The most brutal death games in anime history plunge unwilling groups of players into a series of horrific challenges with their lives on the line. These games can be extremely high-stakes versions of real-world games that the players are likely to be familiar with, or much more original creations designed specifically to be as hostile to human life as possible. Any player who can’t adapt immediately is doomed, and large casts can be expected to shrink really fast.
Surprisingly, while there are deadly consequences for rebelling against or trying to expose the game, the impact on the players is primarily emotional. Everyone has something to hide, and they all must question whether they really knew each other or were friends at all. Yuuichi in particular, who all his friends considered gentle and reliable, reveals a shocking appetite for brutality.
Years before the major isekai boom of the 2010s, Gantz combined the most popular isekai elements with the death game premise. More than that, it’s best known for its highly bleak tone and considerable blood and gore. In a subgenre where many protagonists are the strongest or the sole source of morality in a brutal world, Kei is just as cruel and selfish as his enemies are.
Watch On Crunchyroll 5 Akuma no Riddle Pits Trained Killers Against Each Other Based on the manga by Yun Kouga and Sunao Minakata The prestigious Myojo Academy has a dark secret: Class Black, a secret class of twelve killers competing to assassinate their unlucky thirteenth member. However, this year Tokaku Azuma is bucking tradition and swearing to protect this year’s target, Haru Ichinose.