Why do you love your favorite game series?

[WhiteNachos]

Pretty simple really in a paragraph or two explain why you love your favorite game series. As if you were going to convince someone to try it (you don't have to explain the premise or characters though). I've seen lots of series people love that I don't understand the appeal of. I haven't played most of them though.

Anyway my first entry is

God of War

I generally like blood and gore and god of war does it pretty well, but that's not the main draw. God of War does this amazing balancing act of making you feel like an unstoppable badass while also making the game feel like a challenge. God of War does this better than any other series I have ever played. You feel like a badass and the game feels like an epic journey. Those aren't the same though. Uncharted feels like an epic journey but it gives the sense that you're scraping by on the skin of your teeth, God of War feels like a journey that you will get through through brute force and you'll mess up anything that gets in your way.

One thing that helps is that in a lot of games, you're just trying to stop a big bad guy that showed up out of nowhere and bring the world back to normal (or as close as you can). In god of war you are toppling the gods or at least some creatures with supernatural control over the world.

 

[SuperSaiyanMajinBuu]

Devil May Cry

Devil May Cry has been my favorite series for a lot of reasons. The main reason I love the series is the main characters. Dante is one of the best character in video games because no matter the situation or the circumstance, he will always have something snarky to say and he is practically an unstoppable force, which he knows. Heck in the DMC 3 opening, he took multiple scythes to vital organs and brushed it off with pizza and music. The combat is amongst the most complex of any Hack & Slash game I've played and unlike God of War where spamming the same combo usually gets the job done, DMC requires using multiple combos to combat the various enemies to find the most efficient way to kill an enemy. The thing most people think when they think of DMC however, is the difficulty. Other the the piss easy DMC 2, every game in the series has had much higher difficulty than most games. The only Hack & Slash series I can think of that is harder than DMC is Ninja Gaiden and even than NG is getting easier with each release.

 

[Aeshi]

Armored Core

Because FROM aren't afraid to shake things up every now and then. Heck, if you were to pull up some gameplay videos of Armored Cores 3,4 & 5 you could easily be forgiven for thinking they're 3 entirely different games.

 

[Clearwaters]

Shin Megami Tensei

First off these games in my opinion have top notch soundtracks and what some of the games in the series lack in their stories they more than make up for it in pure style. The game play is pretty unforgiving, but rewards careful planning and party building. This does lead to a lot of deaths and trial and error against some of the bosses, but I find it enjoyable figuring out strategies and it's really satisfying to finally beat a boss that was kicking your ass. Exploring dungeons is also something that tickles my fancy. Most games in the series feature long maze-like dungeons with lots of traps and other hazards that I find to be a blast to navigate through.

Fusing demons and filling out the compendiums in each game is really addicting. Most games in the series also have multiple endings and lengthy side dungeons that make the experience last a while.

And just to add my favorites in the series are probably Soul Hackers and Strange Journey.

 

[Danbo Jambo]

God of War, I loved the first game, was disappointed by the second, and really have to get round to playing the others.

My own personal pick would have to be the X-com series of games. The original, X-com Apocalypse and Enemy Within are all utterly superb games.

The reason I love them is because they all nail tension-driven turn based strategy, and manage to be difficult and challenging, but still fun.

I also love the whole feel of hunting aliens in normal, everyday settings. The terror missions are by far and away the best.

 

[Pete Oddly]

Fallout

Simply put: Character personality customization, and a giant, hilarious, post-apocalyptic sandbox in which to explore that customization. Every time I start a new character, I think "What drives this person? What does he/she love and hate? What does he/she fear?" and other such questions, then I go out into the world and see what strange stories I can create.

For example, one character in Fallout 3 was a sociopath with a hero complex. She strode the wasteland righting wrongs and bringing justice to evil-doers, but if anyone insulted her or questioned her heroic standing, she would do everything in her power to screw their lives up, up to and including murdering them clandestinely. This led to some really interesting quest lines.

BioWare games are very good for this sort of thing too, but the Fallout setting is another aspect of the series which I love dearly. I'm salivating profusely in anticipation for Fallout 4.

 

[WhiteNachos]

God of War, I loved the first game, was disappointed by the second, and really have to get round to playing the others.

The God of War sequels you should play for the gameplay and forget stories. God of War 3 has a terrible story but the gameplay is top notch. Chains of Olympus has an ok story that's mostly meant to get you in front of enemies. Ghost of Sparta has a decent story. Ascension has a story that's ok but doesn't seem to add much to the narrative and can mostly be ignored, the gameplay is fine for a god of war game, basically it's worth it if you can get it cheap.

 

[FootloosePhoenix]

My favourite series is Final Fantasy. Now, that's not to say I love every FF game I've played (quite the contrary; I have a level of disdain towards certain entries) but I feel like it's hit the ball out of the park enough times to qualify for me, plus I find the idea behind it and its driving themes very appealing. Each main series game is a self-contained world, focusing on some kind of world-endangering problem, the individuals involved with the crisis and the relationships between its heroes. And because of the general unconnected nature of the games, it allows for a great deal of variety and experimentation within the franchise. Beyond that there's not a lot to say about the series overall. What you're in for depends entirely on each specific game, but I will mention that VI, VII and X are among my very favourites. I'm currently playing through the remake of Final Fantasy III and it's been just as amazing as any of those so far (except maybe X; I'll admit I have a heaping load of nostalgia for that game).

I also love its turn-based combat. I've heard of people who don't enjoy that gameplay mechanic playing Final Fantasy only for the story and I can't help but think that's a massive waste of energy, no matter how good the story is, due to the length and often necessary grinding element. Not to mention random encounters; even as a turn-based enthusiast, those really made me grit my teeth at times. I know Final Fantasy has its share of issues, but I believe it makes up for them. Each game in the series is a a beautiful if flawed work of art.

And if I'm allowed to mention a runner-up, that would be Ratchet and Clank I think. I'm a little bit obsessed with that Lombax and robot. I'm pretty excited for the movie and I guess I'll be giving in to a PS4 once the new game is released for it. Into the Nexus was great, but it's been too long since we've had an all-out, full-length, gimmick-free R&C title.

 

[Alex Baas]

Because Monster Hunter is crack I can share with my friends. At one point every player of that game realizes that it would be easier to grind for their current goal if they had another piece of armor or weapon. Rinse and repeat forever and you got my addiction

 

[Toblo1]

My favorite in general? The Final Fantasy series.

The first video game I EVER played was FF7, so I hold Final Fantasy (And JRPGs in general) pretty close to my heart. The weird thing is, as a person who has played FF 4, 6, 7, 8, 9 and 10, I don't hate the newer Final fantasies (XIII, XIII-2 and to an extent, Lightning Returns...)...... I understand the REASONS people don't like them, but I don't hate them......

 

[JagermanXcell]

As to avoid my usual Souls series/Persona cop outs... still great games... I'm gonna pick a recent series as my favorite:
I just beat Bayonetta 2. And let me just say this, I officially both love and hate the Bayonetta series.

Why? Because it's one of those series (along with most of Platinum's other past and future titles) that will get better with each installment, but the reasons as to why they're such great games will simply never be pushed on to other AAA releases. Bayonetta is a strange modern day beast, in that it's the first series in a long time that I had a blast with but stopped to realize "Why... why can't ANYONE else get this kind of game right? Why is fun over the top game design simply not allowed in AAA games today?".
The combat is silky smooth, it runs at 60FPS all nilly willy (1080p; 60FPS on a F***ING WIIU *stares viciously at Ubisoft*), has great pacing in it's story to save room for the action that is supposed to take it's place since it's a video game... and video games live of GAME.PLAY. Bayonetta, with the help of the barely second game in the series, has solidified itself as the de facto definition of "great video game series" that will never cease to grab your attention, but will never ever ever ever ever ever ever ever ever ever ever go beyond it's own name gameplay wise.

Good or bad thing, i'm not complaining, I have my WiiU already pumped for Bayonetta 3.

 

[Casual Shinji]

I don't think I have a favourite game series. I have favourite games, sure, but there isn't a series I'm a fan of on a whole.

It used to be Resident Evil and Silent Hill back in the good old days... but then those days ended.

 

[TheArcaneThinker]

Elder scrolls series

Do i really need to say why ?

 

[Imperioratorex Caprae]

Quest for Glory

Between the humor, the writing and the overall story plus the game being the first I'd ever played that allowed you to transfer your character from game-to-game was awesome to me. The lore, the NPCs, even the action/adventure/rpg nature was great. For all the limitations of the Sierra adventure model, it was a great series. Even though the final game, Dragon Fire was probably the weakest of all the games it still retained the fun I'd had in all of them. Its one series I'd love to see a modern revival of, and I've probably said that 1000 times already on this site. I'll say it another 1000 until it happens, thats how much I love this series.

 

[Duster]

Quake series. Skill cieling often comes at the cost of balance, but it creates a lot of replay value.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oPoNfB0mrQg&t=06m31s

I don't even need to do pvp in quake to enjoy it, you can speedrun, trickjump to music, stuff like that.

 

[RedDeadFred]

My favourite game is Mount and Blade Warband, but since that's the only game in the series I've played, I'll go with the Elder Scrolls series.

I love the open worlds and the huge amount of things you can do in them. Also, Bethesda really knows how to create some truly amazing quests. Sure, not all of them are great (the Fighters Guild questline was pretty ho-hum in Oblivion), but others are pure genius. Who Dunnit is probably my favourite quest/mission from any game ever.

I also love how you roleplay as pretty much anything (as long as you're willing to use a little imagination and come up with some background stuff for your character).

Also, mods. For me, the only series that beats the Elder Scrolls in modding is the Mount and Blade series (because of the large number of fantastic total conversion mods).

Honourable mentions for other series:
Borderlands -best gameplay in a FPS in my opinion.
Mass Effect -yes, even with 3's ending.
Assassin's Creed -mostly because of the first two and Black Flag.
Halo -not so much 4 or Reach, but the first 3 were amazing.
Fallout -I've only played New Vegas and 3. 3 is my favourite of them.
Battle For Middle Earth -These are my favourite RTS games.
Legend of Zelda -Windwaker being my favourite of the series.

 

[Hero of Lime]

The Legend of Zelda. I just does so much so well. I adore the varying gameplay elements. Combining combat, exploration, dungeon crawling, puzzle solving, the heavy use of interesting tools, side questing. There is a lot to love in the series.

Each game feels unique when compared to each other as well. A lot of people like to assume that all Zelda games are the same. I wholeheartedly disagree. The series keeps the important fundamentals and traditions in tact, but does so much differently that saying it's all the same is misguided. Despite being direct sequels on the same system and engine, Ocarina of Time and Majora's Mask could not be any more different in terms of the story, tone, and certain gameplay elements. Wind Waker and Phantom Hourglass have the same art style, and take place on an ocean, but the similarities end there. I could write a thesis explaining the differences of each title, but you all get the point.

The stories are usually simple, which is fine for me. Complex stories are nice, but a simple story well executed makes up for the simplicity. The characters certainly pick up the slack as well. Almost every game in the series introduces a new, quirky, funny, or overall interesting cast of characters. The world and lore are simple on the surface, but there is a lot to the Zelda universe which spawned so many interesting theories, and excitement around the timeline for example.

Finally, the character growth. Every new item, heart piece, sword upgrade, quiver upgrade, etc. feels great to get. By the end of the game you feel like you could take anything on, and you have the health, sword, and items to back that up. It feels great to play every time.

EDIT: As a quick note, I also love the varying art styles. It gives each game its own look, and in the case of Wind Waker, was a technical marvel for its time. I wish more game franchises would take more risks with different art styles for sequels.

 

[Evonisia]

The Halo series on the whole is a little bundle of shooter joy. Not only is it a nice bridge between older and newer shooters, it's set in a universe that is so rich and was written by a company that has a deep love for their work and for their audience (yes, they still want your money). There is much to dabble into be it finding out the querks in the gameplay, finding yet another easter egg or minor detail that adds to the universe or even finding out what you can about "insert thing that interests you". Replay value is abundant in the series as well, there are plenty of noteworthy missions worth playing over and over again (hell, even sections of missions in Halo 2 and 3). Even Halo Wars was made with love and brings its own story to the table but still reassures you that nothing drastic behind the scenes had occurred, and is a tolerable RTS experience (just not very complex). Ignore Halo 4, look up Halo: Reach's ending on YouTube, and get the other games and enjoy!

 

[nomotog_v1legacy]

Saint Row

It's about the customization and the ownership. The games themselves are rather neat. I mean 2 was the best and 4 is really good too. (In a completely different way.) I think the thing that really clinches it is how I was able to make and customize my own personal boss in SR2 and then got to keep them and watch them grow and change in the latter games. It's like mass effect only I feel a much larger attachment to the boss then I ever did with Shepard.

 

[MintSM]

Silent Hill, because most of the games provide something incredibly unique to me. Survival Horror is a nice genre to me, but nothing feels quite as uncanny or unnerving like this series. Even low points like Homecoming and SH4, I can still find a lot to like about them.