Key Takeaways
- Cyberpunk Genre: The cyberpunk genre explores dystopian futures dominated by chaos and capitalism.
- Top Series: This list ranks the ten greatest cyberpunk anime series based on various criteria.
- Worldbuilding: Each series is evaluated for its worldbuilding, originality, and depiction of the future.
- Fan Reception: The rankings consider fan opinion, critical acclaim, and overall quality.
The future is a scary concept, and while some try to be optimistic about what it holds, others can’t help but imagine the worst for society. And those thoughts birthed one of the greatest genres ever, cyberpunk. This genre is centred around a futuristic city overrun by chaos, capitalism, and villainy, creating a dark dystopia that is meant to predict the worst the future has in store, and anime excels at it.
There are many renowned cyberpunk anime films, such as Akira and Patlabor, as well as iconic short OVAs, including Battle Angel Alita. However, this list will rank the ten greatest cyberpunk anime series ever based on their worldbuilding, originality, depiction of the future, story, animation, fan opinion, critical acclaim, and overall quality. The future may be bleak, but there is no way it can get worse than these anime.
Collider Exclusive · Action Hero Quiz
Which Action Hero Would Be
Your Perfect Partner?
Rambo · James Bond · Indiana Jones · John McClane · Ethan Hunt
Five legends. Five completely different ways of getting out alive — with style, with muscle, with charm, with luck, or with a plan so intricate it probably shouldn’t work. Ten questions will reveal which action hero was built to have your back.
Rambo
James Bond
Indiana Jones
John McClane
Ethan Hunt
FIND YOUR PARTNER →
01
You’re dropped into a dangerous situation with no warning. What do you need most from a partner?
The first few seconds tell you everything about who belongs beside you.
ASomeone who already has three contingency plans running and is calmly working through all of them.
BSomeone who reads the terrain instinctively and knows exactly how to use it against the enemy.
CSomeone who keeps their nerve and their sense of humour when everything is falling apart.
DSomeone who knows the history of wherever we are and what we’re walking into.
ESomeone with the right contact, the right cover identity, and the right exit already arranged.
NEXT QUESTION →
02
You have to get somewhere dangerous, fast. How do you travel?
How you get there is half the mission.
AOn foot through terrain no one else would attempt — I move where vehicles can’t follow.
BOn a motorcycle, a cargo plane, or anything else that gets me there before I think too hard about it.
CIn something that belongs to someone else — borrowed, stolen, or improvised under fire.
DFirst-class, with a cover identity and a gadget that does something I won’t explain until it’s needed.
EBy whatever means are available — I’ve driven, flown, and once arrived by camel. The destination matters, not the method.
NEXT QUESTION →
03
You’re pinned down and outnumbered. What does your ideal partner do?
This is when you find out what someone is really made of.
ADisappears into the environment, flanks them silently, and ends it before I’ve reloaded.
BCracks a one-liner, grabs a fire extinguisher or a chair, and improvises something that somehow works.
CProduces a gadget specifically designed for this exact scenario and uses it with infuriating precision.
DPulls out a whip, a pistol, and an archaeological insight that somehow gets us out alive.
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