Anime like Shangri-La Frontier

iQ

Bilibili

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Bandai Channel

Amazon Prime Video

Sword Art Online

Also known as Sword Art Online.

Studio: Aniplex , A-1 Pictures , Genco , DAX Production , Aniplex of America , ASCII Media Works , Bandai Namco Entertainment
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 , Death Game , Video Games , Male Protagonist , Swordplay , Heterosexual , Primarily Teen Cast , Isekai , Urban Fantasy , Primarily Female Cast , Rescue , Unrequited Love , Fairy , Artificial Intelligence , Found Family , Prison , Time Skip , Tragedy , Travel , Fishing , Amnesia , Medieval , Inseki

Where to watch?

Hulu

iQ

Bilibili TV

Itai no wa Iya nano de Bougyoryoku ni Kyokufuri Shitai to Omoimasu.

Also known as BOFURI: I Don't Want to Get Hurt, so I'll Max Out My Defense..

Studio: SILVER LINK. , AT-X , MAGES. , ABC Animation , Sammy , Docomo Anime Store , Kadokawa Media House , KADOKAWA , D-techno
Status: Finished
Genres: Action , Adventure , Comedy , Fantasy , Slice of Life

The story centers on Kaede Honjou, who is invited by her friend Risa Shiramine to play a virtual reality MMO game with her. While Kaede doesn't dislike games, what she really, truly dislikes is being in pain. She creates a character named Maple, and decides to put all her points in VIT to minimize pain. As a result, she moves slowly, can't use magic, and even a rabbit can get the best of her. However, as it turns out, she acquires a skill known as "Absolute Defense" as a result of her pumping points into VIT, as well as a "Counter Skill" that works against special moves. Now, with her ability to nullify all damage, she goes on adventures.

Tags: Video Games , Virtual World , Female Protagonist , Cute Girls Doing Cute Things , Isekai , Primarily Female Cast , Magic , Henshin , Parody , Primarily Teen Cast , Animals , Swordplay , Battle Royale , Episodic , Twins , Samurai , Monster Girl , Swimming , Steampunk , CGI , Fishing , Robots , Creature Taming , Medieval

Where to watch?

Hulu

iQ

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 , Kingdom Management , Alternate Universe , Dungeon , Ensemble Cast , Anthropomorphism , Found Family , Primarily Adult Cast , Kemonomimi , Love Triangle , Elf , Goblin , Kuudere , Twins , Samurai , Femboy , Skeleton , Episodic

Where to watch?

Hulu

Kyuukyoku Shinka Shita Full Dive RPG ga Genjitsu yori mo Kusogee Dattara

Also known as Full Dive: This Ultimate Next-Gen Full Dive RPG Is Even Shittier than Real Life!.

Studio: ENGI , KADOKAWA , Bit grooove promotion
Status: Finished
Genres: Action , Comedy , Ecchi , Fantasy , Romance

Yuuki Hiroshi has just picked up Kiwame Quest, the realest VRMMO ever made. But this RPG is TOO lifelike; he can smell, taste, feel, and when he's hurt in it, his physical body is hurt too. Even worse, his abilities in this adventure suck as much as they do in daily life. This was supposed to be immersion, not reality. Consumed with winning, he swears he'll conquer this game—even if it kills him!

Note: The first episode received an online advance screening on March 31, 2021. Regular TV broadcast started on April 7, 2021

Tags: Video Games , Virtual World , Surreal Comedy , Male Protagonist , Parody , Bullying , Isekai , Yandere , Conspiracy , Gore , Memory Manipulation , Female Harem , Goblin , Primarily Female Cast , Rehabilitation , Prison

Where to watch?

Amazon Prime Video

Yasei no Last Boss ga Arawareta!

Also known as A Wild Last Boss Appeared!.

Studio: NBCUniversal Entertainment Japan , WAO World , Sun Electronics , Touhouku Shinsha , Earth Star Entertainment , Kansai TV , BS Asahi , Bushiroad Move , KLOCKWORX
Status: Finished
Genres: Action , Adventure , Fantasy

An MMO gamer awakens as the Black-Winged Tyrant, Lufas Maphaahl, rising from her sealed fate—only to find this is very real. Her defeat 200 years ago unleashed monsters of death, and the legend is one of terror. Now, trapped in the body of history’s most feared conqueror, he must survive a world that wants her dead…and uncover why he’s here.

Tags: Isekai , Magic , Video Games , Female Protagonist , Gender Bending , Virtual World , Super Power , Primarily Female Cast , Meta , Creature Taming , Shapeshifting , Memory Manipulation , War , Demons , Villainess , Femboy , Class Struggle , Travel , Politics , Gore , Revenge , Artificial Intelligence , Gods , Nudity , Guns , Dragons , Ghost , Vampire , Elf

Where to watch?

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 , Ensemble Cast , Virtual World , Male Protagonist , Kingdom Management , Medieval , Magic , Necromancy , Demons , Primarily Adult Cast , Succubus , Video Games , Politics , Yandere , Villainess , Maids , Monster Girl , CGI , Butler , Female Harem , Elf , Kuudere , Love Triangle , Monster Boy , Vampire , Twins , Femboy , Crossdressing , Goblin , Dragons , Tomboy , Zombie , Swordplay

Where to watch?

Hulu

Tubi TV

Tempal: Item no Chikara

Also known as Overgeared.

Studio: J.C.STAFF , Pony Canyon , Crunchyroll , REDICE STUDIO , Kakao piccoma , Movic , EGG FIRM
Status: Releasing
Genres: Action , Adventure , Comedy , Fantasy

Sin Yeong-U (a.k.a. Grid), an unlucky man in life and a low-level player in the popular VR game “Satisfy,” finds a powerful item that earns him a rare legendary class title: “Pagma’s Successor.” He’s now a skilled blacksmith who can forge unique weapons and equip the game’s most powerful gear. Grid resolves to use his new abilities to achieve fame and fortune, but as his very existence begins to stir up trouble in Satisfy, he realizes that life as a legend may be more than he bargained for….

Note: Tempal: Item no Chikara is streaming a week in advance of the TV broadcast on Prime Video and Crunchyroll beginning September 27th, 2026. Regular broadcasting began on October 2nd, 2026.

Tags: Virtual World , Male Protagonist , Video Games , Slapstick , Shounen , Marriage , E-Sports , Magic , Primarily Adult Cast , Swordplay

Where to watch?

Chiyu Mahou no Machigatta Tsukaikata

Also known as The Wrong Way to Use Healing Magic.

Studio: Shin-Ei Animation , Studio Add , Frontier Works , GREE Entertainment , Crunchyroll , Bandai Namco Music Live , capibara , Shin-Ei Animation
Status: Finished
Genres: Action , Fantasy

An ordinary walk home from school turns into an epic journey for Usato. After suddenly being dropped into another world with two fellow students, Usato learns he was summoned there by accident. But things turn around when he discovers a unique aptitude for healing magic! Now, he trains beyond human limitations, using his self-healing abilities to gain absurd strength and unrivaled stamina.

Tags: Isekai , Magic , Demons , Male Protagonist , Survival , War , Fitness , Cultivation , Creature Taming , Military , Heterosexual , Animals , Wilderness , Kemonomimi , Swordplay , Female Harem

Where to watch?

Hell Mode: Yarikomi-zuki no Gamer wa Haisettei no Isekai de Musou Suru

Also known as HELL MODE: The Hardcore Gamer Dominates in Another World with Garbage Balancing.

Studio: Yokohama Animation Lab , Mainichi Broadcasting System , ANICI , SANKYO , Earth Star Entertainment , JR Higashi Nihon Kikaku , BS Nittele , FuRyu , TOKYO MX
Status: Finished
Genres: Action , Adventure , Fantasy

Thirty-five-year-old Kenichi Yamada has spent his life playing every single MMORPG he can get his hands on. Tired of new games that cater to casual players, he leaps at the chance to try out a never-ending game with an intimidating “Hell Mode” that raises the difficulty (and chances to level up) to impossible heights. But, as soon as he selects the “Summoner,” Kenichi finds himself transported into the world of the game and reborn to a family of serfs as a baby named Allen! With nothing but his memories and wits to guide him, Allen sets off to conquer Hell Mode, unearth the secrets of the Summoner class, and free his newfound family from their fate.

Tags: Creature Taming , Isekai , Male Protagonist , Animals , Video Games , Reincarnation , Class Struggle , CGI , Swordplay , Seinen , Medieval , Magic , Royal Affairs , Demons , War , Aviation , Found Family

Where to watch?

HIDIVE

Toaru Ossan no VRMMO Katsudouki

Also known as A Playthrough of a Certain Dude's VRMMO Life.

Studio: Maho Film , Yomiuri Advertising , King Records , AlphaPolis , KLOCKWORX , Stay Luck
Status: Finished
Genres: Action , Adventure , Comedy , Fantasy

Tanaka Taichi is just an ordinary 38-year-old who enjoys video games. He starts a new virtual reality multiplayer game called One More Free Life Online, naming his character Earth. Unlike his fellow players, he decides to master the most menial of skills in the game. He cooks the finest meals, overbrews complicated potions, and hunts monsters with handmade weapons. His fantasy life begins!

Note: The first 2 episodes were exclusively shown as a world premiere during the Anime Messe Babelsberg 2023 in July as a part of a special Anime Panel.

Tags: Video Games , Virtual World , Archery , Male Protagonist , Artificial Intelligence , Food , Kemonomimi , Fairy , Marriage , Alchemy , Medieval

Where to watch?