Hajime Katoki
Encyclopedia
is a popular Japanese mecha
designer. A member of the studio Sunrise
, he is highly noted for his work on the Gundam series
as well as his work on video games, such as the Virtual On
series and Policenauts
.
. He then worked in the OVA series Gundam 0083, where he designed the famous RX-78 GP03 Dendrobium Orchis
mobile weapon. His next big work was V Gundam, where he was the main mechanical designer, creating the main mobile suits Victory Gundam, V2 Gundam and the hefty V2 Assault Buster Gundam. After that, he worked in G Gundam, now in design of the evil mobile suits. He then worked in Gundam Wing on some minor mobile suits, but in Gundam Wing Endless Waltz he designed all of the mobile suits, and re-designed the Gundams with a more fantastic style, creating one of his most famous mechs: the XXXG-00W0 Wing Gundam Zero Custom. To correspond with these new designs, he also redesigned the 5 original Gundams from Gundam Wing, as a result, his redesign of Wing Gundam has become a popular model kit.
Katoki also has worked in Super Robot Wars
and Virtual On
video games, and in the Patlabor 2 movie. He also collaborates quite frequently with Bandai
, often doing touch-up designs for the Master Grade model kits and production of the Gundam fix figuration (G.F.F.)
series action figures.
In his art book Gundam Fix Katoki said, "Do people, like myself, spend time imagining what it would be like if Gundam robots were actually present on the streets of our cities? Are you sure you're not limiting yourself to the images that were offered in the animated series? One of the reasons that I fell in love with Gundam was that it excites me to imagine what it would be like if these machines actually existed, and I worry that other fans may be losing out..." He said he hopes his work will catch peoples' attention"...then people who had never before been drawn in by the magic of these giant robots may discover their attraction for the first time."
He was also involved in the color scheme design of Toyota Team Kraft's SC430 (#35, GT500) which participated in Super GT
seasons in 2006 and 2007. His colour scheme was later replaced by Gundam Exia-like colour scheme on July, 2007 (race 5 in 2007 season) as a promotion project of Mobile Suit Gundam 00
, one of the most recent Gundam Series.
Mecha
A mech , is a science fiction term for a large walking bipedal tank or robot, including ones on treads and animal shapes.-Characteristics:...
designer. A member of the studio Sunrise
Sunrise (company)
is a Japanese animation studio and production enterprise. It is a subsidiary of Namco Bandai Holdings. Its former name was Nippon Sunrise, and prior to that, Sunrise Studios...
, he is highly noted for his work on the Gundam series
Gundam
The is a metaseries of anime created by Sunrise studios that features giant robots called "Mobile Suits" ; usually the protagonist's MS will carry the name Gundam....
as well as his work on video games, such as the Virtual On
Virtual On
is a series of video games created by Sega AM-3 . The original series was first published for arcades in February 1995. The game features fast, action-oriented gameplay requiring quick reflexes...
series and Policenauts
Policenauts
is a cinematic adventure game with a hard science fiction storyline, written and directed by Hideo Kojima, and published by Konami. It was initially released for the PC-9821 computer platform in 1994, followed by remade versions for the 3DO in 1995, and the PlayStation and Sega Saturn in 1996...
.
Biography
Born in 1963, Katoki gained fame with his designs for the graphic novel Gundam SentinelGundam Sentinel
is a novel set in the Universal Century timeline of the Gundam universe, originally serialized in Model Graphix magazine between September 1987 and August 1988. Gundam Sentinel became a cult hit, due to its super-detailed mechanical designs and an intricate story by veteran writer Masaya Takahashi...
. He then worked in the OVA series Gundam 0083, where he designed the famous RX-78 GP03 Dendrobium Orchis
Gundam Development Project
The following are a list of mobile weapons that appeared in the Japanese OVA series Mobile Suit Gundam 0083: Stardust Memory, which is part of the Gundam franchise, as well as related media.-History of the Gundam Development Project models:...
mobile weapon. His next big work was V Gundam, where he was the main mechanical designer, creating the main mobile suits Victory Gundam, V2 Gundam and the hefty V2 Assault Buster Gundam. After that, he worked in G Gundam, now in design of the evil mobile suits. He then worked in Gundam Wing on some minor mobile suits, but in Gundam Wing Endless Waltz he designed all of the mobile suits, and re-designed the Gundams with a more fantastic style, creating one of his most famous mechs: the XXXG-00W0 Wing Gundam Zero Custom. To correspond with these new designs, he also redesigned the 5 original Gundams from Gundam Wing, as a result, his redesign of Wing Gundam has become a popular model kit.
Katoki also has worked in Super Robot Wars
Super Robot Wars
is a series of tactical role-playing video games produced by Banpresto, which is now a Japanese division of Namco Bandai. The main feature of the franchise is having a story that crosses over several popular mecha anime, manga and video games, allowing characters and mecha from different titles to...
and Virtual On
Virtual On
is a series of video games created by Sega AM-3 . The original series was first published for arcades in February 1995. The game features fast, action-oriented gameplay requiring quick reflexes...
video games, and in the Patlabor 2 movie. He also collaborates quite frequently with Bandai
Bandai
is a Japanese toy making and video game company, as well as the producer of a large number of plastic model kits. It is the world's third-largest producer of toys . Some ex-Bandai group companies produce anime and tokusatsu programs...
, often doing touch-up designs for the Master Grade model kits and production of the Gundam fix figuration (G.F.F.)
Gundam fix figuration
The Gundam FIX Figuration series of collectible figures was started based on the Gundam mechanical designs of Hajime Katoki and his 'Gundam FIX' illustration artbook and are released by Tamashii, a Bandai's characters based toys line...
series action figures.
In his art book Gundam Fix Katoki said, "Do people, like myself, spend time imagining what it would be like if Gundam robots were actually present on the streets of our cities? Are you sure you're not limiting yourself to the images that were offered in the animated series? One of the reasons that I fell in love with Gundam was that it excites me to imagine what it would be like if these machines actually existed, and I worry that other fans may be losing out..." He said he hopes his work will catch peoples' attention"...then people who had never before been drawn in by the magic of these giant robots may discover their attraction for the first time."
Super Robot Wars series
- 4th Super Robot Wars
- Super Robot Wars Gaiden: Masō Kishin - The Lord Of Elemental
- Shin Super Robot Wars
- Super Robot Wars F
- Super Robot Wars F Final
- Super Robot Wars Complete Box
- Super Robot Wars AlphaSuper Robot Wars Alpha, is part of the Super Robot Wars franchise, and was published for the PlayStation by Banpresto in 2000. Super Robot Wars Alpha is the initial game of the Alpha series, which spans the PlayStation and the PlayStation 2 platforms.-Summary:...
- Super Robot Wars Alpha For Dreamcast
- Super Robot Wars Alpha GaidenSuper Robot Wars Alpha Gaiden, for the PlayStation, is the first side-story in the Super Robot Wars Alpha series, continuing from Super Robot Wars Alpha. Super Robot Wars Alpha Gaiden, or simply, Alpha Gaiden, includes several rare series choices, such as After War Gundam X, Turn-A Gundam and Xabungle, all of which debut in...
- Super Robot Taisen: Original GenerationSuper Robot Taisen: Original Generationis a tactical role-playing game for the Game Boy Advance, developed and published by Banpresto in Japan, and later localized by Atlus in North America....
- 2nd Super Robot Wars Alpha2nd Super Robot Wars Alpha, for the PlayStation 2, is the third game in the Alpha series, continuing from Super Robot Wars Alpha and Super Robot Wars Alpha Gaiden. The 2nd Super Robot Wars Alpha, or simply Alpha 2, includes series debuts Brain Powerd, The King of Braves GaoGaiGar and Steel Jeeg...
- Super Robot Taisen: Original Generation 2Super Robot Taisen: Original Generation 2is a tactical role-playing game for the Game Boy Advance. It is the second Super Robot Taisen game that was officially released in North America....
- 3rd Super Robot Wars Alpha
- Super Robot Wars Original GenerationsSuper Robot Wars Original Generationsis a tactical role-playing game for the PlayStation 2. Original Generations is a remake of the two Original Generation games for the Game Boy Advance and is intended to celebrate the Super Robot Wars series' 15th anniversary...
- Super Robot Wars Original Generation: The AnimationSuper Robot Wars Original Generation: The Animationis a 3-episode OVA that takes place after the events of Super Robot Taisen: Original Generation 2, a Game Boy Advance game featuring only original characters and mechs created by Banpresto for the Super Robot Wars franchise.-Synopsis:...
- Super Robot Wars Original Generation: Divine WarsSuper Robot Wars Original Generation: Divine Warsis a Japanese anime series, that retells the events from the Super Robot Taisen: Original Generation game, a game featuring only original characters and mechs created by Banpresto for the Super Robot Wars franchise. A sequel titled began airing on the October 1, 2010.-Summary:The anime is not a...
- Super Robot Wars Original Generation GaidenSuper Robot Wars Original Generation Gaidenis a tactical role-playing game, and direct sequel to Super Robot Wars Original Generations, for the PlayStation 2. The bonus segments of Original Generations, entitled Original Generation 2.5: Unified Wisdom, was regarded as a preview for Original Generation Gaiden...
Gundam series
- Gundam SentinelGundam Sentinelis a novel set in the Universal Century timeline of the Gundam universe, originally serialized in Model Graphix magazine between September 1987 and August 1988. Gundam Sentinel became a cult hit, due to its super-detailed mechanical designs and an intricate story by veteran writer Masaya Takahashi...
- Gundam Sentinel 0079 (unofficial series)
- Mobile Suit Gundam 0083: Stardust MemoryMobile Suit Gundam 0083: Stardust Memoryis a 13-episode anime OVA series set in the Gundam universe. The first volume containing two 30-minute episodes was released in Japan on May 23, 1991. Subsequent volumes, containing one 30-minute episode each, followed every one or two months; the final volume went on sale on September 24, 1992...
- Mobile Suit Gundam 0083: The Last Blitz of Zeon
- Mobile Suit Victory GundamMobile Suit Victory Gundam, is a 1993 Japanese science fiction anime television series. It consists of 51 episodes, and was directed by Gundam creator Yoshiyuki Tomino. The series was first broadcast on TV Asahi and later by the anime satellite television network, Animax, across Japan and later its respective networks...
- Mobile Fighter G GundamMobile Fighter G GundamMobile Fighter G Gundam, known in Japan as , is a Japanese animated television series directed by Yasuhiro Imagawa . Created to commemorate the 15th anniversary of the franchise in 1994, it is the first of the Gundam series to be set in an alternate continuity from the original "Universal Century"...
- Mobile Suit Crossbone GundamMobile Suit Crossbone Gundamis a six volume manga written by Yoshiyuki Tomino and illustrated by Yuichi Hasegawa.-Overview:Crossbone takes place ten years after Mobile Suit Gundam F91, and multiple characters from that movie return as main characters within the manga. The manga has never been officially distributed outside of...
- Gundam Fix
- New Mobile Report Gundam Wing
- Mobile Suit Gundam: The 08th MS TeamMobile Suit Gundam: The 08th MS Teamis an original video animation anime series in the Gundam franchise. Released from January 25, 1996, to April 25, 1999, the 11-episode series details the adventures of an Earth Federation Space Force ground unit during the One Year War - specifically before the original 1979 Gundam series and into...
- New Mobile Report Gundam Wing: Operation Meteor
- New Mobile Report Gundam Wing: Endless Waltz
- Gundam EvolveGundam Evolve, also known as Mobile Suit Gundam Evolve, is a series of short films set in the different timelines of the Gundam series. Originally there were only five Evolve episodes, produced from 2001 to 2003, Bandai started to create new Evolve episodes in 2004...
(Episode 4 and 7) - Superior Defender Gundam ForceSuperior Defender Gundam Forceis a Japanese anime series. The scenario was created by Yūichi Abe.-Overview:A Japan/America co-production, SD Gundam Force initially aired on Cartoon Network in the U.S...
- Mobile Suit Gundam MS IGLOOMobile Suit Gundam MS IGLOOis a series of CGI feature short films of the popular Gundam meta-series. The series' storyline takes place during the One Year War of the Universal Century. The first under the main title is , which was exclusively shown at Bandai Museum in Matsudo, Japan but has seen a limited release on DVD,...
- Mobile Suit Gundam UnicornMobile Suit Gundam Unicornis a novel by popular Japanese author Harutoshi Fukui . The novel takes place in Gundam's Universal Century timeline. Character and mechanical designs are provided by Yoshikazu Yasuhiko and Hajime Katoki, respectively...
- Master Grade
- RX-78-2 Gundam Ver.Ka
- XXXG-01W Wing Gundam Ver.Ka
- RB-79 Ball Ver.Ka
- XM-X1 Crossbone Gundam X-1 Ver.Ka
- RX-0 Unicorn Gundam Ver.Ka
- MSN-06S Sinanju Ver. Ka
- LM312V04 Victory Gundam Ver. Ka
Virtual On series
- Cyber Troopers Virtual-OnCyber Troopers Virtual-Onwas released in arcades and for Sega Saturn and PC, all in both America and Japan. There were actually two PC versions released, a normal version for North America and a 3D accelerated version for Japan. There were also two-player online versions of the game released in America and Japan for the...
- Cyber Troopers Virtual-On One Man Rescue
- Cyber Troopers Virtual-On Oratorio TangramCyber Troopers Virtual-On Oratorio Tangramis a 1998 Japanese Sega Model 3 arcade game that was later ported to the Sega NAOMI arcades and then later for the Dreamcast home console in both Japan in 1999 & America in 2000 . Oratorio Tangram is a sequel to the 1995 video game Cyber Troopers Virtual-On: Operation Moongate...
- Cyber Troopers Virtual-On Fragmentary Passage
- Cyber Troopers Virtual-On ForceCyber Troopers Virtual-On Forceis a 3D Mecha fighting game developed by Hitmaker and published by Sega. It was released in Japanese arcades only on the Sega Hikaru arcade system board in 2001. Following its initial release, there was no home console port of the game due to the Arcade Board's superior graphical capabilities...
- Cyber Troopers Virtual-On MarzCyber Troopers Virtual-On Marzwas released exclusively on the PlayStation 2 in North America and Japan, with no European release. Marz is designed on the basic gameplay rules of Virtual-On Force, and uses most of the assets from Force, ranging from the stages down to the virtuaroids. It can be considered a spiritual home...
Other works
- Patlabor: The Movie 2Patlabor: The Movie 2is a 1993 Japanese anime film directed by Mamoru Oshii, who also directed Patlabor: The Movie. The movie has taken some liberties from being a mecha-themed movie in theme to a political-themed one with domestic and international issues that the Japanese government had faced during the 20th century...
- WXIII: Patlabor the Movie 3WXIII: Patlabor the Movie 3is a 2001 Japanese animated science-fiction/thriller film chief directed and storyboarded by Fumihiko Takayama, directed by Takuji Endō, written by Miki Tori based on the concept by Headgear, animated by Madhouse and produced by Bandai Visual and Tohokushinsha....
- Sgt. FrogSgt. FrogSgt. Frog, known in Japan as , is a manga series by Mine Yoshizaki. It was later serialized into a TV anime series directed by Junichi Sato. Both the anime and manga are comedies that follow the attempts of a platoon of frog-like alien invaders to conquer Earth...
(Episode 38 and 73) - Chogekijyouban Kerorogunso 2: Shinkai no Princess dearimasu! (also known as Sgt. Frog The Super Movie 2)
- The CockpitThe Cockpit (film)is a World War II anthology film based on Leiji Matsumoto's Battlefield manga. The animated shorts are written and directed by Yoshiaki Kawajiri, Takashi Imanishi and Ryousuke Takahashi....
- XardionXardionXardion is an action platformer video game where the player controls robots with different skills in order to defeat the enemy and reach goals.- Story :...
- Welcome to the N.H.K.Welcome to the N.H.K.is a Japanese novel written by Tatsuhiko Takimoto, with a cover illustration by Yoshitoshi ABe, and was published by Kadokawa Shoten in Japan on January 28, 2002. The novel was first published in English by Tokyopop on October 9, 2007...
(Episode 24) - Gradius IIGradius IIis a horizontally-scrolling shooter originally released for the arcades in Japan in . It is the sequel to original Gradius and was succeeded by Gradius III. Ports of Gradius II were released for the Family Computer, PC-Engine Super CD-ROM², and X68000 in Japan...
(X68000 version) - PolicenautsPolicenautsis a cinematic adventure game with a hard science fiction storyline, written and directed by Hideo Kojima, and published by Konami. It was initially released for the PC-9821 computer platform in 1994, followed by remade versions for the 3DO in 1995, and the PlayStation and Sega Saturn in 1996...
(mechanical designs for the EMPS mecha) - Super Robot Spirit
- Real Robots Final Attack
- Super Hero Sakusen
- Composite Ver. Ka
- Z-01Z Lancelot Albion Ver.Ka
- Gurren Lagann Ver.Ka
- Temjin Ver.Ka
- PTX-EX Exbein
He was also involved in the color scheme design of Toyota Team Kraft's SC430 (#35, GT500) which participated in Super GT
Super GT
The Super GT series, formerly known as the All-Japan Grand Touring Car Championship or JGTC , is a grand touring car race series promoted by the GT-Association...
seasons in 2006 and 2007. His colour scheme was later replaced by Gundam Exia-like colour scheme on July, 2007 (race 5 in 2007 season) as a promotion project of Mobile Suit Gundam 00
Mobile Suit Gundam 00
is an anime TV series, the eleventh incarnation of Sunrise's long-running Gundam franchise consisting of two seasons. It is directed by Seiji Mizushima and written by Yōsuke Kuroda, and features character designs by Yun Kōga. The twenty-five episode season was officially announced by Sunrise...
, one of the most recent Gundam Series.