Fate has grown to be among the most well-known Japanese multimedia brands. Media relating to Fate has generated several different anime series. Even if you aren’t a fan of the original material, those series cover a wide range of genres and our list of the best Fate anime series will have something to your liking.
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What Is Fate Anime?
In 2004, Fate began as an interactive video game in which players engage with its story and choose alternative paths based on their decisions. The original narrative gave 3 options, each of which was converted into separate anime series. In 2005, Hollow Ataraxia, a spin-off game, was launched.
The Fate series has spawned several spin-offs, books, manga, and anime as well as other works set in different timelines and universes. Different Fate anime are linked together through Holy Grail War, the survival battle between 7 Masters each of who is accompanied by their summoned Servant.
Regardless of altered names, every Servant is inspired by a legendary historical figure such as Hercules, William Shakespeare, etc.
Top 7 Best Fate Anime Series To Watch
1. Fate/Stay Night
Fate/Stay Night is an adapted anime produced by Studio Deen, which many franchise fans have mixed feelings about. They are neither bad nor on the same level as the work done by Studio Ufotable in terms of both animation and the closeness to the original story.
Despite these reasons, the series is able to welcome newbies into the Fate universe. The original Fate/Stay Night, aired in 2006, is already outdated. It is, nevertheless, useful for those searching for an entry into the vast fantasy realm established at the time.
Years later, the same studio also made an adaption following the Unlimited Blade Works. However, it is still not comparable to Ufotable’s work. Therefore, we lump two of Studio Deen’s adaptations together since they are two halves to make a whole something.
2. Fate/Zero
Studio Ufotable’s work, Fate/Zero, is among the darkest and the best Fate anime to watch. This prequel of Fate/Stay Night has a far more somber tone compared to the original, having fewer lighthearted scenes and no respite.
It chronicles Kiritsugu Emiya’s tale before he rose to prominence as a “hero”. Similar to the Fate/Stay Night anime, he embarks on his adventure with Saber. The plot takes place a decade before events in Fate/Stay Night and Kirisugu’s a mercenary on quest to become 1 of 7 Masters and obtain the Holy Grail.
The dark anime adaptation has satisfied fans because it features an engrossing story that never stops going forward, excellent animation in all combat scenes, and a cast of characters that spans all ages.
Fate/Zero has been a success since it’s willing to take chances without sacrificing either quality or heart.
3. Fate/Apocrypha
Fate/Apocrypha is adapted from the namesake light book series. Its setting is in an alternate timelike compared to the origin, focusing on a fight between 2 fractions: Black vs Red. Because this is a Holy Grail War on a bigger scale and happening 6 decades after the 3rd war, there are more servants involved in comparison to the original.
Apocrypha is among the finest Fate anime series, but it’s also among the hardest to follow. If you can understand the alternative timeline with lots of action, this may become your favorite.
Dissimilar to Fate/Grand Order which focuses on waifu materials, Apocrypha allows viewers or players to have a deeper insight into the characters’ relationships during the historical period.
Moreover, if you are a fan of Fate, it’s still worth seeing Fate/Apocrypha because it involves servants who were previously seen in light novels and Fate/Grand Order.
4. Fate/Grand Order Absolute Demonic Front: Babylonia
The anime series produced by CloverWorks studio deserves greater recognition. There’s still some skepticism about it because it received too much acclaim when it originally premiered, but it stood against the test of time and proved that it deserved the praise.
The series features a fan-favorite Fate villain who finally gets his due. The emergence of Gilgamesh is fascinating to see as the audience follows his path to be the next King of Heroes. The anime delves into the connections between characters and their backstories in great depth.
Overall, Babylonia did a fantastic job recreating the Fate/Grand Order game’s plot and providing fans with screentime for their favorite characters as well as something to brag about.
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5. Fate/Kaleid Liner Prisma Illya
Different from the original Fate series, the Kaleid spin-off centers on Illya in a parallel dimension. Since its debut in 2017, the series has aired 4 seasons and 1 feature movie. All of them have gotten positive reviews from audiences. The film begins off lightheartedly, but the storyline quickly picks up.
Nevertheless, given how much it splits from the original as well as other adaptions of the Fate brand, Fate/Kaleid may not be to everyone’s liking.
6. Lord El-Melloi II’s Case File
This series is among the most recent animation adaptations of the Fate franchise. It’s an excellent anime for those who wish to skip the action and concentrate on the story’s background.
Different from previous spin-offs focusing solely on fighting or school experience set in Fuyuki City, the new novel explores how magic in Fate/Stay Night functions from a unique perspective.
The series takes place after the Fate/Zero events. The focus of the story is now Waver Velvet, who has become a master. He goes to London in order to investigate a difficult case.
The show’s animation is stunning and it features fantastic characters. Therefore, we strongly recommend you to watch this.
7. Fate/Extra Last Encore
Last Encore anime is not the finest adaptation of the Fate/Extra anime series, despite being loosely based on it. The series takes place in a parallel universe in which the Holy Grail War has never occurred. The main character of this series is Hakuno Kishinami, selected for participation in the Grail War by Saber.
It, however, still has some positive qualities, namely fantastic music, and stunning animation. Unfortunately, these do not outweigh the series’ flaws, which include a hurried and overly complicated storyline that does not do justice to its source material.
Fate fans, however, get to watch Nero animated. They have been clamoring for this to happen for a long time. The production was overseen by Studio Shaft. While the story may not have turned out well, the animation is magnificent.
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Final Words
Fans of this franchise will have a hard time picking the best Fate anime series. Certainly, each has their opinion on which program should be ranked first, however, for now, each of the 7 titles deserves fans’ love due to their stunning animation and exciting plots.
Hi! I just want to mention that Unlimited Blade Works was done by Ufotable, not by Deen. And is probably the best work on the 3 original alternatives for Fate/Stay Night.