Neon Tragedy: 5 Sci-Fi Anime to Watch After Cyberpunk: Edgerunners

Cyberpunk: Edgerunners left a massive hole in our hearts. Studio Trigger perfectly captured the hyper-violent, neon-drenched aesthetic of Night City, wrapping it around a tragic story of kids trying to survive a corporate meatgrinder.

If you are looking for more high-tech body modifications, dystopian cities, and stylish action (with a heavy dose of depression), boot up these 5 anime.

1. Akudama Drive If you want the exact same "ragtag crew of criminals pulling off an impossible heist in a neon city" vibe, this is it. It is incredibly stylish, ridiculously violent, and features a cast of hyper-competent cyber-criminals whose luck slowly runs out.

2. Psycho-Pass (Season 1) A gritty cyberpunk police procedural. In a future where a supercomputer calculates everyone's propensity to commit a crime, a rookie cop and a cynical "Enforcer" hunt down a philosophical serial killer. It’s dark, mature, and perfectly paced.

3. Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex The absolute grandfather of the genre. If you want to dive deeper into the philosophy of what it means to be human when your entire body is made of "chrome," Major Motoko Kusanagi's investigations are mandatory viewing.

4. Devilman Crybaby If the hyper-kinetic, drug-fueled, incredibly violent animation style of Edgerunners is what hooked you, Masaaki Yuasa's Devilman Crybaby will deliver. It is a terrifying, beautiful, and utterly tragic story of demons and humanity.

5. Black Lagoon No cybernetics here, but it perfectly matches the "mercenaries surviving in a lawless, corrupt city" aesthetic. Following a modern-day pirate crew in a criminal underworld, it has the same gritty, gun-toting edge as David Martinez's crew.