10 Video Game Anime Adaptations You Need To Watch Right Now

In my experience, anime and video games have gone together like cookies and milk for a very, very long time – from the colorful and creative ways they handle their mediums, to literally meeting in the middle with the many JRPGs out there. If you're a fan of one, you've certainly tried or at least like a few things about the other, especially when there are plenty of anime adaptations of video games out there to serve as the perfect gateway.

Video game adaptations, at least from Hollywood, used to be seen as cursed pieces of their franchises. Only recently with movies and TV shows like the Sonic the Hedgehog trilogy and HBO's The Last Of Us did this perception change. No one has ever really divulged into the anime side of things, and that's what I'm here to do.

There have been plenty of enjoyable video game anime adaptations, so let's give them a look.

10 Kirby: Right Back at Ya!

Or Hoshi no Kabi If You Really Want To Get Into It

Some of you might be rolling your eyes at the fact that Kirby: Right Back at Ya is on here, and if that's true, I say you lack whimsy and joy in your life. You're probably the one who needs a Kirby: Right Back at Ya binge-watching session the most.

This Kirby anime definitely took some liberties, thanks to Kirby's lore being rather nebulous when it was released. It takes place in an entirely different universe from the games, but the general spirit is the same. King Dedede is being self-serving, as he often is. He decides to summon a monster to try and beat Kirby, the Star Warrior who crash-landed on their planet one day and is stealing the hearts of his subjects.

There's a bit more to it than this, but that gets discovered overtime as a building plot element throughout the show's fun, low-stakes, formulaic episodes. It's Saturday morning cartoon fun, but with Kirby and as an anime. What's not to love at the end of the day?

9 Blue Dragon

One of the Times It's Okay to Watch and Not Play

If you've heard of Blue Dragon, there's a chance you've heard about it as an Xbox 360 JRPG. It's one of the "white whales" of the console in that it sits close to cult classic status, but it's still only available on the 360. As a game featuring character design from Akira Toriyama, it only makes sense that it would get an anime alongside its video game release. The Blue Dragon anime is what you'd expect from a show at the time, airing 51 episodes before getting a second season of another 51 episodes.

Because of the time it was from, it's become a bit of a cult classic on its own. Those who grew up watching it have a great fondness for it now. The animation is pretty spectacular for the time, too. It's an easy recommendation for someone missing how Dragon Ball Z or Hunter X Hunter made them feel.

I personally would say that you're in the clear to watch Blue Dragon instead of playing it. Not only will Blue Dragon cost an arm and a leg to play on the Xbox 360 these days, but it doesn't play very well on the console it's stuck on anyway. I also had a friend have two Xbox 360s red ring as part of her journey to finish it, so I'm of the opinion the game is cursed.

8 Animal Crossing: The Movie

Or It Would Have Been, If It Reached Us

I'm pretty sure someone right now is discovering this film just like I did, reading online and going, "Wait, there was an Animal Crossing movie?!" There sure was, it just remained in Japan. The movie tackles the themes you'd expect; a young girl moves to a new town filled with animals and has to learn to adjust to her new life. It features different villagers and NPCs players would know from Animal Crossing games, like Rosie, Tom Nook, K.K. Slider, and tons more.

The Animal Crossing movie is a great cozy watch, portraying the life and times of the town at the same pace as a Studio Ghibli movie. At the same time, it keeps Animal Crossing's original flavor, making this movie truly its own. If you're looking for a calming anime, I can't recommend it enough.

7 IDOLiSH7

My Wild Card Pick

Okay, I'll be open about the fact that IDOLiSH7 is a mobile game first and foremost, and it's not even one you can get your hands on easily. There was a PSP game, but I'm not here to recommend you track that down. For any potential overseas fans, IDOLiSH7 has a fairly sized anime that you can watch just fine. The reason it's here is that the direction of the show makes it by far one of the best video game adaptations I've seen. It takes visual novel snippets you can read in the app and makes them into heartfelt episodes that will grip you. I'd know. I watched this on a whim with my girlfriend, and I was slowly hooked with each episode.

There's something for everyone in the show if they're willing to go in with an open mind. Each character has tons of depth to them, and they feel all the more alive as bits and pieces of the real Japanese idol industry and its standards come into play. There's an anti-capitalism arc later on about it all, too, and it's all wrapped up in a general upbeat anime flair. If you're on the outside looking in on the idol craze and want to know what it's about, IDOLiSH7 will answer those questions and possibly start a new addiction.

6 Sonic X

If Nothing Else, Just Watch Season 3

Sonic X being on this list is probably earning a few scoffs or raised brows from you guys right now, but just hear me out. Sure, Sonic X has its flaws, with the biggest one often being cited as just Chris Thorndyke himself, but it wouldn't be so easy to revisit and fondly remembered by Sonic fans if there wasn't anything worth watching. It has some of the best animation in Sonic at its best, and it's just another formulaic kids' TV show to watch at its worst.

If you really don't want to sit through too much of Chris, or any of the episodes where the ending is just "Sonic grabs a ring and saves the day," I highly recommend season 3. Dubbed "The Metarex Saga" by fans, it turns the typical Saturday morning anime affair that Sonic X is into an epic that lasts a little over 20 episodes. It isn't perfect, but by the time you reach the end, you'll be crying for these colorful, iconic characters.

Still not interested? Fine. Episodes 27 through 38 adapt Sonic Adventure and Sonic Adventure 2. Have fun.

5 Viewtiful Joe

Gave it the Old College Try

There are a lot of different adaptations on this list, with some skirting the line of being adaptations. Another anime that plays it straight and stands as an adaptation on its own without needing to play the game is Viewtiful Joe of all things. Yeah, haven't heard that name in a while, have you? It got an adaptation in 2004, keeping its unique superhero style intact the whole way through.

If you're an old-school Joe fan, you'll enjoy revisiting the game's story with additional context through the show's two seasons. If you haven't played the game at all, then this is a great way to experience what Viewtiful Joe has to offer without paying a sizable amount to add the game to your collection. The animation itself has not aged fantastically, but an attempt to be true to Joe's art direction is better than none at all. Besides, it's still fun to watch it all in motion, even if it might be on the ironic side.

4 Cyberpunk: Edgerunners

Revisit Night City Through the Eyes of Studio TRIGGER

And now for something completely different, Cyberpunk: Edgerunners isn't a direct adaptation of Cyberpunk 2077. I mean, how could it be, with how open-ended that game was? Instead, Edgerunners takes you through another story in Night City that fills in blanks the original game couldn't fill.

If that isn't enough to entice you, the animation is done by Studio TRIGGER, best known for Dungeon Meshi, Promare, and many other anime cult classics. If you know their work, you know that it means Edgerunners is eye candy all the way through, so there's really no excuse not to check it out. It's hard to talk about Edgerunners without spoiling anything, too, since it runs for only a staggering 10 episodes. There's a sequel in development as we speak, though, so you might want to go ahead and catch up.

3 Pokémon Journeys

The Best Adventure with Ash Ketchum, and His Last

Pokémon is like tap water. If you're here, you've tasted it. I'd be surprised if you're reading this list and you've not watched a single second of the Pokémon anime in your life. If you've never watched Pokémon Journeys, though, for whatever reason, I highly recommend it. It condenses everything that makes Pokémon special in one fantastic season.

It broke the cycle that every Pokémon generation's respective anime adaptation had to be tied to that region. It still adapted Pokémon Sword and Shield, but it made sure to touch on every single part of the series it could, from locations, characters, creatures, and even the protagonists' dreams pay off in this show. Ash has a companion in the form of Goh this time around, who serves as his foil as a new trainer traveling with Ash's lengthy expertise. Their dynamic is fun, and it represents Pokémon at its best.

2 Bomberman Jetters

Come In For the Comfortable Charm, Stay When the Going Gets Tough

The Bomberman franchise is one of the ones that's sadly faded into obscurity, with plenty of games and other content from its golden years left to discover and remind old fans of what it used to be. Bomberman Jetters might be your next addiction if you're missing this series.

It might be another "monster of the week" affair, but that's only how it starts. Once it eases in, purposefully getting you attached to its charming cast, it allows its characters to develop. White Bomber, the series' protagonist, truly matures and evolves past his childish behavior. Almost everyone I've spoken to about this anime considers it a classic, and I truly think more people should give it a chance. It deserves to shine among the greats.

1 Tales of Symphonia: The Animation

Ol' Reliable

Tales of Symphonia: The Animation and Blue Dragon are similar in that they're both anime I think you'd be fine watching instead of playing the game it's from. The reason for that is entirely different. Blue Dragon is because the game isn't worth the fuss. Symphonia is because you likely don't have a choice.

The original Tales of Symphonia was released for the GameCube back in 2004. Since then, it's seen a number of rereleases, but only one obscure PS3 release comes close to being a satisfying way to play the game outside of the original. Every other port, even the recently remastered version, suffers from missing content or just performing terribly for some reason or another.

Symphonia is one of the most popular and beloved Tales of RPGs, and if playing a badly color-graded or incomplete port isn't to your liking, then the anime might have you covered. It speeds along the story at a record pace, summarizing it all, but it's better than nothing. It's at least something until a better port comes along. We can dream, right?