Solo Leveling has become one of the defining anime of the modern era, with two seasons released back-to-back in 2024 and 2025. It set records that even surpassed some of the longest-running anime of all time, including One Piece, on Crunchyroll by becoming the highest-rated anime of all time. This shows that the anime had a completely different impact on the anime industry. However, since the conclusion of Season 2, there have been no new releases.
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It was only recently announced that the anime will be returning with a movie, which could arrive next year or in 2028. This is why now is the perfect time to watch some anime that could fill the void, and we have the perfect three anime to recommend that could do just that.
3) Shangri-La Frontier
One of the best elements of Solo Leveling was undoubtedly how it presented a game-like feel as Jinwoo progressed through dungeons and was rewarded. This is the same feeling that Shangri-La Frontier presents through its isekai trope. It features a boy who had a knack for playing the most trashy games, and after getting invested in the popular VR game Shangri-La Frontier, he gets a new challenge.
With the anime eventually becoming about its bird-masked main character trying to conquer the elements of the game in the best way possible, it represents Jinwoo, who is always in tactical mode as he tries to get the best out of a dungeon. Moreover, the anime presents its own different nuances as it progresses, but the feel of the game is always present, keeping fans engaged as the bird-masked main character continues to entertain throughout.
2) Tower of God
Tower of God is an anime adaptation of a manhwa that came even before Solo Leveling, but the similarities between them go much beyond their sources. The early journeys of the protagonists in both series are what make them very similar. Bam, being depicted as an anomaly of the system that the series establishes and eventually climbing up the ladder to become one of the strongest, truly captures the best of the feel that Solo Leveling presents.
What could make some fans like Tower of God even more is that the protagonist is met with constant betrayal from early on, which shapes his maturation as he climbs up the vertical stages, meeting more and more anomalies and political challenges that are there to hinder Bam’s journey. There have been two seasons of the anime so far, and even though the second season did not receive a great reception, it does its best to maintain the mystery of the series.
1) Tomb Raider King
While there are many older anime that could be very similar to Solo Leveling, the summer of 2026 has brought a new anime, Tomb Raider King, that has proven to be remarkably similar due to its design, not just for its system but also for the appearance of its characters. Seo Jooheon essentially emerges as an older and more mature Jinwoo from the start, as he embarks on a quest for revenge after getting a second chance that allows him to go back to the past. With knowledge of the future and a similar power system, Jooheon emerges as an overpowered character from the start.
For his revenge quest, Jooheon goes to any lengths, abandoning his humanity from the start while also forming a team by emotionally blackmailing them. Meanwhile, even the romantic setup for Jooheon feels awfully similar to Jinwoo’s. The only thing it does differently is its focus on tombs and relics and how they perfectly align with historical elements that make them intriguing in their own right. Tomb Raider King might just be the best anime that fans could watch in 2026 if they are missing Solo Leveling, as nothing else comes close at all.
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