Production +h Want Dark Machine To Be For Gaming What Slam Dunk Was For Basketball

Despite being newer on the scene, Production +h. is an anime studio already making waves with animated films like Netflix's The Orbital Children and the anime adaptation of Inio Asano's post-apocalyptic sci-fi manga, Dead Dead Demon's Dededede Destruction.  

At Anime Central 2025, producer Fuminori Honda and director Tomoyuki Kurokawa made a special guest appearance to celebrate the studio's fifth anniversary. For attendees, the festivities included viewing the first episode of Dead Dead Demon's Dededede Destruction and learning more about Production +h.'s upcoming animated series, Dark Machine the Animation. 

During ANN's interview with Production +h. (translated by Jiay Shida), the pair recounted their experience animating Dead Dead Demon's Dededede Destruction and shared more behind-the-scenes information on Dark Machine. 

What drew Production +h. to adapt Dead Dead Demon's Dededede Destruction?

Honda: Before Production +h. was even established around 2018 [myself, Kurokawa] and another producer were trying to produce some sort of animated production. During that process, we talked about what sort of anime to produce. All three of us read the original manga of Dededede Destruction and said, “This is a really great series. It'd be awesome if we could make this into anime. And then carried over that idea after we established Production +h.

In the West, it's a common sentiment that comedy shows like Saturday Night Live face an uphill battle when parodying the absurdity of U.S. politics. Dededede Destruction tackles themes of social disconnection and political unrest—classic dystopian elements that resonate deeply with the chaos of modern life. While Asano's manga provided the blueprint for the anime adaptation, was it difficult to capture the essence of a bleak future in animation, especially when contemporary politics and online discourse already feel hard to satirize?

Kurokawa: In Dedede Destruction, the main story features two main characters—Kadode and Ouran—and their everyday lives. A lot of the backgrounds are very realistic because Asano-san himself took pictures of actual scenery and drew as realistically as possible. Production +h.'s animation staff really wanted to capture that realism. Focusing on that realism and trying to capture everyday life adds to that chaotic, unnatural form of the aliens coming in. So, we believe that by really focusing on that realism, we captured Asano's chaotic worldbuilding within the piece. 

Were there any unique obstacles in capturing the page-turning impact of Dededede Destruction's wide-ranging tones, shifting from lighthearted slice-of-life comedy to poignant sci-fi tragedy in animation?

Kurokawa: When it comes to the Dededede Destruction, even in the unnatural sci-fi parts of it, we wanted the viewers to really empathize with the invaders as well. When the show features the invaders themselves, [and] when they're speaking, we made sure we put a lot into the human language being unrecognizable. On the flip side, in the everyday life of Ouran and Kadode, when they're speaking Japanese, whatever they're saying is unrecognizable to the invaders. So we wanted to make sure that the viewers could empathize and sympathize with both the invaders and the humans. Although there's a lot of flip-flopping between the sci-fi elements and everyday life, by making sure the audience could sympathize with each of the characters—both invader and human—we wanted to focus on that aspect. 

What aspects of adapting Asano-san's manga are you most proud of as a team?

Kurokawa: As a production, we put a lot of effort into the background of the work. This was something that Asano-sensei also put a lot of work into. As a team, we really put a lot of effort into making it as realistic as possible. We used a lot of newer methods to draw backgrounds. As a team, we really want people to pay close attention to the details we put in the backgrounds. 

Switching gears, I wanted to talk about Dark Machine the Animation. Given the success of projects like Cyberpunk: Edgerunners—where Trigger went in to make an anime adaptation at the same time CD PROJEKT RED was developing Cyberpunk 2077 so the anime would serve as a sample tasting of what the game had to offer and retroactively revitalize its playerbase—I wanted to ask did the team at Production +h. feel any pressure to meet the expectations surrounding game-anime collaborations with Dark Machine? What steps did the studio take to make Dark Machine distinct and carve out its own space in the industry?

Honda: First, to address the pressure: Yes, there is a bit of pressure. But we believe it's different from how Cyberpunk: Edgerunners was produced because Edgerunners was about the world of Cyberpunk 2077. For Dark Machine, the actual game doesn't have any specific characters, per se. And so, the anime itself is more like eSports. It features characters who play the game Dark Machine, so that in itself is already very different from Cyberpunk. I believe that's how it can differ from other video game-based anime series. 

With industry veterans who have worked on beloved mecha titles like Macross and Code Geass leading Dark Machine's anime, was there concern that the game's Web3 foundation, raising profits through blockchain, and incorporating in-game NFT assets, could affect fan engagement? Do you believe these elements will enhance interest in both the anime and game, or is there a risk they might overshadow or complicate the overall experience for viewers?

Honda: That's a really good question. I think it's both. There's a lot of interest in the uniqueness of how you can develop your own web currency with the Web3 foundation and create your own currency by playing the game. That might draw a lot of interest from people who are more into that field. On the other hand, it is a little complex. People who are of a younger age or people who might not understand that might be confused and might not be able to get as engaged with the game.  

I believe that people who are really into it will really put themselves into the game and delve deeper into [Dark Machine], while people who don't understand might just step aside a little bit. It's both. The fan reception might cause both. 

What do you hope viewers take away from experiencing the Dark Machine's anime? 

Honda: To put it simply, we want the same phenomenon Slam Dunk had, where you watch the anime [and it] made you go, “I really want to play basketball.” We want you to watch Dark Machine and think, “I really want to play Dark Machine.” That's the general idea that we want the viewers to take away from the series.