14 Video Game Franchises That Will Never Die

10. Pac-Man

FINAL FANTASY XV
Namco

Unlike many of the entries on this list, Pac-Man won't just survive because of name recognition alone, but because it provides a style of gameplay unlike anything else on the market. There's absolutely no substitute for Pac-Man, and anything that even attempted to replicate the series would just be dismissed as a clone, or a blatant rip-off. Like Space Invaders, Tetris or Bomberman, Pac-Man offers something irreplaceable, a game so associated with the name that it can never be imitated.

Pac-Man has also proven itself fully capable of surviving the test of time already; there have been hundreds of iterations of the little yellow ball, and the arcade version alone is one of the most recognisable games on the planet. While Pac-Man has come in many forms over the years, from Pac-Man 2 on the NES to Pac-Man World, and from Pac-Man and the Ghostly Adventures to Pac-Man Party, all versions are unified by the same core brand.

Some versions have been more successful than others, but series' long-reaching arcade legacy will ensure that it continues long into the future.

Contributor
Contributor

Formerly an assistant editor, Richard's interests include detective fiction and Japanese horror movies.