Some games become part of a series, and some of these stories go on for a long time. Here are the games that have been played the most.
There can never be too many versions to some video games. Some of the most famous series from the 1980s and later are still popular because they keep adding new characters, stories, locations, and other things to their worlds. Most of the time, the most popular games have a lot of spin-offs that explore different genres and ways to play.
It’s amazing for any series to have more than a few games, but there are a few with more than 20 games since the first one. If you don’t count annual sports games like Madden and FIFA, these are the video game series with the most games, whether they are new core games, spin-offs, mobile games, or arcade games.
Call Of Duty
Most long-running video game series started in the 1980s, but Call of Duty is one of the few that didn’t. Infinity Ward made the first one for the PC, and it came out in 2003 to almost overwhelming praise. Along with Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 in 2009, an updated version of the first game, now called Call of Duty Classic, was made for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360.
Since 2005, there has been a new Call of Duty every year. This includes major games with returning characters, free-to-play games, and multiple ports for mobile devices. Most of the games have different modes, like a single-player story, great online multiplayer, and the fan-favorite Zombies.
Donkey Kong
Donkey Kong may not be in as many games as he used to be, but there was a time when he was in every game. After 1981’s Donkey Kong arcade cabinet, which introduced DK and Mario, the gorilla and his family kept showing up in arcades, home systems, and handheld games.
After the first three Donkey Kong Country games for the SNES, the series tried out new ideas with games like Diddy Kong Racing and Donkey Konga. With Donkey Kong Country Returns, released in 2010, the series went back to its old ways.
The Donkey Kong series is much bigger than you might think. It has ties with games like Mario Party, Super Smash Bros., and Mario Kart.
Castlevania
Castlevania is a series of horror-themed action-adventure games made by Konami. There are many games in the series. The first Castlevania game came out in 1986, and its dark tone and fun game play made it stand out right away. By the year 2000, there were almost twenty games in the series, and most of them did well. However, there hasn’t been a new one since Castlevania: Lords of Shadow 2 came out in 2014.
In most Castlevania games, you play as a member of the Belmont family who is trying to kill Dracula. Early games in the series had non-linear gameplay that influenced the Metroidvania genre, and each one had a lot of hidden secrets that made it very fun to play again and again.
The Legend Of Zelda
The Legend of Zelda is one of Nintendo’s most popular and longest-running series, and almost every game in the series has lived up to the reputation set by the first game. The first Legend of Zelda game came out in 1986. Since then, there have been 20 major games, several spin-offs like Hyrule Warriors and Cadence of Hyrule, and many remakes.
The stories in each game are very different, but the personalities, themes, and game mechanics are often the same. The Legend of Zelda has changed a lot over the years, but it has kept the magic that makes it such a special series: the way it can pull you into new worlds full of puzzles and options.
Kirby
Kirby is one of the most adaptable figures, which is probably why he has been in so many video games. The pink ball first appeared in Kirby’s Dream Land for the Game Boy in 1992. Since then, he has been in many games for handhelds and home systems. Kirby has played a lot of different kinds of games, from fighting games to pinball.
In contrast to Castlevania, the Kirby series is known for easy-to-learn platforming games that are more fun than hard. Almost every new entry is based on a mechanic or theme, like Planet Robobot or Kirby and the Forgotten Land, and each one is just as lovely and fun as the ones that came before it.
Resident Evil
Since the first Resident Evil game came out on the PlayStation in 1996, the series has come a long way. After the first three Resident Evil games, the creators started to try out spin-offs like Code: Veronica. For a while, Capcom released up to two new games a year. Not every game in the series is as good as the best ones, but most of them are still worth playing.
Aside from the major games, spin-offs, and remakes of older games, Resident Evil has also spawned nearly 20 mobile games and more than six Pachinko machines. The series helped make the survival-horror genre what it is today, and it is still finding new ways to change and improve it nearly 30 years later.
Dragon Quest
The Dragon Quest series, which was called Dragon Warrior in North America until 2005, isn’t as well-known as Final Fantasy, but it was a huge hit in Japan, where it spawned a number of sequels, spin-offs, and other games. Even if you only know about Dragon Quest from Super Smash Bros., if you like RPGs, you should check out the whole series.
Aside from the 11 main games, there are several spin-off series, such as Dragon Quest Monsters, where you catch and train monsters to fight for you, and Dragon Quest Builders, which often feels like a fun twist on the Minecraft model. There is even a game like Monopoly that often has Dragon Quest figures and things in it.
Shin Megami Tensei
Shin Megami Tensei only has five main games, but it has spawned so many spin-offs that it is now one of the biggest game series ever. Since 1986, when the first Shin Megami Tensei game came out, there have been many more, including Persona, Devil Summoner, and Tokyo Mirage Sessions #FE.
To make things even more confusing, some of the subseries games, like Persona, have their own spin-offs. Persona 4: Dancing All Night and Persona 4 Arena are good games to play if you want to see your favourite high schoolers dance all night or fight.
Street Fighter
Like Shin Megami Tensei, there have only been a few main Street Fighter games, but there are so many different versions of these games that the series has more games than other fighting games like Mortal Kombat or Soul Calibur. The first Street Fighter game came out in arcades in 1987, but the series didn’t start making different versions of their games until Street Fighter II.
The Street Fighter series has so many games that it would be hard to play them all. In addition to the main series, there are a number of Street Fighter Alpha and Street Fighter EX games, as well as a number of crossover games with other series, such as Tekken, X-Men, and SNK.
Lego
When you think about the past of Lego video games, you’ll probably think of a licenced game like Batman or Star Wars, which have been popular since the mid-2000s. Before Lord of the Rings worlds were made out of Lego bricks, there were a lot of original Lego games that came out on PC in the late 1990s.
The first big Lego game, Lego Island, had an open world with lots of side quests, ways to customise the game, and a funny main story. They kept trying out different kinds of games, like Lego Racers, before they worked on licenced titles for more than a decade. More original Lego games, such as Lego Builder’s Journey, have recently brought the line back to its roots.
Final Fantasy
Like most great RPGs, Final Fantasy didn’t take long to branch out into spin-offs and subseries after it became a success on its own. The anthology combines aspects of science fiction and fantasy to make games with new characters, settings, and ways to play. Most Final Fantasy games have things in common, like Chocobos and Moogles, as well as themes like good vs. evil and fate.
Final Fantasy is one of the longest-running and most-loved game series out there, with almost 20 mainline titles and many other games in between. Final Fantasy 7 Snowboarding, Geometry Dash Subzero, Final Fantasy 12: Revenant Wings, and many more games were made to go with the main series. Then there is Final Fantasy Tactics, which has four games and a lot of spin-offs, like the Theatrhythm series and Crystal Chronicles.
Pokemon
It might not come as much of a surprise that Pokemon is the RPG series with the most games in it. After the first Pokemon games became a worldwide hit, it didn’t take long for the creators to start working on sequels, spin-offs, and other forms of entertainment like movies and playing cards to cash in on the games’ popularity.
There are nine generations of video games in the core series alone, and each generation has up to two or three games. There are a lot of spin-offs like Pokemon Snap, Pokemon Pinball, and Pokemon Go that add new ways to enjoy the Pokemon world.
Sonic The Hedgehog
When Sega wanted a mascot to compete with Nintendo’s Mario, they came up with Sonic the Hedgehog, who went on to become one of the most popular video game characters ever. The Blue Blur has been the main character in many 2D and 3D adventure games, driving games, arcade games, educational games, and spin-offs like The Murder of Sonic the Hedgehog.
After the first Sonic the Hedgehog game came out on the Sega Genesis in 1991, other games like Sonic Spinball and Dr. Robotnik’s Mean Bean Machine came out fast. Since the late 1990s, almost every year there has been at least one new Sonic game.
Mega Man
Mega Man might not be as famous as he used to be, but there was a time when his face was on the cover of a new game every year. Capcom made the first game in the series, which came out in 1987 for the NES and had a feature called “level select” that let you play the game in any order.
Soon after his first appearance, Mega Man started showing up in a lot of sequels, spin-offs, and subseries, such as Mega Man X, Mega Man Legends, Mega Man Battle Network, and many more. Most of these subseries had at least one sequel, if not more. This means that Mega Man has been in a lot more games than other famous platformers like Donkey Kong or Sonic.
Mario
Mario is by far the most popular series, with the most games in it. It has led to more than 200 games, if you add both the mainline 2D and 3D games and the spinoffs like Mario Kart, Paper Mario, Mario Tennis, and Mario Party. Some games, like Luigi’s Mansion, WarioWare, and Yoshi’s Crafted World, are based on just one character.
After the original Super Mario Bros. came out on the NES in 1985 and helped the video game industry recover from the crash of 1983, the world and characters of the Mushroom Kingdom quickly became a hit, which led to many sequels, spin-offs, and educational games.
In over 30 years, the plumber’s fame hasn’t changed much, and you can expect to see at least one new Mario game a year, whether it’s a sports game or a party game.
