20 anime similar to .hack//Liminality based on genre, format, studio, and popularity
Looking for anime similar to .hack//Liminality? Here are 10 anime recommendations that share similar themes, genres, or storytelling styles.
We selected these anime based on shared genres (Mystery, Sci-Fi), similar narrative structures, comparable art styles, and positive fan overlap. If you enjoyed .hack//Liminality, these series should appeal to your taste.
In Tokyo, an impenetrable field known as "Hell's Gate" appeared ten years ago. At the same time, psychics who wield paranormal powers at the cost of their conscience also emerged. Hei is one of the most powerful of these psychic agents, and along with his blind associate, Yin, works for one of the many rival agencies vying to unlock the mysteries of Hell's Gate. (Source: Anime News Network)
Naota is a detached sixth grader afflicted by the pangs of puberty. He's fooling around with his brother's ex-girlfriend when a crazed girl on a motor scooter runs him over, brains him with a bass guitar, and moves into his house. This pink-haired girl, Haruko - who claims she's an alien - hurls Naota into the middle of a mega-corporation's secret agenda. Oh, and now giant battling robots shoot from his skull. Mix in mind-bending animation and tunes that echo through your cerebellum to top off the trip that will have you falling hard for FLCL. (Source: Funimation)
Something is wrong in the perfect domed city of Romdo. Between the sudden rash of murders and a virus affecting all AutoReivs-cyborg companions and workers who assist the people of Romdo - all is not right in their dome home. Detective Re-l Meyer begins to investigate, seeking answers to the weird occurrences that are happening more and more around her. But when she begins to uncover the truth, her world is turned upside down. First, the strange immigrant Vincent Law goes missing and then a monster appears before her, shaking her to her core. But this monster is something more, something dangerous and sinister. With each question and mystery, she is led back to the creature. But what is it really? What purpose does it serve? A sign of the end or a sign of a new beginning? Whatever it is, it repeatedly brings her back to Vincent and soon, alongside his journey back to another dome world called, Mosk. As they make their way across scarred and deserted Earth, Re-l and Vincent will learn more about the monster and the "awakening"-which could be more of an ending than a beginning. (Source: Funimation) Note: Episode 1 received an advanced broadcast on channel WOWOW on February 5, 2006. The start date reflects the start of the regular series broadcasting.
Light Yagami is a genius high school student who is about to learn about life through a book of death. When a bored shinigami, a God of Death, named Ryuk drops a black notepad called a Death Note, Light receives power over life and death with the stroke of a pen. Determined to use this dark gift for the best, Light sets out to rid the world of evil… namely, the people he believes to be evil. Should anyone hold such power? The consequences of Light’s actions will set the world ablaze. (Source: VIZ Media)
We're all connected... There is the world around us, a world of people, tactile sensation, and culture. There is the wired world, inside the computer, of images, personalities, virtual experiences, and a culture all of its own. The day after a classmate commits suicide, Lain, a 14-year-old girl, discovers how closely the two worlds are linked when she receives an e-mail from the dead girl: I just abandoned my body. I still live here... Has the line between the real world and the wired world begun to blur? (Source: Geneon Entertainment)
Kyon, your typical high school student, has long given up his belief in the supernatural. However, upon meeting Haruhi Suzumiya, he quickly finds out that it is the supernatural that she is interested in; aliens, time travelers and espers among other things. When Haruhi laments about the lack of intriguing clubs around school, Kyon inspires Haruhi to form her own club. As a result, the SOS Brigade is formed, a club which specializes in all that is the supernatural. Much to his chagrin, Kyon, along with the silent bookworm, Yuki Nagato, the shy and timid Mikuru Asahina, and the perpetually smiling Itsuki Koizumi, are recruited as members. The story follows the crazy adventures that these four endure under their whimsical leader, Haruhi. The story is based on the light novels by Nagaru Tanigawa. Note: This entry is for the original 14-episode 2006 airing. The series was further expanded and reordered into a 28-episode series in 2009.
Prepare to enter the realm of fantasy and imagination where reality and dreams collide in a kaleidoscopic mindscape of sheer visual genius. The magical tale centers on a revolutionary machine that allows scientists to enter and record a subject's dream. After being stolen, a fearless detective and brilliant therapist join forces to recover the device before it falls into the hands of a dream terrorist. (Source: Sony Pictures Home Entertainment) Note: The film received an early premiere at the 63rd Venice International Film Festival on September 2, 2006.
Special episode included in the last of the nine Blu-ray/DVD volumes. The story is set a few months after the last scene of the television series. On a calm day in Akihabara, Okabe and the other laboratory members are invited by Feyris to go to America. Mayuri and the rest are planning to reunite with Kurisu, who had come back to an American laboratory. A few days later, Okabe's mad scientist persona Hououin Kyouma arrives alone at the airport in Los Angeles, where he may be taking the first step to leading the world into chaos. (Source: Anime News Network)
It is mid-December, and SOS Brigade chief Haruhi Suzumiya announces that the Brigade is going to hold a Christmas party in their clubroom, with Japanese hotpot for dinner. The brigade members Kyon, Yuki Nagato, Mikuru Asahina and Itsuki Koizumi start preparing everything for the party, such as costumes and decorations. But a couple of days later, Kyon arrives at school only to find that Haruhi is missing. Not only that, but Mikuru claims she has never known Kyon before, Koizumi is also missing, and Yuki has become the sole member of the literature club. The SOS Brigade seems to have never existed, nor has Haruhi Suzumiya. No one in the school has ever heard about her... except for Kyon. (Source: Anime News Network)
In the year 2015, the Angels, huge, tremendously powerful, alien war machines, appear in Tokyo for the second time. The only hope for Mankind's survival lies in the Evangelion, a humanoid fighting machine developed by NERV, a special United Nations agency. Capable of withstanding anything the Angels can dish out, the Evangelion's one drawback lies in the limited number of people able to pilot them. Only a handful of teenagers, all born fourteen years ago, nine months after the Angels first appeared, are able to interface with the Evangelion. One such teenager is Shinji Ikari, whose father heads the NERV team that developed and maintains the Evangelion. Thrust into a maelstrom of battle and events that he does not understand, Shinji is forced to plumb the depths of his own inner resources for the courage and strength to not only fight, but to survive, or risk losing everything. (Source: AniDB) Note: Later releases include edited versions of Episodes 21-24 called the "Director's Cut" with some visual editing and adding extra scenes that appeared in the theatrical recap 'Death'.
OVA 1: An old journal is found by Levi and Erwin when they conduct the surveillance operation outside the wall. The contents of "Ilse's Journal" result in some unexpected actions from Hange. OVA 2: Another story of the 104th Trainee Squad. OVA 3: Will depict a "memorable episode before the 104th Training Corps became unified." (Source: Anime News Network)
In the year 2024, the world has collapsed. Grotesque monsters lurk amongst the ruins of Japan, while remaining people scrape together what they can to survive. Kiruko, an odd-job girl in Nakano, accepts a mysterious woman's dying wish to take a boy named Maru to a place called Heaven. (Source: Disney+, edited)
The Gastrea virus spreads like wildfire, causing each infected host to rapidly mutate, gaining new powers and abilities with every stage of development, even while they continue to attack, kill and infect multiple new hosts. Unable to fight a pandemic enemy that turns defenders into adversaries, the shocked remnants of the human race are forced to retreat into cities surrounded by giant monoliths made of Varanium, one of the few materials that can stop the Gastrea. Now mankind's last hope lies in the Cursed Children: young girls infected with the virus who have managed to retain a hold on their humanity. Paired with a partner, they alone have the strength to take on a Gastrea in one-on-one combat. But the very thing that gives them power is a ticking time bomb, so even as they protect humanity, they are also feared and shunned. Are they Girls? Monsters? Or Mankind's Ultimate Salvation? (Source: Sentai Filmworks)
Kaname Sudou, an ordinary high school student, receives an invitation email to try a mysterious app called "Darwin's Game." Kaname, upon launching the app, is drawn into a game where players fight one another using superpowers called Sigils. Without knowing the reason for all this, can Kaname survive furious battles against the powerful players who attack him? (Source: Aniplex of America) Note: The first episode aired with a runtime of ~48 minutes as opposed to the standard 24 minute long episode.
Based on Yasutaka Tsutsui's novel, Fugou Keiji. The story centers around millionaire Daisuke Kambe, the heir to one of the wealthiest families in Japan, who is assigned as a detective to the Modern Crime Prevention Task Force (aka MCPTF), at the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department. Taking full advantage of his vast family wealth, he spares no expense in solving complex crimes, and has the tendency to evaluate everything including individual human lives in terms of their monetary value. Haru Katou, a detective with a compassionate heart who believes that money isn’t everything, is chosen as Kambe’s partner but is repulsed by his materialistic attitude. Having diametrically opposing personalities, witness how the two join forces to tackle seemingly unsolvable crimes and mysteries! (Source: Fuji Creative Corporation) Note: Although Tsutsui's novel was published between 1975 and 1977, the anime plays out in the modern era.
Enter a world in the distant future, where Bounty Hunters roam the solar system. Spike and Jet, bounty hunting partners, set out on journeys in an ever struggling effort to win bounty rewards to survive. While traveling, they meet up with other very interesting people. Could Faye, the beautiful and ridiculously poor gambler, Edward, the computer genius, and Ein, the engineered dog be a good addition to the group?
Dr. Kenzo Tenma is a renowned Japanese brain surgeon working at a leading hospital in Germany. One night, Dr. Tenma risks his reputation and career to save the life of a critically wounded young boy over that of the town mayor who had been planning to support the hospital financially. A string of mysterious murders begin to occur soon after the operation, and Dr. Tenma emerges as the primary suspect despite no incriminating evidence. A doctor is taught to believe that all life is equal; however, when another series of murders occur in the surgeon's vicinity, Dr. Tenma's beliefs are shaken as his actions that night are shown to have much broader consequences than he could have imagined. Leaving behind his life as a surgeon he embarks on a journey across the country to unravel the mystery of the boy he saved.
Kyon has found himself dragged through many adventures as of late—all because of the SOS Brigade club and its excitable leader, Haruhi Suzumiya. He has stopped believing in the supernatural long ago, but after being forced to join this club based solely on that, he has seen things that cannot be explained logically. Joining Kyon on his various misadventures is the shy and soft-spoken Mikuru Asahina, the bookish Yuki Nagato, and the ever-cheerful Itsuki Koizumi. Whether it is summer vacation or a school festival, things involving their club and Haruhi herself always end up becoming strange. Note: This is a re-airing of the original Suzumiya Haruhi no Yuuutsu series, taken from the DVD release and aired in chronological order, adding 14 additional episodes with new content. These new episodes are episodes 8 (Bamboo Leaf Rhapsody), 12-19 (Endless Eight), and 20-24 (The Sigh of Suzumiya Haruhi Parts 1-5).
Several hundred years ago, humans were nearly exterminated by titans. Titans are typically several stories tall, seem to have no intelligence, devour human beings and, worst of all, seem to do it for the pleasure rather than as a food source. A small percentage of humanity survived by walling themselves in a city protected by extremely high walls, even taller than the biggest of titans. Flash forward to the present and the city has not seen a titan in over 100 years. Teenage boy Eren and his foster sister Mikasa witness something horrific as the city walls are destroyed by a colossal titan that appears out of thin air. As the smaller titans flood the city, the two kids watch in horror as their mother is eaten alive. Eren vows that he will murder every single titan and take revenge for all of mankind. (Source: MangaHelpers)
On August 10th of the year 2010 the Holy Empire of Britannia began a campaign of conquest, its sights set on Japan. Operations were completed in one month thanks to Britannia's deployment of new mobile humanoid armor vehicles dubbed Knightmare Frames. Japan's rights and identity were stripped away, the once proud nation now referred to as Area 11. Its citizens, Elevens, are forced to scratch out a living while the Britannian aristocracy lives comfortably within their settlements. Pockets of resistance appear throughout Area 11, working towards independence for Japan. Lelouch, an exiled Imperial Prince of Britannia posing as a student, finds himself in the heart of the ongoing conflict for the island nation. Through a chance meeting with a mysterious girl named C.C., Lelouch gains his Geass, the power of the king. Now endowed with absolute dominance over any person, Lelouch may finally realize his goal of bringing down Britannia from within! (Source: Bandai Entertainment)