Tomodachi Game

The first time I saw Tomodachi Game was while I was watching the following anime of the spring season, I found it by chance and for some reason it immediately caught my attention and that was without even reading the synopsis, nor seeing the KV that it had in that moment where only the "friends" together were noticed. No, that was not what caught my attention, the title was. "Tomodachi game" or the friendship games, for some reason the title caught my attention and immediately became the anime I was most looking forward to this season for which I hadn't read the manga. And when ... the first chapter arrived I was not disappointed at all.

Story - 10/10
The story is about a group of 5 friends who one day are kidnapped and taken to participate in something called "Tomodachi game" this because one of their friends had a debt of 20 million yen, therefore to pay it they have to Participate in different games where your debt will be reduced or in some cases increased, what happens is that in these games two factors are tested "money and friendship" What is more important to you? Money? 'Friendship? Would you be willing to lose millions of yen just to save your friends? Do you trust that they would do the same? That's what the Tomodachi Games prove. Each of the games taking place this season proves that and each one changes some factor but leads to the same question. And it is and incredible ride to watch.

Art 7/10
The art is the worst part of the anime and if it is quite mediocre to say the least compared to the manga, although the character design is very faithful to the manga, the animation is bad. I think this is due to the small budget that the animation studio has since it is a studio with little renown that took its first big manga to adapt without having a big budget. The reason I give it a 7 is because they did the best they could and stayed true to the manga with the small budget.
But maybe I'm somewhat biased.

Sound 9/10
The opening is a banger without a doubt, Nana Mizuki did an incredible job with the song and left me listening to it for quite some time. The ending is also a great song Saji did very well and it was a perfect song to listen to after each cliffhanger.
There weren´t many big shots in the cast but the voice acting quality is unexpectedly excellent, Especially the Yuuichi one, that was an insane VA
performance.

Character 9/10
The characters are a fundamental part of the story and the truth is that they are all quite interesting.
Yuuchi our protagonist is without a doubt one of the best protagonists of recent years at the level of protagonists like ayanokouji from Classroom of Elite. He is a totally unexpected character that you never know what he is thinking and manages to solve the problems he faces without you knowing how. The interesting thing here is that in the whole group of 5 friends you can't trust any of them, they just all have something that makes you doubt them.

Enjoyment 10/10
I really enjoyed it, it is the anime that I enjoyed the most this season and the first one that I will dedicate time to write a review for, each chapter left me wanting to know more and I never took my eyes off the screen while I was watching it. Every day I waited for the time the chapter came out just to be able to see it, at that level I enjoyed it. And me being a huge fan of High Stakes Games even more.



To finish, I really recommend this anime for people who like to think about how to win or solve puzzles or find some way to find the loopholes in a game. Or people who love High Stakes Games. Or if you like smart protagonists like Ayanokouji from Clasroom of Elite or Senku from Dr. stone. Or even if you're not a big fan at least try to watch the first 6 episodes, not the first 3, the first 3 may turn off a lot of people because of the direction it looks like it's going to go but I'm serious, try to watch it, you might like it.

To be honest, im not disappointed at all. Ive experienced this type of shows before so im not too fused abt this show going bad or whatever. The thing abt this show is that, its called tomodachi game. You are meant to be invested in their relationship BUT the show decided to speed run all of that and just throw us into the first game. Like how the hell u gonna make the audience care if u just gonna do that in the first bloody episode. After 3 eps, i still dont care abt their relationship and still have no clue on ... why they're backstabbing each other . The friendship, as of now, seems superficial.

Also, those 2 girls need stfu because bro idc for ur forced exposition. Literally, its obnoxious to see them talking over in these eps especially the pink girl bruhhh.

This show might be good by the end, but honestly im not sure anymore. They have to make me at least think that they are friends but yeahhh. the whole suspense and mystery is not there anymore.

I am writing this review as a manga reader. Small spoilers possible.
Adaptation of the Tomodachi Game, the best money game after Kaiji, made me feel strange. Animation feels off, pacing feels off, but it is still enjoyable (probably because I read the manga and I know how good it is)

STORY 10/10
The 3 episodes rule is probably going to make people drop this series, because it's "predictable". I would say the story is getting amazing when MC shows his skills.
This series is not simple. There are plot twists and pretty neat stuff. (I was not sure who the real traitor is until it gets revealed, because ... it could be anyone, and boy I was confused)

ART 5/10
The weakest point of this adaptation. It is chaotic, and I can imagine how strange it is for anime only. Still, it's not terrible, just mediocre at best. Not much sakuga, art style is changing etc.

SOUND 9/10
Soundtracks are one of the best aspects of this series, especially one ost from the trailer fits this series pretty well. Opening and ending are top-notch.

CHARACTER 8/10
Anime is making their relationship look surreal, so I gave only 8, but in manga characters are pretty deep and their actions are reasonable. There is still potential for anime to make this aspect better.

ENJOYMENT 8/10
This adaptation is enjoyable, but I would still go read the manga if I were you.
Sorry for possible bad grammar ;D

Tomodachi Game feels like the ‘chocolate money’ of the anime medium. The problem with chocolate money is that it’s not real money and the chocolate is mediocre at best. If you’re really craving chocolate it’ll probably satisfy your urge, but it’s unlikely to make a notable impression. Tomodachi Game is reminiscent of that lackluster feeling. If you’re in the mood for an anime with a high-stakes game at its core then it’ll probably do, but you’re most likely going to forget the majority of its plot within a week of finishing it. Then we arrive at the ‘fake money’ aspect of the show, which in ... this case would be substance, that should be listed on the back of the package’s ingredients as “missing”.

Tomodachi Game is not one of those shows that attempts to tackle too many issues at once and fails to develop them properly. The premise is not ambitious, which is why it’s a little baffling to me that the pacing feels rushed and the storytelling lacks any kind of meaningful depth. The plot is pretty standard and doesn’t require countless episodes to be fleshed out properly, so I’m not sure why the story remains so superficial throughout the anime’s 12-episode run. The upside is that the story gets to the point very quickly and doesn’t go off on too many tangents. Ultimately, if you’re looking for a simple anime about a high-stakes game then this might be a good bet. I would like to stress the word “might” in the previous sentence because I think part of the appeal of a high-stakes game is that the games are designed in an intellectual way. You should be able to insert yourself in these situations and feel perplexed by the mechanics or the rules. I think Tomodachi Game also lacks in this department. The games are designed in a way that doesn’t make them intriguing. The second game especially feels like a bad board game. What’s also disappointing is that the strategies that the characters use to beat these games are kind of terrible? They’re very circumstantial, relying on social skills and human nature rather than attempting to craft a systematic strategy to win. It doesn’t feel like the characters are genuinely beating these games, but rather that there is a predetermined outcome set in stone and the circumstances lead them to this result. In this sense, the anime doesn’t feel organic and it may be harder to suspend disbelief while watching it.

Tomodachi Game isn’t a bad anime per se, it’s just not a good one either. It’ll satisfy your craving for chocolate, but the chocolate itself is pretty unremarkable.

Story: 4/10
I haven’t read the source material but I feel like there are several loopholes in the story. Certain aspects of the plot don’t really get explained properly. Perhaps if you’ve read the manga it makes a bit more sense, but as a standalone work this story lacks coherence and development. The storytelling also feels very reductionist. For an anime centered around intellectual games the story is quite simplistic. Where is the nuance?

Art: 7/10
The art style is very standard, I don’t have much to criticize but the animation in certain scenes could be a bit more smooth. However, I think the art style as a whole is successful in setting the right atmosphere when needed.

Sound: 7/10
I actually really enjoyed the opening theme song, and the voice acting was good too. Everything else about the soundtrack is forgettable.

Character: 3/10
The characters were all over the place. They also felt very one-dimensional. Even when the twists in the story happened, their execution felt forced and awkward. The cast as a whole is just very uninspiring, I can’t think of a single character that will stick with me.

Enjoyment: 4/10
My enjoyment wasn’t nonexistent, but it was definitely below average. I didn’t have particularly high expectations and yet I was still disappointed.

Overall: 4/10

*spoilers*

Being a complete, soul-crushing waste of time isn’t exactly a new and exciting development as far as bad anime is concerned, but what’s so infuriating about this show in particular is how it serves as perhaps the single most unholy combination of pointlessness and tediousness that has ever existed in television. The whole show is a giant torture chamber where your brain is numbed into submission, tasked with juggling endless exposition dumps, convoluted rule sets, and seemingly random plot twists, only to be told, in fact, everything you just mulled over was irrelevant, because God Yuichi is here to retroactively change the implications of every ... scene which just flickered before your dry, reddish eyes. And who is God Yuichi, you ask? Well, strap in motherfuckers, because every meaningless conflict in this string of meaningless conflicts can all be traced directly back to the characters, who, I think it goes without saying, are all magnificently well-written.

Instead of taking the time to explain the Tomodachi Game in detail, I should probably just explain the fact that “tomodachi” is the Japanese word for “squid,” so the English title of “Friends Game” is actually quite deceptive. I know Japanese is kind of a confusing language to wrap your head around sometimes, but I think knowing the real title is “Squid Game” should get everyone on the same page. Anyway, the show begins with all the characters apparently suffering acute brain damage. God Yuichi and his friends, Tsundere Shiho, Glasses Tenji, Bleached Hair Shibe, and Yanderedere Kokorogi, are kidnapped and told they were all enlisted to play the game against their will when one of them secretly went behind everyone else’s back and applied to play because they were in serious debt. The idea is everyone takes on an equal share of the debt and plays through each round with the goal of working together to carry the load and incrementally decrease everyone’s debt at the same time, therefore supporting each other and ensuring everyone leaves with the group’s collective debt having been cleared (squids are known for being good friends fyi, very symbolic, very deep, yes, yes). However, if their bonds aren’t as deep or meaningful as they once thought, then betrayal and competition could lead to infighting that turns the Squid Game into a fierce contest wherein each player tries to saddle the others with their own debt to make sure they alone leave unscathed. The actual details of each game bounce between being utterly vague and misleading, to wildly meticulous and way too detailed for anyone to reasonably keep track of, but to even reach the games, the characters have to first consent to play. After all, whether they forgive them or not, they now know there’s a traitor among them, and they have to come to terms with that…and they do. Immediately. And the games begin.

By being so naive as to instantly forgive the traitor’s betrayal and undertake the games despite the doubts anyone with two brain cells would be rubbing together right about now, the group has essentially just confirmed there is no point in playing the game. They could just leave and take on the debt willingly to help their friend in need. Hell, the traitor could’ve just come out right then, apologized, and sincerely asked for financial support without having to go through this stressful and potentially dangerous game. Maybe if the kidnapper criminal showrunners are nice enough, they won’t even harvest the group’s organs or traffic them into sex slavery through some Laotian black market! But the anime needs to happen, so their intelligence briefly hangs itself and they decide to go forth. The characters are established as capable of being morons whenever the story demands it, and combined with the awfully constructed premises from which the games operate, the show is just hard to take seriously in general. Explaining the context for further lapses of intelligence would take forever, but I assure you they exist. By the way, this review was written as a team effort between two people. One of them is fluent in Japanese, and the other is not. In other news, both of them thought all the gameshow rule sets were either completely fucking retarded or totally impenetrable and way—WAY overly verbose. What’s worse is the characterization is effectively nonexistent, and you very quickly get the feeling that when I gave you that little factoid about squids being friendly creatures, I might’ve actually been full of shit. The introduction of each character is literally an on-screen text box that disappears after barely one second has time to pass, and while the thoughtlessness of this presentation speaks for itself, reading the text and actually trying to see these characters as people, let alone as friends, is completely disastrous.

Riveting personality traits such as, “seems to like anime and stuff,” are detailed within. I mean, holy fucking seriously?!?! There’s no way this is supposed to be from God Yuichi’s perspective, right? Was this a description of his best friend, or one-third of the nation of Japan?! Not only are these depictions inane, but they’re simply unnecessary, because there are absolutely ZERO relevant personality traits you need to know about any character to actually watch the show. These people are not friends nor are they people; they’re stock character templates whose job is to stand around passively while getting used or manipulated by God Yuichi without the slightest hint of having any agency of their own, completely sapping the conflicts of any excitement or worthwhile drama, all the while only committing to expressing themselves in the most generic mannerisms that their archetypes allow. I suppose the point is to make God Yuichi look cool so the viewers can use the series as some sort of sadistic self-insert power fantasy to get off on the idea of themselves being this much of an edgelord (please, get real, no one is as godly as God Yuichi), but this has the same effect as seeing LeBron James dunking on blind, deaf, disabled, amputee toddlers. Ultimately, these conflicts are meaningless because everyone just moves right onto the next equally tedious and overblown stage of the Squid Game while effectively nothing has changed or evolved in any real or emotional terms, and this is all true even despite the biggest puff of smoke the series insists on blowing up its own ass: the plot twists. The so-called plot twists in this show are completely empty and have no real bearing on the story in the same way that the conflict has no real bearing on the plot, and some of them—many of them, in fact—are invalidated within minutes. They exist purely for characters to have an excuse to make an edgy face.

Things will be moving toward the single OBVIOUS direction, someone will randomly pop in with some utter buffoon shit which, in the mind of any reasonable fucking person on the planet, would only make themselves seem more suspicious than the person they’re accusing, but everyone will just be like, “OMG that’s so smart! I didn’t even think of it like that! So let’s all adopt that line of thinking now and go the complete opposite direction so the contrivance that is this stupid fucking game can keep being turned into a shitty anime!” It’s SO all over the place with who is and isn’t playing 4D chess! In one set-up, one character will be a smirking, Machiavellian edgelord engineering the psychology of everyone around them, and in the next, it’s someone completely different. Whoever needs to be the devil on the shoulder of whichever character can successfully become so instantly, and if the person they need to manipulate actually had their wits about them in previous scenes, their wits will very quickly be not-so-about them, and they’ll prance blindly into whatever trap they need to prance into to keep the contrivance train rolling. The resulting mess is too frustrating for words, and while the characters are all horribly written, I guess the show succeeded in making you emotionally engage with them anyway, because their braindead decision-making will—I promise—make you want to tear your Goddamn eyes out. Whether a character is saying something totally daft and unreasonable while everyone else is treating them like the prophet, or for no reason refusing to say the ONE expectable and reasonable thing any real human being would say in their situation while everyone else is acting like their behavior is a legitimate smoking gun, the level of contrivance required for conflict makes every character feel downright detached and confusing whenever you actually try putting yourself in their shoes.

But forget about our cast of miserable non-characters for just a minute and let it sink in how stupid this is purely from a plot perspective. For example, in one episode they’re playing a game where they get to anonymously expose awful things about one another, and the live audience moves each of them closer toward final condemnation by voting for who they hate as they grow to dislike each of the characters based on what’s revealed about them. At one point, they enter a gambit where one character is presented with an opportunity to nominate another character to have something horrendous revealed about them by the showrunners. In other words, it’s not just some gossip being revealed by another character, but rather a piece of damning information which the organizers of the Tomodachi Game themselves have privately investigated with whatever resources they have at their disposal, implying, “Your friends may know some dirty shit about you, but we know EVERYTHING about you, including your deepest, darkest, most well-kept secrets.” Immediately after this gambit is resolved, someone gives a fake piece of information about the person who was JUST EXPOSED in the gambit, that person insists the information is false, and Manabu, the hideous CG Front Man, says, “lol how do we know that’s fake information? Prove it, retard.” AS IF HE DIDN’T JUST IMPLY THE PREVIOUS GAMBIT WOULD’VE ALREADY REVEALED HIS DARKEST SECRET! Every reveal is completely dependent on wherever God Yuichi is in whatever master plan he happens to be engaged in at any given moment, and if that means even the almightily showrunners themselves have to look surprised or incompetent, then so be it. Every character is made to be fooled, every rule is made to be broken, and everything is made to bend to God Yuichi’s sadistic, malicious will. There can only be one true edgelord to rule them all.

Then there’s the themes, which are not only pathetic, but also, perhaps unintentionally, weird and off-putting. Occasionally, one of the showrunners pretentiously applies a generic observation of human behavior onto some event which is only broadly relevant. Anyone who’s gone outdoors for three seconds of their fucking life and has interacted with humans for at least one of those seconds could conjure up similar commentary. Most of the time the characters being commented on are forced into the scenario anyway, and that leads into a more subtle issue with the show—and that’s how dishonest it is. The big, prominent theme is supposed to be choosing between friends or money, and the fact each friend was willing to go into crippling debt to help their friend who just betrayed them should be enough to prove where their loyalties lie. Yet no one ever mentions how this is a misrepresentation of the actual choice being presented, because not being in debt isn’t really the same thing as winning money. These pathetic attempts at theming are rather obvious if you ask me, but the weird and off-putting themes are less so. As discussed, real examinations of friendship don’t matter. But if that’s the case, then what drives conflict? You guessed it—classic teen melodrama. It turns out both girls like God Yuichi, and both of the other guys like one of the girls, so no one will ever trust one another or be truly in the same boat, and it has nothing to do with any wannabe-deep statements about the nature of greed or the social science of monetary corruption and, instead, everything to do with who wants to fuck who. Even when the first arc ends and our group of established “friends” gets replaced by a new shallow cast of characters to populate the following arc, the conflict STILL continues to erupt and revolve around inserting women into men’s relationships to sow the seeds of jealousy and resentment.

But why is this relevant to weird and off-putting themes? Well, for the same reason it was odd to see the aforementioned live audience vote Tsundere Shiho as being “100% unforgivable” after it was revealed she liked God Yuichi after having dated Glasses Tenji in the past. Glasses Tenji himself (who was the original traitor by the way) explains how he entered everyone into the Squid Game for the purpose of destroying the organization behind the games, and to potentially expose Tsundere Shiho for being connected to them. Why entering the games would lead to either of those things is completely lost on me, but this seems totally reasonable to Glasses Tenji. However, the real can of worms we’re cracking open here is why he suspects her. He suspects her because she “destroyed” his friendship between him and his old BFFs by seducing them and causing them to become jealous of one another…but all she did, literally, was say “hi” one time. If you don’t see where this is going, let’s just say that in this show, the hour hand, the minute hand, and the second hand are always pointed squarely on incel o’clock. Casual, throwaway lines not relevant to the plot include:
“She sold her body to adult men? For someone who isn’t a virgin, you sure seem innocent.”
“I guess this guy’s experience with women has made him really cautious around them.”
“All women are capable of putting on an act to get what they want.”
I could go on, but you get the point. The amount of subliminal and not-so-subliminal women hating in this show is truly epic, based, and redpilled. Needless to say, Tomodachi Game is a truly brilliant anime that always stays on message.

These degenerate themes and farcical friendships reach their meager peak during the end of the first arc. After God Yuichi lays out the oh-so ingenious manner in which he enacted his master plan to oust Glasses Tenji as the traitor, Glasses Tenji calls him out, saying he couldn’t have possibly been sure of his conclusion with the logic he presented, and God Yuichi concedes. “Indeed,” he says, “but the real Tomodachi Game was the friends we made along the way, old buddy. I knew you were the traitor simply because we’re friends, and I knew something was off as soon as the game began.” In any well-written anime, this would’ve been a really powerful and emotional moment that could’ve convincingly and empathetically offered Glasses Tenji an off-ramp to redemption and reintegration into the friend group, but in this show, it just makes you roll your fucking eyes, because the whole problem with it in the first place is that these peoples’ “friendship” doesn’t exist. The show tells us they’re friends, but we never got to actually see them being friends. We never got to know any of them, and their—I hesitate to use the word—personalities don’t play off each other with any more chemistry than you’d expect considering the archetypes they embody. They’re just stock character templates with voice actors and actresses transforming them into cardboard cutouts that just happen to have the ability to speak.

Actually, wrong metaphor there, because cardboard cutouts wouldn’t be off-model nearly as much as these fucking people, and by “people,” I mean crimes against art, and by “art,” I mean shit, and by “shit,” I mean this fucking show. Hopefully you weren’t expecting this show to be well-produced or technically competent, because it isn’t. You’ll probably get used to the hideousness of the visuals just by virtue of how easily your eyes will glaze over, but they still occasionally devolve from unengaging to completely and totally embarrassing, perhaps just to be honest and remind you of the fact you’re watching trash. Every instance of visual flair comes from zooming in on someone's face while they give their biggest, baddest edgelord smile, then applying some digital effect. The incongruity between the staleness of the show and the ridiculously overblown edginess makes for some great laughs, honestly. Of course, I would be remiss if I didn’t give Manabu, the useless CG Front Man accompanying the characters, the resounding “fuck you” he deserves. He doesn’t just settle for being the most intrusive piece of CG my eyes have suffered through in a long time, but he also goes the extra mile with shameless animation errors, like losing his shadow during episode two (11:07) or his saber handguard being attached the wrong way during the third game. Episode three was the first time the show fully gave up and started rereading its exposition dumps because it knows half the audience forgot the rules from the previous episode, and I very quickly began contemplating the benefits and drawbacks of buying a gun and painting my walls with bubblegum. There is truly no reason to watch Tomodachi Game, something that clearly exists only to milk money from sales and capitalize on the resurgence of the death game market. Even if you can tolerate its mountain of sins, your kindness won’t stop it from burning in hell.

If you find yourself disappointed and looking for a more exciting and engaging thriller to watch, I would recommend flipping a coin to guess tomorrow’s weather. Compared to the paradox of maddening frustration and excruciating boredom that is Tomodachi Game, the anticipation of that 50/50 might be enough to literally fucking kill you.

Thank you for reading. (This review was proofread and revised by SingleH.)

This is a very biased review since I've never done it before!
High Stake Game might be a sub-category of Battle Royale but srsly, please don't group Tomodachi Game with the likes of Squid Game or other BR series that features deaths in their concepts.
I feel like I must write one, since I'm fed up with an unseen wave of haters who delibrately try to lower the overall score and lure audiences away from an adaptation of such outstanding manga in the genre of High Stake Game.
Let me be honest, the original manga is extraordinary, in terms of storywriting, plot, character building, psychological warfare and game ... theory aspects.
STORY:
10/10 - Biased! From a big fan of Psychological & High Stake Game genre.
Unbiased, it's a tad different with masterpieces of High Stake Game like Liar Game but I can say the story can stand itself on equal ground with ease, it even show a bit more depth and complexity in the progress later on.
Unbiased, I'm sad to admit that the scriptwriter is likely inexperienced or st as the decision for content cut might confuse anime-only watchers.
ART:
6/10 - Unbiased!
Character design is quite faithful to the original but a bit lack of depth, it seems like the budget for this anime is not very high.
Animation-wise, it just sucks. Don't expect many realistic or smooth movements and transitions.
Background-wise, not bad at all, seems accurate but not excellent either.
Finally, VFX & CGI-wise, it's a nightmare with random use of CGI for the mascot of the show and some of the VFX ain't blend in at all.
SOUND:
9/10 - Biased!
Subjectively speaking, SFX and BGM are outstanding.
Objectively speaking, not many big shots in the cast but the voice acting quality is unexpectedly excellent!
Many seem to like both the OP and ED so I was swayed here.
Tbh, the OP just can't click for me while the ED does catch me but it can't capture me completely.
CHARACTER:
10/10 - Biased!
Anime-only audiences might not be able to see it after just 3 episodes imo because character development will come later and bit by bit. I can guarantee this without spoilers.
And as a manga reader, I promise the characters of the show do have very unique and quirky traits with such depth and complexity.
For our mc, I can only say he's just unlike others. It might be controversial but for me, he's just perfect in his own way.
ENJOYMENT:
10/10 - Still biased!
I'm a die hard fan of Tomodachi Game and High Stake Game genre, ofc it's 10/10 for me as it gets an anime adaptation.
If you are also manga readers, just go both, the original manga alone is worth your time.
Fyi, the live action adaptation which is released way before this was region-locked and underrated but it was also a very excellent adaptation. (It's even better than the anime for me, in terms of directing and scriptwriting)
P.S:
-Good and excellent psychological works don't show their hands quickly, don't prematurely judge this or blindly trust some random early reviews. There are hater's among them.
-If you love to lose braincell and/ or you are a person who love trying to solve puzzles or exploit games' loopholes, this show is for you.
-Finally, I admit this show is a low quality adaptation, even with top-notch source materials, my honest review should have been ~ 7.5 but I maded this public review with a 9 out of spite and anger at a bunch of haters or some braindead maniac who refer this to the like of Squid Game or expect some deaths to happen like others Battle Royales stories. C'mon y tf u expect deaths in High Stake Game? It's a subcategory but u can't differentiate them? And for me, I have enjoyed Squid Game and turned a blind eye on the controversial plagiarism until this wave of hate against my favourite manga. Haters, get a life plz; SG's fan, go read some original works that released way before your SG with such similarities in the games and structures and don't use the bs excuse like "SG's author started his concept from 2009" or st, it's just pure nobrainer bs.

Yamaguchi, Mikoto, the writer for Tomodachi Game's manga, desperately needs to pick up a book on psychology and how relationships work.

Look, I like high stakes gambling anime and manga. Usugoi and Kaiji are great. Yes, they're kind of dumb, but you know, that's just what I enjoy. Yet, I still hate this show. I usually can suspend my belief, even if the gambles are kind of stupid like Kakegurui.

Tomodachi Game is just a super cringe show. It's super unrealistic, and unnecessarily edgy. Mikoto Yamaguchi, the writer of the story, has absolutely no idea how human psychology works. I'm not even going to get into ... the drama or characters. The mystery is honestly alright, and the drama--while forced--works.

It's just the "backseat gamers." What I really mean, are obviously the cringe observers, Tsukino and Maria, that watch over the game itself. First of all, it breaks all immersion. Did you really need to include these people talking about this group of friends? Really? Oh no, the audience is really so stupid that they can’t make surface level interpretations of the show, so instead, we can see the uneducated opinion of these observers--we all know it’s Yamaguchi projecting. It really breaks any tension at all in the game itself, considering that the anime jarringly pans the attention to these observers that throw out the most edgy and WRONG things about relationships, friendship, and romance, it made me drop the show.

Tsukino makes two statements about friendship in the earlier episodes. The first one being this: “"While there is unconditional love, there's no such thing as unconditional friendship." Who the hell said that? Like who? Nobody. No psychological professional would make that statement. Perhaps Tsukino should read Aristotle’s Nichominean ethics, where Aristotle speaks about friendship. He claimed that friendship can be divided into three types: ones of pleasure, ones of utility, and ones of goodness.While the other two types can be easily broken, Aristotle claims that the ones of goodness are “everlasting.” Perhaps Aristotle’s literature is a bit too old. How about something more contemporary like Robert Selman’s work, where he divides friendship amongst peers into multiple categories, the last one being Autonomous Interdependence. Friendships of this stage can certainly be unconditional. I only speak of a few theories, but I really don’t think any psychologist would utter what Tsukino just did. There’s no basis.

Tsukino also states that “Ultimately, whether or not he can forgive...her...will depend on how aware he is of his own impurity." I like how Tsukino talks with such confidence and gusto, like she has the entire personality profile of Yuichi examined. Even if that were true, she just assumes that the only reason that anyone would care about whether or not a person is a virgin or not is based on their perceived purity and their shallow egos that compare themselves with others to feel self gratification. What a pedantic statement. As if that’s the only reason.

She then states that “Women are sensible creatures… No matter how much they like someone, they can fall out of love in an instant. Especially if they connect with someone else who understands them even better.” First of all, good job generalizing women into a single generic statement, and second of all, even if this were 100% true, LMAO, this is such an incel thing to say. Like haha, how the hell can I even stay serious, when the so-called expert on psychology that is Tsukino is throwing out cringe bombs like that? Also, did you see how hypocritical she sounds? She just stated that there’s unconditional love, and then throws out the same exact opposite statements about how a woman’s love is transient. While not entirely contradicting each other, it really doesn’t seem to be two statements made by the same expert.
Then Tsukino has the audacity to say stuff like “You must have noticed…as long as you’re not some gullible idiot.” Oh yeah, I’m sure Tsukino should be the one labeling other people as stupid. I could go on, but I think you get the idea as to why I think this show is cringe.

Sure, there are other problems, like despite this show being a high stakes gambling, there are really a ton of outs and relatively low stakes and punishment than it should be. The tension is diluted, and drama takes the forefront of a lot of these episodes. Honestly, the show could have gone without the damn game in the first place for how much it emphasizes drama and relationships. I’m certainly not a licensed psychologist, but I’m also not an idiot who can watch this show butcher basic psychological principles.

Before I start, personally, I haven’t watched a single death game anime, or even Squid Game actually, so I will not be making any comparisons to them. This is a strictly non-Squid Game comparison review. Ok, before you start saying “Who cares”, or “Who asked?”, let’s get into the review.

For a series that is supposedly about friendship, the friendship concepts were tackled a bit superficially, and it became more of a series about Katagiri Yuuichi’s wit and him being a scumbag to solve problems. I expected a bit more characterization overall, and it really does feel we’re just scratching the surface of this series. However, ... the plot twists and Yuuichi’s character were definitely fun to watch, and one of the more enjoyable series of this anime season, but a bit edgy for sure.

My grading criteria: Story: /25 Art: /10 Music: /10 Characters: /20 Enjoyment /15 Thematic Execution /20

*Spoilers below

STORY: 17.2/25

The story is about five friends that get into a game called the Tomodachi Game, or Friends Game, after one of the five incurred a twenty million yen debt, and to pay off that amount, the group must clear a variety of games that test their friendships, and reveal their true colours.

The first game, Kokkuri-san, is a game where the participants place a finger on a coin in the middle of a board. Then, a question is asked, and the participants place their fingers on the coin and push it towards the answer they think is correct. The questions are simple, but as expected, someone sabotages the game. This was by far the most boring and basic premise of the show, and very predictable.

The next game, Bad-Mouth Sugoroku is a game where people bad mouth each other and submit the cards privately. The revelations, such as someone participating in compensated dating, and someone doing plastic surgery, are made to pit them against each other. This game was drawn out pretty long, and felt pretty shallow. It made the group of friends seem like they weren’t very close in the first place, since something pretty trivial, like doing plastic surgery, could cause a rift between the characters. A lot of these revelations create shock value, which in my opinion, is not a very good way to advance the plot.

The third game was a simple hide and seek game, except the hider can’t move, so they can’t get any food. It felt like a battle of wits between the two teams, but in the end, it was a pretty anticlimactic conclusion, with violence just being the answer to everything. Expected a bit more from this.

There are other backstories that I won’t go into here, but even though I have said a few negative things about each game, there are still positives, in that the suspense factor is handled pretty well, even if it relies heavily on shock value. Yuuichi’s struggles are always fun to see, and his ways to get through each game are enjoyable as well.

ART: 6.2/10

The animation is fine, but a bit lacking. The expressions could have been handled even better to evoke that sense of “evil” from Yuuichi, and all the other emotions from the other characters.

MUSIC: 8.9/10

Huge fan of both the opening and ending from this series. Nana Mizuki and Saji do a great job, and I never skipped them. The two themes were definitely a highlight of the show.

CHARACTERS: 11.5/20

The characters were introduced very poorly, and the developments for most of them seem to just be scratching the surface of their characterization and backstories, but I have to say Yuuichi carries the cast, and I’m sure you agree. He has the most distinct personality overall, as he creates most of the shock value. He is a scumbag, but he’s not completely heartless, as we saw in the third game. He does some crazy things, and he’s fun to watch, but it gets a bit repetitive.

The other characters each have their distinct personalities, but they just aren’t the most intriguing to watch. Tenji is arguably the more interesting one out of the remaining four friends, but as I said, we’d need Season 2 to see more of their backstories and developments.

ENJOYMENT: 12.3/15

I did enjoy this series despite its flaws, it’s what I call “popcorn entertainment”, just watching chaos unfold every episode.

THEMATIC EXECUTION: 10/20

This show really struggles at executing the theme of friendship well. If they are such good friends, they shouldn’t be fighting this easily. They know they are being tested in a game, and rifts in friendships is what the management want, so why play into their hands?

The romance theme is just there to be another chaos creator. Of course everyone likes someone in the friend group, it just makes everyone lose their minds, and that is pretty realistic for sure.

The world building, pretty atrocious. Rules need to be explained better, and there can't be that many convolutions that feel shallow.

OVERALL: 66.1/100

A decent show which had good plot twists and a good main character in Yuuichi, but falls short on some story elements that I think could have been paced better to create a better plot. If you are a fan of mind games and plot twists, this is a solid one to watch, and if there is a continuation in the future, I’ll definitely watch it.

Didnt Like The First 3 Eps So Dropped It. The Anime Just Speedrunned And there was not
enought backstory about how they became Friends, It Doesnt Even Feel Like They Are Friends
so how is it Tomodachi Game. Anyways I Dont Know It Might Get Better At The End, But I Just think it's shit



The Most Annoying thing About This Anime Is How Unreal it is(Ik these type of anime Is Unreal Anyways But U Will Know What Im Talking About If You See This Anime)
There isnt Enought Backstory And Charecter Development.

My Overall Rating About This Anime Is:4/10

All those mother fuckers dropped it after third episode , go watch the latest episode and stop making reviews a publicity section, your here to review of this anime not others, stupid insecure shut heads.

Best Mc this season Katagiri Yuuichi and his friends gets in a debt and now they get a on journey to get rid of the debt.

All the games are so well made, giving proper backstory nad proper character development to most of them character u might face pacing issue at the start but it get better episode after episode and u wouldn't realize when it becomes so exciting u ... will wait for a whole week just to see the next banger.

Saw some people saying it is too fictional and imaginary, bruh meanwhile there is sci fi school where they repeat previous year question and somebody knows it so he becomes perfect human. 😂😂😂

One of the best anime this season, at least better than those slice of life shit.

Man, it's kind of incredible just how bad Tomodachi Game is. It's the epitome of self-insert garbage. A lot of people rightfully criticise generic isekai anime for their obnoxiously overpowered heroic protagonists, but I think many people don't recognise that obnoxiously overpowered sociopath protagonists are just as much of a power-fantasy audience insert.

There's so much to cover when it comes to the show's faults that it's hard to know where to start. That sociopath protagonist that you follow is Katagiri Yuuichi, and a lot of the show's shit writing can be attributed to the fact that every character is just a side piece in ... Yuuichi's world. Yuuichi is meant to come off as a genius of manipulation, cool and calculating and utterly cruel to those who deserve it. About half of his 'cool' moments and his tricks involve manipulating the people around him to his own benefit, and often to their own self-destruction. Thank god, then, that every character around Yuuichi is defined by one character trait and has no human nuance. This makes it piss easy for Yuuichi, and the audience, to predict exactly what each character will do. The amount of plot contrivances and luck necessary for Yuuichi's 'foolproof' plans to succeed is mind-blowing. It's great, then, that following each terrible plan of his, we get to see him or another character monologue about how fantastic his plan was, and how much of a cruel monster he is! Every game follows this formula: Yuuichi's in a game. He has a surface level plan that the rest of the cast believes to be his true plan, but we obviously know it's not because that's fucking stupid. Oh no! Something went wrong with his original plan! Looks like he's in danger, you can tell this because this is when the respective 'villains' of each game begin to gloat about how smart they are. Surprise! Yuuichi actually accounted for all of this the entire time and wrecks ass.

This highlights one of the most strange choices in the show, which is the inclusion of these three women who work for the Tomodachi Game, and spectate the games from a security room. They serve two purposes, to narrate what we literally just saw with our eyeballs, or to hype up Yuuichi as a cunning genius.
"Ha, there's no way that Yuuichi can get out of this one! He really isn't as scary as you said he was!"
"Oh? Just wait. You'll see just how much of a demon he truly is."
That's approximately how all their conversations go. The show and its whole cast are just there to jack off Yuuichi. This is such a strange choice because it destroys any mysticism or intrigue about the nature of the Tomodachi Game's management. Did they forget that this organisation kidnaps people and enforces massive amounts of debt upon them? You would think that if the whole plot of the show is that Yuuichi is making his way to destroy the Tomodachi Game, you would try to make the people who run it, the villains, more mysterious. Instead, not only do they get more screen-time than three of the primary cast members, they also aren't at all intimidating. They are just as much push-overs as the rest of the cast is in Yuuichi's presence.

The rest of the cast is, of course, one-dimensional and beyond boring. The main group of friends, our protagonists, are all equally hate-able. Tenji is so pathetically deranged and creepy that it's incredible the show thinks that "just because Yuuichi likes them now, the audience should too!" and tries to redeem him. Shibe is presented as a lovable idiot, but he's just an asshole, being rude to Shiho when he finds out she's had plastic surgery and to Kokorogi when he learns she's participated in enjo kousai (going out on dates with older men for money). Kokorogi and Shiho are just their traumas, having so little agency it's hard to even call them characters. About half-way through the show, another group of friends who were put into the Tomodachi Game appear as the 'villains' of that game. These five are the pinnacle of background characters, yet we're meant to be astounded at Yuuichi's ability to determine their friendship dynamics and personalities when the character's are walking tropes. As an example, you can tell which member of the group is the smart one because he wears glasses, and when he figures out the answer to a question that was posed by another member of his team, he says, and I shit you not, "I've solved all the mysteries." I refuse to believe a human being wrote this dialogue. Once again, they're complete pushovers for villains. Yuuichi's plan only works because a new member that gets added to his group, who is actually one of the spectating women in disguise, is a woman, and thus one of the dumbasses from the other group completely loses all ability for rational thought and almost throws the game for his team. This is the "easily manipulated by women" trope character, and it's just as stupid to watch as I made it sound. Side note: in the first place, this game is inherently boring to watch because the only reason the 'villains' of the game are so powerful is not because of their cognitive abilities and strategising, but because they literally just have more members than Yuuichi's group.

There's a couple more points about the flaws of the writing that I couldn't find a good way to link into the rest of the review so here they are. First is that the logistics of the game shouldn't be thought about, like at all, or you'll realise just how breakable these games are. They act like the Tomodachi Game is exempt from the law and that trying to out it would never work and would just put them in more debt, but they do realise that the game is stupid illegal... right? Only the person who signed the rest of the group up to the game consented to being literally kidnapped. The other main flaw is the same one that affects something like Kakegurui, which is that the way the players are punished or rewarded is through the amount of debt they have remaining. Don't get me wrong, the debt they go into aren't trivial numbers to real humans, but at some point they become meaningless because it's in an anime, and it loses all impact when their 5 million yen debt gets increased to 10 million yen. These random numbers don't mean anything.

Lastly the animation, or lack of, is one of the most jarring parts of the production. Not a single frame looks particularly good. The style is stilted and 95% of shots are still frames with the camera panning in a direction. Every internal monologue has no flavour as you see these still pictures talking. Sometimes they don't even animate the lip flaps. This gets especially bad when an intense scene is happening. In the final game we see, Yuuichi gets bloodied and brutalised. Even though fingernails are flying and blood is running from stab wounds, none of it's animated. We just see still frames of vague shots of blood that have colour filters over it. If a character makes an insane, exaggerated reaction face when they are talking about their plans, the animation lets those down sorely. Compared to the wonderfully expressive faces of Tomodachi Game's contemporaries, the expressions here are stilted and boring, and it borders on being cringe-inducing to watch.

Tomodachi Game was deeply entertaining to me, because I have an unhealthy obsession with "survival/betrayal/death game" stories. If you don't, then you should probably stay away from this anime if you enjoy keeping your brain cells.

I was expecting some amazing mind chess, but a got a sad attempt at that. Yeah, I've watched a lot of psychological anime and I can tell you this one does not compete.

Story - 3
The story is a basic high stakes game premise, and is basically like squid game except for it is a group of friends and not a ton of random people. The story has two big problems though. First, the pacing. The first game is over very quickly, while the second game goes on for like 6 episodes. Think about that, that is the length of a movie for just one game, ... one that is the least interesting out of all of them too. And it isn't like there are stages to the game or something dramatic changes everything about the rules halfway through, no, it's them going across the board of the game incredibly slowly. The second issue is that while the games are mediocre in terms of how interesting they are, the "mind games" that the characters play to outwit each other are really not that well thought out. They are laughable compared to the mind games in anime like Death Note. Even Kakegurui, whose characters too often relied on cheating to win the games, had better mind games than this anime. They are either stupid and easy to think of, or the methods are so far fetched that the player was relying on an insane amount of luck for it to work.

Sound - 5
The opening is eh, I don't like the ending. The general soundtrack isn't special but is not annoying either.

Art - 7
The art is fine. Some scenes are pretty nicely detailed. It isn't my favorite art style for the characters themselves, but there isn't really any problems.

Characters - 2
The characters are the worst part of this anime. None of them really have a personality, they are all just on a different level of ability to read and trick others well. But you don't really know anything about them. This makes the games so much less fun to watch, because you aren't rooting for anyone. You don't care who wins or who loses, who is suddenly the villain and who was lying the whole time. Even though shows with high-stakes game can grab attention pretty quickly, it won't be sustained if the characters are flat.

Enjoyment - 4
The hide and seek game seemed like it could be kind of fun, but overall this anime was not that fun.

Overall - 4
I wouldn't recommend this. If you really need something game related, Kakegurui is a better bet, but for mind games, Death Note 100%.

This is like Kaguya-sama if it wasn't funny.

There's basically no tension left when they revealed that the people behind the cameras were just some anime girls. This show doesn't place much clues early on so they can just pull whatever shit out in a backstory (which isn't usually bad but not good in an anime where you are supposed to think and take context clues or subtexts.)

If you like this anime then you might like Among Us streamers videos from 2021 because at least they weren't unloading their 2 hours long back-to-back flashbacks just to convince their friends.

Conclusion: This anime sucks balls as a psychological/strategic ... anime. Would've been better if they made it so you just have to feel it for yourself if who hates who and who's hiding a secret based on their current actions and dialogue.

Tomodachi Game is a psychological thriller anime reminiscent of Squid Game in its set up and presentation. Even the premise of trying to expose/break the game by snooping around the backing organization is shared between the two. What's bizarre is that Tomodachi Game was made first. Crazy, right? Based on the early 2022 release date, I was sure that Tomodachi Game was riding the coattails of Squid Game's success in the previous year, but I was actually mistaken! Tomodachi Game's manga was first released almost a decade before, in 2013.

Anyways, that doesn't really have anything to do with the quality of it. Though possibly innovative ... for its time as a manga, Tomodachi Game was no more than just good as an anime. Though the thriller element and high level mind games certainly reigned supreme in the show, I couldn't help but be bothered by the convenience of certain events. Obviously, coincidences need to occur for a plot to progress, but there's a fine line between what's believable and what isn't. Unfortunately, Tomodachi Game put forth great concepts and gimmicks at the expense of crossing that line. Of course, there's more to watch for in any anime than the reasonability of its progression (in fact, we don't care about it a lot of the time), so I still recommend Tomodachi Game for anyone seeking a thrilling mystery to indulge in for just a few hours.

I'm not really disappointed in this anime may be mediocre but it's okay and I. Still enjoy it with the mystery and thrillers on it but the story on it not that great and the flow of plot I'm not fan of it . With the sound it's okay with its mystery and cool op . And sound of character is okay and the info of character and I'm not really fan of other characters they all look Sus
But I like MC that look evil and manipulate not idiot MC who always carried by supporting cast

With these story I know this may be not ... fleshed out or not turned great example on past anime that like this . But I still enjoy the show in many ways I'm looking forward on secret that's will reveal on show

Tomodachi Game... People hyping it on every social media saying it's a masterpiece but personally, I find it so boring and lame. This review is from someone who didn't read the manga so it's all about what i think about the anime.

Story (4): Like I said, boring. Watchable, yes, but the story is very generic, very predictable and no thrill. For something that supposed to be thrilling and suspense, it failed big time.

Characters (4): Bland characters. Nothing stands out so far.

Art (4): Decent. I don't really look like the character designs they all look so simple. Visuals are decent at most.

Sound (4): ... The sound is okay i guess.

Enjoyment (4): I didn't enjoyed it but still a decent watch.

Overall (4): Not bad but not good either.

The core premise of Tomodachi Game is not awful: five friends find themselves playing a high-stakes game in order to pay off the debt of someone in the group. For a high stakes game anime the premise is pretty basic but could make for some interesting character backstories and theorization about their true intentions.

The execution of this premise, however, leaves much to be desired. The editing in the show is filled with over-dramatic cuts and edits to emphasize each character's devious face, conniving personality etc. rather than just letting their actions speak for themselves. This in particular is a major pitfall of the show. Namely, ... the show spoon-feeds emotions and information to the audience to the point some scenes become redundant. For instance, the show contains administration figures that provide commentary on the game and the players and ultimately serve a dual role by making them a stand in for the audience. In certain contexts that can be a helpful story-telling tool to provide more clarity on situations that are a bit vague or confusing. However, there are instances where they will spend several minutes discussing a unambiguous event that we just witnessed or an event that has already been given sufficient exposition. In cases such as these it just comes off as either 1) padding out the material or 2) the author does not trust the audience to make their own inferences and therefore must spell it out for them.

In another lazy attempt at adapting the manga to an anime format, the show will at times splatter text on-screen that provides details on the game rules or background information on newly introduced characters. In a manga format this type of long-text is fine since the reader can review the information at their own pace. However, in this anime adaptation this text will flash for about one second before transitioning to the next scene, leaving the viewer little to no time to review that information unless they go out of their way to pause the episode. Rather than trying to come up with a creative way to breakdown large swathes of text (ie character exposition, anime-only scenes) the show is lazy and just seems to copy and paste whole manga panels without regard as to whether this works in an anime format. It’s not even like these long batches of text are always needed. For instance, in some of the games Manabu will verbally discuss the rules that were previously quickly flashed on screen. This makes you wonder, if you’re just going to have one of the characters verbally review the rules anyways, what’s the point of adding the large swathes of text? This is one of the many bizarre manga to anime adaptation choices that were made for this show.

*Spoilers ahead*
*tw: sexual assault*

If there are any positives, it was that I was never really bored when watching Tomodachi Game. There’s some intrigue there in terms of the character backstories and their intentions and the origination of the game. In addition, while certainly not intended by the creators of the show, the edgy editing and cuts made for an unintentionally hilarious watch. If it was just these issues then I would recommend the show if you’re in the mood for an ironic watch. However, it is not just bad editing and storytelling that makes this show abysmal but also its mishandling of sexual assault. It is revealed in the show that Kokorogi, due to frequent bullying and subsequently needing to pay people to be friends with her, would date older men in exchange for money. This eventually leads to her having to pose for suggestive photos and almost being sexually assaulted. These types of storylines need to be handled delicately to avoid coming off as exploitative. Unsurprisingly, the show does not handle her character well. Leading up to her attempted assault the camera leers at Kokorogi’s body despite this being a horrific scene. A similar situation happens in the last episode of the series in which a group of guys cut open Kokorogi’s shirt to have her breasts nearly exposed. Her breasts remain exposed for most of this scene with little purpose other than to showcase how devious the villains in the scene are. I will give the show some credit that it doesn’t seem to use this scene for titilation, however, it seems to rely on violating Kokorogi for the sake of shock value. With this in mind, Tomodachi Game is no longer just a ridiculous high stakes gaming anime but one that attempts and fails to responsibly handle sensitive topics.

Entertaining for mostly the wrong reasons, Tomodachi Game leaves little room for any sort of recommendation.

SPOILER FRIENDLY REVIEW
Tomodachi game is like squid game x among us gone right. That's right, it's a story about a group of friends who struggle in a series of 'friendship' games to repay their debt and figure out who the imposter is. As the story unfolds, we are able to see characters choose between money and friends, revealing the influence of a capitalist society on human beings (especially young adults). I find the main character, Katagiri Yuuichi, very relatable to myself since despite his poor upbringing, he manages to become smart and handsome. Although I believe I am the reincarnation of Katagiri Yuuichi, I will ... try my best to be unbiased throughout this review.

Plot: 10/10
It was so good squid game and among us chose to copy its plot. The idea is so genius not even AOT can compete. As a manga reader, there are many unpredictable and complex plot twists which are explained leaving room for ZERO plot holes. It doesn't add any meaningless plot twists and the story remains consistent. It's hard to believe an anime such as Tomodachi Game can pull this off better than Death Note. I believe only people with high intellect such as myself can appreciate tomodachi game's incredible plot and storytelling.

Art: 10/10
Do I need to say anymore? LOOK AT MANABU-KUN how did the anime adaptation do him so well like I fell in love with him the moment he appeared on my screen.

Sound: 9/10
The opening and ending is very good. It is only episode 4 but no OST's have stood out to me yet. The sound has the potential to be 10/10 if it has a unique soundtrack playing in the back like fly me to the moon by squid game.

Characters: 10/10
Manabu-kun hard carries the characters. He is genuinely so funny and likeable. Without him, Tomodachi Game would never be this good. Every character has a unique backstory which explains their personalities and although it has only been 4 episodes, I have such a huge emotional attachment to Manabu-Kun. I don't know how I will live without seeing him animated after the 12 episodes are done.

Enjoyment: 10/10
I was kept at the edge of my seat the entire time without a single moment where I was like "damn this is so boring". I find myself trying to find the imposter the entire time and whenever my predictions and calculations are on point, I feel so smart. Definitely worth the watch.

Overall: 10/10
This anime gives me such a good escape from reality and if I did have tomodachis in real life, I would definitely try to play this game with them.

This is one of the most stacked seasons (imo) ever. It’s genuinely the first time where I can point out SEVERAL shows I can easily rate 9+: Kaguya S3, Koumei, Spy X Fam and Summertime Rendering. Tomodachi Game had the opportunity to be up there, but it fell short in so many ways.

After watching the first episode, I thought it’d be some edgy cringe shit so I did a quick scout of the manga to see if it was worth continuing. Lo and behold I end up catching up to the latest chapter overnight. That’s how good the source material is. But the anime? Yikes.

Quite ... frankly, it’s sad and a disgrace to the two mangaka behind Tomodachi Game (Manga). Everything you could possibly give points for/find good in the anime, is purely from how strong the source material is. If you want a better experience of the greatness that is Tomodachi Game, go read the manga.

So what went wrong with the anime? The main faults are two-fold.

Firstly, the animation sucks. The outlines aren’t very crisp/clean, movement is VERY stiff and janky, and faces are inconsistent as fuck (especially when they do shots where the characters aren’t the primary focus/dead-center). This kills a lot of the hype scenes from the manga since the art just doesn’t do it justice. Speaking of hype scenes, the 3D effects they add (falling feathers, shadowy tendrils, etc.) for Yuuichi’s dark moments just seem so edgy and cringe. Unlike other anime where the blending between 2D and 3D is more homogenous, these scenes in Tomodachi have a stark contrast which just makes the crappy animation stand out even more.

The second detractor is the pacing/storyboarding. God it’s awful. From skipping a lot of content which can make it easier for the viewer to follow (in an already dialogue/reading heavy series mind you) to horribly sequenced episodes for the sake of creating a “tense cliffhanger,” Tomodachi’s direction is subpar at best.

When I first heard about Tomodachi and saw the trailer, I was expecting a trainwreck shitty series because it would just be outright bad. Instead, I’m even more disappointed than I imagined because it’s a trainwreck shitty series DESPITE having so much potential and an amazing source material to boot. Pain peko.

Of many similar shows like Tomodachi Game, this show is one of the least offensive and with minimum focus on sexual factors.

Not putting too many complex genres is probably the best way to achieve immersion and enjoyment in this type of show. This is what the show has nicely done in these early episodes. They add something new in each episode in the form of the titular games. They subtly explore the personality in each interaction between characters and the game itself, which made kept me going this far.

The show is also visually appealing in a way that not only the animation help to amplify ... the dramatic effects, but the expressions, the gestures, and much little detail was also drawn in a way that expresses the story non-verbally. The near realistic art style might help on that point. Even though I might not remember the casts as that girl with starkly bright colored hair, as they all have somewhat natural hair colors, I'm more likely to remember those nasty facial expressions.

I have to say the opening is a hit. Nana Mizuki probably made the OP that much more memorable and helped set up the atmosphere for the show. The opening animation might have spoilers, but I might be just dumb that I don't think it isn't that obvious. The BGM pick is also fantastic. They made sure to put good distinctions even in the sound department, like when drama scenes happen.

Having no clear antagonist made this show more enjoyable. It kept my interest in each cast so I could gauge their motive, personality, etc. The character depth is yet to be known, and I honestly am worried. How will the group dynamic go from here? Will there be enough justification for these excessive layers of twists and folds? But, rather than thinking about whether they sounded realistic or not, I was instead amused by how they reacted. At least it made me understand their persona for now.

If nothing else, I can't wait to see the end of all this character development (or deterioration). Hopefully not as bad as that CGI mascot character. And no, I don't mind how he looked as much as how his character is, even though he's technically the one who narrates the story and reminds me of the story after each episode.

Would manga fans like this adaptation? I would say so. Having someone voice a scream, for example, enables another layer of immersion in the story. I can understand right away that Kokorogi, for another example, is the shy but cutesy character just by how the VA voiced her. Because I might just remember her as the sexual appeal of the show if I just look at her character design.

Whether someone who is not that familiar with Japanese culture can appreciate this show is another matter entirely, though. The show revolves around the darker parts of several unique sub-cultures that you most likely would only find in Japan. So I would understand if someone cannot enjoy it as much because the show implies that you comprehend the underlying premises.

Of course, I might read the manga later. Especially if the studio won't make a sequel. I think I would enjoy the series more because I can retrace all this drama back to the root again. And there's nothing wrong with just appreciating the show per episode and binging the anime or reading the manga later on.

Been enjoying this so far. Might even go far as pre-nominate it as my possible favorite of the season. If only I didn't get too invested and get disgusted once in a while...