Hell Mode
Hell Mode: The Hardcore Gamer Dominates in Another World with Garbage Balancing is a Japanese light novel series written by Hamuo and illustrated by Mo. It began serialization online in November 2019 on the user-generated novel publishing website Shōsetsuka ni Narō. It was later acquired by Earth Star Entertainment, who have published thirteen volumes since July 2020 under their Earth Star Novel imprint. A manga adaptation with art by Enji Tetta has been serialized online via Earth Star Entertainment's Comic Earth Star website since October 2020 and has been collected in thirteen volumes. An anime television series adaptation produced by Yokohama Animation Laboratory premiered in January 2026.
Plot
Kenichi Yamada, a 35-year-old office worker and veteran MMORPG player, becomes disillusioned with modern games that cater to casual play. When he encounters a mysterious new game that promises endless progression and an extreme difficulty setting called "Hell Mode", he selects it without hesitation. Upon doing so, Kenichi is reincarnated into another world as a newborn boy named Allen, born into a family of serfs, with no status or wealth.Living under the harsh rules of Hell Mode, Allen chooses the Summoner class, which offers vast potential, but requires significant effort to grow stronger. With only his previous memories and wits to guide him, he painstakingly experiments to understand his abilities while training from early childhood. As he steadily develops his power, Allen works toward improving his family's circumstances and escaping serfdom.
Characters
;Allen;Krena
;Dogora
;Cecil Granvelle
;Rodan
;Theresia
;Matthew
;Butler Von Granvelle
;Mikhail Granvelle
;Thomas Granvelle
;Zenoff
;Carnell
Media
Light novels
Written by Hamuo, Hell Mode: The Hardcore Gamer Dominates in Another World with Garbage Balancing began serialization on the user-generated novel publishing website Shōsetsuka ni Narō on November 17, 2019. It was later acquired by Earth Star Entertainment who began releasing it with illustrations by Mo under their Earth Star Novel light novel imprint on July 15, 2020. Thirteen volumes have been released as of January 15, 2026.During their panel at Anime Expo Lite 2021, J-Novel Club announced that they had licensed the series for English publication. During their panel at Anime NYC 2022, J-Novel Club announced that print releases of the series would be handled by Yen Press.
Manga
A manga adaptation illustrated by Enji Tetta began serialization on Earth Star Entertainment's Comic Earth Star manga service on October 15, 2020. The manga's chapters have been compiled into thirteen volumes as of January 2026.During their panel at Anime Expo 2023, J-Novel Club announced that they had also licensed the manga adaptation for English publication.
Anime
An anime television series adaptation was announced on December 5, 2024. It is produced by Yokohama Animation Laboratory and directed by Masato Tamagawa, with Daishiro Tanimura handling series composition, Kei Tsushima designing the characters, and Misaki Tsuchida, Moyu Kanazaki, Junko Nakajima, Kanada Sakuma, Reiko Abe, Kaho Sawada, BeauDamian, and Tsugumi Tanaka composing the music. The series premiered on January 10, 2026, on Tokyo MX and other networks. The opening theme song is "Haku", performed by, while the ending theme song is "Sanctuary", performed by Kaya. Sentai Filmworks licensed the series in North America for streaming on Hidive.Episodes
Reception
The series won the grand prize at the 2nd Earth Star Novel Award in 2020.By December 2024, the series had over 1.6 million copies in circulation.