Divine Gate is a Japanese smartphone game created by Acquire in 2013 for iOS and Android devices. Studio Pierrot produced an anime adaption based on the game, which aired from January 8 to March 25, 2016. Divine Gate anime is directed by Noriyuki Abe, known for producing some of the most remarkable anime, including Yu Yu Hakusho: Ghost Files, Bleach, and, most recently, Boruto: Naruto Next Generations.
The Divine Gate anime has had very mixed reactions from viewers over the years, primarily because of its messy and confusing storyline, surface-level characters, and its failure to capture any significant connection, closure, or reprieve over the torturous 12 episodes.
Divine Gate anime explained: what is it about?
The Divine Gate anime is set in a world with elemental magic and deals with not one but multiple worlds at the same time, which makes this anime super confusing and messy. The story follows the lives of Midori, Akane, and Aoto who live in a cyber-mech world with its futuristic and mechanized developments, possessing elemental superpowers.
In this world, there’s a gate that’s intended to grant any one person’s request and give them the power to reshape the world, with different figures like Arthur, the World Council, and our protagonists having differing ideas about what they want.
Norse Gods and villains are orchestrating a combination of betrayal, despair, tragedy, and peril, all for the fun of it. Loki is the main villain in the anime who seems to gain sadistic pleasure out of the pain he inflicts on the people.
Is the Divine Gate anime an illusion covering the lack of vision in the story?
Despite having sky-soaring skyscrapers, futuristic components, flying robots, high-speed trains, and cyber-infused civilization, the Divine Gate anime is pretty bleak, or so it appears. The plot isn’t any better either.
- It’s set in a different world than ours, actually, numerous worlds, which complicates matters.
- And the explanations of how everything works are brief and unhelpful for the viewers to get a hang of the anime.
The story lacks depth and infuses unnecessary poetic elements throughout the show just to give us a sense of cynicism. One of the most significant issues with the anime was its convoluted and hard-to-follow plot.
The series tried to incorporate complex themes and concepts but often failed to explain them adequately, leading to confusion among viewers. The grandeur just feels like a touch of glitter to cover up the utterly fragmented plot of the anime and the lack of vision.
Divine Gate anime: Is it worth the watch?
The Divine Gate anime tries to offer too much but fails to deliver anything with efficiency. Most of the viewers have shown their dissatisfaction with the plot of the anime, which seems hard to follow. The animation quality varied throughout the series, with some episodes featuring subpar animation. This inconsistency detracted from the overall visual appeal of the anime.
Depending on personal choices and tastes, “Divine Gate” may or may not be worth watching. Even though the anime has some significant issues and received mixed reviews, some viewers who appreciate fantasy-themed stories or are curious to learn more about unusual concepts might still find it interesting.
Conclusion
Many critics on MyAnimeList have criticized the Divine Gate anime for its flaws but some did enjoy this messy and angsty drama. It has been rated 5.5 on MAL and 4.9 on IMDb. All in all, I do not think that the anime does justice to the game nor to the viewers with its subpar animation and pathetically paced plot, but liking it again depends on someone’s individual taste.