Back when dinosaurs drove the Ford Pinto and gaming was new, anime was still in its fledgling stages, too. At the time, Robotech, Gundam, Captain Harlock, and a few others were just starting to make it to the US. Later, as anime became more widely available, even showing on Cinemax and Cartoon Network, a new genre of gaming was born.

Bring the anime attitude to your gaming table! Make your characters bigger than life! Get excited again, like it’s your first time gaming! Envision the world being vividly animated, where every character has some depth (even if drawn heavily from a stereotype) and see the action explode! Warning: the good guys don’t always win.
There are tons of anime with giant robots, guns and spaceships that won’t be discussed here. It’s not D&D. Record of the Lodoss War was drawn heavily from rpg traditions. It’s easy to envision those characters with D&D stats. (Likely forthcoming on a site near you…) The same goes for Slayers.

But how do you turn your regularly scheduled rpg campaign into anime? Here are some thoughts for players and DM’s alike:

Become an Otaku! Read lots of manga. Watch lots of anime. Learn the style.
Don’t be afraid to lean on anime stereotypes -i.e. the brash kid, the kooky old mad scientist, the horribly evil villain, the cutesy overly sweet girl, and others.

Be Animated! Change your voice! We all know how some anime women tend to almost be squeaky at times. Make the crazy old guy sound nuttier than nutty Unless the character is a little more serious. (Ranma, Slayers, Tenchi Muyo.)

Evil is… extremely evil. Heroes might have a shade of gray, (or some eccentricities,) but evil is usually pitch black, like an Eight ball. (Bakeretsu/ Sorcerer Hunters, Record of the Lodoss War)

Encourage players to stop worrying about reality. “Why did everyone gain Leap of Clouds all of the sudden anyway?” Anime characters often break laws of physics, among other things. Don’t be afraid to bend the rules for dramatic effect.( Ranma, Slayers, Lots of others)

Encourage a few brief monologues before and during important fight scenes. “That was my favorite hat.”- Jubei (Slayers, Lodoss, Ninja Scroll)

Give your bad guys lots of personality. And make sure they survive...somehow. The best anime villains are the ones who just keep coming back. (Slayers, Lodoss. Countless more.)

Learn a little Japanese, and insert appropriate phrases where needed. Sometimes English just doesn’t express enough.

Don’t be afraid to laugh. There’s usually at least one giggle in even the most serious anime- intended or not. You can’t be serious all the time! ( Bakeretsu/Sorcerer Hunters Vision of Escafloune, Sailor Moon)

LOTS OF ACTION!!! Mangle some bad guys! Throw that fireball into the room. Go nuts! Have fun with it. That’s what we’re here for! (Slayers, Lodoss, Dragonball Z)

Get Active! That’s not to say Roll Play the characters. Just de-emphasize what could be dealt with “off-camera” Anime is alive. Don’t bog down in long, boring haggling sessions over the price of a candle in the market, hours of courtly intrigue (unless that’s your setting…) or any kind of role-playing that sounds like a college lecture.

Quiet moments are fine, but they shouldn't bog down the game. (Record of the Lodoss War) IF the bad guys are overwhelming- admit defeat. This is a tough one to get players to accept at first, but some of the best anime is when the good guys get trounced and make a comeback! (Vision of Escafloune.)

Cute, Fuzzy Creatures never actually die, even if they should! Give the PC’s a pet that’s so sweet they’ll need insulin! But please- no transforming galactic battle cruiser critters. (Pokemon, Sailor Moon, Tenchi Muyo,)

Lastly, just have fun. Most anime has it’s more light hearted moments. It’s what makes anime fun to watch and gaming fun to do.

Anime- style gaming can be used in practically any genre from fantasy to science fiction. Check out Star Wars Manga, for example. Werewolf the Apocalypse, oddly enough, lends itself well to an anime style. Of course, D&D makes for a great anime game. Look for d20 stats of some anime characters coming to this site soon.
One last note. Never force anything on your players. If they don’t like anime, or don’t watch anime you may wish to reconsider radically altering your campaign. Check with the players first. The last thing on the list is probably the most important.