is in development by Key.

Characters

Kuronekotei

; : :A doll whose setting was once resetted before coming to Kuronekotei. Because of this, she is ignorant of the ways of world and sometimes clumsy. However, she always tries her best to do something for the people around her. She is 138cm and her favorite food is

Anpan is a Japanese sweet roll most commonly filled with red bean paste. Anpan can also be prepared with other fillings, including white beans (''shiro-an''), green beans (''uguisu-an''), sesame (''goma-an''), and chestnut (''kuri-an''). History An ...

. Her dream is to learn about her own function. ; : :The leader doll at Kuronekotei. She is sometimes strict, but is very caring of people around her. Her body parts are made from junk parts that Nagi found in order to repair her. Despite her parts being old and worn, she refuses to exchange her parts for new ones as she believes her body is a gift that Nagi gave to her. She is 155cm and her favorite food is rich peanut butter shake. Her dream is to protect Kuronekotei. ; : :A doll whose favorite food is

taiyaki is a Japanese fish-shaped cake, commonly sold as street food. It imitates the shape of , which it is named after. The most common filling is red bean paste that is made from sweetened adzuki beans. Other common fillings may be custard, choco ...

. She speaks in a blunt tone. Her dream is to embark on a new mission. ; : ; : ; :

Others

; : :A girl who sometimes helps out at Kuronekotei. ; : :Nagi's ex co-worker. ; : ; :

Media

Print

web novel Web fiction is written works of literature available primarily or solely on the Internet. A common type of web fiction is the web serial. The term comes from old serial stories that were once published regularly in newspapers and magazines. Unlike ...

titled , written by Tōya Okano and illustrated by Maroyaka, has been periodically released on the project's official website since October 26, 2020. ''Encore'' features spoken lines of dialogue and as a result is referred to as a "lite kinetic novel" in reference to Key's line of

visual novel A , often abbreviated as VN, is a form of digital semi-interactive fiction. Visual novels are often associated with and used in the medium of video games, but are not always labeled as such themselves. They combine a textual narrative with sta ...

s described as kinetic novels because their

gameplay Gameplay is the specific way in which players interact with a game, and in particular with video games. Gameplay is the pattern defined through the game rules, connection between player and the game, challenges and overcoming them, plot and pla ...

offers no choices or alternate endings. A series of short stories titled , written by Kai and illustrated by Maroyaka, began serialization in

ASCII Media Works ASCII ( ), abbreviated from American Standard Code for Information Interchange, is a character encoding standard for electronic communication. ASCII codes represent text in computers, telecommunications equipment, and other devices. Because of ...

's ''

Dengeki G's Magazine is a Japanese magazine published by ASCII Media Works (formerly MediaWorks) and sold monthly on the thirtieth that primarily contains information on bishōjo games, but also includes an entire section on anime based on bishōjo games, and seria ...

'' with the December 2020 issue sold on October 30. The serialization continued on a monthly basis until the November 2021 issue sold on September 30 when it was announced that it would halt temporarily. Two

manga Manga (Japanese: 漫画 ) are comics or graphic novels originating from Japan. Most manga conform to a style developed in Japan in the late 19th century, and the form has a long prehistory in earlier Japanese art. The term ''manga'' is u ...

adaptations will be published: , illustrated by Yuriko Asami, will be serialized on the ''ComicWalker'' and ''Nico Nico Seiga'' websites. , illustrated by Daiko Toda, will be serialized on the ''Comic Bushiroad Web'' platform.

Anime

television series, directed by Tensho and animated by

, aired from July 9 to September 24, 2022, on

Tokyo MX JOMX-DTV, branded as Tokyo MX (officially stylized as TOKYO MX), is an independent television station in Tokyo, Japan, owned by the . It is the only television station that exclusively serves the city. It competes with Nippon TV, TV Asahi, NH ...

MBS MBS may refer for: People * Mohammed bin Salman (born 1985), crown prince and prime minister of Saudi Arabia * Mohan Bikram Singh (born 1935), Nepalese politician Places * MBS International Airport (IATA code: MBS), Freeland, Michigan, US * Mari ...

BS Asahi JOEX-DTV (channel 5), branded as (also known as EX and and stylized as TV asahi), is a television station that is owned and operated by the subsidiary of certified broadcasting holding company , itself controlled by The Asahi Shimbun Compa ...

, and AT-X. The screenplay is written by Kai and Tōya Okano. Character design is provided by Akane Yano who based the designs on original illustrations by

Na-Ga Na-Ga is a male Japanese artist who is employed as a graphic designer and illustrator for the company Key known for such famous visual novels as '' Kanon'', ''Air'', and ''Clannad'' among others. Na-Ga has been working for Key since the production ...

, Fuzichoco, Yui Hara, En Morikura and Lack. The opening theme song is "Tin Toy Melody" composed by

Jun Maeda is a Japanese writer and co-founder of the visual novel brand Key under Visual Arts. He is considered a pioneer of nakige visual novels, and has mainly contributed as a scenario writer, lyricist, and musical composer for the games the company pr ...

, and performed by Chat Noir (consisting of

Azumi Waki is a Japanese voice actress and singer from Tokyo who is affiliated with Haikyō. She debuted in 2015, playing the role of Sanae Katagiri in the video game ''The Idolmaster Cinderella Girls''. She is also known for her roles as Galko in ''Please ...

Tomori Kusunoki is a Japanese voice actress and singer who is currently affiliated with the Sony Music Artists agency. She made her voice acting debut in 2017 and in the same year, she was cast in her first main role as Kirara, the heroine of the Japanese mobil ...

Miyu Tomita is a Japanese voice actress and singer from Saitama Prefecture who is signed to Amuse. After aspiring to become a voice actress while studying in elementary school, she participated in two voice acting auditions in 2014, winning one of them. S ...

, Yuki Nakashima and

Akari Kitō is a Japanese Voice acting in Japan, voice actress and singer affiliated with Raccoon Dog. She debuted in 2014, acted her first main role in ''Time Bokan 24'', and has since received more major and leading roles. Her nickname is Akarin. She made ...

). The series is licensed worldwide excluding Asian territories by

Sentai Filmworks Sentai Filmworks, LLC or just Sentai, is an American entertainment company owned by AMC Networks. Located in Houston, the company specializes in the dubbing and distribution of Japanese animation and Asian cinema. Its post-production arm is S ...

Episode list

Visual novels

A series of four

s, described as kinetic novels since their

offers no choices or alternate endings, are in development by Key. The main scenario is written by Tōya Okano, who co-wrote the scenario for the anime adaptation. The first three volumes are set to release in 2023, and volume four is scheduled for release in 2024.

Other

In collaboration with plastic model and figurine manufacturer Kotobukiya, a series of 1/7 scale figurines of the characters was announced to be in production in October 2020. A figurine of Haizakura was released on August 30, 2021, and the limited edition release came bundled with the

single Single may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Single (music), a song release Songs * "Single" (Natasha Bedingfield song), 2004 * "Single" (New Kids on the Block and Ne-Yo song), 2008 * "Single" (William Wei song), 2016 * "Single", by ...

. "Kikaijikake no Sanka" is sung by

, Yuki Nakashima and

; "Usuhanazakura" is sung by Waki. A figurine of Karasuba was announced in May 2021.

Notes

References

External links

*
Anime official website
* 2020 Japanese novels Bibury Animation Studios Bishōjo games Dengeki G's Magazine Fictional gynoids Key (company) Key (company) games Mass media franchises Science fiction video games Sentai Filmworks Video games developed in Japan Visual novels Windows-only games Windows games {{anime-stub