Favorite game series (as a series)

[danzibr]

Final Fantasy is one of the biggest series and contains some of my favorite games, but it doesn't do much as a series. They share little beyond the title (excepting like the XIII trilogy and stuff, and some common elements like chocobos and crystals).

Metal Gear (Solid) on the other hand has both great games and works well as a series.

Same for Mega Man (X).

I'd have to give the title of favorite to Suikoden though. Admittedly it might be a bit premature as I've only played/fully beaten 1 and 2 (waiting to buy 3 until I get paid or sell some stuff), but man are 1 and 2 awesome.

I'd like to hear your favorite series.

EDIT: Honorable mention to Zelda and Super Smash Bros.

EDIT EDIT: For clarity, you can choose Final Fantasy. I mean, I can't say no, right? What I mean is that Final Fantasy doesn't form a very cohesive series. Not that Zelda is *very* cohesive, but they're all connected. Super Smash Bros... I just love them individually. Just sayin' it's different to love a bunch of average games which, when combined, are exemplary.

[Eldariel]

Do you mean series as in a progressive storyline based in the same world for each consecutive release? I'm having trouble grasping what "works as a series" means in this context. You list Super Smash Bros. there and it doesn't really have any series-elements: they're mostly just rereleases of the same game with additional characters and polishing, much in the same vein as the large EA sports game franchises.


Few that should quality either way: Forgetting about their Descent origins, Freespace 1 & 2 are an absolutely wonderful whole both, gameplay and story-wise and it's an absolute crime the series has gone down under. In Descents, the story was kinda in the background without any real relevance but Freespaces were both, interactive stories and great games much in the spirit of the forefather of the genre, Wing Commander.

The Witcher is an obvious pick, wonderful games all on their own right (though the combat system could use polish, of course) but their real draw is the characterization and the storytelling - and indeed, the world.

Baldur's Gate Trilogy is something I shouldn't need to sing praises: an obvious pick.


But I'll get in more depth if you can clarify the definition a bit.

[Knaight]

I'd go with the DROD series. Every game in it is solid, and as they go on they progressively get more and more puzzle elements and better and better puzzles. In addition, there's a cohesive narrative arc throughout the whole thing, and it works out to a surprisingly satisfying story.

[Forbiddenwar]

Legacy of Kain. Good story, decent gameplay, with each game improving on the last. Shame it was never finished, the last game of the story having been developed then cancelled at least 4 times now.

[danzibr]

Do you mean series as in a progressive storyline based in the same world for each consecutive release? I'm having trouble grasping what "works as a series" means in this context. You list Super Smash Bros. there and it doesn't really have any series-elements: they're mostly just rereleases of the same game with additional characters and polishing, much in the same vein as the large EA sports game franchises.

Few that should quality either way: Forgetting about their Descent origins, Freespace 1 & 2 are an absolutely wonderful whole both, gameplay and story-wise and it's an absolute crime the series has gone down under. In Descents, the story was kinda in the background without any real relevance but Freespaces were both, interactive stories and great games much in the spirit of the forefather of the genre, Wing Commander.

The Witcher is an obvious pick, wonderful games all on their own right (though the combat system could use polish, of course) but their real draw is the characterization and the storytelling - and indeed, the world.

Baldur's Gate Trilogy is something I shouldn't need to sing praises: an obvious pick.

But I'll get in more depth if you can clarify the definition a bit.
Oh, I'd say even Final Fantasy qualifies as a series, but it's not very... series-ish. Same for Smash Bros.

Really what I'm thinking is like occurring in the same universe, adding to the story. Sequels, prequels, uhh, whatever you call it if you play from a different point of view.

[Eldariel]

Oh, I'd say even Final Fantasy qualifies as a series, but it's not very... series-ish. Same for Smash Bros.

Really what I'm thinking is like occurring in the same universe, adding to the story. Sequels, prequels, uhh, whatever you call it if you play from a different point of view.

What about series that don't really tell stories to start with? I'm a big fan of Civilizations & Masters of Orion (less so of MoM3 for obvious reasons), for instance, but they're absolutely not "story"-games.

[Zevox]

EDIT: Honorable mention to Zelda and Super Smash Bros.
Strange that you'd mention those, given the criteria you mention. Smash Bros effectively has no story or anything, and Zelda... well, I know technically it has some timeline nonsense, but personally I'd say they work best if you just treat them all as separate save when they explicitly reference each other. Particularly since stories aren't that series' strong suite anyway.

In any event, I don't think I can give it to anything but Persona. Persona 3 and 4 are my favorite games bar none, and with Arena and Q around they've established a continuity between them now, so they fit there. Wasn't able to get through 1 or 2 when I tried them, but eh, they don't seem to be being used in the crossovers anyway, so who knows if Atlus even intends them to be part of the 3 & 4 continuity?

Other than that? Hm. The Tales games are largely unrelated ala Final Fantasy, Symphonia and Xillia's disappointing sequels excepted, so they don't count I suppose. Same for Dragon Quest. Fire Emblem kinda counts I guess - some are related, some aren't, kinda in clusters. Dragon Age and Mass Effect are good, too. Then there's some that technically qualify, but are only two games, like Bayonetta.

Oh, and BlazBlue, my favorite fighting game series, and one of the only ones with an actual in-depth, long-running story. Granted, an extremely convoluted, confusing one, but that's still a far cry better than the rest of the genre - with the exception of Persona 4 Arena, which falls under Persona anyway as far as I'm concerned.

[Cespenar]

The Longest Journey.

Also, Starcraft and Warcraft, until WoW.

[Feytalist]

Baldur's Gate is indeed an obvious pick.

Prince of Persia - the Sands of Time trilogy. Each game has its obvious flaws, but taken altogether it's a near-perfect game. Lovely atmosphere, great characterisation and a pleasingly complete story arc.

Similarly; the Thief trilogy - I'm excluding the fourth game. Great gameplay, wonderfully atmospheric (I still maintain the first games had the best utilisation of sound of their entire generation) and again, a great storyline which concludes in a nice way.

The Elder Scrolls series. Gameplay has been a constant issue, but no other game series has such a depth of lore and background (excepting games in established universes like Forgotten Realms, of course). With a continuous storyline throughout them all, no less.

[Grif]

Always had a soft spot for Command & Conquer. (There is no C&C 4, btw. It is just rumours.)

The Red Alert series went from campy but serious, to silly fun, to absolute silliness by the third iteration, but the allure of alternate history has always fascinated me. The Tiberium series had one man anchoring it all, Kane, and of course the eponymous mineral that founded the whole thing: Tiberium.

[Pronounceable]

Geneforge is probably the only series I like as a giant whole. If you take it as a series, it's like Star Wars done well, at least on Force front. Playing Geneforge from ground zero to final climax centuries later, you can clearly see that it's what Jedi-Sith division weeps itself to sleep for not being.

There's a lot of games I like from many series, but there's zero others where not a single game sucks or is lame.

[Winthur]

Hitman. I'll be recommending the franchise every day, every time, and as much as I found the newest entry not to my liking (with its heavy investment into an unnecessary, badly written story and consolization), each of the games is still at least very playable and offers a massive amount of freedom and tinkering around. Once the very short campaign of each game (around 10+ hours of gameplay even for a fresh starter) is over, you're free to go back to and replay the levels in entertaining ways, and aim for that sweet Silent Assassin rating while self-imposing challenges like using no disguises or smuggling a bulky Shotgun into the place, killing all targets and escaping undetected, or making sure every victim dies in an accident. It's also the inventor of the whole "social stealth" subgenre with its disguises and sneak-in-plain-sight segments, which people don't seem to want to pick up on (Death to Spies 3 kickstarter has failed despite a rather promising demo), making Hitman pretty unique overall. I clocked hundreds of hours on these games, and it's all just the same, self-contained levels, not sprawling, open worlds. Bonus points for Jesper Kyd's great dark (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q-oJZQVDllc) ambient (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8QqENPP7CWI)/orchestral (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VGlhoUE86gA) soundtrack. (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nbA4tId4zSU) Basically sometimes it can feel like The Incredible Machine with guns and knives.

Chronicles of Riddick had only two games, but they're just really, really good and underrated (or rather, more people should talk about them).

[t209]

Warcraft until WoW (pretty upset that Alliance and Horde are fighting AGAIN)!
Borderlands 1 and 2
The Sims (only played 2 and 3 though).

[Nerd-o-rama]

Metal Gear/Solid/Rising, at least up until about MGS4 or so when Kojima started getting blatant with his attempts to kill it. I just appreciate the sheer ridiculousness of all the retcons and how they blend seamlessly into a conspiracy thriller story with some very important themes about different methods of social control.

[Chen]

For series that work together telling a coherent story I'd say:

Mass effect
Starcraft
Baldur's Gate

For generic series that I enjoy but don't really have much to do with one another:

Fallout
Dragon age
Elder Scrolls
Final Fantasy

[CarpeGuitarrem]

Non-story series: I immensely enjoy the Civilization series, because of how I can trace the progression of the game and its evolution through various forms. It's fascinating how the core game is essentially the same, but the variants are different enough that they develop widely distinctive fanbases.

Caveat: I have yet to play Civ 1, Civ Revolution, or Alpha Centauri. Mea maxima culpa for the last one. (I did, however, play a tiny bit of their attempt to bring Civ to Facebook, and also have played both versions of Colonization.)

[danzibr]

Metal Gear/Solid/Rising, at least up until about MGS4 or so when Kojima started getting blatant with his attempts to kill it. I just appreciate the sheer ridiculousness of all the retcons and how they blend seamlessly into a conspiracy thriller story with some very important themes about different methods of social control.
Huh. MGS4 was my favorite of the whole series. After that I only played MGR:R.

[Nerd-o-rama]

Huh. MGS4 was my favorite of the whole series. After that I only played MGR:R.

See, to me, there comes to a point where I can tell the creator wants me to stop enjoying the game, and I can't help but start agreeing with him. MGSV, thus far, seems to be going the same route for Big Boss's storyline.

At least MGS4's ending was pretty good and conclusive to Snake's character arc, though, I'll give it that.

[snowblizz]

Assassins' Creed. Started with AC2 and I'm totally hooked on the series.

[Traab]

Breath of fire was a pretty awesome series. I played up till 4 which I beat, then dragon quarter which I didnt really enjoy. But I liked the basic setup of the series.

Final fantasy is one of my favorites, because while it isnt one overarching storyline or anything, there are just so many good titles connected to it. From regular consoles, to handheld systems, there are a LOT of final fantasy games, and most of them are enjoyable. Even if some come off as fairly generic, its generic because so many of them have the same game mechanics that I LIKE.

Suikoden is a hell of a lot of fun. Its one of those game series you can beat without a guide just fine, but has SO MUCH hidden beneath the surface, that you want the guide anyways to figure it all out. Plus the army battles and the excessively large amount of characters gives it a very unique flavor that helps it stand out from the crowd imo.

Zelda is another good series. Now, I admit that after the super nintendo days, my only exposure to zelda games has been on some hand held titles really. I never got a gamecube. But up till then, the games were generally a lot of fun. Yeah the second one flopped hard, but in general the games were great. Lots of puzzles to solve, secrets to find, and dungeons to clear.

Lunar and lunar 2. Kind of a cheat here as its not really a series, more two games set in the same universe, one after another. I actually played lunar 2 first. Later on the original was released for my nintendo ds I think, might have been playstation, I dunno, and I played that one then. It had a fun story, good characters, and lots of interesting stuff. The sequel had a very interesting art style for its cinematics.

[danzibr]

Man Traab, we have a huge overlap in taste. I should've mentioned BoF and Lunar. Awesome games.

[Traab]

Starcraft and Warcraft, until WoW.

I would like to include this on my list, along with diablo. Interesting storylines, fun games to play, and just in general high quality that I have come to expect from blizzard.

[Giggling Ghast]

Dragon Age be my jam, yo.

[Vaz]

Does Dynasty Warriors count? The setting is the same, but the gameplay is always changing and (roughly) improving.

The Dragon Age series is pretty good, getting into Mass Effect.

Total War series has me coming back year after year.

Spyro the Dragon today still has a charm that will never be lost (only 1, 2 and 3, though).

Prince of Persia series, although Two Thrones is my favourite.

Assassins Creed I enjoyed in 1, 2 and Brotherhood but didnt get enough time to play Revelations (i got to instanbul, and then the ps3 died).

Call of Duty 4, Modern Warfare 2 and 3 are brilliant fun. Not too fussed about Black Ops but that falls in the same umbrella.

Skyrim and Oblivion do it for me, never played too much of Morrowind. ESO is okayish, but didnt hold my attention more than 4 months. Cant wait for Elder scrolls 6. Never played too much of the Fallout Series.

[Traab]

I was a fan of resident evil up through 3 or so. Didnt really play any of them after that.

I agree with the cod games, and I miss the moh games as well. Black ops was good, not as big a fan of the sequels after that though. I liked the modern warfare games a lot, it was nice getting a change of pace from endless run throughs of ww2. I wish they would do more coverage of other wars. Maybe more of veitnam, desert storm, include some modern warfare style made up wars and battles of the time frame in new landscapes.

[LibraryOgre]

There's some obvious modern ones... Mass Effect, Elder Scrolls, Fallout... but I think one of my favorites is the Quest for Glory series. When the second game came out in 1990, the idea that you could import your character from the previous game... bringing with you your inventory, stats, and everything else... was simply revolutionary. And the fact that all five games told about a single hero's advancement through life? Wonderful.

[danzibr]

I was a fan of resident evil up through 3 or so. Didnt really play any of them after that.
Of course! I love RE. How did I forget?

one of my favorites is the Quest for Glory series. When the second game came out in 1990, the idea that you could import your character from the previous game... bringing with you your inventory, stats, and everything else... was simply revolutionary. And the fact that all five games told about a single hero's advancement through life? Wonderful.
I think I just found a new series to play ;)

[LibraryOgre]

Of course! I love RE. How did I forget?

I think I just found a new series to play ;)

GOG has 1-5 available as a package; AGD Interactive produced a VGA update of Quest For Glory II that's available for free.

[TheWombatOfDoom]

Anyone ever hear of Kings Quest? This is going to date me a bit, and I know it...

[LibraryOgre]

Anyone ever hear of Kings Quest? This is going to date me a bit, and I know it...

I cite Quest for Glory and you wonder if I've heard of King's Quest? ;-)

[danzibr]

Anyone ever hear of Kings Quest? This is going to date me a bit, and I know it...
I've only played the one on NES (V, methinks). I've seen another played. This is one series that I want to play start to finish at some point.

[LibraryOgre]

I've only played the one on NES (V, methinks). I've seen another played. This is one series that I want to play start to finish at some point.

IIRC, 2 and 3 both had free rereleases by AGDS.

[Mobius Twist]

One series I didn't see mentioned is the Metaltech/Earthsiege/Starsiege universe (includes Missionforce: Cyberstorm (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MissionForce:_CyberStorm), Metaltech: Earthsiege (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metaltech:_Earthsiege), Starsiege (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Starsiege), and Tribes (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Starsiege:_Tribes)games).

The controls started out being incredibly awkward, but the consistent universe is compelling and several of the games resulted in decent evolutionary steps in gaming as a whole.

Also, goofy 90s haircuts.

[Traab]

Ugh, Kings Quest. I had that on my computer. Hated it. I couldnt figure out barely anything in that game. And it was early days so no guides, no forums to ask questions on. Just die. A lot.

[LibraryOgre]

Ugh, Kings Quest. I had that on my computer. Hated it. I couldnt figure out barely anything in that game. And it was early days so no guides, no forums to ask questions on. Just die. A lot.

*waves cane angrily at young'uns* Yer soft with yer guides and yer wikis and yer quicksaves! Back in my day, we saved every screen, 'cause we lived in constant fear of stepping of a cliff or getting eaten by a monster!

Seriously, though, the games in the old days were KILLER hard, partially because of this... but they were a lot shorter, too. You can probably run through Quest For Glory 1 in an hour or two if you're just going to slam through it.

[Traab]

*waves cane angrily at young'uns* Yer soft with yer guides and yer wikis and yer quicksaves! Back in my day, we saved every screen, 'cause we lived in constant fear of stepping of a cliff or getting eaten by a monster!

Seriously, though, the games in the old days were KILLER hard, partially because of this... but they were a lot shorter, too. You can probably run through Quest For Glory 1 in an hour or two if you're just going to slam through it.

Yeah, but iirc, the kings quest series was one of those games where you not only had to pick up everything, you had to use it at the right time, in the right way, and possibly even in the right order, while typing in the exact right command, or else you lose. It was a game tailor made for a strategy guide. Or for repeating the game 7000x and hoping the 7001st time through you would remember the right way to play it. Too bad it was the old days when strategy guides were about as complex as having the old legend of zelda map with hand written notes pointing out where everything was located. "That bush has rupies, this grave is where the master sword is," etc etc etc. And yes, I still have that map

You know, back to kings quest, I still dont recall what the POINT of the game was. I mean, what was the end goal of the game? The one I played had a unicorn in it, it had the snow white and the seven dwarves home, it had those evil grabby trees from wizard of oz, and aside from trying to guess what this random item is for, I cant recall any coherent story to it. Just roam around and pray one of the monsters doesnt appear and kill you.

[Hiro Protagonest]

King's Quest also came with a manual, I believe.

There was one point in one game where you had to guess Rumplestiltsken's name (or is Rumpelstiltsken?). Except it's not Rumplestiltsken, because that would be too easy. But it's also not Nekstlitselpmur. It has something to do with the number of the letter in the alphabet, and then reversing it...? I think that means that the 1st letter (A) is the 26th (Z), the 6th letter is the 20th, the 13th letter is the 14th, etc. And the way you were supposed to solve it was to look at the manual.

[LibraryOgre]

You know, back to kings quest, I still dont recall what the POINT of the game was. I mean, what was the end goal of the game? The one I played had a unicorn in it, it had the snow white and the seven dwarves home, it had those evil grabby trees from wizard of oz, and aside from trying to guess what this random item is for, I cant recall any coherent story to it. Just roam around and pray one of the monsters doesnt appear and kill you.

Ah, Quest for Glory IV, the Perils of Rosella. You were trying to rescue a fairy who lived far out to sea (four or five screens), so she could save your father (who dropped from a heart attack during the opening movie). To do that, you had to defeat her evil sister, who lived up the mountain.

[Traab]

Ah, Quest for Glory IV, the Perils of Rosella. You were trying to rescue a fairy who lived far out to sea (four or five screens), so she could save your father (who dropped from a heart attack during the opening movie). To do that, you had to defeat her evil sister, who lived up the mountain.

Yeah, I think I remember that story now. Also, holy crow man, thats insane you managed to figure it out from that short of a description. As for the poster above you who mentioned the manual. I didnt actually have one. I got the game used iirc.

[Forbiddenwar]

Ah, Quest for Glory IV, the Perils of Rosella. You were trying to rescue a fairy who lived far out to sea (four or five screens), so she could save your father (who dropped from a heart attack during the opening movie). To do that, you had to defeat her evil sister, who lived up the mountain.

What?https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quest_for_Glory:_Shadows_of_Darkness

[LibraryOgre]

Ah, Quest for Glory IV, the Perils of Rosella. You were trying to rescue a fairy who lived far out to sea (four or five screens), so she could save your father (who dropped from a heart attack during the opening movie). To do that, you had to defeat her evil sister, who lived up the mountain.


What?https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quest_for_Glory:_Shadows_of_Darkness

Whoops! King's Quest 4. Wrong Series.


Yeah, I think I remember that story now. Also, holy crow man, thats insane you managed to figure it out from that short of a description. As for the poster above you who mentioned the manual. I didnt actually have one. I got the game used iirc.


You know, back to kings quest, I still dont recall what the POINT of the game was. I mean, what was the end goal of the game? The one I played had a unicorn in it, it had the snow white and the seven dwarves home, it had those evil grabby trees from wizard of oz, and aside from trying to guess what this random item is for, I cant recall any coherent story to it. Just roam around and pray one of the monsters doesnt appear and kill you.

Those were the clues that did it. Oh, man, those trees, especially.