Anime like .hack//SIGN

serial experiments lain

Also known as Serial Experiments Lain.

Studio: TV Tokyo , NBCUniversal Entertainment Japan , Genco , Funimation , Triangle Staff , Pioneer LDC , TV Tokyo Music , Fujipacific Music
Status: Finished
Genres: Drama , Mystery , Psychological , Sci-Fi , Supernatural

We're all connected... There is the world around us, a world of people, tactile sensation, and culture. There is the wired world, inside the computer, of images, personalities, virtual experiences, and a culture all of its own. The day after a classmate commits suicide, Lain, a 14-year-old girl, discovers how closely the two worlds are linked when she receives an e-mail from the dead girl: I just abandoned my body. I still live here...

Has the line between the real world and the wired world begun to blur?



Tags: Denpa , Virtual World , Philosophy , Dissociative Identities , Augmented Reality , Female Protagonist , Memory Manipulation , Artificial Intelligence , Software Development , Cyberpunk , Gods , Cosmic Horror , Conspiracy , Cult , Video Games , Suicide , Religion , Urban , Meta , Tragedy , Primarily Female Cast , Amnesia , Afterlife , Adoption , Orphan , POV , Anti-Hero , Drugs , Trains , Aliens , School , Death Game , Age Gap , Bullying , Zombie

Log Horizon

Also known as Log Horizon.

Studio: Satelight , NHK , NHK Enterprises , Sentai Filmworks
Status: Finished
Genres: Action , Adventure , Fantasy

The online fantasy game Elder Tales is a worldwide phenomenon, immersing millions of players in its intricately conceived virtual world. However, the release of the game's twelfth expansion pack makes that immersion all too literal, as players from around the world are suddenly pulled into the game's no-longer-fictional universe! Now, eight-year ET veteran Shiroe, his friend Naotsugu, the beautiful assassin Akatsuki, and 30,000 other players are faced with the daunting task of learning how to deal with an entirely new reality, one where the Non-Player Characters are actually alive, and the tips and tricks learned while playing with a keyboard no longer apply.



Tags: Virtual World , Politics , Isekai , Video Games , Male Protagonist , Magic , Alternate Universe , Kingdom Management , Dungeon , Ensemble Cast , Anthropomorphism , Found Family , Primarily Adult Cast , Kemonomimi , Love Triangle , Elf , Goblin , Twins , Kuudere , Samurai , Femboy , Skeleton , Episodic

Sword Art Online

Also known as Sword Art Online.

Studio: Aniplex , A-1 Pictures , Genco , DAX Production , Aniplex of America , ASCII Media Works
Status: Finished
Genres: Action , Adventure , Fantasy , Romance

In the near future, a Virtual Reality Massive Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Game (VRMMORPG) called Sword Art Online has been released where players control their avatars with their bodies using a piece of technology called Nerve Gear. One day, players discover they cannot log out, as the game creator is holding them captive unless they reach the 100th floor of the game's tower and defeat the final boss. However, if they die in the game, they die in real life. Their struggle for survival starts now...



Tags: Virtual World , Isekai , Death Game , Video Games , Male Protagonist , Swordplay , Primarily Teen Cast , Heterosexual , Primarily Female Cast , Female Harem , Artificial Intelligence , Travel , Unrequited Love , Time Skip , Found Family , Fairy , Tragedy , Prison , Fishing , Amnesia , Inseki , Primarily Male Cast , Rescue , Medieval

Good Night World

Also known as GOOD NIGHT WORLD.

Studio: NAZ
Status: Finished
Genres: Action , Drama , Fantasy , Psychological

In the online game "Planet," there is a powerful team of four players. This team goes by the name "The Akabane Family," and its members are a pseudo-family that only exists in the game. Although they aren't aware of it, these four players are actually a broken family in real life. A shut-in older brother. A high-achieving younger brother. A father who is not respected by his own children. A mother who neglects her own household. They do not know the warmth of family. They also don't know that the warmth of their online family is only a passing feeling. And most of all, they don't know they are a real family. Centered on the deeds of the Akabane Family in the online game "Planet," the story features battles against monsters, clashes with other guilds, and the machinations surrounding "Black Bird," the final objective of the game. The tale takes a major turn as it entangles the real world and this real family.



Tags: Augmented Reality , Virtual World , Artificial Intelligence , Hikikomori , Video Games , Family Life , Denpa , Body Horror , Male Protagonist , Software Development , Gore , Estranged Family , Heterosexual , Pirates , Cosmic Horror , Magic , Tsundere , Super Power , War , Cultivation , Coming of Age

Overlord

Also known as Overlord.

Studio: MADHOUSE , Funimation , Madman Entertainment
Status: Finished
Genres: Action , Adventure , Fantasy

The story takes place in the year 2138 when virtual reality gaming is booming. Yggdrasil, a popular online game is quietly shut down one day. However, the protagonist Momonga decides to not log out. Momonga is then transformed into the image of a skeleton as "the most powerful wizard." The world continues to change, with non-player characters (NPCs) beginning to feel emotion. Having no parents, friends, or place in society, this ordinary young man Momonga then strives to take over the new world the game has become.



Tags: Isekai , Anti-Hero , Skeleton , Virtual World , Magic , Male Protagonist , Demons , Succubus , Primarily Adult Cast , Yandere , Politics , Villainess , Necromancy , Ensemble Cast , Kingdom Management , Medieval , CGI , Maids , Monster Girl , Female Harem , Kuudere , Femboy , Love Triangle , Butler , Elf , Twins , Vampire , Monster Boy , Tomboy , Crossdressing , Goblin , Dragons

Shin Seiki Evangelion

Also known as Neon Genesis Evangelion.

Studio: Gainax , TV Tokyo , ADV Films , Kadokawa Shoten , NAS , Tatsunoko Production , GKIDS , Madman Entertainment
Status: Finished
Genres: Action , Drama , Mecha , Mystery , Psychological , Sci-Fi

In the year 2015, the Angels, huge, tremendously powerful, alien war machines, appear in Tokyo for the second time. The only hope for Mankind's survival lies in the Evangelion, a humanoid fighting machine developed by NERV, a special United Nations agency. Capable of withstanding anything the Angels can dish out, the Evangelion's one drawback lies in the limited number of people able to pilot them. Only a handful of teenagers, all born fourteen years ago, nine months after the Angels first appeared, are able to interface with the Evangelion. One such teenager is Shinji Ikari, whose father heads the NERV team that developed and maintains the Evangelion. Thrust into a maelstrom of battle and events that he does not understand, Shinji is forced to plumb the depths of his own inner resources for the courage and strength to not only fight, but to survive, or risk losing everything.



Note: Later releases include edited versions of Episodes 21-24 called the "Director's Cut" with some visual editing and adding extra scenes that appeared in the theatrical recap 'Death'.

Tags: Philosophy , Coming of Age , Tragedy , Super Robot , Denpa , Dystopian , Cosmic Horror , Post-Apocalyptic , Angels , Psychosexual , Suicide , Kaiju , Primarily Teen Cast , Conspiracy , Male Protagonist , Aliens , Body Horror , Mythology , Military , Religion , Clone , Kuudere , Tokusatsu , Tsundere , Politics , Bisexual , Gore , Trains , Espionage , LGBTQ+ Themes , Boys' Love , Nudity , Episodic

Infinite Dendrogram

Also known as Infinite Dendrogram.

Studio: NAZ
Status: Finished
Genres: Action , Adventure , Fantasy

In the year 2043, Infinite Dendrogram, the world's first successful full-dive VRMMO was released. In addition to its ability to perfectly simulate the five senses, along with its many other amazing features, the game promised to offer players a world full of infinite possibilities.

Nearly two years later, soon-to-be college freshman, Reiji Mukudori, is finally able to buy a copy of the game and start playing. With some help from his experienced older brother, Shuu, and his partner Embryo, Reiji embarks on an adventure into the world of Infinite Dendrogram. Just what will he discover and encounter in this game world known for its incredible realism and infinite possibilities?



Tags: Virtual World , Isekai , Video Games , Artificial Intelligence , Male Protagonist , Shapeshifting , Magic , Chimera , Real Robot , Crossdressing , Gore , Female Harem , Maids , Succubus , Swordplay , Conspiracy , Estranged Family , Revenge

Shangri-La Frontier

Also known as Shangri-La Frontier.

Studio: C2C , Kodansha
Status: Finished
Genres: Action , Adventure , Comedy , Fantasy , Sci-Fi

"When was the last time I played a game that wasn't crap?" This is a world in the near future where games that use display screens are classified as retro. Anything that can't keep up with state-of-the-art VR technology is called a "crap game," and you see a large number of crap games coming out. Those who devote their lives to clearing these games are called "crap-game hunters," and Rakuro Hizutome is one of them. The game he's chosen to tackle next is Shangri-La Frontier, a "god-tier game" that has a total of thirty million players. Online friends... An expansive world... Encounters with rivals... These are changing Rakuro and all the other players' fates! The best game adventure tale by the strongest "crap game" player begins now!



Tags: Video Games , Virtual World , Male Protagonist , Otaku Culture , Anthropomorphism , Travel , Swordplay , Slapstick , Shounen , Animals , Primarily Animal Cast , Anachronism , Kemonomimi , Assassins , Curses , Gender Bending , POV , Heterosexual , Shapeshifting , Unrequited Love , Dullahan , Goblin

Shangri-La Frontier 2nd Season

Also known as Shangri-La Frontier Season 2.

Studio: C2C , Kodansha , Mainichi Broadcasting System , Netmarble , Crunchyroll , Tencent , Dentsu , Sammy
Status: Finished
Genres: Action , Adventure , Comedy , Fantasy , Sci-Fi

The second season of Shangri-La Frontier.

Rakuro Hizutome only cares about one thing: beating crappy VR games. He devotes his entire life to these buggy games and could clear them all in his sleep. One day, he decides to challenge himself and play a popular god-tier game called Shangri-La Frontier. But he quickly learns just how difficult it is. Will his expert skills be enough to uncover its hidden secrets?



Tags: Video Games , Virtual World , Shounen , Primarily Teen Cast , Male Protagonist , Anthropomorphism , Swordplay , Magic , Martial Arts , Travel , Hikikomori , Pirates , Animals , E-Sports , Otaku Culture , Superhero , Curses , Real Robot , Mermaid

Dennou Coil

Also known as Den-noh Coil.

Studio: MADHOUSE , NHK Enterprises , Tokuma Shoten , Bandai Visual , Maiden Japan
Status: Finished
Genres: Adventure , Comedy , Drama , Mystery , Sci-Fi

Imagine if the internet was 'projected' over the living world and you interacted with it using a portable device - glasses and visors which connect you to an augmented reality. In 2026, this technology becomes reality...

Yuuko Okonogi moves with her family to Daikoku, home of an ever expanding tech network which makes up the interactive virtual world. Her grandmother runs an agency to investigate missing children who appear to have vanished from the 'real' world and entered the city's Dennou - literally meaning "electric brain" - a term used to differentiate between the virtual and 'real.'

A hacker culture is emerging amongst the children of the city. Yasako is soon introduced to Isako, whose powers for hunting computer viruses known as 'illegals' belie an agenda that might have sinister motives.



Tags: Augmented Reality , Urban , Primarily Child Cast , Female Protagonist , Tragedy , Amnesia , Denpa , Coming of Age , Philosophy , Software Development , Conspiracy , Revenge , Ghost , School , Cosmic Horror , CGI , Bullying , Dissociative Identities