Top 10 Animated Series Based On Video Games

Nintendo’s number one gorilla probably never expected to become as popular as he is. Starting his career as a barrel thrower and, lets get real here, kidnapper, DK’s true potential laid dormant until the infamous “Donkey Kong Country” series on the SNES. Now equipped with a stylish red tie, and baseball cap-wearing sidekick, DK became so popular that a cartoon series was inevitable. Fittingly, the show uses computer animation, so it looks just like the pre-rendered 3D animations found in the game. While DK is more likely to be remembered for his rap than animation, this show will always have a special place in our childhoods.

No one did product placement as masterfully -- or blatantly -- as Nintendo did back in the late 80s and early 90s, as this cartoon perfectly demonstrates, one Nintendo branded episode at a time. Instead of using one game, this series used characters from several: the mega raspy voiced MegaMan, a rather vain Simon Belmont, the best-icus, Kid Icarus, and an entourage of villains. Welcome to Video Land!

Television and murders and bears, oh my! Shin Megami Tensei games always have a unique flare to them, and this particular title is no exception. In 2008, we leapt through televisions, discovered dead bodies on antennas, faced our true selves and found clever uses for the word “bear”. Despite being released on the aging PS2 instead of the newer PS3, the game was such a hit that it became an anime series twice, once in 2011 and again in 2014. Pursue your true self, indeed.

Expect to see a lot of Nintendo on this list. With that said, here’s the company’s cutest, pinkest, and hungriest mascot! It’s not really surprising to see an animated series based on Kirby, he’s the walking definition of adorable and is perfect for twenty minute adventures... 100 of them, to be exact. There’s a dark, sinister evil out to take over the galaxy, and the only thing capable of protecting us all is... a plump, pink marshmallow that can inhale everything around him. Sounds feasible?

Remember the glory days of Capcom’s baby blue robot? Not only did he have several video games, he had a nineties cartoon and a long-running anime series, Megaman NT Warrior. The anime series aired in both Japan and the U.S. and, including its numerous sequels, has an astonishing 209 episodes. There was so much MegaMan back then that its no wonder the franchise wore itself out. Even so, we still reminisce about the glorious reign of the super-fighting robot.

Before the Macarena, but after the Hokey Pokey, there was another dance craze: “The Mario.” Nothing can ever top seeing world famous wrestler Lou Albano singing and dancing as the poster boy of Nintendo... well, maybe Dennis Hopper portraying the king of all koopas. Hummm, ok maybe not. Along with the kooky, live-action segments of the “super show”, there were animated episodes based on “Super Mario Brothers” and “Super Mario Brothers 2”. And, to top it all off, on Fridays we were treated to... this.

The nineties was a magical time where fast running hedgehogs took on dinosaur riding plumbers to gain our affection, meanwhile, earthworms saved the day in big, robotic suits. This odd little Genesis title became an instant success; a cartoon series was as inevitable as a killer goldfish having a terrible laugh. The series ran for two seasons, and during that time, it helped implement new elements into the franchise such as new characters, comic books, action figures, and one sharply dressed worm.

The most impressive thing about these shows is how they’re based on games that, at the time, had little to no plot. Take this series, for instance, that was based on Tamagotchi like pets... huh, wonder if the virtual pets we swore we’d take care of are still alive... eh, no time for that, we have an insanely catchy theme song to sing with. There’s actually six anime series in the “DigiWorld,” but we know which one still lives on in fans’ hearts.

“SatAM” -- as fans have called it -- is still considered to be the best animated depiction of the blue blur. This series took a simple game concept like, blue hedgehog runs fast and saves animals, and turned it into something rather gritty as Sonic and a band of Freedom Fighters tried to rescue their dying world from the clutches of a shockingly sinister Dr. Robotnik. Sadly, the show ended on a cliffhanger, and now fans are left with going faster, faster, faster faster faster.

Before we reach the final level with our number one pick, let’s stop at a save point for some honorable mentions:

“F-Zero GP Legend” (2004-05)

“Street Fighter II: V” (1995-98)

“Pac-Man and the Ghostly Adventures” (2013-)

“Angry Birds Toons” (2013-)

“.hack” series (2002-06)

What did we say about seeing lots of Nintendo on this list? We’re pretty sure no one is surprised at our number one pick since Ash Ketchum has been trying to be the best to stuff the world’s animal population into tiny balls since 1997. Usually, the life expectancy of an animated series isn’t that long... unless if you live on Evergreen Terrace. There are plenty of toons that are older than the teenagers who watch them, but still... 1997, really? We’re never gonna “catch am all are we?".