Terminator Zero: 10 Similar Sci-Fi Anime You Must See

The Netflix anime’ Terminator Zero’ is a treasure trove of sci-fi storytelling that brings time travel, cyborgs, and Artificial Intelligence together to chart one unshrinking tale about the end of the world. In the year 1997, Skynet AI takes over the Earth after demolishing humanity’s reign through nuclear warfare. As a result, by 2022, human survivors like Eiko are clinging to life in resistance groups. Therefore, when one prophetic scientist in 1997, Malcolm Lee, decides to create a counter-AI to prevent Judgement Day, a Terminator robot is sent back to the past to neutralize his threat.

Simultaneously, Eiko also follows after to protect Malcolm and his Kokoro AI in hopes of rewriting the past. Thus, as the time travelers’ missions collide, it puts Malcolm and his family at risk and sets a ticking clock on the race to humanity’s destruction or salvation. The show pairs high-stakes endgames well with exciting revelations amidst a constantly unwinding plotline. Therefore, if the conclusion of ‘Terminator Zero’ has compelled you to seek out similar thrills, here is a list of other anime just like it.

10. Armored Trooper VOTOMS (1983-1984)

‘Armored Trooper VOTOMS,’ created by Ryôsuke Takahashi and Hajime Yatate, might be a more eclectic pick. Yet, its vintage approach to sci-fi will be a selling point for ‘Terminator Zero’ fans. The show features Chirico Cuvie, a soldier who has just returned from the end of a 100-year-long war between his planet, Melkia, and Bavalant. Nonetheless, despite escaping from the war fairly unscathed, the Melkian soldier finds himself unable to return to a regular life as his participation in a top-secret mission renders him in sight of perpetual danger.

Consequently, as he returns to his world, crippled under war’s effects, survival remains his number one mission. The rustic sci-fi aesthetic of this show mirrors the quirks’ Terminator Zero’ inherits from its 1980s source material. Furthermore, its inclination toward action and Chirico’s mission-focused narrative may remind viewers of the latter’s Terminator robot.

9. Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex (2002-2005)

Building upon Shirow Masamune’s manga of the same name, ‘Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex’ blends the cyberpunk genre with crime-driven narratives to present an action-adventure story. The show—set in the distant future—revolves around Section 9, a law enforcement unit designed to deal with cybercrime and terrorism cases. Thus, Major Motoko Kusanagi, a cyborg agent and a vital member of the team, finds herself undertaking various missions with her comrades. Together, Section 9 takes on their biggest and baddest adversaries in a battle fueled by technological superiority. This show will prove to be an excellent watch for fans who enjoyed the various cyborgs in ‘Terminator Zero,’ be it the ruthless Terminator himself or the more nuanced Misaki.

8. Cyberpunk: Edgerunners (2022)

Another spin-off to an overarching franchise, much like ‘Terminator Zero,’ ‘Cyberpunk: Edgerunners’ builds upon a charmingly techno-urban world that fans of the dystopian sci-fi genre are bound to enjoy. Created by Rafal Jaki, the show is set in Night City, overrun by cybernetics obsession, gangs, and controlling corporations. David Martinez is a street kid who loses everything in an accident except for his own wit and skills. Therefore, reckless in his desire to survive, he decides to edge the rule of the law and installs robotic modifications into his body. Thus, becoming a Cyberpunk—a high-grade mercenary—David finds himself thrown into a whole new world. Dealing with complex futuristic concepts with compelling complementary aesthetics, ‘Cyberpunk: Edgerunners’ would make for a quality watch for people who enjoyed ‘Terminator Zero’s’ expansive universe and sci-fi-centric elements.

7. Psycho-Pass (2012–2019)

Charting a crime-focused cyberpunk tale, Gen Urobuchi’s ‘Psycho-Pass’ compels viewers to interact with the intricacies of Artificial Intelligence through riveting premises and ideas. The anime is set in a future where the authorities utilize an AI network, the Sibyl System, to assess citizens’ potential for criminality through biometrics. In this system, officers use the help of dormant criminals, also known as Enforcers, for protection and aid. However, after newbie officer Akane Tsunemori goes out into the world as an Inspector, she realizes the flaws in the system. As a result, she can’t help but question everything she knows about society and AI’s role in it.

The show’s utilization of the Sibyl System proposes an aggravated look into the threat that robotics and AI could pose. For the same reason, it will remain reminiscent of Skynet and Kokoro’s influence over the narrative in ‘Terminator Zero.’

6. Occult Academy (2010)

Featuring a plot with doomsday right around the corner, time-traveling agents, and a complex force tying it all together—’Occult Academy’ is the show for people who enjoyed ‘Terminator Zero’ but are craving a drastic departure from the sci-fi genre. This fantasy horror anime is set in a school, Waldstein Academy, which studies the occult. In 1999, Maya, the former Headmaster’s daughter, returns to the academy with one purpose in mind. However, her path unexpectedly crosses with Fumiaki Uchida, a time traveler from 2012. As it turns out, the future oversees the aliens’ attack on humanity. Thus, Fumiaki has returned to the past to find the elusive Nostradamus Key and prevent the upcoming apocalypse. The show features all the building blocks of ‘Terminator Zero,’ yet retains a drastically different and exciting identity.

5. The Gene of AI (2023)

Bringing Kyūri Yamada’s manga series to the screen, the anime ‘The Gene of AI’ tackles philosophically titillating ideas and themes revolving around Artificial Intelligence—an aspect that will appeal to ‘Terminator Zero’ fans. Hikaru Sudo, a doctor, is at the narrative’s center as the show scrutinizes his profession, wherein he specializes in humanoid patient treatment. In this show’s interpretation of a futuristic society, AI-powered humanoid robots live in society beside humans, making up a significant portion of the population.

Naturally, this leads to questions about the innate differences and similarities between the two species, especially in Hikaru’s line of work. If you were fascinated by the binary dilemma between humans and robots in ‘Terminator Zero,’ this show will offer a richer, more varied take on the same. Furthermore, it also utilizes AI in a profound way that fans of the former will find compelling.

4. Tokyo Revengers (2021-)

Based on Ken Wakui’s eponymous manga, the anime ‘Tokyo Revengers,’ charts a story chockful of action and drama in which time travel plays a crucial central role. The show revolves around Hanagaki Takemichi, a young adult who peaked in middle school and is now living a truly unsatisfying life. As such, the news of Hinata Tachibana, his middle school girlfriend—the only one he has ever had—only serves to shake him further. However, one non-descript day, Hanagaki finds himself shoved in the path of an oncoming train—only instead of his life flashing before his eyes, the man finds himself returning to his middle school self.

Somehow, having time-traveled into the past, Hanagaki seizes the opportunity to right past mistakes and change his future. Both ‘Tokyo Revengers’ and ‘Terminator Zero’ equips time travel as a potential solution to protagonists’ messy present lives. As such, if you’re intrigued by the idea of changing the past and facing all the complications it entails, this show is for you!

3. Erased (2016)

Adapted from Kei Sanbe’s eponymous manga series, ‘Erased’ is a crime-centric anime that features time traveling as a minor but instrumental plot point in its protagonist’s narrative. Satoru Fujinuma is a 29-year-old man who has many regrets about his past, particularly due to the string of kidnappings that terrorized his neighborhood in his childhood. Therefore, the man finds himself in for a shock when, in the present day, he witnesses his mother’s death right before being sent back 18 years into the past during the time of the kidnappings. Consequently, armed with the knowledge of the future, he decides to change just enough to prevent the past’s tragedy and revise his own future.

Although the stakes in ‘Erased’ may feel significantly lowered compared to ‘Terminator Zero’s’ apocalyptic setting, the show maintains a heavy gravity accentuated by its psychological thriller elements. As a result, this show will provide something new to fans of the latter anime while operating within the same theme of changing one’s past.

2. Steins;Gate (2011-2015)

‘Steins;Gate,’ the adaptation of a predecessor visual novel by Chiyomaru Shikura, is one of the most well-loved and applauded animes that tackles the premise of time travel. It follows Okabe Rintarou, a university student who claims to be a mad, crazy Scientist because of his work in the lab. After a strange series of events, Rintarou, with his friends Mayuri Shiina and Itaru “Daru” Hashida, discovers the secrets to time travel in varying degrees. As a result, the science student and his friends begin messing with their newfound discovery to make arbitrary changes in their lives, that is, until their paths cross with SERN, an evil organization.

Consequently, Rintarou—who discovers the power of time travel—ends up shouldering the responsibility of preventing SERN’s wicked plans. Despite the numerous elements of ‘Terminator Zero,’ time travel remains an intrinsic part of its narrative as it defines multiple central characters’ stories. Therefore, if the same is a notable part of the appeal for you with the former show, then ‘Steins;Gate’ is bound to win you over as well.

1. Vivy: Fluorite Eye’s Song (2021)

‘Vivy: Fluorite Eye’s Song’ is an AI-centric action anime created by Tappei Nagatsuki and Eiji Umehara that has all the beats of ‘Terminator Zero’ and a refreshingly distinctive plot. The tale’s protagonist is Diva, the first autonomous AI created by humans, whose singular mission in life is to bring happiness through her singing. For the same reason, she is bound by her programming to ensure nothing gets in the way of her mission. Therefore, when Matsumoto, an AI from the future, visits her and shares knowledge of humanity’s eventual end at AI’s hands, Diva has no choice but to join forces with him.

Thus, the duo works together to prevent humanity’s fall, timed 100 years into the future. As Diva races to destroy all AI for humanity’s safety, her character’s journey inevitably mirrors Eiko’s from ‘Terminator Day.’ Additionally, the former also shares the Terminator robot’s end-all determination for its mission. As such, in a peculiar way, the ‘Vivy: Fluorite Eye’s Song’ protagonist presents a combination of the two time-travelers, making her story the perfect follow-up to ‘Terminator Zero.’