Bandai launches Project Eureka franchise

TOKYO-- Bandai, the Bones animation studio, and Hakuhoudou DY Media Partners are teaming up to create a new anime series and PlayStation 2 game called Eureka Seven. The anime will come first by debuting on Japanese television on April 17, after which it will run for 50 episodes. The game is slated for release in the summer of 2005.

The Eureka Seven anime series tells the story of Renton, a 14-year-old boy who lives with his grandfather, a mechanic. Renton laments his restrictive life, but one day, a mech known as Nirvash crashes into his house. A young girl named Eureka emerges from the wreckage and asks Renton to help her repair Nirvash. Things get more complicated when the military's mechs enter the story.

The game will be set in the same world as the anime, but almost all the characters will be different, save one...most likely a key character. Eureka Seven is likely to be an action adventure game that features real-time mech battles. The game and the series will share the same writers and producers. Full details on the game's story and characters will be announced in April.

Project Eureka, the team devoted to bringing the Eureka Seven franchise to life, includes Bandai, Bandai Visual, Bandai Entertainment, Bones, and Hakuhoudou DY Media Partners. Affiliates include Sony Music Entertainment, Aniplex, Kadokawa Publishing, Bandai Channel, and Yusen Broad Networks. The anime will be will be directed by Tomoki Kyoda (Rahxephon), and the music will be composed by Dai Sato (Samurai Champloo). The characters will be designed by Kenichi Yoshida (Overman King Gainer), and the mechs will be created by Shoji Kawamori (GPX Cyber Formula).

A Eureka Seven manga series kicked off this month in Kadokawa Publishing's monthly Shonen Ace magazine. To promote the television series, a pilot of the anime will be available starting Tuesday at the Project Eureka site. In addition, the group will make each episode of the anime available for download a week after it's aired on TV.