If you visit some otaku (“nerd”) sites, you’ve probably seen some so-called “Yukkuri shite ite ne” graphics that are made using ASCII characters. The expression is Japanese for “Take it slow/easy.”

Characters Marisa and Reimu from first-person shooter Project Shrine Maiden have appeared as ASCII art shouting a warm welcome, “Yukkuri shite ite ne!!!” At first, pics were submitted one after another at a new 2channel thread, and although there were some “trolls,” the phenomenon spread around 2channel and beyond when yukkuri pics were posted at a site called 2channel All ASCII Art Creator Project (Japanese: “2ch Zen AA Irasutoka Keikaku”) this February. Recently, other character versions and parody videos have been uploaded.

Yukkuri CGI is computer-generated imagery that transforms an anime character into a yukkuri pic. By entering the URL for an anime character image into a form, the face of the character in the picture is automatically recognized and converted into a yukkuri pic.

How about trying to change your favorite anime character into a yukkuri pic?

Yukkurizer　(Japanese)
 

This article has been created in collaboration with
Akiba Keizai Shimbun

Create your own 2D Girl (Akiba Today)