Earlier this year, Sentai Filmworks acquired the license to release the anime adaptation of the Higurashi visual novels in North America. While we were left in the dark about when it would arrive, several online retailers claim it will come very soon.
The license originally belonged to Funimation, who ceased working on localisation after the first season and allowed the license to expire back in 2011. Perhaps due to the renewed hype following Manga Gamer’s Steam release of the visual novels, Sentai saw fit to give a similar treatment to this neglected cult classic. It will be interesting to see if the later seasons come with an option for English voices, considering its quality was a source of much debate back in the day and all the original actors have aged quite a bit since.
Several retailers, such as Rightstuf and Archonia, now have pre-orders up for the first season, which will be released as a collection on DVD and blu-ray. The expected date for the release is 15-3-2016, but strangely enough no mention of this can be found on Sentai’s own site nor do they have the item listed in their own store.
We have reached out to Sentai Filmworks for confirmation.
