It's finally fall, which means it is time for scary anime! To get you in the Halloween mood the Right Stuf employees made a list of our top ten scariest anime and top ten scariest mangas so be prepared, you're going to get scared!
10. King's Game
King's Game is about thirty-two high school students who receive texts telling them to do strange tasks or face the consequences. Nobuaki Kanazawa has played the game before and knows how dangerous it is going to get. As the series goes on the consequences for not completing the tasks become lethal. The students cannot stop playing the game due to lethal consequences. This anime is full of suspense and death, which earns itself a place on this list.
Nobuaki Kanazawa, the main character in King's Game.9. Danganronpa
Danganronpa follows 16 high school students locked inside their high school, Hope's Peak Academy.The students are being held hostage by a teddy bear known as Monokuma. He tells the students the only one way to leave the Academy is to murder another student and not be found guilty in the subsequent trial. This series does a great job at building suspense while also establishing an original plot.
Monokuma, the villain of Danganronpa.8. Tokyo Ghoul
Tokyo Ghoul follows Ken Kaneki after he barely survives a deadly encounter with Rize Kamishiro as she tries to murder him. In the hospital Ken learns that he became half ghoul after Rize's organs were transferred into his body. Ken is struck with an insatiable hunger to eat human flesh in order to survive while also hiding his identity. On top of being a very good story, this anime is also very gory and suspenseful.
On the left is the main character of Tokyo Ghoul, Ken Kaneki, and on the right is Rinze Kamishiro. 7. Hellsing
Hellsing is about two vampires who protect the streets of England from hellish ghouls. This anime is full of gore, ultra-violence, nazis, horrifying monsters, and other classic elements of horror. This is not a cheesy vampire romance. The vampires included in Hellsing are evil creatures without remorse, which is a nice break from the normal sexy vampire romances or remorseful vampires.
On the left is Alucard the main character of Hellsing, and on the right are Zombies.
6. Attack On Titan
This the only anime on the list that gave me nightmares, which is surprising considering the other picks. Attack on Titan involves giant humanoids that terrorize cities by eating people with their creepily large mouths.The protagonists need to find ways to kill these monsters. As expected, there is a lot of gore and death throughout this series on top of being possibly the worst anime world to live in. The Titans are true nightmare material and are very difficult to kill.
On the left is Eren the protagonist of Attack on Titan, and on the right is the female titan. Landing at the number five spot due to it’s gruesome, gory scenes and most people’s natural fear of real-life parasites, is Parasyte the anime, not to be confused with the highly acclaimed South Korean live- action movie. Parasyte involves a high school student Shinichi Izumi and his alien parasite hand “Migi”. The parasites in this anime try to move into their host’s brains so they can take over the host's body and eat people. The body horror throughout the series is enough to make most people horrified and the suspense is enough to keep you watching. Overall, Parasyte does a very good job at exploring some philosophical ideas and integrating them seamlessly into the plot while keeping the audience disgusted.
Serial Experiments Lain follows Lain Iwakura, an ordinary girl who loves hanging out on the Wired, another version of the internet. Yet the sudden suicide of a schoolmate and a number of strange occurrences such as an email from a deceased friend insisting that she's alive within the Wired and has found "God" there leads Lain into the a cyberpunk dystopia which makes her lose touch with reality. This series is very psychological while also establishing a cyberpunk dysphoria theme.
On the left is the a monster from the series and on the right is the main character Lain.3. Paranoia Agent
Paranoia Agent was written by Satoshi Kon, a master of psychological horror. The story revolves around a character designer named Tsukiko Sagi, who creates a popular pink dog named Maromi. One night while Tsukiko is walking home, she gets attacked by a boy with a bat called “Lil Slugger” who starts attacking more people. While the police are investigating Lil’ Slugger, Tsukiko becomes stressed trying to create a popular TV series that revolves around Maromi. Reality and fiction become blurred throughout the series as the plot thickens. On top of being a wonderful psychological thriller, the series is put together very well and keeps you interested.
On the left is the main character of Paranoia Agent, Tsukiko with her cartoon dog Maromi, and on the right is Lil Slugger. 2. When They Cry
When They Cry involves a young boy named Keiichi who moves to the town of Hinamizawa. At first, this series seems like a normal coming-of-age anime until Keiichi discovers unsolved murders, disappearances and mutilations. Keiichi doesn't even know if his new friends Rena, Mion, Satoko, and Rika are aware of what's happening. Keiichi can confirm however that someone is really trying to kill him. This series is full of horrifying secrets and shocking scenes.
On the left is the main character of When They Cry, Keiichi, and on the right is Rena, one of Keiichi's classmates.1. The Promised Neverland
The dark twist in the first episode and psychological terror throughout the series is what earned this anime the top spot on this list. The Promised Neverland appears to be a whimsical anime involving kids going on an adventure much like Alice in Wonderland; however, it is much darker. Unlike in Alice in Wonderland, the children face horrific looking demons that want to eat them. The suspense the series creates puts you on edge constantly along with the horrifying thought of getting eaten. The odds are stacked against the children and the world they live in is horrifying to say the least.
The Promised Neverland's main protagonists, Norman, Ray, and Emma. Notice the neck tattoo on Ray in the middle.