1. Final Fantasy II-X, XII & XIII
Is there any other series out there that repeatedly banged out hits and consistently satisfied fans? The original, so the story goes, was designed by Hironobu Sakaguchi of Square in a bid to capitalise on the success of Enix's Dragon Quest, but was seen as a last ditch attempt for both Square and Sakaguchi. Square were facing bankruptcy until the commercial success from Final Fantasy kept them afloat and allowed them to continue making games to this day. Apparently, that's why the name was changed from Fighting Fantasy (although that name was scrapped because of fears it would breach copyright over a series of roleplay gamebooks) to Final Fantasy, the seemingly final hurrah by both designer and company. Getting a couple of sequels right would have been impressive, but to get eleven (XI and XIV were online and had their detractors, but XII and XIII did very well) is amazing, and testament to the format of the series. The secret to Final Fantasy's success may lie in the way it uses similar elements and themes in all of its instalments, but also implements brave changes in gameplay. Anyone familiar with a Final Fantasy game will know what a chocobo is, or know that the basic story is a group of adventurers trying to save the world, but every game creates its own identity with a new story and a big gameplay change every time. For example, most
new Final Fantasy games include a new way to level up your characters, or in later instalments a whole new battle system. This mix of familiar themes and exciting gameplay changes for every release has helped Square keep Final Fantasy fans happier than most other gamers, and long may it continue!
What sequel absolutely nailed its premise and capitalised on its potential? Let us know in the comments!