Manga like Ban-ou

3-gatsu no Lion

Also known as March Comes in Like a Lion.

Status: Releasing
Genres: Drama , Slice of Life

Rei Kiriyama is a child prodigy. Rei Kiriyama is also an orphan who lives alone in an empty apartment. Rei Kiriyama is a teen working in an adult's world. Life is complicated for Rei. He's an up-and-coming shogi player on the verge of turning pro, but he has no homelife, or much of a life period, outside his board game, but thankfully with the help of some life-long friends he has an opportunity start all over again.



Notes:
Winner of the Grand Prize at the 4th Manga Taishou Award in 2011.
Winner of the 35th Kodansha Manga Award in 2011.
Winner of the Grand Prize at the Tezuka Osamu Cultural Prize in 2014.
Winner of the Grand Prize at the Japan Media Arts Festival in 2021.

Tags: Coming of Age , Family Life , Philosophy , Rehabilitation , Seinen , Shogi , Found Family , Male Protagonist , Bullying , Iyashikei , Board Game , Food , Tragedy , Heterosexual , Age Gap , Adoption , School Club , Love Triangle

Hikaru no Go

Also known as Hikaru no Go.

Status: Finished
Genres: Comedy , Drama , Psychological , Sports , Supernatural

After stumbling across a haunted Go board, irresponsible Hikaru Shindo discovers that the spirit of a master player has taken up residence in his consciousness. In his pursuit of the "Divine Move," Fujiwara-no-Sai awakens in Hikaru an untapped interest and genius for the game, and soon the schoolboy is chasing his own dream--defeating the famed Go prodigy Akira Toya!



Note: There are 197 chapters total in the original release.

Tags: Go , Coming of Age , Ghost , Board Game , Male Protagonist , Shounen , School Club , Primarily Male Cast , Tragedy , School , Work , Urban Fantasy , Foreign

Ryuu to Ichigo

Status: Releasing
Genres: Drama , Sports

A fourteen year-old girl challenges the shogi competitive scene.

Tags: Board Game , Time Skip , Female Protagonist , Shounen , Shogi

Akane-banashi

Also known as Akane-banashi.

Status: Releasing
Genres: Drama

Rakugo--the ultimate form of storytelling, where everything in a story is expressed with just your body and words. Shinta and his daughter Akane have been seduced by this wonderful form of classical entertainment. Having observed her father strive to pass the shin'uchi rakugo test, Akane will take her own steps into this unique world!



Notes:
Ranked 3rd in the 8th Next Manga Awards print manga category in 2022.
Ranked 4th in the Kono Manga ga Sugoi! 2023 guidebook for male readers.
Ranked 3rd in the Nationwide Bookstore Employees' Recommended Comics of 2023.
Ranked 2nd in the 16th Manga Taisho in 2023.
Nominated for the 47th Kodansha Manga Award in the shounen category in 2023.
Included in the New York Public Library's 2023 Best Books for Teens.
Included in YALSA's 2024 Great Graphic Novels for Teens.

Tags: Rakugo , Female Protagonist , Primarily Adult Cast , Coming of Age , Acting , Work , Philosophy , Shounen , Found Family , Revenge , Family Life , Time Skip , School