Anime Expo Lite Reveals Inaugural Plans with Teaser for The World Ends With You

Anime Expo had to cancel its plans for this year because of the ongoing COVID-19 outbreak, but it seems like the annual convention has found a way to reach fans despite the pandemic. Anime Expo was announced to curious fans who've been waiting on details to drop about the event. Now, a press release detailing the lite event has gone public, and it went so far as to tease something about The World Ends With You.

For those who need to know about the event, Anime Expo Lite will be a free event taking place virtually from July 3 - 4 in Los Angeles. The event will be accessible to everyone for no cost, and it will feature content from industry giants like Crunchyroll, Viz Media, Pony Canyon, and more.

Currently, there is little information live about the event and what it will host. More info is said to be coming in the next weeks, so fans will not want to miss any announcements. That is unless they want to leave the CEO of The Society for the Promotion of Japanese Animation hanging.

"We are excited to be able to parlay the traditional Anime Expo into a virtual experience. Since 2017, AX has been live-streaming select panels as well as from the convention floor, so it is a natural transition for us to produce a virtual event. As everything in 2020 is different, we see a unique opportunity to be able to share our passion for Japanese pop culture not only with those that would have attended AX but now with any anime fan no matter where they live," Ray Chiang said in the event's press release.

"With our Anime Expo Lite line-up, we know fans will find plenty of events and special guests to entertain and keep them engaged."

To celebrate this event, Anime Expo has turned its planned 2020 program guide art into one for this lite convention. The artwork brings the mascots of Anime Expo into The World Ends With You, a Square Enix video game that is so very underrated. This colorful artwork has piqued curiosity by fans who are wondering if an anime could be announced for the franchise or if Square Enix is planning to remaster the game. After all, the game is rarely in the spotlight, so it is a bit odd for Anime Expo Lite to be spotlighting it like this.

What do you make of this new announcement? Could an anime be made of The World Ends With You? Let me know in the comments or hit me up on Twitter @MeganPetersCB to talk all things comics and anime!