It’s never been a more exciting time to be a fan of video games. The latest gaming generation has pushed the medium forward in unprecedented ways. Updated technology and reinvigorated genres continue to bring in new audiences, but the established franchises that have been around for years remain one of the biggest ways to create enthusiasm.
Some of the biggest modern gaming franchises have their roots all the way back in the 1990s. Some of these series more or less resemble their source material, but it’s shocking to see how some franchises are completely different from where they began.
10 Sonic The Hedgehog’s 3D Days Need To Learn When To Slam The Brakes
Sega’s Sonic the Hedgehog arrived at the start of the 1990s and forever changed the gaming company’s legacy thanks to its iconic platforming mascot. The 1990s were undeniably the height of Sonic’s power, prompting modern entries in the series to try to chase that high.
Sonic has progressively struggled with its transition from 2D to 3D gameplay and games revolving around new mechanics or concepts only led the series further away from its roots. There have been some new Sonic games like Sonic Mania that return to traditional 2D platforming, but the character remains in a messy place.
9 Metroid’s Action-Adventure Roots Have Found Freedom As First-Person Shooters
Nintendo’s signature sci-fi action series, Metroid, debuted at the end of the ‘80s, but the franchise’s most substantial entries arrived during the 1990s. The newest Metroid title, Metroid Dread, returned Samus Aran to the franchise’s roots.
Metroid went through a serious identity shift over the past decade. The action-adventure series found new life as a first-person shooter franchise and other games like Metroid: Other M prioritized melee combat over moody exploration. When Metroid first hit on the Nintendo there was nobody who could’ve predicted that it’d eventually receive its own pinball spin-off.
8 Fire Emblem Has Embraced The Popularity Of The Dating Sim Genre
There are more than 16 titles in the growing Fire Emblem series. The popular turn-based strategy series had a more dedicated following in Japan and helped kick off the 1990s on the original Famicom. Surprisingly, the biggest boost to Fire Emblem‘s profile outside Japan was due to characters from the games making their mark in the crossover fighter, Super Smash Bros.
Fire Emblem still features turn-based strategic gameplay, but the franchise has slowly blended together with the sim genre. Fire Emblem: Three Houses even has a hearty dating sim component that’s stuck around for subsequent titles.
7 Banjo-Kazooie’s Exciting Adventures Are Sidelined For Vehicle Construction Confusion
Now a valuable developer within Microsoft’s roster of talent, the company Rare started off as Nintendo’s crucial partner during the 1990s. Rare became responsible for many of the Nintendo 64’s most celebrated adventure games, Banjo-Kazooie being chief among them.
The first two Banjo-Kazooie games were cut from the same cloth, but the series’ bold reinvention on the Xbox 360, Banjo-Kazooie: Nuts & Bolts, left many fans disappointed. Nuts & Bolts went all in on a vehicle construction concept that wasn’t without its charms, but it felt completely foreign to Banjo-Kazooie. The awkward installment left fans eager for a new Banjo-Kazooie title that’s a traditional platformer.
6 Persona Has Transformed Into A Sprawling Universe That Caters Towards All Genres
Atlus’ Persona RPG series became one of the biggest gaming franchises of the decade. The first entry in the series, Revelations: Persona, broke ground on the original PlayStation back in 1996. The main Persona series transformed into a psychological character study that’s embraced social sim mechanics to inform its gameplay.
Titles like Persona 4 Arena or Persona 5 Strikers transform the RPG series into a fighting game or Musou-style hack-and-slash experience. The series has grown so much that even the mainline Persona games are considerably more complex than where they began.
5 Kirby’s Adventures Have Gained New Dimension And A Wealth Of Weird Spin-Offs
Nintendo’s adorable pink puffball, Kirby’s legacy endured for more than three decades. The early ’90s were a defining period for Kirby after he first made his debut on the Game Boy in 1992. Kirby often stuck to the platforming structure that defined his earliest adventures.
However, the differences between Kirby’s Dream Land and the Switch’s Kirby and the Forgotten Land — the latter of which is a fully 3D open world adventure — are staggering. Additionally, the Kirby series has been subjected to multiple genre transformations, whether it’s Kirby Air Ride, Kirby Fighters Deluxe, or ambitious efforts like Kirby Tilt ‘n’ Tumble and Kirby: Canvas Curse.
4 Final Fantasy’s Legacy Is Predicated Upon Breaking New Ground
There’s no shortage of iconic video game franchises, but the Final Fantasy games have been around for more than 35 years and are practically synonymous with engrossing JRPG adventures. The Final Fantasy series have persevered this long by continually reinventing itself rather than continuing a single narrative through dozens of games.
There are certain Final Fantasy fundamentals that are always present, but bolder shifts have been made like the linear nature of Final Fantasy XIIIor the online focus of Final Fantasy IV. Games like Final Fantasy Tactics also pull the series further away from its turn-based roots, replacing it with an emphasis on tactical RPG gameplay.
3 The World Of Pokémon Is Broader And With More Options Than Ever Before
It’s extremely rare for a property like Pokémon to explode into a multimedia phenomenon that dominates whatever medium it tackles. Pokémon deserves infinite respect for sticking to their roots and remaining a handheld RPG series, albeit one with gradually evolving mechanics.
It’s still easy to see Pokémon ‘s origins in the franchise’s newest releases, but its shift over to the Nintendo Switch has been polarizing for many. Furthermore, the Pokémon brand has become exceedingly diluted through spin-offs like Pokémon Snap, Pokémon Stadium, Pokémon Legends: Arceus, or Pokémon Mystery Dungeon. While set in the same world, they offer wildly different gaming experiences.
Hideo Kojima emerged as one of the most ambitious and creative auteurs in the video game industry, and his work across the Metal Gear Solid series remained a staggering achievement. Metal Gear Solid was groundbreaking in the 1990s and the series’ trajectory proved full of surprises.
The core Metal Gear Solid games feature the same mechanics, but they get progressively larger in scope, shift away from Solid Snake, and incorporate new components. Furthermore, spin-offs like Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance, Metal Gear Online, and Metal Gear Survive completely shift genres, and in the case of the latter, involve alternate dimensions and zombies.
1 Resident Evil Shifts Tone And Presentation Styles To Reflect The Changing Times
Capcom’s Resident Evil series helped turn the niche survival horror genre into one of gaming’s most popular and consistent performers. The original Resident Evil was a third-person experience with fixed camera angles, which made the most sense at the time.
Resident Evil experienced a curious evolution that briefly embraced action over horror, but it slowly found its way back to its roots. However, some of the earliest trademarks of the series — like its camera angles and perspectives — were abandoned. Later games moved away from zombies to incorporate witches and other demons into the mix.
