Square Enix is one of the most popular gaming companies ever, especially when it comes to RPGs. They've worked on some of the best franchises in the genre, such as Final Fantasy, Dragon Quest, and Kingdom Hearts. However, one title that didn't get as much praise as it deserved was The World Ends With You.
Luckily, after over a decade of waiting, this year has been great for fans of The World Ends With You. Not only was an anime adaptation of the game released earlier this year, but a sequel, Neo: The World Ends With You, also became a reality. For those that enjoy it and want to play other games like it, these ten will surely be enjoyable.
10 Xenoblade Chronicles
Xenoblade Chronicles is an RPG that was released on the Wii back in 2010 and came to the 3Ds in 2015. Later on, an upgraded version, Xenoblade Chronicles: Definitive Edition, was made available on the Switch. It was developed by Monolith Studio and published by Nintendo.
The main character of the game, Shulk, has a lot of similarities to Neo: The World Ends With You's protagonist, Rindo. From their appearance to their abilities to look into the future, fans of Rindo will surely enjoy playing as Shulk on his adventure.
9 Persona 5
One of the most popular RPG games to release in the past decade was Persona 5. It debuted in 2016 for the PS3 and PS4, and like Xenoblade Chronicles, an improved version with more content, known as Persona 5 Royal, was released in 2019. Atlus developed and published the game, which quickly became one of the most popular titles the company ever worked on.
From the moment fans saw what Neo: The World Ends With You looked like, they made comparisons to Persona 5. In some ways, Neo: The World Ends With You has more in common with Atlus' game than the first installment in Square Enix's series.
8 Dragon Quest 11: Echoes Of An Elusive Age
There have been a lot of Dragon Quest games over the years, with the most recent one from the main series being Dragon Quest 11: Echoes of an Elusive Age. It originally came out in 2017 and is available on the 3DS, Switch, PS4, Xbox One, PC, and Stadia.
Many consider Dragon Quest 11 to be one of the best installments in the franchise While it is much more of a traditional RPG than Neo: The World Ends With You, fans of one will surely enjoy the other as they both focus on awesome stories, have great music, and look similar to beloved anime.
7 Jump Force
Speaking of anime, not only has The World Ends With You gotten an anime adaptation earlier this year, but Neo: The World Ends With You has gameplay mechanics that make it similar to the best games based on anime, at least compared to other RPGs.
Jump Force is a fighting game that brings some of the most iconic anime worlds together, such as Dragon Ball, One Piece, Naruto, Bleach, Hunter x Hunter, and Death Note. It was developed by Spike Chunsoft, who also worked on some of the earlier Dragon Quest titles, and published by Bandai Namco. Jump Force came out in 2019 and is available on the PS4, Xbox One, Switch, and PC.
6 Dragon Ball Z Kakarot
Another video game based on an anime that fans of Neo: The World Ends With You will surely enjoy is Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot. It served as a retelling of the main plot of Dragon Ball Z and was one of the best open-world games to release last year.
It came out on the PS4, Xbox One, Switch, and PC, and was developed by CyberConnect2 and published by Bandai Namco.
5 Final Fantasy 7 Remake
Final Fantasy 7 is arguably the best RPG of all time, and though the original game has similarities to Neo: The World Ends With You, the remake that came out last year has even more in common with it.
The remake retold the first part of the classic RPG but had a different ending, and with a sequel on the way, fans can't wait to see what happens next. It came out on the PS4 and an improved version with more content, called Final Fantasy 7 Remake Intergrade, recently released on the PS5.
4 Kingdom Hearts: Dream Drop Distance
Though fans of The World Ends With You had to wait a long time to see how the characters' stories would continue, they did appear in another Square Enix game. Kingdom Hearts: Dream Drop Distance came out in 2012 on the 3Ds and was the first game in the franchise to have Square Enix characters that weren't from Final Fantasy in it.
While on their Mark of Mastery exam, Sora and Riku, the two playable characters of the title, met Neku, Shiki, Joshua, Rhyme, and Beat in a world called Traverse Town. Kingdom Hearts: Dream Drop Distance was included in Kingdom Hearts HD 2.8 Final Chapter Prologue, which is available on the PS4, Xbox One, and PC.
3 Kingdom Hearts: Chain Of Memories
Though fans of The World Ends With You will most likely enjoy Kingdom Hearts: Dream Drop Distance's story, the gameplay isn't as similar to Neo: The World Ends With You as another game from the series. Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories is the second installment of the franchise and has a very unique combat system that actually has more in common with The World Ends With You games than any of the other titles in the franchise.
Chain of Memories was originally released in 2004 for the Game Boy Advance, but a remake came out on the PlayStation 2, which is also included in Kingdom Hearts HD 1.5 Remix. This collection is available on the PS3, PS4, Xbox One, and PC.
2 Scarlet Nexus
Scarlet Nexus is a Bandai Namco game that came out a month ago on the PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, and PC. The gameplay, visuals, and story share similarities to Neo: The World Ends With You.
There's even already an anime adaptation of Scarlet Nexus, similar to The World Ends With You. Both of these titles show how great of a year it has been for anime and video game fans.
1 The World Ends With You
If there is any game a fan of Neo: The World Ends With You should play, it's obviously the original game in the series. The World Ends With You first came out in 2007 on the DS and was eventually brought to mobile devices. Back in 2018, an upgraded version of the game, The World Ends With You: Final Remix, was brought to the Switch, which added a new story that connects to Neo: The World Ends With You more than the main story does.
This has been a great year for fans of the franchise and if they never had the chance to play the original game, they absolutely should.