10 best anime set in future that you should try

Anime set in future has always captured the imagination of fans globally. The sci-fi genre allows creators to envision technological advances, dystopian societies, intergalactic worlds, and more. Often these anime serve as thoughtful social commentary by holding a mirror to present-day issues.

Futuristic anime first rose in popularity in the 1980s and 1990s with classics like Akira and Ghost in the Shell. While Astro Boy laid the groundwork, the 80s and 90s redefined the genre. Since then, many more captivating anime set in future have transported viewers to imaginative futures.

This article explores the 10 best anime set in future that anime fans widely revere. The series spans space operas, technological nightmares, post-apocalyptic tales, and more. So sit back and get ready to travel through time with these marvelous anime classics.

10 must-watch anime set in future settings

1. Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex

Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex (Image via Production I.G)

This seminal anime franchise began as a manga by Masamune Shirow in 1989, spawning movies and shows. Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex takes place in mid-21st century Japan. Citizens possess cybernetic enhancements that connect their brains to the net.

The show follows Public Security Section 9, an elite task force confronting technology-driven threats. Ghost in the Shell is lauded for its philosophical themes about the meaning of being human in an increasingly digital world. The animation and score also build an immersive futuristic setting to get lost in.

It's a quintessential anime set in future societies dominated by technology and existential dilemmas.

2. Psycho-Pass

This dystopian thriller unfolds in 22nd-century Japan under total governance by the Sibyl System. Sibyl actively monitors each citizen's crime coefficient using cybernetic data. Those deemed latent criminals face harsh justice regardless of offense history.

The series follows police units enforcing Sibyl's decrees. New Inspector Akane Tsunemori works alongside Enforcer Shinya Kogami, a latent criminal granted restricted freedom to hunt the worst fugitives. As Akane witnesses Sibyl's ruthless dictates, she questions the System's benevolence.

Is societal harmony worth such authoritarian control? Psycho-Pass utilizes its high-tech premise to probe timeless political themes of freedom versus security. Backed by thriller plots and stylish visuals, the 2012 anime resonates disturbingly well in today's age of digital surveillance.

3. Akira

Katsuhiro Otomo's 1988 film, based on his manga, became an instant sci-fi sensation. The action unfolds in neon-lit 2019 Tokyo, rebuilt after a 1988 explosion. Biker gang leader Shotaro Kaneda battles to rescue his friend Tetsuo from government experiments unleashing dangerous telekinetic powers.

This clash occurs against domestic turmoil with brewing anti-government protests and terrorist attacks. The scope soon threatens all existence as the awakening of a destructive force called Akira looms. Forces converge in apocalyptic showdowns delivered through pioneering hand-drawn effects.

Beyond technical milestones, Akira awed viewers with a dystopian vision strikingly aligned to real 2019 events. It remains an influential anime set in future dystopias that echo our conflicted political landscape.

4. Cowboy Bebop

This 1998 space western follows a crew of bounty hunters aboard the spaceship Bebop in 2071. Forget sci-fi conventions though. Cowboy Bebop's blend of action, humor, style, and music created a new genre all its own. An international hit, its 26 episodes feel more like a compiled movie.

The self-contained episodic adventures unravel the crew's past alongside a solar system worth of criminal intrigue. The smooth jazz animation imbues otherwise mundane futurescapes with a pulsing atmosphere.

Compelling characters and fluid storytelling cement this as an anime set in future interstellar landscapes while maintaining an intimate human touch. The show's ending, celebrated for its poignancy, leaves a lasting impression.

5. Ergo Proxy

In a post-apocalyptic future, humans survive in isolated domed cities such as Romdeau City. Residents live alongside androids called AutoReivs. The plot follows Inspector Re-l Mayer investigating murders linked to the Cogito Virus affecting androids.

Her quest leads beyond Romdeau's walls to discover Earth's real fate and the enigmatic connection between humans and proxies. Beneath mystery and action, Ergo Proxy is an anime set in future dystopias that explores philosophical quandaries about self-awareness and existence.

The anime aired on TV but achieves a cinematic scope combining gritty cyberpunk, gothic horror, and steampunk for arresting visual originality.

6. Blame!

The 2017 Netflix film adaptation of Tsutomu Nihei's cyberpunk manga follows previous works including a 2003 net animation. It portrays a far future where technology has spiraled out of control. Mankind clings to survival in a gargantuan technological complex called the City.

A lone wanderer named Killy defends humans from the robotic Safeguard determined to eliminate all biological lifeforms. The entirely 3D animation immerses viewers within stunning monolithic futurescapes.

Blame! stands out as a minimalist anime set in future technological wastelands where humanity’s survival hangs by a thread. The minimal dialogue enhances the desolate, post-human atmosphere.

7. Neon Genesis Evangelion

Neon Genesis Evangelion (Image via Gainax)

Hideaki Anno's legendary mecha anime franchise requires no introduction, relentlessly gaining new fans since 1995. Set in 2015, fifteen years after a global cataclysm called Second Impact, 14-year-old Shinji pilots bio-machine Evangelion to battle invading Angels.

Beneath the killer robot action lies a psychodrama exploring philosophy, religion, depression, and abuse. Neon Genesis Evangelion is an anime set in future crises that transcend physical battles, delivering profound emotional depth.

Riveting animation and battles merely provide a stage for tortured characters to work through trauma. This masterpiece still reigns in any discussion of seminal 90s anime.

8. Time of Eve

This 2008 series of original net animations (ONAs) later compiled into a movie occurs in a near future where androids serve humans.

Rikuo discovers his household android might frequent a mysterious café where robots and humans secretly intermingle as equals. He visits the café to uncover the truth. A slice-of-life feel permeates this low-key anime set in future settings where androids and humans navigate evolving relationships.

The allure comes from seeing androids exhibit startling humanity contrasted to the cold pragmatic attitudes of some humans. Basic premises yield thoughtful ruminations on prejudice and empathy.

9. Planetes

In 2075, humanity has colonized the moon and Mars. The story spotlights the unglamorous work of the Space Debris Section of the Toy Box division within Technora Corporation, collecting dangerous space junk threatening spacecraft.

New recruit Hachimaki struggles with his ambition to reach Jupiter while balancing his doubts and relationships. Mundane aspects like slice-of-life comedy, office politics, and unrequited love make Planetes feel unexpectedly down-to-earth given the spacefaring premise.

This anime set in future interstellar communities handles sci-fi with care and realism rare for the genre.

10. Expelled from Paradise

Expelled from Paradise (Image via Toei Animation)

This 2014 film written by Gen Urobuchi of Psycho-Pass fame follows Agent Angela Balzac. In 2400 AD, most humans had shed physical forms to inhabit a blissful entirely online utopia called Deva.

Angela is sent to Earth to track down a hacker threatening Deva's systems while encountering humanity's struggles in the physical realm. Expelled from Paradise showcases dazzling cityscape vistas and action sequences featuring fluid CGI animation.

The escapist plot marks it as an anime set in future utopias and dystopias alike, delving into the human costs of technological convenience and isolation.

Conclusion

The best futuristic anime manages to realize incredibly inventive environments while still retaining focus on timeless philosophical conundrums and complex characters. These series project modern anxieties into imaginative futures.

Yet behind surreal settings and circumstances, the characters grapple with universally relatable struggles for purpose, truth, freedom, meaning, and human connection. This melding of the fantastical and familiar makes anime set in the future riveting viewing as both escapism and social allegory.

These works above especially achieve striking that vital balance while redefining science fiction's creative potential in anime. Their influence persists through successors that continue anime's thoughtful futurist tradition interpreting tomorrow through imaginative lenses.