Mobile Games Are Temporary, But Their Anime Are Forever
In 2017, one of the biggest jokes about the sleeper hit anime Kemono Friends was that it was based on a defunct mobile game. The show exceeded all expectations and should have been the perfect gateway to attract potential players, but that was out of the question. Even after a successor game launched in 2018, there was the sense that the mobile game felt ephemeral, whereas the anime version had a sense of permanence. The more I’ve thought about this contrast, the more I’ve come to realize that it’s a common theme among mobile games and their adaptations. The Limits of Mobile Games Mobile games (especially ones with prominent gacha systems) have been a juggernaut for many years now. Type-Moon,...