Feature: Top 10 Most Influential Video Game Franchises (Part 1)
Continuing with the theme of great video game icons, I have decided to show you wonderful readers what the top ten video game franchises are. What’s the criteria for this list, you ask? All these games have influenced the way in which we play games, either by introducing us to a new genre, reinventing a genre, or creating a new gameplay mechanic to keep us addicted. So why should you read this list instead of the hundreds of other lists like it? Because of my amazing wit and rhetoric, of course.
10. Halo
The Halo franchise is what has defined the Xbox since its release in 2001, and it continues to define Microsoft’s console offering today. The series was one of the first games to successfully introduce large, vehicle based gameplay to consoles. The Halo franchise has continued to set the standard for all console first person shooters. The games have also been a staple for Major League Gaming, showing just how influential its gameplay has been. Halo 2 broke records for fastest selling product in the United States when it was released, and wasn’t topped until Halo 3 was released two years later. Combined, the games have sold almost 25 million copies worldwide. Of course, Halo also introduced us to one of the most iconic video game characters in quite a while, Master Chief. With this kind of history, it’s a bit surprising that this game is number 10 on the list, but keep reading and you might see why.
9. Sonic the Hedgehog
Sonic, to me at least, is, and always will be, Sega’s Mario. His first game was developed in 1991 to directly compete with Nintendo and Mario. And for a while it worked. Sonic became the mascot of Sega and helped the company gain the status that it once had. Most of the “early” sonic games were well received and helped to sell quite a few consoles for Sega. Sadly, after the golden age of Sonic games during the 8 and 16 bit eras, the series took a turn for the worst. Many of Sonic’s forays into 3D have not been nearly as successful as his 2D games. Gamers yearn for a return to those games, but these pleas seem to fall on deaf ears as Sega release evermore 3D Sonic games that really just aren’t any good. Sonic may have defined a generation or two, but his time has come and gone.
8. Resident Evil
The series that defined the survival horror genre, Resident Evil has seen major success since the first game in the series was released in 1996. It has been defined by its use of horror elements, clever puzzles, frustrating camera angles, and horrible dialog. The success of the first game helped to spawn two sequels and multiple spin offs. The series then saw a complete reboot from the traditional gameplay that fans had come to expect. In 2005, Resident Evil 4 was released and is considered by many to be one of the best games ever made. It set the standards for modern third person shooters.
7. Metal Gear
Metal Gear!?!? Yup, Metal Gear. Not the bipedal, nuclear-armed, walking tank either; the video game series. The Metal Gear series has been revolutionizing video games since Metal Gear was released in 1987 on the MSX2. Recently at GDC, the creator of the series, Hideo Kojima, explained how he came up with the idea for a stealth game. Like most great inventions, it was technical limitations that made him come up with a creative solution. So he decided to create an elaborate game of hide and seek, and the rest is history. Today, Metal Gear is one of the best-selling and critically acclaimed video games around. Best known for its particularly confusing story, long winded dialog and cutscenes, political/social commentary, and “tactical espionage action” gameplay, video games would be a much less cinematic experience without it, and that would be a bad thing.
6. Grand Theft Auto
Revolutionary and controversial are two words that describe GTA more accurately than any other. The Grand Theft Auto series has always been an open-ended game littered with adult themes. From its first incarnations in 1997 as a 2D game with a top down view, it allowed the player to go wherever they wanted, as well as allowing them to murder whoever they chose. Rockstar then decided to revolutionize gaming once again, and bring us that omnipresent buzzword, with sandbox gaming. GTA 3 was released to much anticipation and criticism in 2001. With its shift to 3D, many were worried that the game would corrupt our youth with its accurate depiction of violence. We soon realized that those people were idiots though. GTA 3 introduced gamers to a living, breathing city that was theirs for the destroying. Ever since, GTA has been at the forefront of controversy, but has continued to push the boundaries of what we expect from our games. GTA IV broke all known sales records in 2008 when it sold 6 million copies in its first week.
Wow, look at the time, this thing’s taking longer to write than I expected. Come back tomorrow for part 2.
Author: Ryan
15 Comments to Feature: Top 10 Most Influential Video Game Franchises (Part 1)
Leave a Reply
Loading ...Recent Comments
Recent Posts
Subscribe to our podcast!
Archives
- May 2012
- April 2012
- March 2012
- February 2012
- January 2012
- December 2011
- November 2011
- October 2011
- September 2011
- August 2011
- July 2011
- June 2011
- May 2011
- April 2011
- March 2011
- February 2011
- January 2011
- December 2010
- November 2010
- October 2010
- September 2010
- August 2010
- July 2010
- June 2010
- May 2010
- April 2010
- March 2010
- February 2010
- January 2010
- December 2009
- November 2009
- October 2009
- September 2009
- August 2009
- July 2009
- June 2009
- May 2009
- April 2009
- March 2009
A few of these should be higher. Metal Gear shouldn’t be anywhere near a list like this. I’d say Silent Hill instead of Resident Evil. I’m also confused as to where you’re going to stick Guitar Hero. It revolutionized an entire genre of gaming and brought a previously untapped audience of gamers into the industry. I would be hard pressed to put it above 5 though.
Also – GTA below 5? Really? Before GTA3 came along, I don’t recall violence in video games, like, at all. Or blood for that matter. Even shooters didn’t really have blood. Not to mention giving us a free roam environment. It pushed so many boundaries to new limits.
I have to imagine with what you have left to work with the top 5 will be, almost exclusively (with 1 exception?), Nintendo. If not, I’ll be back…
Like or Dislike:
0 
0
Completely forgot about Guitar Hero, but when you’re dealing with great franchises such as these, it’s difficult to fit in every game that deserves to be on the list, and a top 15 or 20 is just out of the question.
As for your GTA comment, GTA 3 certainly was not the first game to include violence in games. First of all, there’s the other GTA games, but I’ll just assume those were included in your statement. But why do you think the ESRB was created? Because of violence in video games, and it was created well before GTA3, or even GTA. The original Mortal Kombat is actually a big part of why the ESRB was created. The blood that it had was actually censored for the SNES version so that it looked like grey sweat instead of blood. Then there’s the example PC FPSs that were violent as well. Games like Doom and Wolfenstein 3D being among the most prominent examples. You may have disregarded these games as they were, compared to today’s games at least, kind of lacking in violence, not to mention the graphical limitations which the developers had to work around.
As for the rest of the list… we’ll see.
Like or Dislike:
0 
0
Silent Hill belongs nowhere in this list, particularly when put against Resident Evil, considering it was following along the same lines as RE. In the history of video games, it would be very difficult to place GH in a list like this, considering the relative short amount of time it has existed. Metal Gear certainly belongs on this list, and perhaps even higher than it is listed. It revolutionized not only how we play games, but how we think about video games, especially in the story area.
Like or Dislike:
0 
0
Certainly a fine list, although I might have moved a few around, but that’s just me.
Like or Dislike:
0 
0
lol. Right.
“Silent Hill belongs nowhere in this list, particularly when put against Resident Evil, considering it was following along the same lines as RE.”
Is this a joke or something? Silent Hill did everything Resident Evil did well, but roughly twice as great of a job. In terms of pure survival horror, Silent Hill is the epitome – not Resident Evil.
“In the history of video games, it would be very difficult to place GH in a list like this, considering the relative short amount of time it has existed.”
Nice try, but that’s exactly the point. If we’re talking about revolutionary franchises (of which there are not that many, even in the entire ‘history of games’) you have to look at what gaming has become. Rhythm gaming in particular went from cult DDR followings to mainstream all thanks to GH. It’s brought in a whole host of new gamers and totally defined the genre. Not saying it should be #1 – but it deserves a spot.
“Metal Gear certainly belongs on this list, and perhaps even higher than it is listed. It revolutionized not only how we play games, but how we think about video games, especially in the story area.”
Your vague generalizations aren’t impressive, let alone convincing. You’re saying we should call Metal Gear revolutionary because it defined story telling in video games? Right buddy. How about we let RPGs take credit for that one, eh? Metal Gear changed nothing about how I play video games, and certainly nothing about how I think about them.
“As for your GTA comment, GTA 3 certainly was not the first game to include violence in games”
This is cute, too. Apparently we’re taking ‘violence’ to mean different things. I’m talking about the gunning down of innocent civilians and police officers for nothing other than shits and giggles, not pitted death matches that are clearly the purpose of the game. And yes, graphics have a big part in this. See: AVGN review of Texas Chainsaw Massacre. It doesn’t matter what the violent intent of a game is – if the technology isn’t there yet, it’s not bad. Was GTA3 the first game for the PS2? Nope. Was it the first game to use that “generation” of consoles for such relatively (to the times) disturbing purposes? Absolutely. And since then, we can play GTA3, or VC, or SA, or 4, or any cheap GTA knock off and not blink twice at the gore. It opened the floodgates to TRUE violence.
Like or Dislike:
0 
0
A quick search of the genre Survival Horror, and following up on the links will quickly show that the game that coined, defines (as it still currently does) and is most recognized is Resident Evil. Years of playing both franchises, and following the progression of both, via actual play and video game magazines and websites, also back this truth up.
One look at the title of this post and you will notice that we are discussing 10 influential franchises. Reading the post will show that these franchises were revolutionary in different ways. That being said, there ARE quite a few of them in the “history of games”. Guitar Hero has no place among franchises that not only shaped the industry that GH was made into, some actually kept this industry alive.
Metal Gear was a game that was labeled “stealth” but did wonderful things in all areas of gaming. Not only did the stealth aspect actually create a tense, heart-pounding mood to combat, it shaped the way that action games are played. It added a whole new dimension to the way that action video games told stories, and kept players interested. It also wasn’t afraid to keep politics out of the story and has only continued to shape these things to this day.
Despite the general tone of this reply, I do agree with your argument about GTA. Certainly not the first to have a form of violence, but definitely the first to expose the violence that is very, real, frightening and often disturbing, and made it the premise of a game that promotes these things in its’ world.
Like or Dislike:
0 
0
“A quick search of the genre Survival Horror, and following up on the links will quickly show that the game that coined, defines (as it still currently does) and is most recognized is Resident Evil.”
- Silent Hill perfected the formula Resident Evil used. FACT.
“Guitar Hero has no place among franchises that not only shaped the industry that GH was made into, some actually kept this industry alive.”
- Influential on what? The industry as a whole. The gaming industry includes mainstream, ‘casual’ gaming. To which the main components are Wii games and GH spin-offs. Neither is represented on this list.
“nonsense about Metal gear”
- Name some games that you feel borrowed from the Metal Gear formula. Go ahead. If it’s so influential, this should be easy.
“Despite the general tone of this reply, I do agree with your argument about GTA.”
- Good stuff
Like or Dislike:
0 
0
Splinter Cell. That actually was amazingly easy. When I get some more time I’ll list some more.
“Silent Hill perfected the formula Resident Evil used. FACT.”
Resident Evil was the game that influenced Silent Hill. FACT.
Regardless, I actually do like Silent Hill better than RE. I think its a much better horror game. I kept it off this list simply because it’s been on a downhill slide ever since 2/3, whereas Resident Evil was able to successfully reinvent itself and set standards for a whole other genre as well (third person shooters).
Like or Dislike:
0 
0
Splinter Cell? lmao. You put Metal Gear at number 7 on the list of Most Influential Game Franchises and all you can come up with is some half-assed knock off? Please.
“Resident Evil was the game that influenced Silent Hill. FACT.”
By this logic, in fact, we should use whatever came first of everything. What’s Mario doing so high? Pitfall is an adventure side scroller. Pitfall influenced Mario, so it should be #1.
Also,
“Resident Evil was able to successfully reinvent itself and set standards for a whole other genre as well (third person shooters).”
This is a joke. And you know it is. Resident Evil as influential to third person shooters? Yea, when I’m playing Mass Effect or Gears of War all I think of is “Wow, they really tore a page out of Resident Evil’s book here.”
Like or Dislike:
0 
0
Splinter Cell has received critical acclaim for almost all of the games released in the series. It can hardly be called a “half-assed knock off.”
In addition, Wikipedia says that Metal Gear Solid is the game that popularized the stealth genre. Crediting Castle Wolfenstein as the first stealth game, but since I’m about to give you your Pitfall argument, we can disregard that. From the Wikipedia article: “A stealth game is a video game in which the player needs to avoid detection. The genre was introduced in 1981 by the game Castle Wolfenstein, but was not popularized until 1998, with the release of Metal Gear Solid for the PlayStation. The genre’s best selling games are Metal Gear Solid and Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty, each with 7 million in sales.” As well, in the article’s list of important games in the genre, the Metal Gear series is mentioned multiple times, and is mentioned again in the “Major Series” section. In fact, the series is mentioned 22 times in the article, with the other major series mentioned no more than 10 times.
I’ll give you the Pitfall argument.
It’s actually funny that you mention Gears of War. At GDC ’07, Gamespot had an interview with Cliff “CliffyB” Bleszinski about GoW’s influences. Quoting the article: “Bleszinski said the seeds of Gears of War were sown by three titles. The first was Capcom’s Resident Evil 4, which made an indelible impression on Bleszinski even before its January 2005 release. ‘I really liked the pacing and the over-the-shoulder view,’ said the designer.” Further on in the article, “Bleszinski went on a mini-rant about how badly he feels the camera is positioned in most third-person shooters. ‘My big pet peeve…is when I see the [main] guy blocking the line of sight,’ he said. Once again he said that RE4′s over-the-shoulder camera angle, which always faced the enemy, was a big influence on Gears.”
Even if we disregard that, we’re still left with the fact that Resident Evil was able to successfully reinvent itself, but Silent Hill has stagnated.
Like or Dislike:
0 
0
And I’ll give you Splinter Cell. I owned and played it – it was awful. I’m surprised the ‘critics’ you linked are so stupid, but I guess stupidity rules when we’re talking mean averages of everybody and anybody’s opinion. That being said, you’ve still only given me one game.
Good research on the GoW influences. Interesting. But I still think I’m on safe grounds. RE contributed a camera angle which, to me, seems obvious anyway. But is that alone worthy of recognition among all the truly influential franchises out there? Is a camera angle the most influence the third person shooter genre has seen over the years? Really?
And sure, if we disregard that, you say “Resident Evil was able to successfully reinvent itself, but Silent Hill has stagnated.” I wasn’t aware a series still had to be succesful today in order to be considered influential (See: Sonic).
Like or Dislike:
0 
0
First of all – you edited that as I was replying.
Second of all – notice the short list of games in that article. Furthermore, notice the even shorter list of GOOD games in that article. Then, remove games that clearly have no influence from Metal Gear (Sly Cooper, Virtually every single game on there that says it has “elements” of stealth, etc).
You’re left with Metal Gear, Splinter Cell, and Hitman. Even though I’d argue tooth and nail all three are not fun, let’s assume for the moment they are. 3 franchises (most games within the latter two being nothing more than attempts to milk moderate success)? That’s including itself. And that’s your number 7. My argument should not be understood as “Metal Gear has never influenced anything, ever, in the history of everything.” It is merely that it has no place being talked about as “most influential.” Or 7th most.
Like or Dislike:
0 
0
First of all: Yeah, sorry ’bout that.
Like or Dislike:
0 
0
Second of all: My list, my site, makes it all right.
Like or Dislike:
0 
0
This list is missing RapeLay.
Like or Dislike:
0 
0