The 10 Best Isekai Anime of 2022

Whether this is a pure isekai anime can be debated – maybe it’s an ‘isekai-inception’ – but I’m accepting it as it tackles similar themes.

In The Greatest Demon Lord Is Reborn as a Typical Nobody, Demon Lord Varvatos has become bored of being the strongest entity in the world. So, he decided to reincarnate with totally average abilities thousands of years in the future.

Unfortunately for him, everyone else has got considerably weaker also. Now living as ‘Villager A’, he finds himself pulled back into the same roles as before, despite his wishes to live a normal life.

This series premiered in April 2022 and won a lot of fans for its surprisingly good animation and exciting mix of characters. There are some harem anime themes, but there's plenty in the individual personalities to enjoy.

If you're into isekai that are less action and more slice-of-life, then Isekai Yakkyoku is a series you should add to your watchlist.

Based on a light novel series of the same name, Alternate World Pharmacy follows a respected medical scientist who, upon his death, is reincarnated into a fantasy world as a young boy named Falma.

Gifted magical powers of diagnosis and treatment, Falma sets out to transform the world's broken healthcare system.

Readers of the light novel compare this series to Ascendance of a Bookworm, so if you liked that, you should find joy in this series!

In the Land of Leadale stars Keina Kagami who, after her life support in hospital fails, finds herself transported into the VRMMORPG world of Leadale.

While she was once amongst the most powerful characters in the game, 200 years have since passed without any human players. Still, she adopts her old name of Cayna and sets off on a fun-filled adventure that has a lighter touch than most action series on this list.

Discover more: Will There Be a Season 2 of In the Land of Leadale?

The isekai genre often delivers great comedy stories, and Life With an Ordinary Guy – sometimes shortened to Fabiniku – is definitely a stand-out from 2022.

The story follows two single men in their 30s – an intelligent, good-looking and successful salaryman seemingly disinterested in romance, and his less successful, less good-looking friend from school who would do anything for love.

Well, the salaryman’s friend might have asked for too much, as one night the two of them are transported to a fantasy world with one notable difference – he’s now a 10/10 fantasy anime waifu!

They are told that they must defeat the Demon Lord before the spell is removed, setting them on a quest against time to save the kingdom before they accidentally fall for each other.

Fabiniku is very hard and fast with its comedy. While some were disappointed with how it handled aspects of gender, if you’re looking for a casual isekai with funny characters and adventures, you’ll find a lot of laughs here.

Based on a popular manga series, Skeleton Knight in Another World follows a gamer who falls asleep, and upon waking, finds himself in his favourite video game.

Despite his skeletal appearance and powerful equipment, he wishes to live a quiet life, until a meeting with an elven warrior introduces him to a life of adventure.

Skeleton Knight was anticipated before it aired as part of the Spring 2022 anime season. While its first episode created some controversy, those that could get past it found a simple yet enjoyable fantasy isekai.

Read More: Where to Start Reading Skeleton Knight in Another World After the Anime

Harems are a classic staple of the isekai genre, and Arifureta is a great example.

Arifureta follows Hajime Nagumo who, along with his class, is summoned to a fantasy world. Unlike the others, though, he’s not given any particularly effective combat skills.

Betrayed by his classmates, Hajime has to fight to survive, eventually teaming up with various women who join him on his journey from commonplace to the world’s strongest.

Season one of Arifureta aired in 2019, while the second season aired in early 2022 and received praise from isekai and harem anime fans.

If you’re looking for a deeper isekai with romance and mystery, this should be high on your list!

Trapped in a Dating Sim follows Leon, an office worker who finds himself trapped in an otome - a dating sim video game where a female main character tries to develop a relationship with the male characters.

Unfortunately for him, he’s been reincarnated as an extra. However, armed with the knowledge of having played through the game before, he sets out to turn the tables of his new existence.

Trapped in a Dating Sim aired as part of the Spring 2022 season. Despite being criticised for its art and animation, it won over many fans with an interesting mystery storyline alongside the common romantic tropes.

Despite appearing in the stacked Fall 2022 anime season, The Eminence in Shadow more than held its own thanks to a big cast of characters and its subversion of traditional action isekai tropes.

The story follows a boy who fantasises about being a secret hero by living a normal school life. However, he struggles to come to terms with his own powerlessness until he finds himself isekai’d.

Reborn as Cid, a noble son of the Kagenou family and blessed with incredible magical power, he has another shot at living out his dream. Cid creates Shadow Garden, a secret organisation, and the Cult of Diablos, a made-up villain for them to subdue.

However, as Cid ends up with more women joining his Shadow Garden, he discovers that the Cult of Diablos may have a life of its own.

The plot sounds a bit wacky, and there are some isekai fans that haven’t enjoyed this series.

However, The Eminence in Shadow tries to play with the classic isekai trope of a kid’s deification, and if you can connect with that alongside the series’ school humour and large cast, it’s a series well worth watching.

Ascendance of a Bookworm is a charming isekai story that is more slice-of-life than the classic action fantasy.

The series focuses on Urano Motosu, a young girl who loves nothing more than reading any and all books. When a tragic accident ends her life, she finds herself reincarnated in a fantasy medieval world as Myne, a five-year-old girl.

Still desperate to read, she finds herself in a world without a printing press, where reading is almost exclusive to nobles. Thus, she sets out on a journey to fill the book-shaped hole in her life by any means necessary!

The highly-praised first two seasons were released in 2019 and 2020. The third season aired in Spring 2022 to similar acclaim, with the series praised for its slower, captivating storyline.

If you love Isekai, you've probably already watched Overlord. Since the first season back in 2015, it's been a go-to choice for fans of darker, more action-packed isekai anime, and this season was arguably the best yet!

Overlord follows the adventures of Momonga, a powerful wizard in a popular MMORPG who spends the last few hours before the servers are closed with his guild.

However, time goes by and he realises he is still conscious in the game, and that his guild members have personalities of their own!

Momonga and his loyal servants embark on a journey to discover the mysteries of the world and potentially other players trapped like himself.

Overlord Season 4 (IV) premiered in July 2022. The latest season was praised for its overarching storyline along with some key developments among the many characters in the series.

Read More: All You Need to Know about the Overlord Holy Kingdom Arc Movie