…and NOT make the movie adaptation?
As author Luke Punkett deftly pointed out in his column this week, Akira is one of the most beloved anime sci-fi films of all time – yet its translation to the gaming realm was pretty pathetic.
Several different versions were released and for different systems, beginning back with the original Nintendo (or the Famicom as it was called in Japan) – which had almost no action, and was essentially a role-playing game with no strategy. You just answered questions and watched 8-bit versions of scenes from the film unfold.
Then came a couple terrible side-scrolling PC versions, which might have been the worst side scrolling game ever made. Yeah, it’s that bad. Game Boy and Game Gear almost released versions sometime in the 90s, but never materialized (probably for the best). Bandai got it right – sort of – by releasing a pinball game version.
But what Hollywood might take note of, as production on the live-action version lurches forward, as the outcries of protest continue from the Asian American continue, as James Franco passes on the role of Shotaro Kaneda, as Brad Pitt passes, as Keanu Reeves passes, as the Hughes Brothers leave over ‘creative differences,’ and as you hire your 6th writer (this time a scribe from Harry Potter).
But where does Katsuhiro Otomo fall in all of this? While he has been rumored to be against the project, he still remains on board as an executive producer…
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(via Kotaku)
Jeff Nau – who has written 1264 posts on The Jace Hall Show.
Jeff Nau is a main contributor to the Jace Hall Show covering pop culture and music trends in the nerd community. He has contributed to San Diego City Beat, 944, and Ill Literature, amongst others, and spends his spare time working as an artist and photographer.

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