Anime based on video games

[Ikagura]

Ys had two OVA miniseries

Each based on the first two games (which were two parts of a bigger story).


Kirby got a series loosely based on Adventure with elements from Air Ride

F-zero as well (which spawned two video games adapted from it on the GBA)

Then Fire Emblem (based on Mystery of the Emblem):

 

[Waffles's iconWaffles]

There's one based on BlazBlue and one based on Magic School Lunar!, but neither are very good.

 

[Vetusomaru]

Final Fantasy Unlimited is one that really deserved a better shot, genuinely a great premise that was abandoned at the altar.

I've never watched Final Fantasy Unlimited (especially since I'm not a FF fan) but, damn, I love its ending song. One of my favorite anime endings ever:

 

[Evaccaneer Doom]

The DeSu TV show is the BEST anime

 

[Vetusomaru]

There's one based on BlazBlue and one based on Magic School Lunar!, but neither are very good.

Magic School Lunar is an ok special. For Blazblue anime everyone has negative opinions about it, including fans of the games.

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The DeSu TV show is the BEST anime
View attachment 23564

More info about it?

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Kirby got a series loosely based on Adventure with elements from Air Ride View attachment 23560

Here's an interesting translated interview with Sakurai about Kirby anime:

Kirby: Nightmare in Dream Land – Developer Interview - shmuplations.com

This Kirby: Nightmare in Dream Land interview was originally featured in Nintendo Dream in 11/2002, and covers the development team's creative design process.

shmuplations.com

 

[Ikagura]

Salamander (yes, the Gradius Spin-off better known as Life Force in the west) got an OVA series as well

Pokemon Mystery Dungeon Blue/Red Rescue Team got a short one-shot

While Explorers of Time/Darkness/Sky got two

(I won't show the second episode since it could potentially spoil an important plot device just with one character being present).

Sadly Gate to Infinity only got one short video

And Super had nothing...

 

[Vetusomaru]

Some of my favourites would be Sonic X and the Tales of Anime adaptations.

What about Sonic OVA? If you haven't watched it yet, it's a must. Such a shame it's only an OVA and didn't sell enough to get a tv series. It's the closest thing we can get to Sonic CD amazing anime opening and ending.

 

[Ikagura]

The DeSu TV show is the BEST anime
View attachment 23564View attachment 23567

What's the full name please? II want to see that V-cinema with crunchy 90's CGIs!

What about Sonic OVA? If you haven't watched it yet, it's a must. Such a shame it's only an OVA and didn't sell enough to get a tv series. It's the closest thing we can get to Sonic CD amazing anime opening and ending.

I'm surprised Sega didn't try re-releasing it to promote the success of the live action movies.

I liked the third one but the OVA is still my favourite of them all

 

[Vetusomaru]

Pokemon Mystery Dungeon Blue/Red Rescue Team got a short one-shot
View attachment 23568

While Explorers of Time/Darkness/Sky got two
View attachment 23569
(I won't show the second episode since it could potentially spoil an important plot device just with one character being present).

Here's a proper fansub for Pokemon Mystery Dungeon special anime (the "fansub" that exists at Nyaa.si is awful):

File folder on MEGA

mega.nz

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I'm surprised Sega didn't try re-releasing it to promote the success of the live action movies.

I'm not surprised. It's "too Japanese" for the "cool, American audience". Hell, even Nintendo still pretends that Super Mario anime movie doesn't exists (even after the hype and success of the cartoon movie), which is why it never got even a dvd release. Even when Shigeru first announced the American cartoon, he claimed that it's the first animated film adaption of Mario with the anime movie being like "Am I joke to you?". And it wasn't that the anime move was a flop. On the contrary, it was a success in Japan. Why it stayed Japan only while many crappy anime based on video games got localized is beyond me.

Thank goodness to the wizards that made the amazing film rip that easily puts many official bluray releases into shame.

 

[Ikagura]

Here's a proper fansub for Pokemon Mystery Dungeon special anime (the "fansub" that exists at Nyaa.si is awful):

File folder on MEGA

mega.nz

It's a shame that the PMD franchise is basically dead aside from one remake...

Bless you.


On a side note Dragon Quest got an animated series (no, not Dai no Daibouken) called Yuusha Abel Densetsu from 1989:

While I liked Dai's manga and some of the first anime I do feel that DQ deserved an actual series based on one of the actual games while having a style closer to Toriyama's. This one is loosely based on Dragon Quest III.

 

[Evaccaneer Doom]

What's the full name please? II want to see that V-cinema with crunchy 90's CGIs!

It's just named Devil Summoner iirc. I don't know/think it has subs since the game and TV show didn't make it outside Japan...yet. If Ruby Spears Mega Man can get introduced to Japanese audiences in 2025, this show can do the reverse easily

 

[Ikagura]

It's just named Devil Summoner iirc. I don't know/think it has subs since the game and TV show didn't make it outside Japan...yet. If Ruby Spears Mega Man can get introduced to Japanese audiences in 2025, this show can do the reverse easily

I'm sold!

I love low quality direct to video stuff from the 80-90.

 

[Vetusomaru]

While I liked Dai's manga and some of the first anime I do feel that DQ deserved an actual series based on one of the actual games while having a style closer to Toriyama's. This one is loosely based on Dragon Quest III.

The modern anime remake of Dragon Quest Dai is a huge, bad joke because of its heavy, pointless censorship that not even Pokemon anime localization would get.

 

[Ikagura]

It's probably not full but here's a section for these https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:OVAs_based_on_video_games

The modern anime remake of Dragon Quest Dai is a huge, bad joke because of its heavy, pointless censorship that not even Pokemon anime localization would get.

Sadly it's bound to happen even if Dai has little to no suggestive stuff compared to other shonens of its time.

Unless you're talking about the violence and blood which I'm not aware of for the anime since I've only seen the original so far.

 

[Vetusomaru]

It's probably not full but here's a section for these https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:OVAs_based_on_video_games


Sadly it's bound to happen even if Dai has little to no suggestive stuff compared to other shonens of its time.

Princess Minerva - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

Huh. I wasn't aware of that anime and game. I added it at my list.

 

[Ikagura]

Much better than the thing with Van Dame (nothing against him, I like Raul Julia better in it)

Sadly not as good but still enjoyable

 

[Deleted member 884]

The modern anime remake of Dragon Quest Dai is a huge, bad joke because of its heavy, pointless censorship that not even Pokemon anime localization would get.

Is it censored only in the us localization, or even in the japanese one?

 

[Ikagura]

Is it censored only in the us localization, or even in the japanese one?

I'm kinda sad that the US is still stuck in the 90's in some aspects but I'd be the devil's advocate and tell that what was acceptable ago may no longer be (especially for a younger audience).

Look at how gruesome some retro animes were (like Hokuto no Ken) despite being shonens and how even back then they toned down any suggestive stuff even in Japan for the TV airing.

People are like "story in a fighting game shouldn't matter" but I'll got to say that SNK managed to make compelling lore for their series like Art of Fighting or Fatal Fury:

I'm less fan of Tekken's personally but it's still worth a watch:

 

[Vetusomaru]

Much better than the thing with Van Dame (nothing against him, I like Raul Julia better in it)
View attachment 23578

Sadly not as good but still enjoyable
View attachment 23579

Street Fighter The Animated Movie is god-tier. Madhouse, the anime studio behind said movie, also made the god-tier Darkstalkers OVA (also available in bluray with English subs).

Unfortunately Street Fighter Alpha movie is awful in my opinion. Which is a shame cuz Street Fighter Alpha is my favorite Street Fighter series with great anime-style. Street Fighter Alpha Generations was much better but not as good as Street Fighter The Animated Movie.

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Is it censored only in the us localization, or even in the japanese one?

In Japan too. It was same era when SquareEnix started to gradually censor Dragon Quest series even in Japan (starting with Dragon Quest 8 remake at 3DS) "for the modern audience". Also the anime remake was made by Toei, an anime studio that was always famous for heavily censoring and toning down anime based on popular manga, especially the ones they tried selling to kids (even when the manga weren't family-friendly).

 

[Evaccaneer Doom]

Princess Minerva - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

Huh. I wasn't aware of that anime and game. I added it at my list.

PRINCESS MINERVA MENTIONED!!!
Definitely worth a play. Not groundbreaking, but very unique even today. 12 characters each with their own stats, spells and mechanics and it takes the FF6 approach of allowing you to make teams. Unlike that game though, the order of characters that fight in every random battle is kinda random. It's always one of the two teams and it swaps.

 

[Deleted member 884]

In Japan too. It was same era when SquareEnix started to gradually censor Dragon Quest series even in Japan (starting with Dragon Quest 8 remake at 3DS) "for the modern audience".

I was thinking on trying it, but if that's censored I might not to.

 

[Ikagura]

Completely random but I'm legit sad that Phantasy Star never had any OVA of any kind.

The franchise started getting an adaption only from PSO2 and even then it was merely a promo for Episode 4 as it served as a prequel.

We got PSO2 Comi which is an adaption of a 4koma which talked to me more as it was more about mundane interactions between PSO2 players rather than a story happening in-universe (which is what PSO could've gotten) then we got PSO2 Oracle which was a summary of the first 3 Episodes.

PSU had Shadow of the Arkguard but it was an interactive comic on Flash and PSOBB got mangas but were mostly shorts with humour in most of them...

 

[Vetusomaru]

I'm kinda sad that the US is still stuck in the 90's in some aspects but I'd be the devil's advocate and tell that what was acceptable ago may no longer be (especially for a younger audience).

Look at how gruesome some retro animes were (like Hokuto no Ken) despite being shonens and how even back then they toned down any suggestive stuff even in Japan for the TV airing.

People are like "story in a fighting game shouldn't matter" but I'll got to say that SNK managed to make compelling lore for their series like Art of Fighting or Fatal Fury:
View attachment 23580


I'm less fan of Tekken's personally but it's still worth a watch:
View attachment 23581

Putting aside the cheesy story/dialogues at Fatal Fury movies, they're great in terms of visuals, animation, action and faithfulness at the games. Also great fanservice with Mai. In my opinion the best anime based on SNK game. Unfortunately the Fatal Fury TV special was too cheapass even for tv anime standards.

While most people hate Tekken The Animated Movie, I personally liked it a lot back then. Of course it would be better if it covered much characters. Such a shame they never made an anime movie based on Tekken 3.

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I was thinking on trying it, but if that's censored I might not to.

They even covered Maam's legs cuz God forbid showing women's feet:

Also remember the famous tickle scene at the original? It was totally removed at the remake.

 

[Ikagura]

They even covered Maam's legs cuz God forbid showing women's feet:
View attachment 23583
View attachment 23584
Also remember the famous tickle scene at the original? It was totally removed at the remake.

It's funny because tights are a bit more lewd to me (or I'm just being weird).
Well, I'm cheating since it's a novel adaption but said novel served as the basis of a well known video game franchise so whatever:

Digital Devil Story Megami Tensei's OVA

I love these visuals:

 

[Vetusomaru]

It's funny because tights are a bit more lewd to me (or I'm just being weird).

Tights are sexy indeed when other pieces of clothes don't cover a girl's body, especially her butt.

Also many others had same reaction with you when the gals from Xenoblade 2 got their legs covered with tights at Smash Bros Ultimate.