Highlights

• Isekai anime often involve video game mechanics, but not all great isekai require a compelling story to be told.
• Now And Then, Here And There delves into the harsh realities of war, showing a protagonist out of his depth.
• The Devil Works Part-Time! creatively inverts the isekai genre with humor and a focus on character development.

Isekai is one of the most popular anime genres of recent times, thanks in large part to the influence of shows like Sword Art Online, Log Horizon, and the like. However, one of the hardest things to escape is the whole video game mechanic.

That said, there are plenty of excellent isekai anime without any of these elements that hold up to scrutiny. It should be noted that isekai as a genre is about transporting an individual to a different world. Therefore, 'reverse isekai' counts as isekai. Furthermore, magic, which is an element found in most fantasy stories, is not something that can be considered an element exclusive to video games. Furthermore, by their very nature, many isekai are fantasy stories and tend to involve magic.

8 Now and then, here and there

MAL Average. Rating: 7.61

Shuuzou Matsutani is a normal boy who loves kendo. While trying to save a girl he meets, Lala-ru, he is transported to another world. However, unlike many isekai anime, where the protagonist gets used to the world and is somehow empowered, Shuu is most of the time incredibly lost.

The world he is brought into, a sort of dystopian war-torn land, is brutal, unforgiving and harrowing. The story of Now and then, here and there is one that explores the way war defines people and how their views on the world change as a result.

7 The Devil is a part-timer!

MAL Average. Rating: 7.73

The Devil is a part-timer! Follows the demon lord, Satan, as he escapes from Ente Isla and ends up in modern-day Japan. However, he is also followed by one of the main heroes of his kingdom, Emilia. Both trapped in this strange new world, they both must adapt and learn how to live.

What starts out as an epic fantasy story with intrigue turns into a slapstick comedy as Satan and his assistant Shirou Ashiya have to get jobs, pay bills, and figure out how to get back home. There are no leveling systems here, and Maou Sado (the name Satan decides to use) begins to appreciate the value of humans while also getting along with Emilia, who also has the same problems as him.

6 Derivatives

MAL Average. Rating: 7.89

Toyohisa Shimazu finds himself in another world after being injured in battle. What's unique about this world is that it is home to characters from different eras and has different classes of beings, including elves. Toyohisa, with the help of Oda Nobunaga and Yoichi Suketaka, must make his way in this new world filled with war and conflict.

Derivatives explores themes of war and exploration and features characters who are not made by the world they come from, but by the world they come from. Drifters' art style is distinct, as it comes from the same pen and mind that brought Hellsing to life, Kouta Hirano.

5 Inuyasha

MAL Average. Rating: 8.03

Inuyasha It's a classic anime that many who haven't seen it won't know is isekai. It tells the story of Kagome Higurashi who enters another world that is very similar to Earth, but with fantastic elements.

Inuyasha is a masterpiece and a great romantic tale. Kagome is a vehicle to explore feudal Japan and explore much of Japanese folklore and myth. The setting, which is speculated to be pre-Nobunaga times, is also a perfect setting to tell the kind of story Inuyasha seeks to tell. The dynamic between the characters is what has long lived in the hearts of anime fans and is a reminder of a simpler time in anime history.

4 The Twelve Kingdoms

MAL Average. Rating: 8.03

The Twelve Kingdoms is an epic story that follows a multitude of characters in a different world. The main plot is driven by Youko Nakajima, who began the story as a perfect high school student with a crippling sense of shyness. Forced into a new world where people are after her life, she begins to find the strength to deal with the challenges that lie ahead.

The Twelve Kingdoms is a sprawling fantasy story that relies more on the tropes of its source material, a fantasy novel, than on many of the more recent innovations that include RPG elements in anime. It is, at its core, a coming-of-age story of a young woman who finds the strength to take control of her destiny.

3 Rising of an avid reader

MAL Average. Rating: 8.05

Rising of an avid reader is the charming story of a young girl, Urano Motosu, who dies before she can read any more books. In the new world, instead of being born as an overpowered magician, she is born into a low-income family as a sickly girl.

Now known as Myne, she strives to enrich her life and the lives of others through books. What’s always been so lovely about this anime has been the character interactions. Myne is OP, but not in the traditional sense of the word, as her power comes from her unmatched brilliance. But with her physical limitations, it’s beautiful to watch her struggle to overcome them. With no leveling system in sight, Myne climbs the ladder through her personality and intelligence.

2 The Eminence in the Shadow

MAL Average. Rating: 8.33

The Eminence in the Shadow is one of the most popular isekai titles to hit the anime mainstream in recent times. It tells the story of a nervous teenager who dies and is reincarnated in another world, where he promises to live out the fantasy of his previous life – being the villain in the shadows.

The Eminence in the Shadow has many of the same things that many other modern isekai with game elements have, including an overbearing protagonist, a harem, and somewhat edgy storylines. In fact, it never features any RPG elements, but it tells a powerful fantasy story that is enjoyed by many.

1 Away from spirit

MAL Average. Rating: 8.77

Away from spirit is a classic that many may not realize is an isekai. It follows a girl who crosses over into another world and is searching for her way home. The story really nails the difference between isekai from the 90s and early 2000s and those of the modern day, as the former tended to tell stories where the isekai elements were a vehicle to tell a story, while modern isekai tend to focus on character and gimmick.

Spirited Away remains one of the highest-grossing anime films of all time (its top spot was taken by Demon Slayer) and the evergreen story of family, friendship and coming of age is one that has kept it a classic for many.