Bleach is one of the most popular manga around, forming a part of the legendary Big Three along with Naruto and One Piece. While some people might argue that the series peaked early on and never reached these heights again, there can be no denying that the cultural impact of Bleach was pretty significant. After all, the manga has spawned so many games of its own that are a blast to play through.
The fact that the Thousand-Year Blood War arc is finally getting adapted after the longest time is a testament to just how popular Bleach really is. This arc is going to air in four cours, with the first one ending its initial run in late 2022. Thankfully, there are plenty of great games based on Bleach that fans can check out while waiting for the next cour to air.
6 Bleach: The Blade Of Fate
Most popular shonen anime are adapted into fighting games that capture the essence of the series, and Bleach: The Blade of Fate is no exception to this. It's a fun fighting game on the DS that covers Ichigo's infiltration into Soul Society and how he strives to save Rukia from her impending execution.
Along with the story, there are several other modes that players can interact with in the game. It's a great title that fans of Bleach should check out, especially as it covers one of the best arcs in the entire series.
5 Bleach: Dark Souls
The Blade of Fate is a great fighting game with tight and engaging mechanics, and players who wanted more of the same on the Nintendo DS were elated to find out that a sequel existed in the form of Bleach: Dark Souls. Unlike the previous game, which focused on a canon storyline, Dark Souls takes on a more original approach and explores a unique game-only story that takes place right after the bombastic conclusion of the Soul Society arc.
The game is pretty much an extension of The Blade of Fate while adding several gameplay improvements and slight innovations of its own to freshen things up. If fans have access to a Nintendo DS, it's definitely recommended to try out the gameplay of Bleach: Dark Souls and experience these improvements for themselves.
4 Bleach: The 3rd Phantom
Bleach: The 3rd Phantom is another game that covers a wholly unique and original storyline that isn't canon. However, that shouldn't deter players from checking this game out, especially since said storyline is penned by none other than Tite Kubo himself. Experiencing an original video game story written by the creator of Bleach is enough of a draw for most players to check this game out.
Unlike most of the real-time fighting games that have been released in conjunction with this series, Bleach: The 3rd Phantom uses tactical turn-based combat instead. This makes for a fresh change of pace as players calculate their every move to ensure that the enemy can be defeated while suffering little to no damage.
3 Bleach: Shattered Blade
Bleach: Shattered Blade was released on the Nintendo Wii and used the motion controls of this console to great effect. Players loved the idea of waving around the Wiimote like a sword to battle against opponents, even if battles were somewhat slowed down to accommodate these controls. Regardless, the manner in which special attacks and Bankai were integrated into the game was still pretty ingenious and made for a great time.
The game is notable for polarizing critics and fans upon launch. The former weren't impressed by the game's mechanics, while the latter enjoyed the new things that Shattered Blade brought to the table while also enjoying the individual stories for most of the game's characters.
2 Bleach: Soul Resurreccion
The first Bleach game for the PS3 was an admirable attempt at a title where players could roam around more open spaces and battle enemies along the way. Soul Resurreccion covered the story starting from the infiltration of Hueco Mundo all the way to the moment when Ichigo powered up to extreme levels and beat up Aizen once and for all.
The climactic confrontation against the several bosses of the title was undoubtedly a major highlight of Bleach. Unfortunately, the game was bogged down by poor pacing issues, with several moments in the game involving Ichigo running down empty spaces and dealing with repetitive enemies over and over again.
1 Bleach: Brave Souls
Most people shy away from free mobile games since these titles generally bait players into spending actual money to access the game's content at a reasonable pace. However, for what it's worth, Bleach: Brave Souls has a ton of great content coupled with fun action gameplay to satiate most fans of the series.
The combination of beat-em-up gameplay coupled with RPG elements makes Brave Souls a great experience that can now be experienced on modern systems as well. It might be a free title, but the sheer wealth of gameplay in this title definitely makes it worth checking out for Bleach fans.