When anime series do exceptionally well, it's only natural that video games based on them begin to spawn, aiming to capitalize on fan interest as well as potentially hook new players who may not have been exposed otherwise. This is especially true for shows that fall under the shonen genre or otherwise have some form of combat system, as it's easy to translate them into fighting-game and RPG formats that fans are eager to insert themselves into.
Long-running series such as Naruto, Dragon Ball and Yu-Gi-Oh! have no shortage of games to try on a wide variety of consoles. However, only one of them can stand out as the highest-rated for its particular series, and it's always interesting to see which entry manages to stand above all the rest.
10 Naruto: Naruto Shippuden - Ultimate Ninja Storm 3 (8.6)
Out of the dozens of games that exist for the Naruto franchise, the top-rated is Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm 3, sitting at an 8.6 out of ten. Originally released for the Playstation 3, an enhanced version would later make its way to the PC and Steam markets.
It boasts an absolutely staggering 80 total playable characters and a story mode complete with epic boss battles including the Nine-Tailed fox itself. CyberConnect2, the developer, apparently reached out to fans to ask what they wanted out of the game, and the decision to do so would help cement it as the best Naruto game out there.
9 Pokémon: Generations One And Two (10)
It's hard to beat the classics, and in Pokémon's case, nothing else can compare to the first two generations. Both Red, Blue and it's special Yellow edition score a ten-out-of-ten alongside Gold and Silver.
They're not perfect games by any means, as the older games in particular are riddled with bugs and glitches. However, they're how many people were first introduced to the franchise, so it's hard to compete with the childhood love that so many fans hold for them.
8 Dragon Ball Z: Dragon Ball FighterZ (8.5)
Out of its long lineup of games, nothing can top Dragon Ball's Dragon Ball FighterZ. It's seen releases for the Playstation 4, Xbox One, PC and the Nintendo Switch, making it incredibly accessible to anyone who hasn't yet given it a go.
The game boasts 43 playable characters, 19 of which were released later as downloadable content. The game is criticized for its lackluster online feature, but its fighting system, roster, visuals, story mode and music are all highly praised.
7 JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: JoJo's Bizarre Adventure (8.5)
JoJo's Bizarre Adventure has a decent selection of video game titles under its belt, with Capcom's fighting game of the same name taking the top spot. It was developed by the same team responsible for the Street Fighter III series.
It was originally released in 1998 for the CPS-3 arcade system, but later saw updated versions make their way to the Playstation and Dreamcast, with the most recent ports being the Playstation and Xbox online stores in 2012. The most unique part about the fighter is definitely the Stand modes that characters have access to, which completely change their combos and abilities.
6 Fullmetal Alchemist: Fullmetal Alchemist And The Broken Angel (6.4)
Fullmetal Alchemist sadly suffers from a lack of games being translated and released outside of Japan. One of the only games to be brought over is Fullmetal Alchemist and the Broken Angel for the Playstation 2.
A major plus for the game is its game-original story that was actually developed by the original manga creator, Hiromu Arakawa. While it had good sales in Japan, critic reviews are largely mixed, citing the graphics and gameplay to be underwhelming.
5 Yu-Gi-Oh!: Dungeondice Monsters (8)
Yu-Gi-Oh! is another franchise that has a laundry list of games on different consoles for interested fans to choose from. Though not all of them rank highly, Dungeondice Monsters for the Gameboy Advance won hearts with an eight out of ten.
There are three separate divisions players can fight in, with fight difficulty increasing as they go. The game also features a total of nine original characters made specifically for this entry.
4 Attack On Titan: Attack On Titan (7.3)
Attack On Titan has received a fair number of games, having first aired much later than most other entries, which speaks volumes about the series' overall popularity. Its most popular game was a Playstation exclusive at first going by the same name, later seeing launches for the Xbox One and PC.
The game's story is more-or-less a faithful retelling of the first season of the anime, with some extra character moments sprinkled in. Getting to control characters maneuvering around and killing Titans is obviously the biggest draw.
3 One Piece: Pirate Warriors 4 (8)
Typically with long-running series that have more than a few video game titles under their belt, they tend to decline in review score over time. This can be due to fan nostalgia making them prefer older titles, or a genuine lack of new content in more recent titles.
Impressively, One Piece's Pirate Warriors 4 launched in 2020 for Switch, Playstation 4, Xbox One and PC, and is the series' highest-rated game at an eight. It has a completely game-original story and features four new multiplayer modes, and the graphics are quite nice.
2 Bleach: The Blade Of Fate (8.5)
Bleach's highest-rated game is surprisingly for the Nintendo DS, titled The Blade of Fate. It first released in Japan in early 2006, coming to the States nearly a full two years later near the end of 2007, and finally seeing European and Australian release in 2008.
Its core gameplay features two or four-player matches, with stages having two planes that players are able to jump between. Its graphics are charming for the time, and IGN actually rated it 2007's best fighting game.
1 My Hero Academia: My Hero One's Justice (7)
Though it's a more recent arrival, My Hero Academia has a few video games released for it, which makes sense given the nature of the show. Characters are flashy with fun and dynamic powers, and My Hero One's Justice delivers well enough.
Players can play as a variety of both heroes and villains, with there being 23 playable characters in total. An interesting feature of the game's story mode is that it's actually split between a hero storyline and villain storyline instead of the usual anime game formula of strictly following the plot from the protagonist's point of view.