With VRMMO becoming the next gaming revolution, one title rose up that initially sparked massive controversy, Kiwame Quest. Dubbed the ultimate experience in VRMMO, Kiwame Quest was indeed quite realistic but also a bit too much for most gamers to enjoy and thus it began to fall in popularity. Gamer Hiroshi Yuuki ends up conned into buying Kiwame Quest by a gorgeous clerk at his local game store and despite how he despises this VRMMO title, Hiroshi still logs in with one goal in mind. Beat the game and move on!

Full Dive wasn’t met with the highest reviews but we still fell in love with this comedic take on the isekai genre. Mocking the aforementioned genre, Full Dive is hilarious as it boasts comedic concepts like OP heroes, goofy choices in video games, and the stresses of games trying too hard to be realistic. Full Dive never had a dull episode in our honest opinion and that’s why we felt it was an excellent candidate for our best isekai 2021 list.

After college student Haruto Amakawa ends up dying after a horrible traffic accident, he doesn’t find himself in the afterlife but somewhere quite different. With his spirit merged with a young boy named Rio, Haruto realizes he now exists in a magical world far removed from modern-day Japan. Homeless and in an abusive situation, Rio now must rise above it and survive! Thankfully, a chance encounter with a young girl gives Rio the means of escaping his horrible life and soon step closer to fulfilling his destiny in his new world.

Spirit Chronicles took us by surprise by having a setup not seen too often in other isekai. Following the merged soul of Rio and Haruto, we get to witness a fun action-adventure isekai filled with drama and suspense at every turn! While Rio quickly proves himself to be a bit OP, we couldn’t turn away from watching him in combat and how he occasionally could be a bit unpredictable. We recommend this fun isekai to fans of the genre.

Another normal high school day…that was what it seemed like. However, this so-called normal day turned extraordinary when an entire school body finds themselves killed in a horrible catastrophe! Reincarnated in another world, a small group of students is given a new lease on life that doesn’t seem that unpleasant…except for one female student. One particular girl finds herself not in a new human form but in the body of a small white spider! Despite the challenge of being a measly spider, the girl now known as Kumoko must level up and survive or end up being killed!

The beauty of So I’m a Spider, So What? is that it takes the usual clichés of isekai anime and throws them straight out the window. Our protagonist isn’t some OP heroine but a spider that needs to survive to get stronger! So I’m a Spider, So What? is one of the reasons we doubt isekai will ever run out of strange ideas and also why we still adore the genre. If you want a fun adventure isekai with some solid comedy, then we turn your attention to So I’m a Spider, So What? Even those afraid of spiders will no doubt enjoy this isekai tale.

A young man perishes after living a life of mediocrity but finds himself given one more chance to enjoy the splendors of living. Reborn in an infant’s body, the young man is startled to see his caretakers aren’t humans but supernatural entities. A mummy, a ghost, and a skeleton find the young boy, name him Will, and begin to teach him the tools to survive in this strange world. As Will grows up, he soon falls in love with his new life despite noticing that he is living in a dead city filled with monsters and danger. Will quickly understands that if he wishes to venture off into the world outside, he will need to adapt and become a warrior.

The Faraway Paladin seemed to get little to no attention when it released in October 2021 and that shocked us. This heart-warming tale felt like a different isekai experience as it didn’t follow the usual setup for a reincarnation isekai series. Instead, The Faraway Paladin is focused on showing the beauty of family—even if they aren’t blood-related—and the desire to change your life if given a second opportunity to do so. We found The Faraway Paladin to be a solid isekai anime and can only hope for a continuation sometime in the future.

Having seemingly survived her favorite otome game, Fortune Lover, Catarina Claes thought she could finally relax and live in her new world. Sadly, Catarina’s game isn’t over just yet. After getting ready for the school festival, Catarina begins to notice new characters joining and each has their own goals! Will Catarina be able to survive another slew of possible bad ends when this time she knows little to nothing about the choices ahead!?

Acting as the second season, My Next Life as a Villainess: All Routes Lead to Doom! X is again full of pretty otome boys, comedic drama, and plenty of questions as to which choice Catarina needs to make to get the best possible ending to her story. My Next Life as a Villainess: All Routes Lead to Doom! X is more of what we loved from season one and fans will no doubt want to dive back into the world of Fortune Lover alongside Catarina!

University student Kazuya Souma has found himself summoned to a strange world as the hero. However, Kazuya isn’t going to fight dragons or stop evil lords but fix the economy of this failing kingdom! Using his wit and smarts, Kazuya is made the temporary king and asked to save the kingdom of Elfrieden. This new land doesn’t need a might sword wielding warrior, it needs someone capable of budgeting food and supplies!

On paper, the idea of an isekai focusing on realistic views doesn’t sound that appealing. Luckily, How a Realist Hero Rebuilt the Kingdom is far from boring and is in fact very entertaining. Kazuya isn’t your usual isekai protagonist but instead uses his leadership skills to help this new kingdom he’s been whisked off to and desires to save them from financial ruin! In many ways, How a Realist Hero Rebuilt the Kingdom reminds us of anime like Spice and Wolf which should pique the interest of many anime fans out there.

A legendary assassin finds himself facing death after being betrayed by his organization. Despite giving them his entire life, the organization has made sure even this legend wouldn’t survive! As he departs towards the afterlife, a Goddess takes the assassin and gives him two choices. Be reincarnated into a new body with no memories or reincarnate in a new world with all of his abilities and memories intact. The catch? The assassin must kill this new world’s hero within a time limit. Now reborn as Lugh, the assassin desires to kill his targets not because he is ordered to but because he wants to.

We’ve talked a lot about our love for The World’s Finest Assassin Gets Reincarnated in Another World as an Aristocrat and we will keep praising this awesome anime. With an original narrative, an actually cool protagonist, and several waifu to fall for, The World’s Finest Assassin is a real thrill ride from episode 1 to episode 12.

Rimuru Tempest, once a young man reincarnated into a slime, is still proving his powers aren’t low-tier. Now dubbed the True Demon Lord, Rimuru aims at taking down those who wish his friends and country harm! Clayman is still Rimuru’s biggest advisor but with new skills and stronger abilities, Rimuru is confident he can finally end this once and fall all!

Divided into two parts, the second season of That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime really showed just how epic this isekai series can be. Filled with tons of great action and several memorable battles, both parts make our list as they strengthened our love of this isekai work. Let us know in the comments below if you’ve seen That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime season 2 and which part was your favorite of 2021!

Subaru has solved numerous problems by himself thanks to his power “Return by Death” but now he must rely on Emilia to not only save the day but save the lives of everyone around him. Unable to fight through her past, Subaru will need to guide Emilia as she continues to undergo the trial within the Sanctuary. With each death, Subaru will come closer to learning the truth about Emilia and this dark place. However, can our hero survive the mental exhaustion he’s beginning to feel?

Re:Zero 2nd Season part 2 takes the reigns away from our hero Subaru and places them more on Emilia as we learn several big revelations about her secret past and why they haunt her so gravely. There were plenty of moments of this 2nd part that had us in tears as we felt Subaru’s pain and witnessed the memories of our beloved Emilia. Bring tissues—and we mean a lot of them—as Re:Zero season 2 part 2 will not only test your emotional strength but show you the right way an isekai must be done! So if you haven't watched Re:Zero yet at all, now's the time!

Rudeus “Rudy” Greyrat and his cousin Eris have survived the strange incident that teleported them to the Demon Continent but their lives are far from safe. Rudy will need to pool all of his talent and smarts in order to reach their home safely but alone the challenge might still be impossible. Alongside a legendary warrior named Ruijerd, the team now goes by the name Dead End and makes its way across the dangerous landscape. The journey ahead will show how much Rudy has begun to grow and how much the young boy still has to as well…

Want to cry, laugh, and feel every strong emotion in the book? Then we implore you to dive into Mushoku Tensei: Jobless Reincarnation. The first season was incredible but season 2 takes it to an entirely new level with newer drama and adventure that just keeps you locked in when every episode begins. Watching Rudy go through various challenges has always been exciting but in this second season, those challenges are ramped up to really show who this boy is shaping up to be. In our honest opinion, Jobless Reincarnation part 2 should be nominated for anime of the year but we can at least put it on the top of our list of Top 10 Best Isekai of 2021.