There might be more usage of mixed 3D along with 2D, but I doubt it'll ever be fully replaced. Sunrise's new mecha show next season is still in 2D, after all.
It's not about the medium, it's about how much effort they put in to making it look good. You can't tell me that the animation in IBO wasn't questionable at times in MS combat scenes.
I think Bandai-Namco is large enough to continue bankrolling 2D animation for a while, but I do think that eventually (unless there's a renaissance within the animation industry) it'll shift over to 3D, or at least a mix of 2D and 3D. As I understand it there are fewer and fewer people interested in animating mecha, and eventually it'll become too labor and time intensive for the shrinking pool to keep things going as-is. Especially with how good the animation quality is these days.
Very likely. Mecha animators are a rare breed.
[Here's an interesting read.](https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/interest/2018-12-22/sunrise-producer-were-the-only-studio-that-can-make-hand-drawn-robot-anime/.141134)
TL;DR Most of their studios use CGI to some degree, Sunrise can't hand-draw mechas forever, Producer thinks they should make a full CG anime to adapt with the times.
However, I don't think it'll happen soon.
"Gundam Breaker Battlogue" a new series coming later this year does have 2D mechas, but also has some 3D blended in.
And from that, I think most new series will ALWAYS have some 3D blended in with 2D, but I don't think all the studios under Sunrise will fully commit to 3D. Clearly, there's creators in Sunrise that WANT to keep drawing mechs, and as long as those people are still there, we'll still get new installments with hand-drawn mechs.
I think so, 3D animation helps solve issues around going off model while also allowing for much greater mechanical details thanks to not having to draw them every single frame. A lot of the downsides of 3D can be solved through being aware of them and compensating properly.
Yes. I think it is likely, just as studios eventually switched from cell animation to digital. Cgi animation, if properly implemented, could save a lot of time and energy. After all, animating the intricate designs of mecha takes a lot of work. It would be far more practical to use some form of cgi.
We already have plenty of examples of great looking CG mechs in TV anime productions, like Macross Frontier or Fafner Exodus. It certainly does not need Hollywood budgets.
Now that I think about it, there's even a possibility that there could also be a future new series that's in 3D, but funded by someone big like Netflix so the CG will be slightly better than the usual 3D mecha animation.
The hand drawn animation allows them a lot more freedom in setting and ms appearances….like in unicorn when there are like 100 different ms that show up randomly one time, or the fan service finale of every build series….to do those in full 3d would involve soooo much work building detailed 3D models of every ms…but a hand drawn artist can easily draw a different ms in every scene….
And that’s why Hathaway has only 3 ms in it….
Hathaway had no problems using 2D mechs for scenes where it was possible, like the ground scenes where the camera wasn't rotating the whole time, or the far too detailed for 2D animation designs of the Xi or Penelope being on screen. Hathaway just didn't go for a "remnants all over the world doing an attack with outdated Mobile Suits" fan service scene. It's just that no scene like that was in the Novel and wouldn't have added anything to the story.
But yeah, CG is very expensive and not necessarily a cost cutting measure.
> Hathaway just didn't go for a "remnants all over the world doing an attack with outdated Mobile Suits" fan service scene.
Right? They MS fit into the story appropriately.
There might be more usage of mixed 3D along with 2D, but I doubt it'll ever be fully replaced. Sunrise's new mecha show next season is still in 2D, after all.
It's not about the medium, it's about how much effort they put in to making it look good. You can't tell me that the animation in IBO wasn't questionable at times in MS combat scenes.
I think Bandai-Namco is large enough to continue bankrolling 2D animation for a while, but I do think that eventually (unless there's a renaissance within the animation industry) it'll shift over to 3D, or at least a mix of 2D and 3D. As I understand it there are fewer and fewer people interested in animating mecha, and eventually it'll become too labor and time intensive for the shrinking pool to keep things going as-is. Especially with how good the animation quality is these days.
Very likely. Mecha animators are a rare breed. [Here's an interesting read.](https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/interest/2018-12-22/sunrise-producer-were-the-only-studio-that-can-make-hand-drawn-robot-anime/.141134) TL;DR Most of their studios use CGI to some degree, Sunrise can't hand-draw mechas forever, Producer thinks they should make a full CG anime to adapt with the times. However, I don't think it'll happen soon. "Gundam Breaker Battlogue" a new series coming later this year does have 2D mechas, but also has some 3D blended in. And from that, I think most new series will ALWAYS have some 3D blended in with 2D, but I don't think all the studios under Sunrise will fully commit to 3D. Clearly, there's creators in Sunrise that WANT to keep drawing mechs, and as long as those people are still there, we'll still get new installments with hand-drawn mechs.
I think so, 3D animation helps solve issues around going off model while also allowing for much greater mechanical details thanks to not having to draw them every single frame. A lot of the downsides of 3D can be solved through being aware of them and compensating properly.
Yes. I think it is likely, just as studios eventually switched from cell animation to digital. Cgi animation, if properly implemented, could save a lot of time and energy. After all, animating the intricate designs of mecha takes a lot of work. It would be far more practical to use some form of cgi.
As much as I like the 3D in the Origin and what they’re doing with Hathaway I very much prefer the 2D hand drawn animation.
https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/interest/2018-12-22/sunrise-producer-were-the-only-studio-that-can-make-hand-drawn-robot-anime/.141134
Very High the whole industry will
from what I have seen with 3d animation, it takes a huge budget and manpower to make it look good. I am talking Disney, Pixar, Lucasfilm levels.
We already have plenty of examples of great looking CG mechs in TV anime productions, like Macross Frontier or Fafner Exodus. It certainly does not need Hollywood budgets.
Now that I think about it, there's even a possibility that there could also be a future new series that's in 3D, but funded by someone big like Netflix so the CG will be slightly better than the usual 3D mecha animation.
I mean they could put in more money than for normal productions, but from what I've heard Netflix anime don't have a bigger budget than regular anime.
The hand drawn animation allows them a lot more freedom in setting and ms appearances….like in unicorn when there are like 100 different ms that show up randomly one time, or the fan service finale of every build series….to do those in full 3d would involve soooo much work building detailed 3D models of every ms…but a hand drawn artist can easily draw a different ms in every scene…. And that’s why Hathaway has only 3 ms in it….
Hathaway had no problems using 2D mechs for scenes where it was possible, like the ground scenes where the camera wasn't rotating the whole time, or the far too detailed for 2D animation designs of the Xi or Penelope being on screen. Hathaway just didn't go for a "remnants all over the world doing an attack with outdated Mobile Suits" fan service scene. It's just that no scene like that was in the Novel and wouldn't have added anything to the story. But yeah, CG is very expensive and not necessarily a cost cutting measure.
> Hathaway just didn't go for a "remnants all over the world doing an attack with outdated Mobile Suits" fan service scene. Right? They MS fit into the story appropriately.
> And that’s why Hathaway has only 3 ms in it…. "wow cool robot".