When a franchise reaches over a dozen entries, staying relevant can be incredibly difficult. Some franchises can get away with using the same formula repeatedly, while others may need to change every couple of entries. Developers can try changing the style of the game, like in Assassin’s Creed, or the perspective, like in Resident Evil 7, and sometimes that’s enough to breathe new life into a long-running franchise.
Sometimes franchises last for a long time because developers were able to keep them interesting and relevant so that they would appeal to modern players. Franchises like Pokémon don’t change much over the years, but they don’t need to. Fans enjoy the games for what they are and simply want more of them. Whatever the reason, plenty of franchises make it well past a dozen entries.
10 Yakuza Spawned Many Spinoffs
23 Games
Yakuza is an action-adventure game that was first released on the PS2 in 2005. Yakuza member, Kazuma Kiryu has spent the last ten years in prison for a crime he didn’t commit. Upon his release, he learns that the Tojo Clan has been robbed of 10 billion Yen and that criminals everywhere are searching for it. Kiryu decides to protect a young orphan girl named Haruka who is seemingly the key to finding the missing money.
Yakuza has appeared on most mainline consoles and even had outings on mobile devices. The franchise has spawned several sequels, remakes, and a television adaptation set for release on Prime Video. Recently, the franchise has begun to expand more with the Judgment spinoffs and the Like a Dragon mainline sequels. The developers have shifted from real-time combat to turn-based in the most recent titles, turning into a full-blown JRPG.
9 There is Nothing Else Like The Legend of Zelda
29 Games
The Legend of Zelda first appeared on the Famicom Disk System in Japan in 1986. It was then ported over to Nintendo’s own NES for a North American release just over a year later, making it the first game in the US to include an internal battery. Set in the fantasy world of Hyrule, Link must collect all eight pieces of the Triforce to save Princess Zelda from the evil Ganon.
While it may not be Nintendo’s biggest moneymaker. The series has garnered immense praise in recent years for the overwhelming success of Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom where developers made some serious changes. Hyrule was now an open world loaded with things to do, and the games took on more RPG elements than ever before. The Legend of Zelda has remained a Nintendo exclusive for nearly 40 years.
The Legend of Zelda
Begun in 1986, The Legend of Zelda franchise follows Link, Princess Zelda and other heroes in video games and other media.
- Created by
- Shigeru Miyamoto , Takashi Tezuka
- First Film
- The Legend of Zelda
30 Games
Resident Evil was praised for its gameplay and graphics when it debuted on the original PlayStation in 1996. The original game in the survival horror juggernaut follows the story of Chris Redfield and Jill Valentine, members of an elite task force. The pair are trapped inside a mansion full of zombies and other horrible monsters, and they have no choice but to fight their way out.
The Resident Evil Franchise has seen many sequels, standalones, spinoffs, and remakes. There’s even a film series with seven entries loosely based on the games. Resident Evil has seen a revitalization in recent years thanks to the success and new direction of Resident Evil 7, Village, and remakes like RE4. Capcom decided to try the first-person perspective in RE7 which allowed them to scare players in ways they weren’t able to before.
7 Assassin’s Creed Was an Annual Release For Years
38 Games
A comparatively younger franchise, the first Assassin’s Creed was released for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 in 2007. Desmond Miles can relive the memories of his ancestors through a machine called the Animus. Through the machine, the player takes on the role of Altair, an assassin seeking to regain his honor in the Holy Land during the Third Crusade.
Assassin’s Creed features mostly stealth-action titles. While some are a little more straightforward and linear, recent entries are massive open-world RPGs stuffed with hundreds of hours worth of content. The series has even spawned some 2D side-scrolling platformers. The games in the series are all connected, with some being more loosely related while others (like Ezio’s trilogy) are direct. Thanks to the success of recent entries going open-world, it looks like that’s the direction the mainline Assassin’s Creed games will continue aiming for.
6 Street Fighter is One of the Earliest Fighting Games
47 Games
Street Fighter started as nothing more than an arcade machine in 1987. Players compete in worldwide martial arts tournaments as Ryu, a mixed martial artist aiming to be the strongest he can be. The second player can control Ken Masters, Ryu’s best friend and rival, who shares Ryu’s moveset. The pair must take on the ten best fighters from five different countries if they want to win the tournament.
While it may have started as an arcade game, the franchise has been featured on most mainline consoles and various handhelds, even spawning a few mobile releases as well. Street Fighter was featured in a few crossover games, and it even has its own unique trading card game. While most fighters have stayed fairly the same over the years, Street Fighter 6 added World Tour mode, an open-world style game mode to shake up the formula.
5 Call of Duty Dominates the First-Person Shooter Genre
52 Games
Call of Duty was first released on Microsoft Windows in 2003. The original game takes place during the events of World War II and players get to play through a different campaign for each of the allied nations; the Americans, the British, and the Russians. The original Call of Duty set a huge precedent for the series going forward by emphasizing realism and accuracy.
Every gamer has heard the name Call of Duty and most have tried at least one entry in the franchise. The series has seen an entry on every mainline console in nearly 20 years and has even seen some mobile releases. The Call of Duty franchise hasn’t changed much over the past couple of entries. But in 2020, Call of Duty: Warzone, a battle royale-style game, has become a major focus of the developers ever since.
Call of Duty
Call of Duty is a video game series and media franchise published by Activision, starting in 2003. The games were first developed by Infinity Ward, then by Treyarch and Sledgehammer Games. Several spin-off and handheld games were made by other developers.
- Video Game(s)
- Call Of Duty 2 , Call of Duty 3 , Call of Duty: WW2 , Call of Duty (2003) , Call of Duty Ghosts , Call of Duty Warzone , Call of Duty Vanguard , Call of Duty: Black Ops , Call of Duty Black Ops Cold War , Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 (2023) , Call of Duty: Modern Warfare
4 Sonic The Hedgehog is a Platforming Icon
94 Games
Sonic the Hedgehog is an action platformer that was first released on the Sega Genesis. The story follows a blue hedgehog named Sonic who uses his blistering speed to take on the evil Doctor Eggman and thwart his plans for world domination. Sonic the Hedgehog came out during a time when Nintendo was all-powerful and controlled the market, but it was able to stand on its own two feet and make a name for itself.
Sonic the Hedgehog is one of Sega’s most successful franchises to date. The franchise is mostly comprised of 2D and 3D action platformers, but there are also racers, fighters, and entries where fan favorites like Knuckles and Shadow are the playable characters. Some crossover games even see Sonic compete against Mario at the Olympics.
Sonic the Hedgehog
Get ready to unleash your inner speed demon with the iconic blue blur, Sonic the Hedgehog! This electrifying franchise, spanning video games, comics, animation, and even live-action films, has captivated audiences for over three decades with its thrilling adventures, memorable characters, and infectious sense of fun.
- Created by
- Yuji Naka , Naoto Ohshima , Hirokazu Yasuhara
- First TV Show
- The Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog
- Cast
- Ben Schwartz , James Marsden , Jim Carrey , Tika Sumpter , Natasha Rothwell , Adam Pally , shemar moore , Idris Elba , Colleen O’Shaughnessey , Lee Majdoub , Jaleel White , Kath Soucie , Christine Cavanaugh , Bradley Pierce , Charlie Adler , Jim Cummings , Rob Paulsen , Cree Summer , Frank Welker , Roger Craig Smith , Mike Pollock , travis willingham , Nika Futterman , Kirk Thornton , Wally Wingert , Brian Drummond , Deven Mack , Ashleigh Ball , Adam Nurada , Shannon Chan-Kent , Ian Hanlin , Kazumi Evans , Vincent Tong
- TV Show(s)
- The Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog , sonic the Hedgehog , Sonic Boom , Sonic Prime , Knuckles
122 Games
Pokémon has been a household name since Red and Blue were first released on the Game Boy in 1996. In the original games, Red has finally reached the age where he is old enough to get his first Pokémon and go out on his very own journey. He’s tasked with catching all 151 different Pokémon and recording them in his Pokédex, beating the Gym Leader and Elite Four challenges along the way.
Pokémon has always been a Nintendo exclusive and several entries always appear on each of their flagship consoles. It became a cultural phenomenon overnight and spawned several spin-off series, anime and films, not to mention the popular trading card game. Pokémon‘s core series revolves around a turn-based JRPG approach that emphasizes monster collecting. Its streamlined rock-paper-scissors combat has been praised for how accessible it is. Only recently has Game Freak tried something new with the mainline games in Legends: Arceus, but that was a welcome change.
Pokemon
Expanding across a multitude of media, including TCGs, video games, manga, live-action movies and anime, the Pokémon franchise is set in a shared world of humans and creatures with a wide variety of special abilities.
- Created by
- Satoshi Tajiri
- First Film
- Pokemon: The First Movie
- Latest Film
- Pokémon the Movie: Secrets of the Jungle
- First TV Show
- Pokémon
- First Episode Air Date
- April 1, 1997
- Video Game(s)
- Pokémon GO , Pokemon X and Y , Pokémon Legends: Arceus , Pokémon Scarlet and Violet , Pokémon Sword and Shield , Pokémon Diamond & Pearl , Pokémon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl , Pokemon Red and Blue , Detective Pikachu , Detective Pikachu Returns , Pokémon: Let’s Go, Eevee! , Pokémon: Let’s Go, Pikachu!
2 Final Fantasy is Square Enix’s Most Popular Franchise
126 Games
First released in 1987, Final Fantasy is a JRPG game originally for the NES. The story follows four young Warriors of Light who each possess their elemental crystals that have been darkened by evil forces known as the four Elemental Fiends. The heroes must band together to restore their crystals, stop the evil Elemental Fiends, and save the world.
Final Fantasy is Square Enix’s flagship franchise and one of the faces of the JRPG subgenre. Final Fantasy is a largely anthological JRPG series, and while some games do connect, most are their own standalone titles. This means that with each new entry, developers can try something different without affecting any plot lines already established. Final Fantasy boasts many spin-off games, remasters, remakes and even some mobile titles. The most recent entries in the franchise, including FFXVI and the FFVII Remake series, have shifted gears to a real-time approach to combat.
1 Mario is One of the Faces of Gaming
200+ Games
For many players, both casual and seasoned, the Mario franchise may as well be the “face” of the video game medium. Debuting in the ’90s, the iconic plumber helped pioneer the platforming genre and even shaped modern game design with acclaimed titles like Super Mario 64.
While the flagship Nintendo franchise excels in the platforming space, its lucrative success has led to multiple spinoffs, some of which became subfranchises in their own right. From the kart-racing of Mario Kart to the turn-based JRPGs like the Mario & Luigi series, this Nintendo IP is one of the most versatile in the gaming medium, as evidenced by its staggering 200+ games.
Super Mario Bros.
Super Mario is a platform game series created by Nintendo starring their mascot, Mario. It is the central series of the greater Mario franchise. At least one Super Mario game has been released for every major Nintendo video game console.
- Created by
- Shigeru Miyamoto
- Character(s)
- Mario , Luigi
- Video Game(s)
- Super Mario Bros. , Mario Kart , Paper Mario , Mario Party , Super Mario Run , Mario Golf
