Best Game Series Ever Countdown

[Smudge]

Two games on 20 points making 2 lists each. We are now reaching the realms of criminally undervoted!

Civilisation
Portal

 

[Oaf]

Damn, both deserved better. Also, both somehow eluded my own list I think. #TWATOAF.

 

[Cas]

Ghandi is a right vicious bastard in CIV V.

 

[daviejones]

I don't think I had Civilisation on mine, Age of Empires was on though.

 

[Smudge]

Two more criminally undervoted making just 2 lists each on 23 points...

Dead Space
Half Life

 

[Oaf]

Half Life

This is riot inducing stuff.

 

[Don Tonberry]

I expect Candy Crush to be at the top at this rate!

 

[Cas]

Dead Space was 9th on my list. First two games are absolutely fantastic. The third is decent but it takes a more action route and adds optional co-op which obviously influenced the design of the game from the start. Best part about the third game is that you can craft your own weapons, although some of the results are almost game breaking. What's that? Shotgun on top of a fucking rocket launcher? Can do.

 

[Smudge]

I voted for Dead Space too. I bought both dirt cheap on the recommendation of a friend. Started Dead Space on November 3rd 2014, completed Dead Space 2 on November 23rd...thats how much I enjoyed them!

 

[Smudge]

More underwhelming pair of games on 25 points...

Call of Duty (3 lists)
Pro Evolution Soccer (2 lists)

 

[Oaf]

Wait, FIFA has beaten PES?

Sure, FIFA has been better for a while... but when PES was at its best it was incredible. Nothing has ever come close to how good it was from like PES 2 to PES 6 or so.

 

[Jockney]

Wait, FIFA has beaten PES?

Sure, FIFA has been better for a while... but when PES was at its best it was incredible. Nothing has ever come close to how good it was from like PES 2 to PES 6 or so.

it's almost like popular opinion should be taken with a pinch of salt or something.

 

[Smudge]

Only a couple more to go before we get to that top 25 (or 26, there's a tie for 25th!) so here's a couple who have narrowly missed the cut.

On 26 points and making 3 lists we have...

Tony Hawks Pro Skater

and pipping it on 27 points, also on 3 lists...

Tomb Raider

 

[Smudge]

And finally on 28 points and just missing out on the top 25...

Spyro (3 lists)
Silent Hill (2 lists)

 

[Oaf]

it's almost like popular opinion should be taken with a pinch of salt or something.

Fuck you, these lists are OFFICIAL. Serious shit going down.

I'm amazed that Silent Hill only made 2 lists. That's the most fanboyed thing that fanboys ever fanboyed on here.

 

[Cas]

Silent Hill? Just a poor man's Resident Evil innit.

 

[Smudge]

Okay, so now we enter the top 25. And typically, there is a tie for 25th place...

=25th: Metroid (2 lists)

Games in series to date: 11 (1986-2010)
Genre: Adventure/ Platformer/ Shooter
Platforms: 7 (NES, Gameboy, SNES, Gameboy Advance, Gamecube, Nintendo DS, Wii)
Metroid, Metroid 2: Return of Samus, Super Metroid, Metroid Fusion, Metroid Prime, Metroid: Zero Mission, Metroid Prime 2: Echoes, Metroid Prime Pinball, Metroid Prime Hunters, Metroid Prime 3: Corruption, Metroid: Other M

Nintendo exclusive series following Samus Aran and her attempts to retrieve the Metroid organisms from space pirates on the planet Zebes. One of the most popular and well loved Nintendo franchises of all time, that is still going strong with another game announced for next year on the 3DS.
Not one I ever played unfortunately!

=25th: Super Smash Bros (2 lists)

Games in series to date: 4 (1999-2014)
Genre: Fighting
Platforms: 5 (Nintendo 64, Gamecube, Wii, 3DS, Wii U)
Super Smash Bros, Super Smash Bros Melee, Super Smash Bros Brawl, Super Smash Bros

Another Nintendo series with this fighting game! Probably so popular due to the fact it is a bit more pick up and play than a lot of fighting games with so many special moves, and the fact it uses so many well known Nintendo characters, that everyone can find a character they know and love. Melee was apparently the all time best selling game on the Gamecube, while Brawl introduced a more in depth story mode. Great multiplayer fun fighting game.

 

[Cas]

Never played Metroid series. Only ever owned one SSB game and it was on Gamecube. Wasn't keen on that, though I don't have many friends who play games so I always played it on my own.

 

[Don Tonberry]

Metroid is an awesome series. The Prime trilogy may well be the best in gaming.

You'll only ever get the most out of Super Smash if you have a few mates round.

 

[Megaclyde]

Metroid's ace but I didn't put it in my list as I've only played one of the games.

Also just realised I missed Bayonetta off my list...

 

[Oaf]

Metroid is one of those rare highly rated series that I just can't see the appeal in. Played 1 and 2 and just couldn't get into them.

 

[Smudge]

24th: FIFA (5 lists)

Games in series to date: 30 (1993-2014) 22 + 5 World Cup spin offs + 3 European Championship Spin offs (1993-2014)
Genre: Football
Platforms: 28 (PC, Amiga, Sega CD, 3DO, SNES, Mega Drive, Master System, Game Gear, Gameboy, Playstation, Sega Saturn, 32X, Nintendo 64, Gameboy Colour, Playstation 2, Gamecube, Xbox, Gameboy Advance, Playstation Portable, Xbox 360, Nintendo DS, Playstation 3, Wii, Playstation Vita, Wii U, 3DS, Xbox One, Playstation 4)
FIFA International Soccer, FIFA 95-15

EA's answer to football games, they have held the FIFA license for over 20 years now, and despite Pro Evo threatening to take their crown around the 2000s, FIFA has held firm and is still enormous today. From the humble origins of being able to run away from the ref while playing as a handful of teams, you can now play with fully licensed players and teams from countless leagues with real faces, real skills and real stadia. I still usually buy one, despite believing football games got less fun the more realistic they got. There will never be a better time to be playing football games than that period of 1998-2002ish, but then I suppose thats the beauty of FIFA. Everyone has a favourite, whether its for the beautiful simplicity and at the time vastness and music of RWTC98, or being able to play as your local 4th division side on the newer ones. Chances are everyone who has ever picked up a controller has owned and played a FIFA game.

 

[JaseTheVillain]

You missed fifa being on IOS, NGage and I believe Android. May be on Windows Phone too.

 

[Smudge]

Sod counting mobile games! If we're being strict, PC isnt a coverall either, as it doesnt necessarily cover DOS/ Windows/ Mac etc.

 

[JaseTheVillain]

I was just saying! Even if you just put a 'mobile' platform then, rather than the dos/windows/mac ios/android/windows phone etc.

 

[Smudge]

23rd: Assassin's Creed (4 lists)

Games in series to date: 14 (2007-2015)
Genre: Adventure, action
Platforms: 9 (Playstation 3, Xbox 360, PC, Nintendo DS, Playstation Portable, Wii U, Playstation 4, Xbox One, Playstation Vita)
Assassin's Creed, Assassin's Creed: Altair's Chronicles, Assassin's Creed Bloodlines, Assassin's Creed II, Assassin's Creed II Discovery, Assassin's Creed Brotherhood, Assassin's Creed Revelations, Assassin's Creed III, Assassin's Creed III Liberation, Assassin's Creed IV Black Flag, Assassin's Creed Identity (Mobile only), Assassin's Creed Unity, Assassin's Creed Chronicles: China, Assassin's Creed Syndicate

The now ever prolific Assassin's Creed is possibly beginning to become a parody of itself and churning out sequels and spin offs at will, but at it's best, a fantastic series, The ACII/ Brotherhood/ Revelations arc probably being that peak. The main storyline throughout the series tends to follow the ancestors of modern day Desmond Miles and a group of assassins keen to protect certain relics and history from their generational enemies, the templars. Using real life historical figures such as the infamous Borgias, Leonardo Da Vinci, George Washington and co, the series brings modern day conspiracy and knowhow to bygone eras like Crusades, Renaissance Europe, the American Civil War and the French Revolution. The detail in the history and the surroundings just sucks you in, and at its best, the combat, parkour and stealth are good fun and varied. At it's worst, too much of the same thing. Didnt make my list as a series, but ACII is as close as it gets to perfection in this genre in my opinion.

 

[Oaf]

Been getting tired for a while now, and Unity felt like a flat out chore. I've always wanted to see it in London, so I doubt I'll manage to resist the call of Syndicate... but fuck me, I really can't be arsed for any more AC.

 

[Smudge]

I feel the same really, they've overkilled it. I dont think it lends itself to multiplayer either since they introduced that, it just feels forced having to play just for some really frustrating achievements. Otherwise though, they should have stopped at Revelations. All storylines tied up nicely, nice little trilogy, job done. But like a lot of games franchises now, they cant leave it alone. There has been a new main AC game released now every single year since 2009, and I think its worn out its welcome. Which is a shame.

 

[Megaclyde]

I think it suffers from the same issues most of the COD's post Modern Warfare suffered.
Pretty much all the assassins creeds after AC2 were good games and if any one of them had been the only/first AC game they'd be remembered fondly, but as a game-a-year series people get tired of them.

 

[Smudge]

Sorry I wasnt around at all yesterday, so will put on two today, one now and one later. Works out quite nicely that way anyway, as we have a tie on points, but not on lists! So first up on 36 points...

22nd: Dragon Age (2 lists)

Games in series to date: 3 (2009-2014)
Genre: Adventure, action, fantasy RPG
Platforms: 5 (PC, Playstation 3, Xbox 360, Playstation 4, Xbox One)
Dragon Age: Origins, Dragon Age II, Dragon Age: Inquisition

I considered voting for this on my list, but then I would only have been doing it on the strength of the first game, which is in my top 3 of all time. Inspired by Bioware's previous series Baldur's Gate, Dragon Age is set in the medieval fantasy world of Thedas. Rather than providing a linear storyline throughout the three games though, each is a take on a different story and area of the kingdom. In the first, you control a character from a choice of backgrounds in becoming a Grey Warden in Ferelden's last epic battle to destroy the Archdemon and Darkspawn horde after they have taken down the King's army and seen the Wardens blamed for it. The second takes on the story of the once rich Hawke family, who are forced to flee Lothering, a town destroyed early on in the storyline of the first game, to poverty in the city of Kirkwall across the sea. In the third, you are a mysterious stranger with unknown links to a natural disaster which has infested the world with demons and destroyed the Chantry and all form of order in the realm.

Like previous Bioware offerings, Mass Effect and Baldur's Gate, the universe created in Dragon Age is epic, with thousands of years of history crammed into a rich group of characters. And in the first games, and at times in the second and third, it absolutely drags you in with a brilliant, tangling deep emotional storyline, and fanstastically written characters. By far the best aspect is the choice in the first game of which origin story you choose, as it affects the entire game completely. From the human noble who's family is murdered, the dwarf in poverty forced to work your way up, the mage exiled from the circle, your class and origin story infect everything in the game. On the downside, while your choices have wide reaching consequences in the first game, it does not translate into the second and third games, which is a real shame, as having seen what Bioware did with Mass Effect, the potential here was so great, but wasted. Outstanding first game I would recommend to anybody, vastly disappointing second, slightly better third.