Devil May Cry joins an already cramped space among Netflix-exclusive game adaptations. There’s probably more on there than what fans remember and quite a few are based on Capcom franchises. Dragon’s Dogma was the first to get a short adaptation in 2020 which was followed by Onimusha in 2023.
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Beyond Netflix, Capcom has lent its properties to anime and cartoon companies for decades including Ace Attorney, Viewtiful Joe, many Mega Man spinoffs, and more. There have even been live-action adaptations like Street Fighter and Monster Hunter. What Capcom games or series could be adapted well into an anime-style show like Devil May Cry next?
7 Bionic Commando
Stop Hitler, AGAIN!
Bionic Commando
- Genre(s)
- Platformer
- Platform(s)
- Nintendo Entertainment System
Most Nintendo fans are probably most familiar with the NES game Bionic Commando, which was released in 1988 as opposed to the franchise’s debut in arcades in 1987. They probably also don’t know about the Japanese name for the NES version, Hitler's Resurrection: Top Secret. The original core game saw Nathan “Rad” Spencer, a cybernetic spy, infiltrate a Nazi base to destroy an attempt to literally bring back Hitler. The North American version just fought an evil empire with the “Badd” organization running things which was a lot less cool. If an anime gets made, it should stick to the original premise as punching Nazis has never felt more appropriate.
6 Clock Tower
Fear The Scissorman
Clock Tower
- Released
- September 14, 1995
WHERE TO PLAY
- ESRB
- M For Mature 17+ Due To Animated Blood and Gore, Animated Violence
- Genre(s)
- Survival Horror, Adventure
The Clock Tower series premiered in 1995 on the SNES and while Western fans did get to play the series via sequels, they couldn’t touch this original until 2024 via the Clock Tower: Rewind re-release. Most games in this franchise are separate but they share a common enemy: Scissorman.
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This is a pure survival horror series wherein players have little in way of fighting back unlike Resident Evil. They have to run, hide, and solve puzzles to escape this wild killer and its giant scissor weapon. A good horror anime is always welcome and it could adapt any of the games or be something original but Scissorman should be kept as the villain.
5 E.X. Troopers
Lost Planet’s Hidden Spinoff
E.X. Troopers
- Released
- November 22, 2012
- ESRB
- t
- Developer(s)
- HexaDrive
- Genre(s)
- Action-Adventure, Shooter
The Lost Planet series premiered on the Xbox 360 via Lost Planet: Extreme Condition in 2006 and a year later in North America. Most are probably familiar with the trilogy from this first HD era of consoles as they were futuristic shooters against bug aliens sporting realistic visuals. Fans may not know that there was a spinoff called E.X. Troopers which was released for the PS3 and 3DS. It used cel-shading and had a more anime-infused story. It’s a shame it didn’t initially come over when it launched in 2012, but Capcom can perhaps make good with a remaster alongside a cartoon adaptation as it practically already is an anime.
4 Mega Man Legends
A Perfect 90s Throwback
Mega Man Legends
- Released
- August 31, 1998
- ESRB
- e // Animated Violence
- Genre(s)
- Action-Adventure
Mega Man Legends was a wild spinoff of the Blue Bomber which was released for the PS1 in 1998 for North America. Like E.X. Troopers, it had an anime flair to the art style, using an early form of cel-shading on its polygonal models. This first entry took place far in the future with Mega Mega Trigger crash-landing his airship on an island that was overrun with pirates trying to unearth its ruins. Besides looking like an anime, it felt like one too thanks to the wacky story and villains. It would be lovely to see a return to this style of anime storytelling that was made famous by gems like Nadia: The Secret of Blue Water and Castle in the Sky.
3 Okami
Build Hype For The Sequel
Okami
- Released
- September 19, 2006
WHERE TO PLAY
2024’s edition of The Game Awards surprised fans when a sequel to the 2006 hidden gem, Okami, was announced. The sequel is a long way off for sure as no footage was shown. In that meantime, Capcom can drum up hype but re-releasing the even more obscure DS spinoff, Okamiden, along with an anime adaptation. The art style was unique on the PS2 as it was cel-shaded but had more of a watercolor and ink aesthetic. The HD remasters look great, but the original visuals still hold up on the PS2 thanks to the art direction and it’s unlike most games that are Zelda-likes.
2 Resident Evil
It’s Time
Resident Evil
- Released
- March 22, 1996
- ESRB
- Mature 17+ // Blood and Gore, Language, Violence
- Genre(s)
- Survival Horror
Resident Evil premiered in 1996 and it didn’t take long to see the series get adapted into a live-action movie. The first film was released in 2002, Resident Evil, which had a wild amount of sequels including an unconnected reboot. Netflix got a live-action show in 2022, also just called Resident Evil, and there have been a handful of CG movies too like Resident Evil: Degeneration which was released in 2008.
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Resident Evil is by far Capcom’s most popular series and most-adapted series to date and yet there has NEVER been an anime. Isn’t that wild? The time is now and the easiest game to adapt would be Resident Evil 2.
1 Steel Battalion
A Capcom Mecha Crossover
Steel Battalion
- Released
- November 21, 2002
- ESRB
- t
- Developer(s)
- Capcom Production Studio 4
- Publisher(s)
- Capcom
- Genre(s)
- Vehicular Combat
- Platform(s)
- Xbox (Original)
The Steel Battalion franchise was an original Xbox exclusive in 2002 and didn’t get many sequels. It was an expensive game as it came with a custom controller to immerse players in their highly destructible mechs. Anime fans love mechs and this would be the perfect series to adapt into one, perhaps using more of the CG style like Netflix used in the 2023 adaptation of Onimusha. A Steel Battalion anime could even include other short-lived mech games by Capcom including Armored Warriors, which was a brawler, and Cyberbots: Full Metal Madness, which was a fighting game.
https://thebestwargames.com/best-mecha-anime-to-watch/
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