"Aikatsu! x PriPara THE MOVIE - The Miracle of Encounter! -" is a collaboration between the popular anime and game series "Aikatsu!" and "PriPara." This "miraculous collaboration" commemorates the 10th anniversary of "Aikatsu!"'s Akari Generation and "PriPara." Bandai developed the arcade card game for "Aikatsu!", while Bandai Namco Pictures produced the anime. Meanwhile, Takara Tomy Arts produced the game for "PriPara," and Tatsunoko Productions produced the anime. "Aikatsu!" and "PriPara" may seem like rivals, but what is the reality? We spoke to Bandai's Masashi Harada and Takara Tomy Arts' Shinichiro Ohba, who have both worked on "Aikatsu!" and "PriPara" for many years, to find out more about the relationship between the two works.
◇The market expanded due to synergistic effects
-- Were you aware of each other?
Oba: To unravel the story, we have to start with the Pretty Rhythm era... There was a boom in arcade machines for girls that began with Oshare Majo Love and Berry (Love Berry), and when Love Berry's service ended, the movement died down. After that, a junior high school fashion boom hit girls, and it was said that girls stopped coming to the toy section. Instead of moving from toys to makeup and hobbies, they went straight to fashion. So, to get girls to return to the toy section, we aimed to turn the section into a theater. That was Pretty Rhythm. The Pretty Series first started with costumes coming out of jewels (prism stones) rather than cards. Then Aikatsu! came out...
Harada: When "Pretty Rhythm" went into full operation, I went to see it in the store. It was amazing! This part of the cabinet spins! At the time, Bandai was focusing on Data Carddass, which was aimed at boys, such as "Dragon Ball," but it was a time when they were seriously trying to venture into titles aimed at girls. Originally, Data Carddass followed the Carddass tradition, so it was strictly a card business perspective. How can we make collecting cards fun and playing the game fun? If we were to seriously venture into girls, we needed an original world that would bring out the inherent fun of Data Carddass, so we started a project that included animation. That was "Aikatsu!"
Oba: We were trying to show off the gimmicks that used Prism Stone, and the idea was to expand on the toy. At the time, it was thought that the machines for girls were already out of fashion, so it was hard to convince people when we were selling it. In that sense, the unique characteristics of the Prism Stone toy came to life.
I've been paying attention to "Pretty Rhythm," which has been adapted into a media mix and has taken on various challenges.
Mr. Oba, you were also conscious of the release date of the new set. There was the question of whether to release it first or later, and if it was first, you could get ahead of it...
Harada: It's sometimes advantageous to come up with something later. Kids love new things, after all.
Oba: Prism Stone was released every three months due to production reasons, but when I watched "Aikatsu!", I thought maybe every two months would be better. However, if you want to tie it in with the excitement of the anime, three months would be better.
-Did you take into consideration the game's content and design?
Oba-san: I 've been talking a lot about "Pretty Rhythm," but it was the so-called JS (elementary school girl) boom, and fashion was conscious of the real clothes of the time, and they collaborated with kids' fashion brands. "AKB48" became popular, and an idol boom occurred, and it spread to children as well. "Pretty Rhythm" also collaborated with "AKB48," and then "Aikatsu!" came along in the midst of all this. "Aikatsu!" turned idols into characters.
Harada-san's original characters were free-flowing, so we did a lot of research, including the worldview. After all, we had to differentiate them in order to get people to like "Aikatsu!"
At the time, Takara Tomy Arts was struggling alone, but the market expanded when Aikatsu! entered the market.
If Harada-san hadn't worked on the anime, we might have just been competing for the kids in the sales floor and that might have been the end of it. I think it was good that both titles were integrated with the anime and continued to attract new kids.
-Honestly, have you ever thought it wasn't funny?
Oba: I'd be lying if I said "no" (laughs). It's all a matter of competing for space.
Harada: That's true (laughs). However, as a result, having the "Aikatsu!" and "PriPara" machines next to each other gave children more options, and if people were lining up for "PriPara," they might play "Aikatsu!" today... or vice versa, so there was a synergistic effect.
When I surveyed my child asking which they liked better, " Aikatsu !" or "PriPara," they asked me, "Do I have to like one or the other?" My child played both. They weren't even aware that they were made by different companies. "PriPara" and "Aikatsu!" were both broadcast on the same network, TV Tokyo.
Harada: Even kids who played "Aikatsu!" would join in if their friends were playing "PriPara." Of course, I'm sure there were some kids who were devoted to it (laughs).
◇The underlying flow resonated with me.
-Did Harada and Oba have any contact with each other at the time of broadcast and operation?
I sometimes meet Oba-san at events like the Ciao Festival, and I've spoken to him when we're standing at a distance where it would be unnatural not to talk to him. Harada-san even brought wine to the opening of Prism Stone Harajuku. He does some really cool things (laughs).
Harada: I worked at Bandai for a long time, producing video games and other things. In the game industry, companies tend to get along well with each other.
Of course, Oba-san doesn't talk about things he shouldn't talk about, but he doesn't lie either. On the day before the presentation at Ciao Festival, we once discussed what we were going to announce over a meal.
Harada-san, it's the day before, so even if you know the contents of the announcement, there's nothing you can do.
-Have you both continued to work hard together?
Harada: That's right. I'm really grateful that I've been able to continue for so long. It's all thanks to the support of the fans and the animation team. Come to think of it, even back then, Obata-san said, "Why don't you do a double feature film?" I thought, "What are you talking about!?" (laughs).
After working on the manga and anime, I thought the next step would be a movie. But, since a movie seems like a lot of work, I thought it would be better to do a double feature like the old "Manga Matsuri." Maybe it could be done if it was sponsored by "Ciao." However, we were just talking about something that felt good at the time, and it just wasn't the right timing.
-So that was impossible in the industry?
Harada: Nowadays, it's commonplace for various smartphone games to collaborate with each other, so I think it's not impossible. Back then, it was rare, though.
Oba: When the idea of this collaboration came to me, I was feeling very emotional after completing the "Kiratto Pri☆Chan" 5th anniversary virtual musical and the "PriPara" 10th anniversary exhibition. I was a little off guard when Yoda-san (Tatsunoko Productions producer Yoda Ken) approached me. I wanted to do it, but I thought someone might make a rational decision and say no. But no one said anything (laughs).
Harada: I think the big factor was that there was the "Dream Collaboration Festiva (Dorikora Fes,)" (a collaboration between Aikatsu! and Pretty Series) before that.
--Were the two of you involved in the animated film?
During the planning stage, Oba-san considered who should appear and sing. He considered various patterns, such as adjusting the number of people and coming up with combinations.
Harada: Ultimately, it's up to the fans to be satisfied. I never wanted to only release "Aikatsu!" or vice versa.
I tried to make it my top priority to get Obata hooked. As I mentioned earlier, I think the fact that my children were playing both games was a big factor.
Harada: "Aikatsu!" works because it accepts it without denying it, saying, "That's also Aikatsu!"
Oba: It's okay for everyone to be different. "Everyone is a friend, everyone is an idol," so to "PriPara," the girls from "Aikatsu!" are friends and idols.
I resonated with what is at the core of Harada's work.
Mr. Obata: Children who used to play in the same place are gathering again at the theater. Perhaps the person sitting next to you in the theater was the person you played next to when you were a child. I think that is a miraculous encounter.
Although "Aikatsu!" and "PriPara" are rivals, they have been running for over 10 years, improving each other. Through this collaboration, the rivals have resonated and become one. The same goes for the fans. "Aikatsu! x PriPara THE MOVIE - Miracle of Encounter! -" has become a truly "miraculous collaboration."
