16bit Sensation: Another Layer

Fall 2023 was the most stacked anime season we had in a very long time. Based on our titles this season, one might claim to say the same sentence, only to see how Uzumaki and Blue Lock have brought the scores down to a new low. Even amidst history being made last year thanks to Frieren overthrowing Full Metal Alchemist Brotherhood for that coveted number 1 spot, there was another title that served as that breath of fresh air we all had been waiting for.

16bit Sensation: Another Layer is a title not many of us were familiar with, despite it being the work of Wakaki Tamiki, the guy behind the critically acclaimed series The World God Only Knows. This mere fact was enough to have me on board with the title. But after getting to the last couple of episodes, I had to question myself and my surroundings since what I saw wasn't something I wanted to believe. It wouldn't be wrong to say that Ninja Kamui took some inspiration from 16bit Sensation: Another Layer, at least in the second half of its run. Let’s not leave you guys in the dark anymore, and with that being said, let me talk to you about 16bit Sensation: Another Layer!

An Anime Original That's Also not an Anime Original

Original anime shows are a hit or miss. At times, we have them giving rise to classics that just live on forever, while during others, they give birth to a show that we don't want to go on for even another episode. But 16bit Sensation: Another Layer isn't an anime original. Fans of the manga series just unsheathed their swords right after that sentence came out since the anime not only introduces a new protagonist but makes this new protagonist sort of ‘enter’ these visual novel dating sims right after opening the case in which the game comes in. Now, this Super Mario 64 setting sounds excellent and all, and it is since not only does the anime teleport Akisato Konoha, the protagonist and a massive fan of these video games to these ‘years’ in the past, but also showcases the whole process that goes into making these games. Now, I'm not huge into romantic visual novels; the only ones I like are the Phoenix Wright series, Fata Morgana, and puzzle-heavy visual novels, but watching the show, I could tell how both the studio and the creator had done their homework when it came to these titles.

References are made to the lore of these different visual novels, and if you grew up playing legendary stuff like Kanon and Clannad, you're in for a total treat. I can already imagine the smiles on your faces, and honestly, that alone is an excellent reason to pick up this show. Not to mention, the anime doesn't automatically equip her with the skillset required to complete the assigned tasks. You get to see stuff from the past and get educated about the different mechanisms and processes responsible for bringing these games to life, and that’s cool.

Overall, it's excellent, and one is okay with the new characters and the sort of anime 'original route' the series takes. That is until the last couple of episodes, where it does a total 180 and introduces stuff that wasn't necessary. Now, I don't want to spoil things or anything; even my saying that is a spoiler enough since a lot of you guys aren't going to pick up the show now, thanks to the PTSD that Ninja Kamui gifted us with. But who knows, you might watch the show just because of that, just to see how badly they butchered this rising star, and we couldn't have asked for more honestly!

Above Average Animation

No one here is expecting Ufotable-tier animation from a studio that almost none of us have ever heard about, right? If the word ‘Silver’ rings any bell here, you haven't been the best people out there! 16bit Sensation: Another Layer features an animation style that fits the whole theme of the show well. I think they've done an outstanding job when it comes to animating these different titles, and the fact that they were able to use the original names shows that they weren't thinking of doing a half-assed job from the get-go. Plus, the whole drawing, coloring, and making these pictures move frame by frame as the dialogue goes through really brings forth how things progress in a visual novel developing game studio, and if you're someone aiming to get into that industry, then by all means, watch this show and get yourself well acquainted with the system.

Plus, I love how they've added these video game-like pixelated shots here and there, and with a bunch of non-visual game references added in the show, you can't help but love it for the video game-heavy setting it brings to the table. Not to mention that the specific characters or frames they seem to work on in a particular episode bring back memories from one specific game in this genre. Even I could see it, despite not having played many of the games that propelled the visual novel industry to where it is today. Overall, the animation department is well-equipped.

Second Half?

I've said it a billion times already, but the way they did the show dirty in the second half needs to be studied to see what, where, and who is to blame here. At first, people only had issues with the show's pacing since things seemed to be moving either too fast or too slowly right after the first episode or two. While the anime soon diverted our attention from that fact by introducing this 'time travel' element, it only brought it all back during the second half of the series, where a bunch of unnecessary characters, story elements, and basically ‘unwanted additions’ to the show get introduced. The show doesn't seem to be the 16bit Sensation: Another Layer we've been watching all this time.

Now, that sure is disappointing and kills the possibility of another season anytime soon, with a reboot totally out of the question. But all we can do is enjoy this new anime's original direction from this adaptation and head on to the manga since the creator knows how to make the magic happen. I mean, the guy was behind 'Kaminomi' or The World God Only Knows, which was one of the series that introduced the entire genre of otaku culture, video game-obsessed dating sim legends, and we sure see a lot of them in modern shows now, do not we?

While Fall 2023 brought forth shows that kept us busy for quite a while, given how stacked the roster was. That very reason made these newer shows get sort of shoved away because of that hype and excitement. Well, now’s the time to pick up what you missed last year since there were many great titles, and this, indeed, is one of them. Getting to know what goes behind the scenes as far as the video game industry is concerned is always a treat, and the way the series ‘New Game’ showed it nearly a decade ago already made it clear that there was an audience for this setting that these creators had to explore.

But 16 bit takes it up a notch and ensures the viewer is on board with everything happening on the screen since not all of us are born in the 80’s or the 90’s. Times have changed, and nearly all that equipment has become a part of Mother Earth today. But that doesn’t mean we aren’t curious about how things operated in the past, right? The protagonist is excellent, and you can see her enthusiasm for these games, which is fantastic, in my opinion. Usually, these newer protagonists are annoying, and they think that is cool. As for the rating, I’d give it a solid 7. The latter half of the show left a bad taste in my mouth, and I know I won’t be able to forget that, just like I won’t be able to forget what happened with Ninja Kamui during the last couple of episodes. The manga is our last and best bet, and we’ve got to read it at any cost!