Kept You Waiting, Huh, Dattebayo?
Anime has slowly but surely taken the Western world by storm, and with good reason. Whereas traditional live-action television is firmly rooted in realism, and American cartoons largely relegated to non-committal filler for Saturday time-blocks, Japanese animation offers something radically different. With its outlandish premises, superpowered protagonists, and serialized episodes built around narrative arcs, anime has captivated a generation of millenials hungry for stories of young’uns that “dream big” and “shoot for the stars.”
Unfortunately, anime has hardly had the same success within the world of video games. For every half-decent adaptation out there, such as the recent Dragon Ball FighterZ, there are about a billion half-assed tie-ins that fail to capture the essence of their source material. From Jump Force to One Piece: World Seeker, anime games have let even the most ardent of fans down, time and time again.
Thankfully, where these anime adaptations have failed, other “traditional” video games have picked up the slack. Whether it be a dark, lore-heavy Metroidvania, a colorful brawler with match-three elements, or a role-playing epic filled with magic and exotic locales, modern games are brimming with bold ideas and unique premises befitting of many of today’s most popular anime shows. While it might not be the same as playing an official licensed anime title, odds are that many of your favorite Japanese television series have a shockingly similar equivalent in the realm of gaming.
Here’s just a small sampling of great video games for anime fans:
Like Food Wars? Play Battle Chef Brigade
What Is Food Wars?
When Food Wars began airing back in 2015, it made headlines for its raunchy take on cooking competitions. Yet regardless of whether you love or you hate the show’s heavy-handed “foodgasms,” there’s a surprisingly serious narrative underpinning all the flashy grilling and frying. Soma is a likeable protagonist who never backs down from a challenge, and his commitment to both his cooking and his friends — including standoffish rival Erina — makes for a compelling story that tugs at the heartstrings.
What Is Battle Chef Brigade?
Battle Chef Brigade is a 2017 indie title developed by Trinket Games and published by Adult Swim Games. The game stars a young girl, Mina, who leaves home to attend a culinary institution in hopes of becoming a recognized “Brigadier.” As part of her trials, Mina must compete against other chefs in head-to-head battles to see who can serve the most impressive dish to a panel of judges. In an interesting twist, however, Mina must hunt and gather all the ingredients for her dishes herself. Equal parts match-three puzzler (for the cooking) and side-scrolling beat ’em up (for everything else), Battle Chef Brigade takes two unlikely genres and mashes them up for one unforgettable experience.
Why They’re Soulmates
Even if good cooking games weren’t hard to come by, Battle Chef Brigade would still be the perfect fit for Food Wars. Both feature a likable, young protagonist who dreams big and refuses to back down. Both focus on school settings, with intense competitions and heated rivalries at the center of the experience. Heck, Battle Chef Brigade even employs its own gorgeous 2D art, reminiscent of Japanese animation. More than anything, though, BCB offers that same thrilling sense of victory Soma must feel whenever he wins a nail-biting shokugeki. For that alone, you’d be hard-pressed to find a better equivalent anywhere else in gaming.
Like Made in Abyss? Play Hollow Knight
What Is Made in Abyss?
Made in Abyss took the world by storm when it aired in summer 2017. The show depicts a fictional harbor city that encompasses a massive pit, known simply as the Abyss. Many adventurers have attempted to explore the Abyss in search of wealth, knowledge, and glory, but only a select few — the White Whistles — have ever made it down to the pit’s deepest and darker layers. One day, Riko, daughter of famed White Whistle Lyza the Annihilator, embarks on a journey into the Abyss in search of her mother. Yet, despite the show’s deceptively cheerful veneer, some truly harrowing terrors lie in wait for Riko in the depths of the Abyss…
What Is Hollow Knight?
Hollow Knight, developed by Team Cherry, is a sprawling 2D action-adventure game influenced by the likes of Super Metroid and Dark Souls. As a small, silent knight, players must navigate the labyrinthine corridors and passageways of Hallownest — an underground, once-thriving kingdom that has since fallen into ruin and decay. Over the course of Hollow Knight’s 30- to 40-hour campaign, players will explore forgotten cities; do battle against formidable knights, insects, and monsters; and find powerful upgrades that will let them descend further into the dark depths of Hallownest.
Why They’re Soulmates
Aside from the general premise of descending into the darkness in search of answers, Hollow Knight and Made in Abyss share other stark similarities. Hallownest and the Abyss are both lost civilizations — ancient people once roamed these mysterious lands, but the earth has since been reclaimed by nature and its various bottom-dwellers. Still, this has not stopped eager adventurers and settlers from exploring the lands, charting new maps, and attempting to uncover the earth’s many secrets. Hollow Knight and Made in Abyss both also tackle some heavy themes — namely the cycle of life and death — despite their visually cute aesthetics. Make no mistake: Neither of these experiences are for the faint of heart.
Like One Piece? Play Dragon Quest VIII
What Is One Piece?
I’m sure if you’re reading this, you’re familiar with One Piece, but I’ll indulge nevertheless. One Piece is one of the most influential anime in Japanese history. An adaptation of the best-selling manga, penned by the legendary Eiichiro Oda, One Piece is an epic story of a pirate crew in search of the show’s namesake treasure. In serialization since 1999, the One Piece anime has spanned over 900 episodes, offering tantalizing glimpses into exotic lands and countless hours of gratifying fights and comic relief. With its unparalleled worldbuilding, beautiful music, and incredibly realized characters, One Piece is a tale for the ages — and one that shows no signs of slowing down anytime soon.
What Is Dragon Quest VIII?
Dragon Quest, much like One Piece, is a legendary, best-selling franchise in Japan and abroad. Developed and published by Square Enix, the Dragon Quest series is a long-running line of RPGs featuring epic stories, exotic lands, and dynamic characters. Compared to its sister franchise, Final Fantasy, Dragon Quest is considered more “old-school,” or by the numbers, with a focus on turn-based battles and traditional high-fantasy settings. That didn’t stop 2005’s Dragon Quest VIII from being wildly successful, however, both in Japan and the West. Toting an expansive world, gorgeous cel-shaded graphics, and a beautifully orchestrated soundtrack (in the Western PlayStation 2 version, at least), Dragon Quest VIII was a bold step forward for a relatively conservative franchise, and is still widely considered one of the greatest JRPGs of all time.
Why They’re Soulmates
At first glance, Dragon Quest VIII has more in common with other anime than One Piece. Its characters were designed by Akira Toriyama, best known for his work on another hugely popular anime franchise, Dragon Ball (not to mention another legendary JRPG, Chrono Trigger). It’s also well documented that mangaka Yoshihiro Togashi enjoys quite a bit of Dragon Quest in his free time, much to the chagrin of Hunter x Hunter fans the world over.
Still, I can think of no better soulmate for DQ8 than One Piece. Both are set in massive worlds, and feature a colorful cast of quirky characters who aren’t afraid to joke around when the going gets tough. Both see their characters traveling from country to country, often via ship. Both are also home to lively towns with cheerful denizens, bustling food stalls, and rambunctious saloons. Finally, both have impeccable soundtracks that bring their respective worlds to life. It’s not an equivalent for a true pirate game, to be sure (though Assassin’s Creed 4: Black Flag would be the next best thing), but it sure as hell beats suffering through another mediocre One Piece video game.
Like Princess Mononoke? Play Breath of the Wild
What Is Princess Mononoke?
Princess Mononoke is a 1997 film animated by Studio Ghibli and written/directed by the illustrious Hayao Miyazaki. The movie chronicles the story of a young, fictional prince named Ashitaka as he attempts to find a cure for a curse that threatens his life. In his search, Ashitaka finds himself embroiled in a conflict between the inhabitants of the mining settlement Irontown — which relies heavily on natural resources — and the spirits of the nearby forest, whose land has been heavily deforested by the townsmen. During this conflict, Ashitaka encounters a girl, named San, who has been raised by the wolves of the forest. Together, they must work to end the fighting between man and nature and save the forest from being destroyed.
What Is Breath of the Wild?
The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild needs no introduction. The 2017 action-adventure game is the latest in the long-running Zelda franchise, and was received with near universal acclaim thanks to its freeing open world, surprisingly malleable physics, and gorgeous presentation. (I greatly enjoyed Breath of the Wild myself, as illustrated in my review.) Throw in a lengthy story with a bevy of interesting optional activities — from bite-sized shrines and longer side quests to house hunting and even shield surfing — and it’s no wonder why people are yearning for the much-anticipated sequel.
Why They’re Soulmates
Right off the bat, Breath of the Wild and Princess Mononoke strike a similar chord with their colorful worlds. Just as Mononoke is a story of the fragile beauty of mother nature, Breath of the Wild depicts a dilapidated world in which nature has reclaimed much of human civilization. Ruins are donned with ivy and shades of green, while fields are teeming with flowers, trees, and wild grass. In the distance, however, the darkness emanating from Hyrule Castle is always looming — just like the the demonic curse that plagues Prince Ashitaka throughout Princess Mononoke. It’s a constant reminder of a powerful evil (mankind’s greed in Mononoke, versus the somewhat less thematic Ganon in BotW) that threatens to destroy all the beauty that’s been built in this world.
Moreover, Princess Mononoke and Breath of the Wild share some other interesting traits, right down to BotW’s actual gameplay mechanics. Mononoke’s 14th-century time period is mirrored by Breath of the Wild’s medieval setting. Both Ashitaka and Link are seen riding mounts — an elk in Ashitaka’s case, and a number of different animals for Link. Each fights with a bow, and even wears an eerily similar blue tunic. Coincidence? Possibly, though it’s hard to imagine Zelda creative director Eiji Aonuma making all these design choices without having at least some knowledge of Studio Ghibli’s famous work. Regardless of whether or not the similarities are intentional, though, Princess Mononoke and Breath of the Wild are a match made in heaven.
Like Darling in the Franxx? Play Xenoblade Chronicles X
What Is Darling in the Franxx?
Darling in the Franxx — a mouthful of a title, if ever there was one — is all about giant mechs and love-crazed teens. The anime is set in a post-apocalyptic future: The planet has been overrun by mysterious beasts known as Klaxosaurs. As a result, humanity has been forced to flee the vast majority of the earth in favor of mobile cities, called Plantations, which roam the surface.
To defend humanity, mankind has cultivated a group of teenage children, known as Parasites, to pilot powerful machines called Franxx and combat the Klaxosaur threat. The twist? These mechs must be piloted in male-female pairs, with the performance of the Franxx hinging upon the relationship of the two partners. The other twist? The kids are about to hit puberty, and have zero knowledge of the concept of love.
Thus begins a coming of age tale, complete with flying robots, heartfelt confessions, and enough love triangles to build a (very precarious) house of cards.
What Is Xenoblade Chronicles X?
Xenoblade Chronicles X is a 2015 JRPG developed by Monolith Soft for the Wii U (R.I.P.). The game begins with a user-created avatar crash-landing on the planet Mira. Two years prior, humanity was forced to evacuate Earth due to the looming threat of a pair of warring alien races. Mankind’s solution had been to form a series of “ark” ships, which would safely transport the people of Earth to a new home.
Unfortunately, only a few arks survived the journey. As part of the White Whale ark, your avatar is tasked with helping to colonize the planet Mira and create a suitable home for mankind. Along the way, you’ll befriend other ark survivors, who now reside within the developing city of New Los Angeles; scavenge the land of Mira for stray parts and resources; and rescue stranded humans with the help of powerful mechs, known as Skells.
Why They’re Soulmates
Darlifra (as it’s commonly referred to) and Xenoblade Chronicles X both have similar premises, as humanity is forced to retreat from its original home in favor of new civilizations. There’s also a shared theme of colonization, as the Darlifra protagonists fight to regain what was lost at the hands of the Klaxosaurs, and as the humans of Xenoblade work to establish a new life for themselves, despite the very real biological threats that inhabit the world of Mira.
Aside from the clear sci-fi commonalities, Darlifra and XCX (not to be confused with this XCX) also share a somewhat looser theme of love and relationships. Nearly every quest you complete in XCX increases your avatar’s affinity with other team members. Sometimes, completing certain quests may even boost the affinity of ancillary characters that’ll never see a single battle. From a menu, players can see the web of relationships they’ve cultivated over scores of hours — a testament to the power of love and friendship in rebuilding humanity. It’s a simple feature (it’s not used for much else, other than as a requirement for certain “Affinity Missions”), but it’s one that feels decidedly similar to the lasting bonds established by the Darlifra cast.
If you’re still not sold, both Darlifra and Xenoblade Chronicles X feature massive, hulking mechs! What’s not to love?
BONUS: Like Avatar: The Last Airbender? Play Spiritfarer
What Is Avatar: The Last Airbender?
Avatar: The Last Airbender isn’t an anime in a traditional sense. It wasn’t drawn by a mangaka, nor was it directed or animated by a Japanese studio. But the influences are there, clear as the sky on a hot summer day. Like One Piece, Avatar is a sprawling epic, spanning continents and nations. It features mystical powers, cunning foes, dazzling fight scenes, and plenty of character development. It takes inspiration from some of the very classics on this list. And, it has a laundry list of terrible video game adaptations. (Sorry, Korra fans.)
What Is Spiritfarer?
But rest easy, Avatar fans! Your prayers have been answered, in the form of 2020’s Spiritfarer. Part management sim, part ship-sailing adventure, Spiritfarer won hearts thanks to its lovable characters, soothing gameplay, and incredible visual style.
Why They’re Soulmates
Fellow Punished Backlog writer Amanda Tien shares more on this indie gem:
Aang is a child wise beyond his years, especially considering for 100 of those years he was frozen in an ice block. The protagonist of Spiritfarer, Stella, is also young and has a cheerful energy and smile. She rushes forward to hug spirits, plays with her cat, and jumps and floats with the same exuberance as the young Airbender.
Furthermore, Aang and Stella both wield unique powers in their worlds, Aang as the Avatar and last Airbender, and Stella as the new Charon with a special tool called the Everlight. Yet, neither holds their power over others with malice. Their generosity of spirit with their great powers is heartwarming, and every now and then, I liked to pretend I was playing as a future Avatar in Stella. Plus, they both have quirky pets that follow them around and sometimes even do useful things, Aang with Momo and Stella with Daffodil.
Read Amanda’s full piece on why Spiritfarer is the perfect Avatar: The Last Airbender video game.
And there you have it: five must-play video games for anime fans and cartoon lovers. Have any of your own anime/games soulmates I may have missed? Let them be known in the comments below!
