ComicWalker, a new manga service and app by Japanese publisher Kadokawa, was announced on Monday and will launch on 22 nd March 2014.
The service will be available via PC and smartphone apps offering approximately 200 manga series – for free, with around 40 series translated into English and traditional Chinese available at launch. Kadokawa will continue to add more translated series over time when the service is live. The menu is being translated into other languages but whether those translations will be available before launch is unknown at this time.
Around 50 original series will be featured via the service which Kadokawa also plans to release under a new label in collected book form. 150past and present works will be available via the service, including such titles as:
Boku dake ga Inai Machi – Kei Sanbe
Non Non Biyori – Atto
Nobunaga the Fool – Eishi Ōzeki
Sgt. Frog (Keroro Gunso) – Mine Yoshizaki
Tonari no Seki-kun – Takuma Morishige
Past manga series will include those listed below and with a full-colour makeover:
Neon Genesis Evangelion – Yoshiyuki Sadamoto
Gundam: The Origin – Yoshikazu Yasuhiko
Features of the service will include the unique ability for users to create their own ‘Magazines’ by adding manga they wish to follow, and a feature that suggests new series to user’s based on their history. Kadokawa has noted that the service will host contests for ” ComicWalker Rookie Award ” and a” KanColle Comic Illustration Award “.
Until the service is actually live, we can’t truly know how accessible or ‘ Free ’ it will be to those outside of Japan, but with a good number of titles translated available at launch I am certainly excited. With ComicWalker being a service run by a Japanese company, we could see more currently publishing series from Japan, which is great and will force other companies to step up.
*As of this time it is unclear what platforms the service will be available for other than PC and IOS.
Source: ComicWalker , Anime News Network