Anime games or anime-style games are getting more and more popular all around the world. Their best-selling feature is the franchises themselves - any anime fan would like to play games based on their favorite series. This formula is so successful that in some cases, they have even beaten back big names like PUBG Mobile and Free Fire for the top spot in revenue. In this article, we are going to showcase the top 10 best anime games for Android in 2021.
All the games on this list are f2p online-only, with gacha mechanics. There are no anime games for android offline to be found, as people just don't make them in this format. Offline anime games are usually only on PC and Console.
Table of Contents
1. Fate Grand Order
The Fate franchise is one of the biggest anime franchises ever, and their gacha-based mobile game, Fate Grand Order (FGO), has been running since 2015. The strength of FGO is its story - the majority of it was written by Nasu, the creator of the Fate franchise himself. This is pretty rare among anime based-games.
Fate Grand Order's gameplay, however, is rather tedious. It is turn-based without auto and the grind would consume a lot of your precious time. However, FGO is still worth playing for the story alone, which is one of the best ever created in mobile gaming.
However, if you want to enjoy the story without having to play the game, a quick YouTube search for a playlist is probably the best thing to do.
2. Bleach Brave Souls
Bleach Brave Souls (BBS) is the game spin-off of Bleach, one of the most popular manga/anime ever created. Similar to FGO or Genshin, it is also a gacha-style game in which you summon various characters from the Bleach universe, complete an original story, and engage in PVP with other players.
Similar to FGO, both the story and character designs in Bleach Brave Souls are based on novels written by the author of the series. If you want to know what happens next in Bleach or various side stories of the franchise, checking out BBS is a must.
Gameplay-wise, BBS has good 3D graphics and simple controls for free-flowing and fast-paced hack-and-slash action. Players can play in single-player mode or team up with three other players for online co-op. The graphics are pretty average - even a low-tier mobile phone could run it.
3. DanMachi: Memoria Freese
DanMachi: Memoria Freese is a spinoff of the anime "Is It Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon?". Obnoxious anime name aside, Memoria Freese is actually a pretty good game. Similar to the first two, it is a gacha game with characters from the anime, alongside RPG elements, dungeon crawling and online PVP.
It has the same strength that the above 2 have as well, with the story of the game written by series creator Fujino Ōmori. Adding the new characters and costume designs on top of that... and fans of the series would find themselves at home playing Memoria Freese.
Gameplay-wise, Memoria Freese is a turn based game in which you create your own tactical team with your favorite characters and engage enemies in classic JRPG style.
4. Dragon Balls Legends
If you are a fan of anime, you probably have heard of Dragon Balls. There have been many spin-off mobile games for this franchise, but Dragon Balls Legends is probably the best of the bunch. It is a fighter game with light RPG, adventure, and gacha elements. Unlike the usual fighting games, however, combat in DBL is fairly simple to grasp: it is only a series of simple taps and swipes.
While the story is not the best part of this game, it did recreate the world of Dragon Balls pretty faithfully. Dragon Balls Legends has iconic characters designs and stages based on famous locations in the anime. You can summon almost all of your favorite characters from popular DRAGON BALL anime series, such as DBZ, DBGT, to DBS. From popular heroes such as Goku, Gohan, Piccolo, Tien, and Krillin, to evil villains such as Frieza, Cell, and Majin Buu... this game has them all.
5. One Piece Treasure Cruise
One Piece is the longest manga/anime ever created, with the series still ongoing. One Piece Treasure Cruise is probably its most successful mobile spinoff - the game has been running for years, with a roster that features over 2000 characters. This is one of the biggest gacha pools ever created. If you are a fan of the series and want to play your favorite characters, this game can definitely keep your attention for a while.
OPTC's gameplay is the usual turn-based JRPG combat, which is moderately enjoyable to casual and hardcore players alike. The single-player section takes you through the ONE PIECE storyline from its very beginning through all the hit series’ arcs.
6. Sword Art Online: Memory Defrag
Sword Art Online: Memory Defrag is a spinoff mobile game based on the popular anime series of the same name. It features a lot of elements from the show itself, including hack and slash action RPG, online PVP, and an engaging story mode.
And similar to the previous games on this list, it is also a gacha in which you collect various characters from the show and upgrade them. While Memory Defrag is not very special or original, it is still a very decent game.
7. The Seven Deadly Sins: Grand Cross
A turn based RPG with gacha elements based on the Seven Deadly Sins anime. Overall, the game is fairly decent, with dynamic combat and breathtaking animations faithful to the anime. Outside of story mode, most of the game is focused on Co-op and PVP, with an arena mode where you can fight other people all over the world.
Grand Cross' character and world design are fairly decent - you would have a good time beating the story and enjoy the characters from the series.
8. Honkai Impact 3rd
Unlike the other anime games on Android devices, Honkai Impact started as a game and eventually get an anime adaptation. Its gameplay is a prototype version of Genshin Impact, miHoYo's world-famous game, with the main focus on ARPG elements. The two games are very similar overall - Honkai is one of the best games like Genshin Impact.
However, unlike Genshin Impact, Honkai is not an open world game. Honkai players explore various stages with monsters spawning periodically - it gets right to the action and skips the tedious exploration part. During battle, players may freely move their character around the battlefield and switch between their three deployed Valkyries to adapt to various enemy types. Each Valkyrie has unique attack, evasion, switch, and ultimate skills, as well as a rock-paper-scissors-based character type to fulfill different team roles.
9. Azur Lane
Similar to Honkai, Azur Lane comes out as a game first then eventually gets an anime spin-off. Overall, it is a bullet-hell style game, with you controlling characters weaving through clouds of attacks and destroy the objective. The characters in this game are anthropomorphic girls based on WW2 warships. Most of the activities in the game can be auto so that you won't have to spend much time grinding, which is something normal games don't have.
Similar to the rest of the games on this list, Azur Lane is a gacha. However, it is probably the most f2p friendly amongst anime games for Android.
>>> You may want to check: Azur Lane Equipment Tier List Complete Guide 2021
10. Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Links
Unlike other games on this list which mostly use the RPG turn based format, Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Links is a card game, which is a completely different genre altogether. Players will be able to build their deck with cards from the real Yu-Gi-Oh game and duel with other players and AI.
The best part about Duel Links is that their gameplay is actually fun and fresh, even with long time fans of the series. While the cards are the same, players have to play in a different format, which requires completely different strategies altogether.
Yu-Gi-Oh! as a game is pretty hard to get into, but Duel Links changes this. The tutorial part of Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Links is probably the best, with a lot of supporting features for beginners. From Duel Quizzes to learn the basic rules to Auto-Build Deck and even Auto-Duel so that you can understand how your deck should work.
This is the end of our list for the top 10 Anime Games For Android. Interested in more of our articles related to android games? Please check out this post to find out more about the Top 5 High Quality Marvel Games For Android In 2021.