10 anime games to look forward to in 2018

Ni No Kuni II: Kingdom of the Revenant

Like the first game, Ni No Kuni II isn’t really based on a specific anime. It is, however, based on the entire Studio Ghibli animation style. Boasting the same Ghibli-esque aesthetic, Revenant Kingdom brings players back to the realm of Ding Dong Dell. You play as Evan Pettiwhisker Tildrum, the king of Ding Dong Dell, who has been ousted from his throne by evil forces. Evan must muster allies and take back his kingdom, which sends you on a sprawling adventure filled with interesting characters.

Ni No Kuni II’s biggest change from its predecessor comes from its combat system, which is much faster and more action-oriented. There is also a brand new kingdom building feature that allows Evan to command armies and construct buildings.

It looks like Level-5 brings us another epic RPG that fits perfectly in the Studio Ghibli vein, just like the first one. It’s definitely one of the most promising anime games of the year to watch out for.

Attack on Titan 2

Koei Tecmo has managed to deliver a surprisingly fun and intense experience with his first Attack on Titan game, and now it’s all about getting more of the good stuff. While the core gameplay remains largely the same, Attack on Titan 2 does feature a number of improvements and additions.

The game will follow the second season of the anime, while also featuring a number of original stories overseen by Attack on Titan creator Hajima Isayama. This time around, the focus is more on what happens between battles, as your base camp will be much bigger with more characters to talk to and more to do. Attack on Titan 2 will also introduce co-op play and the ability to create your own character to join the fight.

Koei Tecmo’s first Attack on Titan lets you use three-dimensional maneuver gear to blast the battlefield and swing around the Titans. While it doesn’t look like Attack on Titan 2 is drastically different, that’s probably not a bad thing.

My Hero Academia: One’s Justice

Last year, My Hero Academia’s popularity exploded, helping it to become one of the hottest shows around. The series takes place in a world where 80% of the population possesses superpowers known as “Quirks”. This allows for a wide variety of skills and powers, which will hopefully bring a ton of variation in One’s Justice.

At this point, we don’t know much about the game, although we do know that One’s Justice will be a fighting game with characters from the anime clashing in insane and over-the-top battles. Bandai Namco also revealed that there will be destruction on the battlefield, although we don’t know to what extent.

It’s great to see a deserving series like My Hero Academia finally have a great game to its name, and hopefully One’s Justice will be able to stand out with the best of anime games this year.

One Piece: World Seeker

One Piece has seen a slew of titles of all genres over the years, but World Seeker at least seems to be trying something a little new. We don’t know the history of World Seeker yet, but it will allow players to take direct control of Monkey D. Luffy in an open world environment that they can navigate and explore at their own pace.

The game’s reveal trailer showed Luffy using a variety of different Gum-Gum techniques to explore different areas and take out enemies. There will also be a variety of options for how you face enemies, including stealth options to bypass combat completely.

World Seeker seems like an incredibly ambitious One Piece game, and while there have been a lot of great games for the series, it’s refreshing to have something new. We’ll have to wait and see if this turns out to be one of the best anime games of 2018.

The Seven Deadly Sins: Knights of Brittania

The Seven Deadly Sins is a relatively new series compared to most of the others on the list, but it’s an instant fit for a video game. The series features insane action, comparable to anything you would see in Dragon Ball Z, and Knights of Brittania is hoping to get you playing just that. Knights of Brittania centers around the story of the anime, as players journey through Brittania’s countryside in the Boar Hat, taking on various battles and completing quests.

There are a number of characters to play as, each with their own unique fighting style and skills. The list includes Meliodus, Ban, King, Arthur Pendragon, Gilthunder, Jericho, and more.

This is the first time Seven Deadly Sins has received a console game, and I hope Knights of Brittania lives up to the action and drama of its anime counterpart.

Hokuto Ga Gotoku (Fist of the Pole Star)

Hokuto Ga Gotoku has several reasons to get you excited. First of all, of course, it’s a Fist of the North Star game that we haven’t had since Koei Tecmo’s Ken’s Rage games on PS3 and Xbox 360. The real reason to be excited, however, is this. is that it’s a Fist of the North Star game developed by the team behind the Yakuza series.

In many ways, it looks like the dev team is tailoring the anime series to the Yakuza formula, which, honestly, would work well enough for Fist of the North Star. Hokuto Ga Gotoku uses the Yakuza voice actors instead of the original voice actors to try and match their style better. The game features some super-violent battles, which you’d probably expect, but there will certainly be plenty of secondary content to participate in, as is the norm for Yakuza.

Unfortunately, Hokuto Ga Gotoku has yet to receive confirmation for the west, but with the game launching on March 8 in Japan, we hope to see an announcement soon. It’s a game that would easily appeal to any fan of Yakuza and Fist of the North Star.

Sword Art Online Fatal Bullet

Fatal Bullet is a first for the Sword Art Online game series. Instead of being a standard RPG with action combat, Fatal Bullet is a third-person shooter mixed with RPG elements. The game is set after the events of Sword Art Online: Hollow Realization and will take place in Gun Grave Online, but it is different from the canon version of the series. New events and storylines will unfold around The Death Gun incident, as well as new characters that will be introduced to the mix.

There are plenty of weapons to choose from, as well as skills and abilities to craft. Again, you’ll create your own protagonist, but Fatal Bullet has a feature called Kirito Mode, which lets you switch to Kirito and see events from his perspective. As the game progresses, you will be able to switch between Kirito and your protagonist at will.

Sword Art Online is clearly still going strong, and Fatal Bullet offers fans a new chapter in the series to experience.

Little Witch Academia: Chamber of Time

As with many games here, Little Witch Academia: Chamber of Time is a lookalike for its anime counterpart. It also happens to be the first Little Witch Academia game ever made. Chamber of Time follows the events of the series as Atsuko and his friends strive to uncover the secrets of Luna Nova Magical Academy and uncover the Seven Wonders. It’s a side-scrolling action RPG title mixed with elements of beat ’em up, though everything is lavishly rendered in 3D.

However, it’s not all about combat, as you’ll also have to solve puzzles, cast spells, explore dungeons, and more. Chamber of Time is decidedly different from most other anime games, but that’s exactly what makes this one so interesting.

Naruto to Boruto: Shinobi Striker

The Ultimate Ninja game series may be over, but there are sure to be more Naruto games on the way, starting with Naruto to Boruto: Shinobi Striker. It’s a slightly different title as Shinobi Striker only focuses on multiplayer matches, pitting two teams of four players against each other.

The game is built from the ground up with a new graphics engine, and it brings a selection of fan favorite characters from the series into the fray. Having eight ninjas running at the same time can certainly get hectic, so teamwork will be essential with Shinobi Stiker, and it could be a good game to get a group of friends together.

If you’ve been waiting for your dose of Naruto lately, Shinobi Striker has certainly got you covered.