When Anime Does Tech: The Five Must-See Anime for Programmers
By: Sonam Choden
Tags: Programmer, Anime, Technology, Hennge, It

When Anime Does Tech: The Five Must-See Anime for Programmers

Anime to Japan is what Programmers are to HENNGE. In this edition of HENNGEblog, we have a cooked up a list that has both: Anime for Programmers! Sonam Choden Follow Feb 20, 2020 · 3 min read

Japan is rightfully known as the spiritual home of anime.

It’s long led the way in innovation, pushing new boundaries as on-screen art meets behind-the-scenes technology.



But what about the role tech plays in the stories that anime fans love most?

Here’s our roundup of the top five must-see anime series out there with programming and IT featuring as their central theme.

1. Hacker for Hire

First up is Battle Programmer Shirase or ‘BPS’, which tells the story of Akira Shirase, a talented but mysterious computer programmer. His keyboard wizardry doesn’t go unnoticed and he is soon recruited by eccentric characters to complete increasingly risky hacking jobs. Each one showcases a different programming skill while revealing secrets about the characters involved.

2. Cops and Robbers Meets AI

Second is Ghost in the Shell, also made popular by the big-screen adaption featuring Scarlett Johansson is a cyberpunk science fiction tale set in a futuristic Japan. First serialized in 1989, it follows a cyber police force’s efforts to crack down on technologically-enhanced criminals, experimenting with concepts of Artificial Intelligence that are only today starting to become mainstream.

3. Fortnite Gone Wild

Next up is Summer Wars, an animated science fiction film that tells the tale of a young Kenji Koiso who is falsely implicated in the hacking of a Fortnite-like virtual world by a rogue Artificial Intelligence. The film’s social commentary on the differences between the analog and digital worlds will surely resonate with every programmer.

4. Big Brother Knows What You’re Thinking

Dark anime series Psycho Pass portrays a futuristic Japan where programmers have created a world in which everyone’s actions and the likelihood of committing a crime is monitored 24/7 by psychometric scanners — with deathly consequences. It’s a must-see for all science fiction fans, and particularly those with an appreciation for the true power of tech.

5. Cyber Security Never Looked So Good

Rounding up our list we have the aesthetically beautiful Zankyou no Terror (Terror in Resonance), set in a modern-day Tokyo at the mercy of cyber-terrorists. No spoilers but the ones behind the tech terror are not what you’d expect. Cue lots of relatable content about the life of a techie and an awesome soundtrack to boot.

How many of these have you seen and have we missed any off our list? Let us know in the comments below.

And don’t forget, life as a real-world programmer may not be as dramatic as these series would have you think, but it’s a great way to challenge yourself and be at the sharp edge of transforming the world for the better.

So what are you waiting for?

Visit our HENNGE Global Internship Program page now to see if you’ve got what it takes to #InternAtHENNGE. Join our next round of internships and you could be living the Tokyo programmer life yourself!