Best Steampunk Anime

Key Takeaways

• Steampunk anime fuses steam-powered technology with alternative worlds and mysticism, capturing fans’ interest.
• Shows like Appare-Ranman! and Deca-Dence offer unique and well-acclaimed steampunk settings for viewers.
• Castle In The Sky, Metropolis, and Trigun are recognized classics in the genre, blending steampunk aesthetics with intriguing stories.

Steampunk, a subgenre of retro-futuristic science fiction, has captured audiences worldwide with its unique blend of Victorian-era aesthetics and the gritty mechanical practicality of industrialism. While the steampunk genre is not the most popular of genres portrayed in various anime shows, some anime shows have managed to portray steampunk to a degree that has fans wanting more.

Steampunk anime is truly distinctive as it transports viewers to alternative worlds where steam-powered machinery, clockwork contraptions, and a touch of mysticism reign supreme. Despite only a few anime series portraying themes of steampunk, some series have become well-known and widely acclaimed.

Updated September 27, 2024 by Oluwatokiloba Folami: As an under-represented genre, relatively fewer series are released portraying a steampunk aesthetic, unlike isekai and high school slice-of-life series. Due to this, shows with a rich and unique take on the steampunk genre are widely sought after by fans who love to see steam-powered ships and Victorian-style architecture.

With shows such as Appare-Ranman! and Deca-Dence, fans of steampunk aesthetics have something to look forward to. These shows may not rival old but gold classics like Castle In The Sky and Metropolis, but compared to the drivers of the steampunk genre, they’re not too far behind and rank highly when it comes to unique steampunk settings.

17 Appare-Ranman!

Adventure With Retro-Futuristic Technology

Despite being only 13 episodes long, anime fans who have watched Appare-Ranman! have come to love the show for its peculiar take on an adventure-based series, all while incorporating steampunk elements. Unlike other steampunk shows, Appare-Ranman! does not portray the end of the world or a potential world-ending event, simply two individuals with differing goals trying to accommodate each other.

As a brilliant but socially inept inventor, Appare Sorano strives to sail across the sea, the sky, and even to the other side of the moon. To keep his dreams and extremely erratic behavior in check, Appare is bound with Kosame Isshiki, a samurai. As the duo strive to navigate their personal wants, they end up stuck in Los Angeles. Fortunately, a way presents itself—build a car, participate in the Trans-America Wild Race, win the prize money, and return home. But like with many things, it’s easier said than done.

16 Samurai 7

Futuristic Tech Meets Steampunk In Feudal Japan

This anime series might not be the most popular when it comes to steampunk shows. However, its beautiful blend of old-world skill with steampunk technology makes it unique in its way. Samurai 7 portrays a battle between seven unique samurai of varying specialties and bandits who are being inflicted by corrupt merchants.

Interestingly, these bandits are not normal bandits, but past samurai who are now integrated with various forms of steam-powered weapons. Aside from the weapons, the show also portrays various steam-powered cities in a futuristic world. Fusing giant steam robots alongside traditional Japanese society coupled with the many gripping battles has made this series engaging and a standout in the steampunk genre.

15 Deca-Dence

Post-Apocalyptic Themes Give Steampunk Aesthetic

This original anime series is known for its portrayal of a post-apocalyptic world where humans still battle the Gadoll, life forms that seek to eradicate humanity. To help with day-to-day systems, humanity came up with cyborgs who performed various functions, while humans themselves were confined to a large mobile fortress. Facing extinction, humanity didn’t simply comply but became segregated into the Gears and Tankers. The former battle against the Gadoll and the latter provide support in the form of maintaining various structures, weapons, and resources.

As a steampunk series, Deca-Dence stands out for its mechanical vs. organic theme and its aesthetic steampunk world. The setting of the series is a massive steam-powered fortress where the remnants of humanity inhabit. Outside these steam-powered structures are wastelands scarred by battle, and this in itself embodies the heart of steampunk—steam-powered machinery in a post-apocalyptic world amid a harsh environment.

14 Violet Evergarden

A Coming-Of-Age Story With A Steampunk Aesthetic

Violet Evergarden, a young maiden raised for war, must find a new way of living after the war comes to an end. As she loses her hands in the war, Violet is given prosthetics and works as an auto-memory doll, a type of ghostwriter who helps others express their emotions in letters.

While this anime series doesn’t focus on its steampunk elements, the series’ art style and architectural designs draw inspiration from the Victorian era. Moreover, with the merging of various eras of technology, the steampunk setting is portrayed in such a way that it’s not prominently everywhere, but at the same time, it’s unmistakable.

13 Howl’s Moving Castle

Old-Fashioned But Intriguing

This Studio Ghibli production may be old-fashioned, but its storytelling and steampunk themes remain intriguing even to this day. Howl’s Moving Castle features a young hatmaker named Sophie, who is cursed and turned into a 90-year-old woman by the Witch of the Waste, simply because she (Sophie) has a brief encounter with Howl.

Searching for a way to break the curse, Sophie wanders the lands until she comes into contact with Howl’s moving castle, a magical structure with a ragtag collection of peculiar creatures living inside. As both Sophie and Howl have been plagued by curses, they band together to stop the witch of the Waste and turn their lives around.

12 The Case Study Of Vanitas

Vampires and Steampunk Create A Unique Story

Scorned by other vampires because he was born under a blue moon, the vampire Vanitas swore to have revenge on his kind. To enact his revenge, Vanitas created an artifact — the Book of Vanitas — that allows him to interfere with the core of vampires’ power: their names.

Years later, Vanitas’ human apprentice goes around with the book of Vanitas, calling himself Vanitas. Meanwhile, he comes across a vampire called Noé Archiviste who seeks the book of Vanitas. Together, the duo journey through a steampunk world, confronting vampires and delivering justice or a cure to them. With its unique combination of steampunk themes and dark fantasy elements, The Case Study of Vanitas stands among the most beloved of the steampunk genre.

11 Steam Detectives

The Megamatons Make The Steampunk Aesthetic Evident

In an age where steam is the primary source of fuel, the steam engine has become the primary technological advancement. However, like most things, steam engines have drawbacks to them. With the steam engine, giant robots called Megamatons have come into play, and evil villains use these sentient robots to have their way.

Meanwhile, the child prodigy and detective Narutaki, son of Steam City’s greatest detective, band together with Nurse Ling Ling and her Megamoton, Goriki. Together, they put a stop to villains such as Phantom Knight and Dr. Guilty as they spread violence and chaos in a steam-powered world.

10 Kabaneri Of The Iron Fortress

Steampunk Technology Must Be Used To Battle Kabaneri

Kabaneri of the Iron Fortress portrays a post-apocalyptic steampunk setting in a world overrun by zombie-like creatures called Kabane. These zombie-like creatures have survivors residing in fortified cities connected by armored steam-powered trains to protect themselves.

The anime series centers on Ikoma, a young steamsmith who developed a specially designed steam-powered weapon named the ‘Piercing Gun.’ During a dreadful encounter with the Kabane, Ikoma gets the chance to test his piercing gun, which proves successful but gets bitten in the process. He manages to stop the virus from reaching his brain, transforming himself into a human/kabane hybrid called Kabaneri. With Ikoma’s unique transformation, this steampunk anime beautifully combines thrilling battles and an intricate plot.

9 Clockwork Planet

A Clockwork Planet Begins To Breakdown

After the death of the earth, a genius clockmaker known as Y revived the earth using gears and clockwork, thus resulting in the name “Clockwork Planet.” The story revolves around a young boy named Naoto Miura, who is a lover of machines and aspires to be a great clockmaker.

Things change for young Naoto when he discovers an automation named RyuZu after falling through his roof in a crate. RyuZU was forged by Y himself and had been broken for hundreds of years. RyuZU’s arrival leads to Naoto meeting Dr. Marie Bell Breguet, the youngest to become a meister, some master engineers, and her bodyguard, Vainney Halter. Together, they learn an uncomfortable truth and work together to prevent a world-ending catastrophe.

8 Nadia: The Secret Of Blue Water

Steampunk Technology Under The Sea

Inspired by Jules Verne’s novel 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, Nadia: The Secret of Blue Water is an adventure-packed steampunk anime. Set in a 19th-century alternate universe, a young girl named Nadia, with a mysterious gem called Blue Water, crosses paths with Jean, a young prodigy.

After being rescued by Captain Nemo and his submarine Nautilus (Steam Driven), Nadia and Jean join forces with Captain Nemo. Together, they set out on a journey to uncover the secrets of the Blue Water and to take down the Neo-Atlantean forces who want to rule the world. This classic anime is a hidden gem for steampunk enthusiasts.

7 Princess Principal

Steampunk and Espionage Is A Rare Combination

Set in a steampunk version of 19th-century London, the Kingdom of Albion is split in two by a great wall due to the London Revolution. Separated by a wall that runs west of the royal capital, Albion, the greatest power in the world, is split into the Old Kingdom and the Commonwealth of Albion.

A team of five teenage espionage agents, Ange, Beatrice, Chise, Dorothy, and Princess Charlotte, infiltrate the Queen’s Mayfair Academy as Commonwealth’s intelligence. With their individual skills, these teenage espionage agents undergo undercover missions in a world filled with conspiracy and steampunk technology.

6 Castle In The Sky

Pirates, Robots, And An Intriguing Story

Telling the tale of Sheeta and Pazu, Castle in the Sky explores how the duo embarks on a quest to uncover the mythical secrets of Laputa, a floating castle. On their adventure, Sheeta and Pazu encounter government agents and pirates with diabolical motives.

This Studio Ghibli masterpiece blends nature and machinery in a steampunk setting that makes for a refreshing watch. Hayao Miyazaki is the series’ director, and it showcases the mechanical prowess of steam-powered robots. While Castle in the Sky aired in the late 1900s, fans of the steampunk genre will find it interesting even today.

5 Trigun

Steampunk On Another Planet

Vash the Stampede is a popularly known outlaw on planet Gunsmoke, a desert world with few resources. While the government sees Vash as a dangerous outlaw and nothing else, few know that Vash is truly a pacifist who strives to avoid taking lives but has to fight off bounty hunters.

As Vash journeys through a world filled with outlaws and bounty hunters, he discovers his mysterious past and runs into Meryl and Milly, who want to bring him to justice. Trigun blends steampunk aesthetics with a feel of the Wild West, portraying a tale of redemption and morality.

4 Metropolis

Sentient Beings Made From Steampunk Technology

This anime series is set in a steampunk world where humans and robots live alongside each other in an era where unrest and violence increase with each passing day. In a search for Dr. Laughton, a scientist who deals in trading human organs, detective Shunsaku Ban and his nephew arrive in the city of Metropolis.

However, things quickly spiral out of control when Detective Shunsaku Ban’s nephew, Kenichi, discovers a girl of unknown origin. This girl is later revealed to be a robot created by Dr. Laughton under the orders of Duke Red, the city’s ruler. What makes Metropolis and its steampunk setting so interesting is that the girl herself is unaware that she is a robot until the very end.

3 Steamboy

Limitless Steam Energy Can Change The World

Directed by Katsuhiro Otomo, Steamboy is a masterpiece of steampunk animation that brings to life an alternative 19th-century Victorian London setting where steam-powered inventions take center stage.

The series tells the tale of James Ray Steam, a young maintenance boy at Manchester Mill who’s also an inventor. Ray’s life is turned upside down when his scientist grandfather, Llyod Steam, sends him a package from the United States. In the package, he finds a special device called a Steam Ball, a device powerful enough to drive any machine that requires steam to work with nearly limitless energy.

2 Last Exile

Adventure, War, And Steampunk In One Package

Last Exile takes viewers to the planet Prester, a world where flight is the major mode of transportation. An organization known as “the Guild” rules the skies with a monopoly on engines that use Claudia fluid, a crystalized fluid that makes flight possible.

In the series, two countries, Anatoray and Disith, are at war. In the middle of the conflict, Claus and Lavie, two Vanship pilots who work as mail couriers, take on a high-paying job to deliver a girl named Alvis Hamilton. However, little do they know that their lives are about to change drastically because of Alvis Hamilton.

Using Alchemy To Change The Laws Of Nature In A Steam-Powered World

In a world where alchemy is both science and art, the two brothers, Edward and Alphonse Elric, try to bring their deceased mother back to life with a forbidden, taboo practice of alchemy. Unfortunately, things do not go as planned, as Alphonse loses his body, and Edward loses an arm and a leg.

Determined to get their bodies back, the brothers set out on a journey to find the Philosopher’s Stone, a legendary artifact that can restore their bodies. While this show centers around alchemy, the steampunk setting it portrays cannot be ignored.