The Brooklyn Museum's "Art of Manga" exhibit, running from October 3, 2026, to January 31, 2027, showcases the profound and often subtle ways manga has influenced various art forms, including video games. Curated by Nicole Coolidge Rousmaniere, the exhibition features works from influential mangaka such as Jiro Taniguchi, Rumiko Takahashi, Eiichiro Oda, and Hirohiko Araki, illustrating manga's pervasive reach across mediums.
Taniguchi's "Ice Age: Chronicle of the Earth" panel, depicting a cityscape reclaimed by nature, evokes visuals seen in post-apocalyptic games like "Nier Automata" and "The Last of Us." This connection highlights manga's early exploration of themes and aesthetics that would later become staples in game design. The exhibition emphasizes manga's ability to capture the zeitgeist of an era, a quality that resonates deeply with the dynamic nature of video games.
Hirohiko Araki's "Jojo's Bizarre Adventure" is prominently featured, with a large-scale composition titled "There is always a Traitor." Araki's distinctive, stylized art and supernatural themes draw clear parallels to the "Persona" RPG series. The visual similarities, such as character groupings on a bus, and shared mythological elements, suggest a direct lineage, though not officially confirmed by game developers. Both "Jojo's Bizarre Adventure" and the "Persona" series feature characters who can summon powerful entities, known as Stands in manga and Personas in the games.
Beyond "Jojo's," the influence of other mangaka is evident. Akira Toriyama, the late creator of "Dragon Ball," is credited with shaping the visual identity of Square Enix classics like "Dragon Quest" and "Chrono Trigger." His warm fantasy style and character archetypes seem to have informed the sensibilities of early role-playing games. Conversely, Kentaro Miura's dark fantasy epic "Berserk" has profoundly impacted the dark fantasy genre in games, serving as a muse for characters in the "Final Fantasy" series and influencing FromSoftware's titles such as "Dark Souls" and "Elden Ring."
Manga's influence extends to narrative and character development as well. Eiichiro Oda's "One Piece" has achieved global phenomenon status, amplified by its anime adaptation. The aspirational camaraderie of its Straw Hat Pirates has inspired game developers. Masayoshi Yokoyama, head of Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio, admitted that the cast of "Yakuza: Like a Dragon" was molded after the "One Piece" crew, with the protagonist Ichiban Kasuga serving as a parallel to Monkey D. Luffy. This illustrates how manga's narrative structures and character dynamics can serve as templates for game development.
Adding a meta-commentary on the intersection of manga and gaming, the exhibition entrance is flanked by "gashapon" (capsule toy) machines. These machines, whose mechanics have inspired numerous gacha games, represent a tangible link between manga culture and modern gaming. Rousmaniere noted the parallel between watching visitors select gashapon and observing streamers play gacha games, suggesting a shared fascination and the desire for tangible keepsakes.
The "Art of Manga" exhibit demonstrates that artistic influence flows freely across borders and mediums. From direct visual parallels in character design to the thematic underpinnings of entire game genres, manga's contribution to the landscape of video games is undeniable and continues to be explored.