'Kaiju No. 8' game launch raises stake for anime game tie-ins
In interview with Animenomics, the development team at Akatsuki Games discusses the game's design and monetization strategy
This is a feature story from Animenomics, covering the business of anime and manga.
Kaiju No. 8 the Game‘s simultaneous global launch on smartphones today serves as a test for Kaiju No. 8 anime rightsholder Toho and developer and publisher Akatsuki Games as anime games gain the attention of foreign investors.
Why it matters: Anime, media mix, and IP-based Japanese mobile games brought in ¥548 billion (US$3.57 billion) in revenue in 2023, according to a survey conducted by the Association of Japanese Animations.
This figure accounts for one-quarter of Japan’s video game industry revenues and about one-third of revenues from all mobile games domestically.
Zoom in: Kaiju No. 8 the Game is a turn-based tactical role-playing game where the player creates teams of four characters to defeat colossal kaiju monsters.
“The game recreates the intense battle scenes and interpersonal dynamics of the anime, while also adding original storylines and characters to expand the world of Kaiju No. 8,” the Akatsuki Games representative explained.
Catch up quick: Toho’s growing emphasis on its anime business is leading the film distributor to also invest in video games like Kaiju No. 8 the Game as a way to multiply the impact of its anime IP portfolio.
“This project began when we were approached at the stage when Toho and Production I.G were moving forward with the anime adaptation,” an Akatsuki Games representative told Animenomics in a recent interview.
Kaiju No. 8 first aired in 2024 with a significant marketing effort from Toho, from livestreams on X at the same time new episodes were released in Japan to integrated graphical elements on Crunchyroll.
Kaiju No. 8’s second anime season began airing in July, helping preregistrations jump 60 percent in the two weeks leading to the game’s launch, from 1 million to 1.6 million.
Yes, but: Kaiju No. 8 the Game employs gacha mechanics as part of its gameplay, and there’s been growing concern in recent years with potential negative impacts of gacha games on young players.
Several Japanese mobile game developers also point to last week’s end-of-service announcements by two long-running gacha games as a signal that the market for the gameplay format is in decline.
Earlier this year, Akatsuki canceled an unrelated game with gacha mechanics just three months after launch, allegedly due to poor performance off of an expensive development budget.
The other side: “Monetization is an important element for ensuring that players can enjoy the game over the long term,” Kaiju No. 8 the Game’s developers explained. “At the same time, we believe it must be implemented with fairness and transparency.”
“We are particularly mindful of the impact on younger players, focusing on intuitive systems and operations designed to avoid encouraging excessive reliance,” the development team added.
Go deeper: Read our full interview with the Kaiju No. 8 the Game development team at Akatsuki Games.
Kaiju No. 8 the Game is the first game that Akatsuki Games has developed for Toho and Production I.G. How did the partnership come about?
This project began when we were approached at the stage when Toho and Production I.G were moving forward with the anime adaptation. From the outset, we shared a common vision: to faithfully capture the appeal of the original work while creating new experiences unique to a game format.
Leveraging each party’s strengths and working in close collaboration, development is progressing toward the August 31 release.