10 Anime Adaptations of Video Games That Are Actually Good

Most video game adaptations are disappointing at best, and laughably terrible at worst. However, occasionally you’ll find some hidden gems that perfectly capture the charm of their source material or at least present entertaining reimaginings of familiar storylines.

While live-action adaptations have only recently started to renew their reputation in the eyes of gamers, there’s been a surprising amount of amazing anime adaptations since the 80s. While I’m cautiously optimistic about the upcoming anime based on Death Stranding, Gnosia, and Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice, these video-game-inspired classics give me hope for future gaming adaptations.

1

Fatal Fury: The Motion Picture

Fighting games have never been known for having good stories, yet they consistently get the best anime adaptations. The genre has inspired numerous underrated films and series based on games like Street Fighter II, Power Stone, Virtua Fighter, Darkstalkers, and, most recently, Guilty Gear. However, the best of these adaptations is Fatal Fury: The Motion Picture. While it may not have the greatest animation or deepest story, it’s a wonderfully cheesy love letter to its source material.

Fatal Fury: The Motion Picture follows Terry Bogard, a world-famous martial artist who finds himself being dragged into a globe-spanning quest to prevent a group of mysterious villains from obtaining god-like powers. What follows is a series of energetic battles, tons of deep-cut references and cameos to the Fatal Fury games, and a surprisingly fun story carried by an endearing cast of characters.

If you’re a Fatal Fury or King of Fighters fan, you’ll love Fatal Fury: The Motion Picture, especially if you’ve seen the two anime OVAs that precede it. Newcomers might be confused by the numerous callbacks to characters and events from the earlier Fatal Fury anime adaptations. But even if you’ve never heard of the Fatal Fury series, The Motion Picture is a must-watch for anybody who loves charmingly cheesy 90s action anime.

2

Persona 3 The Movie

Persona 3 was many players’ entry into the Persona series and the broader Shin Megami Tensei franchise—and it’s easy to see why. It was the first Persona game to ditch the series’ old-school dungeon-crawling for an unconventional hybrid of JRPGs and high-school life sims, and it carried that bizarre premise with a cast of complex characters, a bleak atmosphere filled with evocative imagery, and a mature story about coping with grief and learning to open up to others. The game is also a densely packed, 80-hour experience, which makes it all the more surprising that Persona 3 The Movie somehow manages to deliver a faithful retelling in just under five hours.

Persona 3 The Movie is a four-film series centered around Makoto Yuki, an apathetic teenager in the process of transfering to a new school, only to awaken a power that allows him to summon spiritual entities known as “personas.” After being recruited into the Specialized Extracurricular Execution Squad (SEES)—a secret organization comprised of other persona-users— Makoto begins investigating a surge of supernatural phenomenon around their city and uncovering their connection to an otherworldly tower known as “Tartarus,” all while trying to maintain an ordinary life at school.

Persona 3 The Movie retains the slow-burn mystery and tense character drama of the original game, but arguably improves it with its stellar visuals. The grim atmosphere I mentioned earlier is even more prevalent in the anime, and many of the most emotional scenes from the PS2 version hit even harder with the gorgeous animation and brilliant direction of the films. Even compared to the game’s recent remake—Persona 3 Reload—the anime captures the bleak tone of Persona 3 better than any other adaptation of the story. If you’ve never played Persona 3 or want to revisit its world without spending another 80 hours, do yourself a favor and watch the movies.

3

Mass Effect: Paragon Lost

Whereas many other sci-fi franchises like Star Wars and Warhammer have an endless trove of side stories and spinoffs, the world of Mass Effect is still rife with untapped potential. The series has received a few comics and novels, but there has only been one film adaptation. Thankfully, it’s one of the best things to come out of Mass Effect‘s extended universe.

Set between the events of Mass Effect 2 and 3, Paragon Lost is a side story centered around Lieutenant James Vega, showcasing the mission that led him to joining the N7 program and becoming a part of Commander Shepherd’s crew in Mass Effect 3. If you’ve already played the games, you know how this tale ends, but Paragon Lost is still worth watching if you’re a Mass Effect fan. While you might have mixed feelings about the movie’s art style, the action scenes perfectly capture the excitement of the original trilogy’s best moments, and the inclusion of iconic weapons and other small details from the games make it clear that this is a true Mass Effect film.

Even judged on its own merits, Paragon Lost is a great standalone addition to the Mass Effect series. Seeing the game’s universe from Vega’s perspective helps highlight the horror of the Reaper invasions and the unsettling implications of Cerberus’ shady dealings. Even though the characters aren’t the deepest and the story isn’t the most original, Paragon Lost is still a worthwhile watch as both a fun action film and an important companion piece to the games.

4

Gungrave

Gungrave is a cult-classic, third-person action game that puts you in control of “Beyond the Grave”—yes, that’s actually his name—an undead assassin armed with two oversized handguns and a coffin-shaped rocket launcher. After being betrayed and executed by his best friend, a crime boss named Harry Macdowell, Grave is brought back to life and sent out on a quest for revenge. But to track down Harry, Grave must first blast through the army of mobsters and mutants that have taken over his city.

Gungrave’s anime is almost nothing like the game. The anime acts as a prequel to the first game, chronicling the origin stories of Harry Macdowell and Brandon Heat—the man who would eventually be resurrected as Beyond the Grave—as they rise through the ranks of the criminal underworld, only to find their friendship tested at every turn. In harsh contrast to the game it’s based on, Gungrave the anime is a slow-paced, (mostly) grounded crime drama that takes its time building its world and characters. One-note villains from the game are re-imagined as morally complex and deeply sympathetic figures, with deeper motives that make them seem much more relatable than their video game counterparts. Similarly, the brooding Beyond the Grave and cartoonishly evil Harry Macdowell are given far more depth and nuance than is ever shown in the game.

Even when the character-driven crime drama is eventually pushed aside for a loose retelling of the first Gungrave, the anime never loses the emotional hooks that set it apart from its source material. Gungrave might be the only anime retelling that improves upon its inspiration in every way, and you certainly don’t have to be a fan of the game to appreciate the show.

5

Devil May Cry: The Animated Series

The Devil May Cry series has delivered some of the most hilariously over-the-top, unashamedly wacky, and wonderfully stylish action games of all time. While the recent Netflix adaptation tried to mimic the eccentric tone of the games, the 2007 anime series delivered an unusually subdued take on the franchise.

Devil May Cry: The Animated Series follows Dante, a demon-hunter-for-hire who also happens to be a super-powered half-demon himself. Every episode sees Dante facing off against a different demon, all of whom are varied enough to make each episode feel different from the last. One episode has Dante racing against a literal speed demon targeting the souls of motorcyclists, another sees him attempting to save the life of a demonically possessed rock star, and my personal favorite involves Dante entering a life-or-death poker game to uncover a demon hiding among the players.

Devil May Cry: The Animated Series shares more in common with noir detective mysteries than a traditional action anime, but that’s why I love this show. Instead of copying the bombastic spectacles and climactic battles of its video game counterparts, the anime gives a glimpse into the everyday lives of Devil May Cry‘s larger-than-life characters through low-stakes mysteries that you wouldn’t ever see in the games. If you’re willing to give the anime a chance, you’ll realize that a cozy mystery series set in the Devil May Cry universe is the best thing you never knew you wanted.

6

Nier: Automata Ver1.1a

The original Nier: Automata was a surprise success thanks to its blend of imaginative sci-fi world-building and deep philosophical exploration of what it means to be “human.” Nier: Automata Ver1.1a might look like a straightforward retelling of the same exact story, but there’s much more to this anime adaptation than meets the eye.

Both Nier: Automata and Ver1.1a tell the stories of 2B and 9S, two androids assigned to reclaim Earth from the machine life forms that have taken over the planet. Their mission takes an unexpected turn when they discover that the machines have inexplicably begun to imitate human behavior, prompting the androids to question the true purpose of their mission while surviving against the rapidly evolving machine threat. Without spoiling anything, both versions of Nier: Automata deliver an intensly emotional and thought-provoking story, often breaking the fourth wall in moments that are both hilariously witty and heartwrenchingly powerful.

Nier: Automata Ver1.1a follows the game’s story, but with numerous significant changes at every turn. Some characters are replaced with entirely new ones, certain characters have notably different personalities, and events that you may recognize from the game don’t always lead to the same outcomes. There are also plenty of new scenes that add more depth to the world and characters. While most other adaptations make similar changes to their source material, Ver1.1a always uses its changes to explore new themes and “what-if” scenarios that the original game never delved into. All of this is accompanied by stunning animation (apart from some terrible CGI) that does an excellent job of replicating the original game’s melancholic art direction.

7

Zone of the Enders: 2167 Idolo and Z.O.E. Dolores, i

Zone of the Enders: 2167 Idolo and Z.O.E. Dolores, i are technically two separate anime, but I’m counting them together since they act as two halves of the same story. Both anime are set in the world of the Zone of the Enders series, showing major events that took place before and after the mainline games.

Zone of the Enders: 2167 Idolo follows Radium Lavans, a skilled pilot who’s chosen to fly an experimental orbital frame (ZOE‘s term for mecha) called “Idolo.” What starts as a simple series of test flights quickly escalates as a war between Mars and Earth breaks out, and the Idolo’s powers begin to have a dangerous impact on Radium’s mind.

Z.O.E. Dolores, i continues this story with a very different tone. Taking place five years after Idolo and during the events of the first Zone of the Enders, Z.O.E. Dolores, i is a light-hearted comedy centering around middle-aged space-trucker James Links and the titular Dolores, a bright-pink orbital frame with a naive yet cheerful personality. After a botched transport job leads to both James and Dolores becoming the number-one targets for multiple dangerous factions, the two team up to evade the authorities, help Dolores recover her lost memories, and put a stop to a secretive plan that poses a threat to all life on earth.

Despite their wildly different setups, both anime adaptations of Zone of the Enders are underrated mecha classics. The tragic story of 2167 Idolo stays true to the gritty spirit of the series, while also fleshing out some of the characters from the first game. Dolores, i is understandably more divisive among fans, but its characters and writing are consistently hilarious. Most importantly, both series retain the chaotic action and darker themes that have always defined Zone of the Enders.

8

Castlevania

Netflix’s Castlevania technically isn’t an anime, but I’m willing to make the exception in this case. Loosely based on the story of Castlevania III: Dracula’s Curse, the show follows Trevor Belmont, a cynical vampire-hunter who comes from a long line of accomplished Dracula-destroyers. When Dracula returns with an army of monsters to declare war on humanity, Trevor is forced to live up to his family legacy and put down the vampiric lord of darkness once again.

Castlevania takes plenty of creative liberties with the series’ lore, but almost always makes changes for the better. Its characters are complex and memorable, helped by both the show’s amazing art direction and consistently smart writing. The re-imagined personalities and fleshed-out backstories lend both its heroes and villains an extra layer of moral ambiguity, and the show uses all four seasons to gradually build their relationships and highlight their personal growth.

That’s not to say Castlevania is without its flaws; the show suffers from noticeable pacing issues, a slight quality drop after season 2, and a few unsatisfying resolutions to certain plotlines. However, it’s easy to look past those flaws when the animated series consistently delivers some of the best writing, music, and characters in the Castlevania franchise.

9

Steins;Gate

Countless sci-fi stories have tried to deliver a “realistic” portrayal of time-travel. Most of these stories try to find answers to the countless mysteries surrounding time-travel, and Steins;Gate—through both the original visual novel and its anime adaptation—attempts the same with a genre-shifting story that balances comedy, romance, and a tense psychological thrill-ride all at the same time.

Steins;Gate follows Rintaro Okabe, an amateur scientist who unwittingly creates a functional time machine that allows him to send text messages into the past or transfer his consciousness to an earlier point in time. However, Okabe soon learns that rewriting the past—even for seemingly innocent reasons—can have harsh consequences.

Once you get past its slow start, Steins;Gate delivers a fascinating story that blends emotional character drama with the tension you would expect from any good sci-fi thriller. In its early episodes, Steins;Gate takes its time building its characters and introducing you to the mechanics of its time-travel setup. It can feel like a mundane slice-of-life with a sci-fi twist, but the charming characters and their hilarious banter make even these quieter episodes worth watching. However, once the story properly takes off, Steins;Gate becomes a relentlessly intense drama full of surreal twists, heart-wrenching reveals, and one of my favorite depictions of time-travel in any work of fiction.

10

Cyberpunk: Edgerunners

Few games have made a surprise comeback quite like Cyberpunk 2077, and that’s largely thanks to the incredible Cyberpunk: Edgerunners. While the game was still trying to recover from its disastrous launch, Edgerunners delivered an unforgettable introduction to the harsh underworld of Night City. More importantly, Edgerunners managed to convince even the harshest critics to give 2077 a second chance.

Cyberpunk: Edgerunners focuses on David Martinez, an ordinary teen who was left broke and unable to pay off debts after his mother was murdered in a drive-by shooting. As his old life rapidly falls apart, David’s world suddenly changes when he meets an underground hacker named Lucy and joins a gang of cybernetic mercenaries known as “edgerunners.” From there, David begins making a name for himself as he aims to become a local legend, but he soon discovers that fame, status, and everything else in Night City always come with a steep price.

Edgerunners is a short, 10-episode ride, but it doesn’t waste a second of its runtime. The series is a nonstop emotional rollercoaster, taking you from explosive action scenes to poignant character interactions without losing focus on what makes its story so compelling. Unlike the game, Edgerunners isn’t a power fantasy. From start to finish, it feels like a story of survival within the corporate dystopia that is Night City. Its characters are vulnerable in every sense of the word, but that only gives you more reason to care about them. By the time you reach the shocking finale, you might not be able to hear a certain song ever again without tearing up.

Video game adaptations don’t always get the best reputation, but there are plenty of other underrated gems that successfully bring gaming worlds to the big screen. With the recent string of surprisingly great live-action and animated video game adaptations, expect to see more games hit the big screen in the near future.