An Isekai, or “alternate world,” is a genre of anime involving accidental travel from one boring real-world location to a fantasy world where the rules of science go out of the window!
Love the idea of a guy, girl, or group of people getting transported to a different, magical place and having to deal with a whole new way of life with magic or advanced technology.
So, today we will be talking about some of the best anime where the main character is transported to another world.
15. Fushigi Yugi
- Episodes: 52
- Studio: Studio Pierrot
- Genre: Romance, Comedy, Adventure, Historical, Drama, Magic
The story starts with two young middle school girls, Miaka Yuki and Yui Hangzhou.
Both of these girls are preparing for their high school entrance exam.
As they’re studying in the library, Miaka wanders to an off–limit area and a book randomly fall to the ground.
Upon reading the book, the girls are transported to a land resembling as ancient China.
14. Cautious Hero
- Episodes: 12
- Studio: White Fox
- Genre: Fantasy Comedy
The story revolves around an overpowered main character, Saya, summoned to save a world full of dangers.
He is a typical op-hero except for one small detail: he is overly cautious!
He will use his strongest attacks even on the weakest enemy just to be sure that they are defeated.
He is the kind of character who is prepared for every possible situation and that is probably what this world needs.
13. Drifters
- Episodes: 12 + 3 OVA
- Studio: Hoods Drifter Studio
- Genre: Fantasy, Adventure, Dark, Isekai
The story follows a fearless warrior Toyo who is in the middle of a losing battle and is mortally wounded.
After the battle of Sekigahara, Shimazu Toyohisa finds himself in a strange foreign world surrounded by elves, dwarfs and monsters.
Later, he finds out that he is a Drifter, and other fighters like him from different places have been summoned to this world to fight in a war against some historical figures.
12. Gargantia on the Verdurous Planet
- Episodes: 13
- Studio: Production I.G
- Genre: Dark Fantasy, Adventure Fiction
This story is about Ledo, a young soldier who fights against aliens in space that threaten the existence of the human race, and a young girl, Amy, living in a mysterious place.
Due to an unfortunate turn of events, he gets sent to the Earth where he is amused and bewildered by this sudden new environment.
To survive, he must adapt to his new life and srike up a friendship with the people of this new place!
11. The Vision of Escaflowne
- Episodes: 26
- Studio: Sunrise
- Genre: Romance, Fantasy, Mecha A
A 15-year-old girl, Kanazaki Hitomi, lives a relatively normal life.
She runs on the track team of her high school and has a talent for stunning accurate tarot reading.
On one fine day, she envisioned a strange boy defeating a dragon.
Everything changes when the same boy appears before her.
She finds herself magically being whisked away to a far-off planet known as Gaea with the dragon-slaying boy when he is returning to his world!
10. The Saint’s Magic Power is Omnipotent
- Episodes: 12
- Studio: Diomedea
- Genre: Fantasy, Slice of Life, Magic, Romance
The story revolves around a workaholic office lady named Sei.
She is summoned to a royal palace in a different world as a “Saint” by the crown prince of that world.
Upon her arrival, it came to her knowledge that one more girl had been summoned, and the prince seemed to be infatuated with that girl.
The prince decides that the other girl must be the Saint and leaves Sei all alone in this world.
Thus, begins the story build of this fantasy world’s saint.
9. Kakuriyo: Bed and Breakfast for the Spirits
- Episodes: 26
- Studio: Gonzo
- Genre: Demons, Supernatural, Drama, Romance
This series centers around a college student named Aoi, who has inherited the ability to see Ayakashi from her grandfather.
One day while feeding some spirits, a God and Master of the “Hidden Realm” appears before her and takes Aoi away.
It’s a place where the spirits live. Later in the show it is revealed that Aoi’s deceased grandfather owed a debt to the God of the “Hidden Realm” and in order to repay the debt, she must become his bride.
8. The Twelve Kingdoms
- Episodes: 45
- Studio: Pierrot
- Genre: Epic Fantasy
The plot focuses on a high school student named Nakajima Youko.
Even though she possesses all the good aspects of an ideal student, she has no friends.
Over time, a strange man appears right in the middle of the class, proclaiming her to be his queen.
Before she could properly explain this to her teacher, a demon attacks everyone, after which they are transported to a parallel world unlike what she has ever known.
7. Problem: Children Are Coming from Another World, Aren’t They?
- Episodes: 10 + OVA
- Studio: Diomedea
- Genre: Action, Comedy
The series swirls around three protagonists from different places having psychic powers, who are bored in the world they live in.
They receive an invitation from Kuro Usagi (The Black Rabbit) and are sent to another world to help her with her community which goes by the name, “No Name.”
6. No Game No Life
- Episodes: Fantasy, Science Fiction
- Studio: Madhouse
- Genre: Fantasy,
NGNL is a story about two brilliant NEET siblings, Sora and Shiro, who have become legends on the Internet by forming a team known as “Blank” in a video game.
One day, they get sucked into an alternate world where games decide everything.
Excited by this concept of the world, Sora and Shiro set off on an epic journey to see how far their gaming abilities will take them.
5. Now and Then, Here and There
- Episodes: 13
- Studio: AIC
- Genre: Post-apocalyptic, Science Fiction
This series covers the exploits of a 15-year-old boy, Matsutani Shuzo, as he is pulled into a parallel world when he attempts to rescue a girl named Lala–Ru.
Thereafter, Shu experiences some really difficult hardships as he continues to rescue the girl and return home.
Throughout the series, issues like child soldier, torture, sexual assaults and its effects, consequences of the war are dealt with.
4. Isekai Quartret
- Episodes: 24
- Studio: Studio Puyukai
- Genre: Comedy
This anime is simply a parody of four different shows Re: Zero, Konosuba, Overlord, and Tanya the Evil.
A switch appears out of the blue, and after pushing the button, the main cast of the show is once again sent to yet another world.
Except this time, it is a school where they are told to live a normal school life.
3. The Rising of the Shield Hero
- Episodes: 25
- Studio: Kinema Citrus
- Genre: Dark Fantasy
Naofumi Iwatani is a geeky college student and an uncharismatic otaku, who finds himself teleported to a different world where he is one of the four legendary heroes – The Shield Hero!
The Shield Hero is known to be the weakest among all the heroes.
After being betrayed on the third day of his journey, he is left alone and penniless.
He must make every effort to sustain life and has only his shield to help him save the world.
2. KonoSuba
- Episodes: 20 + @2OVAs
- Studio: Studio Deen
- Genre: Comedy,
On his way home buying a video game the main character of the series, Kazuma Saito ends up dying!
All is not over as he shortly wakes up to the Goddess Aqua.
He is given a choice as to whether he would like to continue on to heaven or be reincarnated into a fantasy world, and so he chooses to be reincarnated.
After choosing that, he is given another choice of bringing any one thing to assist him in his quests in this world.
He ends up choosing Goddess Aqua.
1. Re: Zero
- Episodes: 50
- Studio: White Fox
- Genre: Dark Fantasy, Adventure
Natsuki Subaru, the main character of this series, is transported to a fantasy world on his way home from the convenience store.
Not long after his arrival, he got his ass – kicked by some men and is saved by Emilia.
In the course of time, he finds out that he has a special ability called “Return by Death.”
This ability enables him to reset back to the moment where he found himself in the marketplace upon entering the world!
I would argue that Log Horizon belongs on any list of Izekai. Other than that, thanks – there were actually a couple I hadn’t heard of!
I am glad you enjoyed it!