Though shows like Dragon Ball Z and Sailor Moon were wildly popular in the 90s, it's safe to say anime in general is growing in popularity in the United States in recent years at an alarming rate. From shows like Attack On Titan to My Hero Academia, plenty of kids are growing up with Japanese developed shows as their entertainment comfort food.
In the realm of video games anime hasn't had many break out hits and has struggled critically over the years. Let's celebrate the best of the best and look at the 10 best-licensed anime video games, according to Metacritic.
10 Dragon Ball: Xenoverse 2 (78)
For years fans of the Dragon Ball series had been begging for a substantial role-playing game that allowed them to exist in the world they fell in love with. A game that tried its best to answers those prayers was Dragon Ball: Xenoverse in 2015. The game provided character customization and role-playing elements but had plenty of flaws. Its sequel, Dragon Ball: Xenoverse 2, was released the following year in 2016. Though it was far from perfect it did a good job of refining and improving many of the systems from the previous game.
9 Attack On Titan 2 (78)
Attack On Titan is set to come to a close as a series in 2021 as fans across the world await the culmination of the hit phenomenon. In the meantime, you might want to spend some time with a decently reviewed game from 2018. Attack On Titan 2 is a game developed by Omega Force that launched in March of 2018 on PS4, Nintendo Switch, Xbox One, and PC. The game is known to be quite difficult as it provides fans with a somewhat accurate representation of what the scouts move like when trying to take down titans.
8 Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm 4 (79)
Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm 4 is an action 3D fighting game developed by CyberConnect2 and released on April 24th, 2020. Though the game sits at an impressive 79 overall on Metacritic it's important to understand that it only has 19 reviews from critics, so the diversity in opinion is lacking.
Many of the reviews state that if you're the type of person who has loved other Naruto video games there's a high likelihood that this game will satiate your hunger for more video game experiences in that franchise.
7 Naruto: The Broken Bond (80)
Back in 2008 some of the studios over at Ubisoft weren't solely working on internal IP, but rather were being tasked with delivered solid licenses projects from partners. Naruto: The Broken Bond was one of these projects and the 2008 release managed to land with a score of 80 on Metacritic. It served as a sequel to Naruto: Rise of a Ninja and was an open-world action-adventure title. Critics raved about it at the time and many consider it to be the definitive video game release for the Naruto franchise to this day.
6 Gundam Battle Assault 2 (80)
When gamers discuss some of the best classic fighting games they rarely talk about some of the hidden gems that existed throughout the generations. One of those hidden gems was a sequel game called Gundam Assault 2 which featured the cast of the Mobile Fighter G Gundam anime as well as Gundam Wing: Endless Waltz. The game released on PS1 and landed with an 80 on Metacritic. It received praise due to its solid graphics and animations that looked much better than they had any right to.
5 Yu-Gi-Oh! The Eternal Duelist Soul (81)
Yu-Gi-Oh! is a franchise that's persisted in pop culture for the last two decades or so. The card game focused anime quickly grabbed the attention of children and a large group of people have been addicted to it ever since. Back in 2002, it seems that the anime saw its most accurate and advanced version of the trading card game with the release of Yu-Gi-Oh! The Eternal Duelist Soul. The game was developed by KCEJ and published by the owner of the Yu-Gi-Oh! license and currently despised company, Konami.
4 Bleach: The Blade Of Fate (83)
Bleach: Blade of Fate was developed by a studio called Treasure and they released the game in 2007. It was a fighting game that managed to bring the beloved anime to life on a portable console. It gave players the ability for up to 4 people to join in on a single fight.
A glance at the reviews will tell you that the thing that held the game back the most was the system it was released on. The d-pad of the Nintendo DS limited the gameplay and took away from the ultimate experience, which dropped its score into the low 80s.
3 Astro Boy: Omega Factor (85)
Developed for and released on the GameBoy Advance in 2004, Astro Boy: Omega Factor delivered a solid side-scrolling shooter experience. Hitmaker, the developers of the game, managed to build a game that scaled its difficulty perfectly and used the restrictive technology to their advantage with the use of colors and stylized graphics. The story for the game is better than it has any right being and offers a good look at character growth done well. Unsurprising for the developers who also released Ikaruga and Gunstar Heroes.
2 Tatsunoko Vs. Capcom: Ultimate All-Stars (85)
Back in 2010, Capcom managed to release yet another stellar fighting game that captured the attention of a loyal audience. Tatsunoko Vs. Capcom: Ultimate All-Stars is a crossover fighting game featuring both Capcom's stable of video game characters, as well as anime characters from the roster of accomplished production house Tatsunoko Productions. It managed to provide a welcoming space for newcomers to the genre while at the same time having the depth needed to lure in veteran fighting game players.
1 Dragon Ball FighterZ (87)
When you combine a super popular anime like Dragon Ball with the craftsmanship of a studio like Arc System Works good things are bound to happen. Arc System Works is respected in the fighting game genre thanks in large part to the level of detail they put into their game both mechanically and artistically. Dragon Ball FighterZ is the best video game to be made with the license, and it's obvious why that is. By simply watching a match in real-time you'll see that it looks like you're watching an episode of the show thanks to how fluid the animation is.