Darwin's Game

High school student Kaname Sudou receives an invitation from a classmate to play Darwin's Game, a mobile game he has never heard of. However, as soon as he opens the application, a green snake suddenly pops out from his phone screen and bites his neck, leaving him unconscious. Waking up in the infirmary without any signs of a snake bite, he is told by the school to take the rest of the day off. Although he is puzzled by what has happened, he dismisses the surreal experience as a hallucination and boards the train home.

Unfortunately, his curiosity gets the better of him and he uses the application once again. As the application appears to be just like any other battle game, Kaname breathes out a sigh of relief and decides to start his first match. However, the pleasant surprise is short-lived, as his in-game opponent unexpectedly appears right in front of him and attempts to hunt him down with a knife.

As he desperately runs for his life, Kaname puts two and two together and realizes that Darwin's Game is not an ordinary game, but rather, it's a brutal fight for survival.

[Written by MAL Rewrite]

Karino, Shuka Main

Ueda, Reina Japanese

Sudou, Kaname Main

Kobayashi, Yuusuke Japanese

Kashiwagi, Rein Main

Oomori, Nichika Japanese

Sui Supporting

Hanamori, Yumiri Japanese

Souta Supporting

Hanamori, Yumiri Japanese

Maesaka, Ryuuji Supporting

Yashiro, Taku Japanese

Liu, Xue Lan Supporting

Kayano, Ai Japanese

Hiiragi, Ichirou Supporting

Koyasu, Takehito Japanese

Banda-kun Supporting

Takemoto, Eiji Japanese

Kyouda, Hiroyuki Supporting

Kobayashi, Chiaki Japanese

Oowada, Tomoyuki Producer

Watase, Shouta Producer

Jinguuji, Manabu Producer

Kitazawa, Shiryuu Producer

Reviews

May 6, 2025

Muphsi

Recommended

Interesting premise only made better by a smaller but very talented studio. The biggest issue being how short it is. Rushing a show who's entire niche is being more psychological than anything else, into 11 episodes can only really end in a rushed product. And it's very apparent with how little the characters are built, how small the world feels, and how confusing the conflict is. When you sacrifice outstanding visuals for a plot line that attempts to make you think instead, and then fall on your face with conflict a 12 year-old could solve, you end up with a nothing burger that relies solely ... on being different. And unfortunately, the fast-paced nature that 11 episodes brings does nothing to bolster that. The only redeeming aspect is the overall animation quality by Nexus. With more episodes to build out the world and overarching conflict the main cast is even fighting against, this show would be significantly better.

Reviewer’s Rating: 5

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Nov 11, 2024

nitiszaza

Mixed Feelings

To be honest i kinda like overall of these anime, but they not good !
here's the reason

1. These games are not well-setted at all, all the time it just giving like funny sense of reality that go with what the writer wants
2. thiss the one I hated the most, even though it was a fair trade to make the enemy deserve what they this, but the power that MC has and all just unfair, it just making you feel like you didnt actually win, but you got it by cheating, these are just some false anime, but after all it is a fine anime to ... watch.

Reviewer’s Rating: 4

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Jan 7, 2023

DBX

Not Recommended

During early 2020, everyone found themselves indoors and it’s fair to say that the anime that came out was of the quantity weren’t used to for quite some time. This meant that you were more invested in the shows that were coming out. This was a show I watched with intense.

The story is something we are all too familiar with therefore, I won’t bore you with the details. It’s what sets itself apart from what it doesn’t, that is the interesting bits. What it did do differently I think it did quite well. While the setting was something I was already used to, the ... way it was executed was enough to set itself apart. I enjoyed the pacing of the episodes quite a bit. While the introduction was something familiar, it was the centre part of the anime that I found to be quite enjoyable. I enjoyed those episodes quite a lot. Though I think it leaves a lot to think about when all is said and done.

The art was as about what you would expect. The darker palette and gritty feel to it, added to the overall tone well. The scenery and characters were adapted quite nicely to say the least. The studio I had never heard about before as they lack the portfolio however, what they have done is quite notable and I have watched before. Though what I had watched was from a few years back, so it was nice to see the progression and development in the art style.

The music was quite simply as you would expect from something like this. Not that notable from what I remember as it is not fresh in my mind. Just what it is. The opening I found to be enjoyable and rememberable, but the ending was just fine. My attention was not on the background as it was quite an action heavy anime, so I was therefore more focused on the scenes.

The character design didn’t really help itself. There is far too much anime like this, with the characters. That being the contrast between the two main characters. It didn’t bother me all too much. It was just fine as all. The characters were all likeable, and I enjoyed the main character a bit, it just wasn’t something I was already used to seeing.

The anime was a good watch. I had a good time watching it as the weeks went and I looked forward to every episode. In hindsight, it might have been a bit same as it didn’t set itself apart enough, the areas it did set itself apart from, such what was shown in the centre part of the anime, I quite enjoyed. I get the feeling that this story will get very interesting down the line and that it’s only just begone. I look forward to seeing where the story goes next.

Reviewer’s Rating: 5

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