What is this genre all about? Cyberpunk focuses on computers or information technology, usually coupled with some degree of breakdown in social order. The plot often centres on a conflict among hackers, artificial intelligences, and mega corporations, tending to be set within a near-future dystopian Earth.
We present you the list of Cyberpunk anime you should watch right now.
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Top 20 Cyberpunk anime you should watch right now. [2025 List]
- 20. Lazarus
- 19. Cyberpunk: Edgerunners
- 18. Maou 2099
- 17. Psycho-Pass
- 16. Serial Experiments Lain
- 15. Akira
- 14. Psycho-Pass 2
- 13. Akudama Drive
- 12. Ghost in the Shell
- 11. Metallic Rouge
- 10. Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex
- 9. Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex 2nd GIG
- 8. Virgin Punk Clockwork Girl
- 7. Koukaku Kidoutai: SAC_2045 2nd Season
- 6. No Guns Life
- 5. Psycho-Pass 3
- 4. Ghost in the Shell: Arise - Border 1: Ghost Pain
- 3. AD Police
- 2. Angel Cop
- 1. Blade Runner: Black Out 2022
20. Lazarus
The year is 2052—an era of unprecedented peace and prosperity prevails across the globe. The reason for this: mankind has been freed from sickness and pain. Nobel Prize winning neuroscientist Dr. Skinner has developed a miracle cure-all drug with no apparent drawbacks called Hapuna. Hapuna soon becomes ubiquitous... and essential. However, soon after Hapuna is officially introduced, Dr. Skinner vanishes.
Three years later, the world has moved on. But Dr. Skinner has returned—this time, as a harbinger of doom. Skinner announces that Hapuna has a short half-life. Everyone who has taken it will die approximately three years later. Death is coming for this sinful world—and coming soon.
As a response to this threat, a special task force of 5 agents is gathered from across the world to save humanity from Skinner’s plan. This group is called "Lazarus." Can they find Skinner and develop a vaccine before time runs out?
Lazarus has not yet aired. It will air on April 5, 2025. It is also Known as: ラザロ, Lazarus
19. Cyberpunk: Edgerunners
An original anime series set in the universe of Cyberpunk 2077.
In a dystopia riddled with corruption and cybernetic implants, a talented but reckless street kid strives to become a mercenary outlaw — an edgerunner.
Note: The first episode received a pre-screening at Anime Expo on July 2, 2022. The first 3 dubbed episodes were streamed on Twitch as part of a co-stream promotion on September 12, a day before the show’s premiere.
CYBERPUNK: EDGERUNNERS has finished airing and it has 10 Episodes. It is also Known as: サイバーパンク エッジランナーズ, Cyberpunk: Edgerunners
18. Maou 2099
The cyberpunk metropolis Shinjuku—a massive city-state bedecked with neon signs, towering skyscrapers, and the latest cutting-edge technology. It is here, in year 2099 of the Fused Era, where the legendary Demon Lord Veltol has his second coming five centuries in the making. But this landscape is nothing like the one he conquered all those years ago, for the fusion of magic and engineering has elevated civilization to dazzling, unprecedented heights. Veltol may have been reduced to a historical footnote, but make no mistake...this brave new world will be his for the taking!
Demon Lord 2099 has finished airing and it has 12 Episodes. It is also Known as: 魔王2099, Maou 2099
17. Psycho-Pass
Justice, and the enforcement of it, has changed. In the 22nd century, Japan enforces the Sibyl System, an objective means of determining the threat level of each citizen by examining their mental state for signs of criminal intent, known as their Psycho-Pass. Inspectors uphold the law by subjugating, often with lethal force, anyone harboring the slightest ill-will; alongside them are Enforcers, jaded Inspectors that have become latent criminals, granted relative freedom in exchange for carrying out the Inspectors' dirty work.
Into this world steps Akane Tsunemori, a young woman with an honest desire to uphold justice. However, as she works alongside veteran Enforcer Shinya Kougami, she soon learns that the Sibyl System's judgments are not as perfect as her fellow Inspectors assume. With everything she has known turned on its head, Akane wrestles with the question of what justice truly is, and whether it can be upheld through the use of a system that may already be corrupt.
Psycho-Pass has finished airing and it has 22 Episodes. It is also Known as: サイコパス, Psychopath
16. Serial Experiments Lain
Lain Iwakura, an awkward and introverted fourteen-year-old, is one of the many girls from her school to receive a disturbing email from her classmate Chisa Yomoda—the very same Chisa who recently committed suicide. Lain has neither the desire nor the experience to handle even basic technology; yet, when the technophobe opens the email, it leads her straight into the Wired, a virtual world of communication networks similar to what we know as the internet. Lain's life is turned upside down as she begins to encounter cryptic mysteries one after another. Strange men called the Men in Black begin to appear wherever she goes, asking her questions and somehow knowing more about her than even she herself knows. With the boundaries between reality and cyberspace rapidly blurring, Lain is plunged into more surreal and bizarre events where identity, consciousness, and perception are concepts that take on new meanings.
Written by Chiaki J. Konaka, whose other works include Texhnolyze, Serial Experiments Lain is a psychological avant-garde mystery series that follows Lain as she makes crucial choices that will affect both the real world and the Wired. In closing one world and opening another, only Lain will realize the significance of their presence.
Serial Experiments Lain has finished airing and it has 13 Episodes. It is also Known as: シリアルエクスペリメンツレイン, Serial Experiments Lain
15. Akira
Japan, 1988. An explosion caused by a young boy with psychic powers tears through the city of Tokyo and ignites the fuse that leads to World War III. In order to prevent any further destruction, he is captured and taken into custody, never to be heard from again. Now, in the year 2019, a restored version of the city known as Neo-Tokyo—an area rife with gang violence and terrorism against the current government—stands in its place. Here, Shoutarou Kaneda leads "the Capsules," a group of misfits known for riding large, custom motorcycles and being in constant conflict with their rivals "the Clowns."
During one of these battles, Shoutarou's best friend Tetsuo Shima is caught up in an accident with an esper who finds himself in the streets of Tokyo after escaping confinement from a government institution. Through this encounter, Tetsuo begins to develop his own mysterious abilities, as the government seeks to quarantine this latest psychic in a desperate attempt to prevent him from unleashing the destructive power that could once again bring the city to its knees.
Akira has finished airing and it has 1 Episodes. It is also Known as: AKIRA（アキラ）, Akira
14. Psycho-Pass 2
A year and a half after the events of the original sci-fi psychological thriller, Akane Tsunemori continues her work as an inspector—enforcing the Sibyl System's judgments. Joining her are new enforcers and junior inspector Mika Shimotsuki, a young woman blindly and inflexibly loyal to Sibyl. As Akane ponders both the nature of her job and the legitimacy of Sibyl's verdicts, a disturbing new menace emerges.
A mysterious figure has discovered a way to control the Crime Coefficient—a number compiled from mental scans that allows Sibyl to gauge psychological health and identify potential criminals. Through these means, he is able to murder an enforcer, leaving behind a cryptic clue: "WC?" scrawled in blood on a wall.
Akane and the rest of Division 1 soon find themselves playing a deadly game against their new foe, coming face-to-face with a conspiracy threatening not only the authority of the Sibyl System, but the very foundation of Akane's own convictions.
Psycho-Pass 2 has finished airing and it has 11 Episodes. It is also Known as: PSYCHO-PASS サイコパス 2, Psycho-Pass Second Season, Psychopath 2nd Season
13. Akudama Drive
Many years ago, a Great Civil War ravaged Japan, leaving the country fragmented between two regions: Kansai and Kanto. In Kansai, a group of six Akudama carry out missions given to them by a mysterious black cat, while evading the police. But a dangerous journey is about to unfold when a civilian girl becomes twisted into the Akudama’s way of life and witnesses their criminal drives.
Akudama Drive has finished airing and it has 12 Episodes. It is also Known as: アクダマドライブ, 아쿠다마 드라이브
12. Ghost in the Shell
2029: A female cybernetic government agent, Major Motoko Kusanagi, and the Internal Bureau of Investigations are hot on the trail of “The Puppet Master,” a mysterious and threatening computer virus capable of infiltrating human hosts. Together with her fellow agents from Section 9, Kusanagi embarks on a high-tech race against time to capture the omnipresent entity.
Ghost in the Shell has finished airing and it has 1 Episodes. It is also Known as: GHOST IN THE SHELL（攻殻機動隊）, Koukaku Kidoutai
11. Metallic Rouge
Metallic Rouge takes place in a a world where humans and androids coexist. The story follows Rouge, an android girl, who is on a mission on Mars with her partner Naomi. The mission is to murder nine artificial humans who are hostile to the government.
Metallic Rouge has finished airing and it has 13 Episodes. It is also Known as: メタリックルージュ, Metallic Rouge
10. Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex
In the not so distant future, mankind has advanced to a state where complete body transplants from flesh to machine is possible. This allows for great increases in both physical and cybernetic prowess and blurring the lines between the two worlds. However, criminals can also make full use of such technology, leading to new and sometimes, very dangerous crimes. In response to such innovative new methods, the Japanese Government has established Section 9, an independently operating police unit which deals with such highly sensitive crimes.
Led by Daisuke Aramaki and Motoko Kusanagi, Section 9 deals with such crimes over the entire social spectrum, usually with success. However, when faced with a new A level hacker nicknamed "The Laughing Man," the team is thrown into a dangerous cat and mouse game, following the hacker's trail as it leaves its mark on Japan.
Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex has finished airing and it has 26 Episodes. It is also Known as: Koukaku Kidoutai: Stand Alone Complex, 攻殻機動隊 STAND ALONE COMPLEX, Ghost in the Shell SAC
9. Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex 2nd GIG
Following the closure of the "Laughing Man" case, Section 9 is re-established by Japan's newly elected Prime Minister, Youko Kayabuki, to combat the persistent threat of cyber-terrorism.
A group calling themselves "The Individual Eleven" has begun committing acts of terror across Japan. While Motoko Kusanagi, Daisuke Aramaki, Batou, and the other members of Section 9 investigate this new menace, the Japanese government faces a separate crisis, as foreign refugees displaced by the Third World War seek asylum in Japan. But as the members of the special-ops team continually encounter Gouda Kazundo—a leading member of the Cabinet Intelligence Service—in their hunt, they begin to suspect that he may be involved, and that the events of the refugee crisis and The Individual Eleven may be more connected than they realize...
Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex 2nd GIG has finished airing and it has 26 Episodes. It is also Known as: Koukaku Kidoutai S.A.C. 2nd GIG, 攻殻機動隊 S.A.C. 2nd GIG, , Ghost In The Shell S.A.C. 2nd GIG
8. Virgin Punk Clockwork Girl
The story follows Ubu, a young woman who finds herself living the dangerous life of a bounty hunter. As she grapples with her inner turmoil, she becomes entangled in a world filled with chaos and the desires of the powerful and eccentric individuals around her.
Virgin Punk: Clockwork Girl has not yet aired. It will air on June 27, 2025. It is also Known as: ヴァージン・パンク Clockwork Girl, Clockwork Girl
7. Koukaku Kidoutai: SAC_2045 2nd Season
The second season of Koukaku Kidoutai: SAC_2045.
Ghost in the Shell: SAC_2045 2nd Season has finished airing and it has 12 Episodes. It is also Known as: 攻殻機動隊 SAC_2045 2ndシーズン, Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex 2045 2nd Season
6. No Guns Life
Ex-soldier Inui Juuzou has one question - who turned him into a cyborg and erased his memories?
After the war, cyborg soldiers known as the Extended were discharged. Inui Juuzou is one of them, a man whose body was transformed, his head replaced with a giant gun! With no memory of his previous life - or who replaced his head and why - Inui now scratches out a living in the dark streets of the city as a Resolver, taking on cases involving the Extended.
When a fellow Extended showed up in Inui's office - on the run from the Security Bureau with a kidnapped child in tow and asking for help - Inui should have just thrown the guy out. But Inui's loyalty to a brother Extended makes him take the job. Keeping the child safe won't be easy, since everyone seems to want to grab him, from street punks to the megacorporation Berühren, who have sent out a special agent that knows exactly how to deal with the Extended...
No Guns Life has finished airing and it has 12 Episodes. It is also Known as: ノー・ガンズ・ライフ, No Guns Life
5. Psycho-Pass 3
"Justice" opens up a new world. In the near future, the Sybil System, a surveillance network that quantifies human souls, maintains public order. In a changing world, detectives with Dominators, guns that measure "Crime Coefficients," pursue "latent criminals" before they commit crimes. The third series of PSYCHO-PASS follows two inspectors seeking the truth: Arata Shindou and Kei Mikhail Ignatov.
Psycho-Pass 3 has finished airing and it has 8 Episodes. It is also Known as: PSYCHO-PASS サイコパス 3, Psycho-Pass 3
4. Ghost in the Shell: Arise - Border 1: Ghost Pain
The anime's story is set in 2027, one year after the end of the fourth non-nuclear war. New Port City is still reeling from the war's aftermath when it suffers a bombing caused by a self-propelled mine. Then, a military member implicated in arms-dealing bribes is gunned down.
During the investigation, Public Security Section's Daisuke Aramaki encounters Motoko Kusanagi, the cyborg wizard-level hacker assigned to the military's 501st Secret Unit. Batou, a man with the "eye that does not sleep," suspects that Kusanagi is the one behind the bombing. The Niihama Prefectural Police detective Togusa is pursuing his own dual cases of the shooting death and a prostitute's murder. Motoko herself is being watched by the 501st Secret Unit's head Kurutsu and cyborg agents.
Ghost in the Shell: Arise - Border 1: Ghost Pain has finished airing and it has 1 Episodes. It is also Known as: Ghost in the Shell: Arise - Border:1 Ghost Pain, 攻殻機動隊ARISE -GHOST IN THE SHELL- border:1 Ghost Pain, Koukaku Kidoutai Arise: Ghost in the Shell - Border:1 Ghost Pain
3. AD Police
The year is 2027 in MegaTokyo, six years before the Knight Sabers will make their debut. Boomers (artificial humans) are still a relatively new advancement, and the implementation and integration of boomers into society is still a bit buggy -- sometimes fatally so. Whenever a boomer incident occurs, though, there is the Advanced Police, a special force trained to deal with boomer crimes.
Leon McNichol is a rookie in the AD Police, and is just starting to become exposed to the horrors and tragedies one finds every day in MegaTokyo. He and his veteran partner, Gina Marceau, slowly learn about the ever-fading line that separates man from machine.
AD Police Files has finished airing and it has 3 Episodes. It is also Known as: ADポリス, A.D. Police
2. Angel Cop
Sometime in the future, terrorism in Japan has become commonplace, and the police have become almost as brutal as criminals. A member of the Special Security Force known as Angel, is the best of the best, stopping at nothing in her fight for justice.
Things get interesting for Angel and her partner, Raiden, when they begin investigating a series of murders in which the victims were known criminals, killed in very unpleasant ways. This trio of killers known as Hunters, is a group of psychics that have banded together to hunt down the lowest scum in the city and bring them to justice.
After a couple of encounters between the cops and the psychics, two of the psychics begin to think that maybe they're not the good guys after all; but the third prefers killing to morality. Augmented by cybernetics from a mysterious source, this third hunter heads out on a killing spree, with the Special Security Force as the first target.
Even with help from the other two psychics and her newly cyborged partner (after an unfortunate accident), Angel is going to have her work cut out trying to find the rogue psychic and the organization behind the Hunters.
Angel Cop has finished airing and it has 6 Episodes. It is also Known as: エンジェルコップ, Angel Cop
1. Blade Runner: Black Out 2022
In 2022, an EMP detonation has caused a global blackout that has massive, destructive implications all over the world. Directed by Cowboy Bebop and Samurai Champloo's Shinichiro Watanabe, Blade Runner: Black Out 2022 is a new and highly-anticipated animated short which serves as a prologue for the upcoming feature film Blade Runner 2049.
Blade Runner: Black Out 2022 has finished airing and it has 1 Episodes. It is also Known as: BLADE RUNNER BLACK OUT 2022, Blade Runner: Black Out 2022
