THE EXO-DRIVE REINCARNATION GAMES: All-Japan Isekai Battle Tournament Volume 1 [Manga] Review - Isekai on Steroids

12:00 PM December 27, 2021

Manga Review [Category]
Action Manga, Shounen Manga, Comedy Manga, Fantasy Manga, Sci-Fi Manga, Superpower Manga, Isekai Manga, Parody Manga [Genres]

Honey's Manga/LN, Honey’s Anime Pickup,

Christian Markle

THE-EXO-DRIVE-REINCARNATION-GAMES-All-Japan-Isekai-Battle-Tournament-manga-Wallpaper-697x500 THE EXO-DRIVE REINCARNATION GAMES: All-Japan Isekai Battle Tournament Volume 1 [Manga] Review - Isekai on Steroids

Isekai on Steroids

Mangaka : Keiso, Zunta
Publisher : Seven Seas
Genre : Action, Comedy, Fantasy, Isekai / Another World, Science Fiction
Published : November 9, 2021

Isekai has become one of the most popular genres in recent years, with isekai titles flooding the market in droves. While others may think that there’s already too much of it at this point, there’s a reason it still sells. It’s basically a realization of what almost every otaku dreams of. Another charm of the genre is coming up with something new just when we are convinced that we’ve already seen every trick and gimmick there is. THE EXO-DRIVE REINCARNATION GAMES: All-Japan Isekai Battle Tournament! is a prime example of that. Here’s our review of THE EXO-DRIVE REINCARNATION GAMES: All-Japan Isekai Battle Tournament! Vol. 1.

Contains Spoilers

Discussion Time

With so much isekai going on, humanity has finally figured out how it works. So just like every other interesting phenomenon that has stricken our kind, they’ve turned it into entertainment. They’ve devised a device that allows individuals to get isekai-ed at will. They then compete with each other using their customized set of cheat skills in order to gain as many points as they can before defeating the greatest evil. Now, it’s the battle between the best isekai players there are.

Why You Should Read THE EXO-DRIVE REINCARNATION GAMES: All-Japan Isekai Battle Tournament! Vol. 1

1. Isekai as Never Seen Before

With a mountain of isekai manga available for us to read, we’ve kind of figured out its secret ingredient. It’s always about taking a certain fantasy to the extreme. Be it power fantasy, harem fantasy, or even revenge fantasy, the protagonist ought to realize at least one of them. Well, not in THE EXO-DRIVE REINCARNATION GAMES: All-Japan Isekai Battle Tournament! This manga takes all of these and injects them with steroids. It rewards the players based on their influence in that certain world while also giving them free reign over their decisions and paths. This results in them raking in prestige and power as fast and as efficiently as they can without any real worry of being put in danger.

2. Crazy, Stupid Fun

Jacking up the level of overpowered-ness of isekai characters, EXO-DRIVE REINCARNATION GAMES: All-Japan Isekai Battle Tournament! is just stupidly fun to read. Since it follows a competition-style setup, it’s one intense battle after another. It doesn’t bother with the drama and the build-up. It simply drops one ultimate move on top of another ultimate move. Since the goal is also to increase the players’ reputation, the creatures they fight are nowhere near weak. In fact, the game even starts with a player slaying a dragon. It’s so action-packed that it can probably satiate an action junkie’s urges for days.

Why You Should Skip THE EXO-DRIVE REINCARNATION GAMES: All-Japan Isekai Battle Tournament! Vol. 1

1. Too Fast-Paced

Even though one of isekai’s charms is jacking up its protagonist with as much power as possible, that doesn’t mean the progression is not important. EXO-DRIVE REINCARNATION GAMES: All-Japan Isekai Battle Tournament! speedruns the players’ developments so much that it becomes difficult to keep up with everything. By the time we’ve even memorized the characters’ names, a ton of new information has already been introduced. Not only that, the manga doesn’t flesh out the characters very much, so the readers can’t really empathize with them. In fact, we barely felt anything when a huge plot twist was revealed. With our current attachment, the characters could all die and we would probably just say, “Oh, okay. Cool.”

Final Thoughts

There are a ton of isekai manga out there, and we guess another one can’t really do any more damage. That being said, both isekai lovers and haters may find this manga interesting. For isekai lovers, this manga literally tackles every possible trope there is and even uses them like some sort of weapon. For isekai haters, this series likes taking a jab at its conventional counterparts while also adding its own original humor. In fact, it doesn’t even take itself seriously, so it makes a perfect sponge for haters’ mockery. But what do you guys think of this manga? Do you think it’s a hit? Tell us in the comment section below.

Writer

Author: Christian Markle

I am a copywriter, proofreader, and editor. I love watching anime, reading manga, and writing my own stories. Watch out in the future as you may see one of my works one day. Manga and anime were big parts of my childhood. I grew up watching Yu Yu Hakusho, Slam Dunk, One Piece, and Dragon Ball Z. Those were probably one of the happiest and most carefree days of my life. In fact, most of my values are probably molded by manga. No, that's not an exaggeration.

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