News
Yo-kai Watch Planned for Overseas Release
posted on by Tiara Hamilton
Level-5 CEO and president Akihiro Hino confirmed that the company is aiming to expand Yo-kai Watch globally by 2015. The company has already found an overseas toy maker who thinks that the franchise will "absolutely be a success." However, he does not specify that he means that the franchise will head to North America, Europe, or the West in general.
The story of the first game began when Keita discovers an old capsule toy vending machine in the forest. Keita receives a mysterious watch and meets a ghost butler named Whisper. Whisper tells Keita that the watch allows him to see supernatural creatures — both good and evil — that he could not see before in everyday life. With Whisper and his other companion Jibanyan, Keita explores his town for other ghosts to battle.
Dentsu Entertainment USA announced in April that it is offering the Yo-kai Watch television anime series to broadcast and merchandising partners in the Americas.
Level-5 released Yo-kai Watch 2 for the Nintendo 3DS in Japan on July 10. Yo-kai Watch 2 reveals the secret origin of the mysterious Yo-kai Watch that gave the franchise its name. Keita and company travel back in time to Sakura New Town in the Showa era, thanks to the power of a mysterious yōkai. The keys to the story are Keizō, a boy from the past who looks like Keita, and Dekanyan, a cat yōkai with an amazing secret.
Level-5 announced the Yo-kai Watch franchise in 2011 with a game, manga, and anime already planned. The first game for the Nintendo 3DS was released in Japan last July. The television anime then premiered in January and has since regularly ranked within the top ten highest-rated anime in Japan.
