Kadokawa Announces English Simulpub for Manga and Light Novels

by Aiimee
Aug 7, 2021 3:17 PM | 12 Comments

During the Virtual Crunchyroll Expo 2021 event on Saturday, Kadokawa Corporation (Kadokawa) announced that the company will begin English simulpublication of manga and light novels digitally to their Japanese releases. Kadokawa will release these simulpubs on the online eBook store Book☆Walker Global, as well as other online eBook outlets.

With the standard publication date for English manga translations being between six to ten months after licensing of the title, Kadokawa plans to speed up the simulpublishing to meet the needs of overseas readers wanting faster releases. The initiative will begin with the following seven manga titles, the first three chapters of which will be available for free between August 5 and September 1:

Kamigami ni Sodaterareshi Mono, Saikyou to Naru (A Boy Raised by Gods Will Be The Strongest)
Yuusha, Yamemasu (I'm Quitting Heroing)
Maseki Gourmet: Mamono no Chikara wo Tabeta Ore wa Saikyou! (Magic Stone Gourmet: Eating Magical Power Made Me The Strongest)
Imouto ni Konyakusha wo Yuzure to Iwaremashita: Saikyou no Ryuu ni Kiniirarete Masaka no Oukoku Nottori? (My Little Sister Stole My Fiancé: The Strongest Dragon Favors Me And Plans To Take Over The Kingdom?)
31-banme no Okisaki-sama (The 31st Consort)
Saikyou Degarashi Ouji no Anyaku Teii Arasoi (The Insipid Prince's Furtive Grab for The Throne)
Touhou Suichouka: Lotus Eater-tachi no Suisei (The Lotus Eaters, Drunk and Sober)

Furthermore, three light novel titles, Hige wo Soru. Soshite Joshikousei wo Hirou. (Higehiro: After Being Rejected, I Shaved and Took in a High School Runaway), Yuusha, Yamemasu: Tsugi no Shokuba wa Maoujou (I'm Quitting Heroing), and Saikyou Degarashi Ouji no Anyaku Teii Arasoi: Munou wo Enjiru SS Rank Ouji wa Koui Keishousen wo Kage kara Shihai suru (The Insipid Prince's Furtive Grab for The Throne) (official light novel titles to be determined), will also be released simultaneously by chapter this October. Kadokawa expects to release more than 100 titles in English in the near future.

Book☆Walker, founded in 2010 as a Kadokawa group subsidiary, has previously simulpublished manga in English with other subsidiary companies such as Yen Press, ComicWalker, and J-Novel Club, among others. Since its creation, Book☆Walker has published over 20,000 English translations of manga and light novels. Kadokawa plans to expand their digital simulpublishing to other platforms in the future.

Other common sites to find English simulpubs are comiXology and Kindle, featuring translations from major English localization companies such as VIZ Media LLC. (VIZ Media), Seven Seas Entertainment, and Kodansha Ltd. (Kodansha).

VIZ Media began English simulpublishing in January 2013 with the translation of Weekly Shounen Jump magazine on their digital store. Kodansha followed in April 2016 with their first simulpub of Shingeki no Kyojin (Attack on Titan) chapter 80 on comiXology and Kindle.

Kadokawa is a media conglomerate of the merged Kadokawa Corporation (founded as Kadokawa Shoten Publishing Co., Ltd. in 1945) and Dwango Co., Ltd. in October 2014. The company was known as Kadokawa Dwango Corporation until July 2019.

Kadokawa Digital Simulpub Twitter: @KADOKAWAdigipub
Kadokawa Digital Simulpub Facebook: @KADOKAWAdigipub
Book☆Walker Global official site: https://global.bookwalker.jp/

Source: Press Release

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12 Comments Recent Comments

This is HUGE.
There are more than a few LNs whose English translation is far behinds and takes too long to release between volumes, something more than the time between Japanese releases.

If they cut heavily on this waiting time and manage to make some of their translations catch up much faster... Mahouka and Rezero LNs would benefit TREMENDOUSLY.

Aug 15, 2021 2:52 PM by Playcool

direct from the source thats the way to do things and now things are looking up.

Aug 10, 2021 9:56 PM by Disapeared_Ghost

Still this is better then leavin the industry in the hands of people i dont like for translation.

Aug 10, 2021 6:32 AM by Gal3riel

It's the expansion of an outdated business model in my opinion. Subscription over ownership. It's too expensive to consume media in this way, especially if you factor in not actually having a physical product at the end of it. But until this business model is let go of, the subscription services will be sub-standard as the publishers look to protect sales by doing daft things like restricting chapter release etc.

Aug 9, 2021 2:37 AM by jrmr50

More than 100 titles expected to release? I will eat my hat, if Wild and Horned Hermit. (my favorite manga) is among them. I'll gladly reread that masterpiece with an official translation

Aug 8, 2021 4:42 PM by Kogasa-Tatara

even the manga and light novel industry are going mainstream

Aug 8, 2021 2:28 PM by deg

As someone who's used to reading the Japanese version, that Lotus Eaters logo looks so unnatural, but I'm sure I'll adjust. Either way, I'm so happy that it's finally being published in English officially.

I'll probably wait to see if they confirm a physical release before caving in and buying the English volumes though...

Aug 8, 2021 2:27 PM by Mirai_Kuromaru

They listened to us and appreciate us, we have to support them as they deserve. We are going to help manga/novels directly to JAPAN. I want a Japan anime publisher too :D

Aug 8, 2021 2:26 PM by jugador4

Touhou Lotus-Eaters?! Yo, let's gooooooooooooo!

I'm a bit disappointed (as someone who prefers physical volumes over digital-only) that a physical release doesn't seem to be in the cards, right now, but if the translation's as good as the official Forbidden Scrollery one, I'm fine with that sacrifice

Just like with Forbidden Scrollery, it seems "Touhou" is nowhere to be found in the English title? A bit weird, but whatever

Aug 8, 2021 2:22 PM by Kogasa-Tatara

Holy fucking shit, this is excellent news.

Aug 8, 2021 12:23 AM by TitanInsane

Eh idk I don't support digital on manga, light novels, or even American comics . so im not really excited.

Aug 7, 2021 4:06 PM by FabGinger13

Interesting. This is very good news!

Aug 7, 2021 3:31 PM by 024

Related Database Entries

Manga:	Yuusha, Yamemasu: Tsugi no Shokuba wa Maoujou, Yuusha, Yamemasu, Hige wo Soru. Soshite Joshikousei wo Hirou., Imouto ni Konyakusha wo Yuzure to Iwaremashita: Saikyou no Ryuu ni Kiniirarete Masaka no Oukoku Nottori?, 31-banme no Okisaki-sama, Maseki Gourmet: Mamono no Chikara wo Tabeta Ore wa Saikyou!, Touhou Suichouka: Lotus Eater-tachi no Suisei, Saikyou Degarashi Ouji no Anyaku Teii Arasoi, Kamigami ni Sodaterareshi Mono, Saikyou to Naru, Saikyou Degarashi Ouji no Anyaku Teii Arasoi: Munou wo Enjiru SS Rank Ouji wa Koui Keishousen wo Kage kara Shihai suru