There are a lot of amazing anime that have been adapted from video games over the years. While these series mostly stay true to their origin, there are often a lot of variations to storytelling that give the narrative a fresh new take.
Nevertheless, anime based on some of the more popular video games is a great experience. It may not be a frame-by-frame representation of what you have played, but they do end up telling the same story in a different way.
Below is a list of some of the best anime which were adapted from popular video games.
5 best Anime adapted from video games that you should be watching right now
1) Danganronpa
Danganronpa is one of the more faithful anime adaptations that sticks pretty close to the original game content. However, they do make certain variations here and there to give it a fresh take and not make it a frame-by-frame copy.
However, while the first season of Danganronpa was something that even those who have not played the game could enjoy, this was not the same with season 2. Danganronpa season 2, which for some reason was called Danganronpa 3, adapted parts of the second game, but the overall story was original.
Unfortunately, the series also expects that you are familiar with the second game in order to understand the proceedings in season 2. So if you are familiar with this video game franchise then the anime series will feel nostalgic with something new to look forward to in season 2.
2) Cyberpunk Edgerunners
Cyberpunk Edgerunners is one of the best cyberpunk-themed anime of all time. Much of its success and popularity has to do with how it took the world design from CD Projekt Red’s Cyberpunk 2077 and gave it an original story.
The narrative in Cyberpunk Edgerunners takes place before the proceedings of the game. The anime follows David Martinez who chooses to live life as an outlaw after his mother gets killed in a drive-by shooting.
He becomes a black-market mercenary who slowly starts to lose his mind to cyber psychosis as he starts getting more implants. Cyberpunk Edgerunners has a melancholic ending which will play on your heartstrings.
It provides a deeper look into the underbelly of Night City and a fresh take on the world that Cyberpunk 2077 so masterfully created.
3) Gungrave
Not a lot of anime fans are aware that the Gungrave anime series is actually based on a video game. The franchise hasn’t exactly been that popular at the beginning. However, it did gain some notoriety over the years, with the very latest Gungrave G.O.R.E seeing positive reviews upon its release in 2022.
The very first game in the franchise revolves around the single story of a man looking to seek revenge after he was brought back from the dead. The anime works on this story quite a bit by providing a very emotional background to a very tragic tale of loss and betrayal.
While thhe overall narrative remains the same, it’s the way that Gungrave tells the story is that makes it one of the best revenge tales of all time. It’s easily one of the best anime adaptations of a video game.
4) God Eater
Video games around the monster-hunting genre usually do not get anime adaptations. This is because the story of a monster-hunting game is usually lacking. The biggest attractions it offers are the monster fights, as well as the incredible world design.
Hence, God Eater receiving an anime comes as quite a shock to monster-hunting veterans. As there is not much story to go on in the game apart from killing monsters and coming up with the best ways to slay those monsters, the God Eater anime has kept the story simple.
However, what the anime does pull off successfully is character development. The longer the narrative goes the more fleshed out the characters become.
The anime is able to create a range of memorable characters that audiences start to get more invested with every episode.
5) Sengoku Basara
Sengoku Basara getting its own anime series does not come as much of a surprise for fans of the video game. The series of games features historical characters from Japan’s Sengoku Era and gives them some of the most ridiculous, over-the-top abilities and weapons.
Hence, the Sengoku games already had the perfect formula of becoming an action anime based on the period. And much like the Gungrave franchise, the anime for Sengoku Basara is significantly more popular than the game itself.
Much of it has to do with how the Sengoku games are considered to be inferior versions of Koei Techmo’s Dynasty Warriors. In the hack-and-slash beat-em-up genre the Sengoku games were only able to garner a niche following.
