Chaos;Child (TV series)

Production and release

The anime adaptation of the video game Chaos;Child was handled by Silver Link, with Masato Jinbo directing and also overseeing series composition. Kazuyuki Yamayoshi served as chief animation director and adapted the game’s character designs for the screen. Takeshi Abo, who also worked on the game’s soundtrack, composed the music alongside Onoken. The opening theme, "Uncontrollable," was performed by Kanako Itō, and the ending theme, "Chaos Syndrome," by Konomi Suzuki. Most of the voice actors from the game returned for their roles, with new actors cast for additional characters.

Chiyomaru Shikura, the head of the company that developed the game, initially wanted the series to run for two cours, similar to the Steins;Gate anime, but business limitations made that impossible, so it was produced as a single cour. This shorter episode count meant the branching character routes from the game could not be included. Shikura specifically mentioned wanting to adapt the Sumo Sticker giant and the appearance of Chaos;Head protagonist Takumi from Hana’s route. The series was first announced in March 2015 and premiered on AT-X on January 11, 2017, as a one-hour special. It also aired on Tokyo MX, Sun TV, Chiba TV, TVK, TVS, KBS, and BS11. Crunchyroll streamed the show worldwide outside Asia, and Funimation began releasing an English dub on January 31, 2017. Kadokawa Corporation planned to release the series on DVD and Blu-ray in Japan across six volumes, from March 24 to August 25, 2017, with the first volume including an audio drama. Singles for the opening and ending themes came out on January 25 and February 22, 2017, respectively. To promote the anime and the spin-off game Chaos;Child Love Chu Chu!!, the original Chaos;Child game received a budget-priced re-release in March 2017. After the twelfth and final episode aired, a thirteenth episode based on the "Silent Sky" ending was announced and screened in Japanese theaters from June 17 to June 30, 2017.

Reception

Richard Eisenbeis of Anime Now called the series his most anticipated of the season, curious about its handling of a branching story. Bamboo Dong, Paul Jensen, Rebecca Silverman, and Theron Martin at Anime News Network reviewed episodes 0 and 1. Dong did not expect a good ending but appreciated the Chaos;Head-like visuals and atmosphere. Jensen felt the intended dread failed due to excessive information. Silverman found episode 1 bland except for some sequences but worth watching further. Martin thought the story moved too fast, weakening character motivations, and while he enjoyed visuals and music, he found the character design attractive but unoriginal. Anime Now included Chaos;Child on a list of five "must-watch" anime of the season, citing high tension, weirdness, and character complexity.