The Tower of DRUAGA Special Event
BOST TV’s exclusive coverage of the The Tower of DRUAGA Special Event.
A promotional event was held on 9th March 2008 for GONZO ROSSO’s highly anticipated Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing (MMORPG) game The Tower of Druaga -the Recovery of BABYLIM-, and its animation offering The Tower of Druga -the Aegis of URUK-, produced by animation studio GONZO. Both works are based on NAMCO BANDAI Games Inc.’s classic THE TOWER OF DRUAGA, and the animation, The Tower of Druaga -the Aegis of URUK- will tell of the happenings that take place 80 years after that of the original game.
Attending the event were producer Taichi Hashimoto as well as seiyuu (voice actors) KENN and Fumiko Orikasa who will be voicing the hero and heroine Jil and Kaaya of the anime respectively.
In the legend, the hero, Gilgamesh scaled the Tower and defeated the monster in his bid to save his beloved, Ki. The anime tells of how the Tower has once more returned, housing as well as attracting people from all over in their quest for its hidden treasures, which legend has it, lies at the very top of the Tower with the power to grant its user anything their heart desires. The story revolves around the main character Jil (KENN), a young knight with the help of Kaaya (Fumiko Orikasa) an oracle, as well as his group of companions and their rivals in their quest up the Tower.
In a short rundown of the characters in the anime, lead seiyuu KENN revealed that he sometimes shared a similar trait with his character. “There are times when like Jil, I have the motivation to do something but fail to match up physically. However I feel that it is from there that we as people grow.”
Other characters in his team include the heroine Kaaya (Fumiko Orikasa), a young oracle with a hidden secret, Ahmey (Risa Hayamizu), the only experienced climber in the team, Melt (Hozumi Goda), an impecunious aristocrat cum magician and Coopa (Minori Chihara), his attendant.
Characters in the rivaling team include Neeba (Takahiro Sakurai), a young warrior with incredible skills known among some as ‘Neeba the Dragon Slayer’, Fatina (Yui Horie), a materialistic magician, Kally, (Akira Ishida), a scout and Utu (Hiroki Yasumoto), a gentle and rather witty warrior.
When asked, Fumiko Orikasa commented that voice recording for the animation has just started and so there are many other seiyuu they have yet to meet. However the mood in the studio is generally light . She also revealed that they commonly discussed topics regarding KENN’s youthfulness.
Following a short preview of the anime was the game segment where 3 online contestants were given the opportunity to play the online RPG game with the guests in an actual online demo. Both guests admitted to having little experience in online game playing but expressed excitement in being able to have the opportunity to play with fans online.
During the game, both players were being assigned to playing in different places; KENN being in the tower with the 3 contestants while Fumiko Orikasa was assigned to fight the slimes that appeared outside the tower. Being inexperienced, she had some difficulty in fighting off the slimes and had to seek help from KENN and the other players. Having defeated the slimes, the game segment then came to a conclusion.
Speaking about the game, KENN expressed that he enjoyed himself immensely and that it was great that people from all over the world are able to play together in their quest to achieve a common goal. Fumiko Orikasa on the other hand commented on the kindness of the people who helped her during the game, leading her to feel very protected.
Attendees were then treated to a video message from the group Muramasa☆, who sang the opening theme followed by a live performance of the anime’s ending theme which is performed by KENN.
Before parting, all three guests commented on their past experiences with the original game and expressed hope that audiences will support both the new version of it as well as the soon to be aired animation.
