Curated category
Video game franchises
- Metal GearHideo Kojima designed the original Metal Gear, which debuted in Japan and Europe in 1987 for the MSX2 computer platform.
- Call of DutyThe first Call of Duty game arrived on the 29th of October 2003. It was a World War II shooter built on id Tech 3 technology and developed by Infinity Ward.
- Fabula Nova Crystallis Final FantasyIn 2003, scenario writer Kazushige Nojima began drafting a new mythology for the Final Fantasy franchise. He finished this series bible by February 2004…
- Compilation of Final Fantasy VIISquare Enix announced the Compilation of Final Fantasy VII in 2003, marking a strategic pivot for the company. Yoshinori Kitase and Tetsuya Nomura led this…
- Dragon Slayer (series)In 1984, the NEC PC-8801 computer screen flickered with a new kind of dungeon crawl. Dragon Slayer arrived as the first action role-playing game, abandoning…
- Star Wars: X-Wing (video game series)The year 1993 marked the arrival of Star Wars: X-Wing, a title that demanded players hold a joystick rather than a gamepad.
- Grand Theft AutoIn November 1997, a small British studio called DMA Design released a game that would change the video game industry forever.
- Kingdom HeartsSquare Enix released the first Kingdom Hearts game in Japan on the 28th of March 2002. Tetsuya Nomura served as director for this initial release, marking…
- Final Fantasy Crystal ChroniclesSquare Enix found itself in a precarious position following the box office failure of Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within.
- Fable (video game series)A young boy stands in a burning village as bandits kill his father and kidnap his sister. This moment launches the first game set in medieval Albion, where…
- Street FighterIn August 1987, an arcade cabinet bearing the name Street Fighter opened its doors to players in Japan. Takashi Nishiyama and Hiroshi Matsumoto designed this…
- The Legend of ZeldaIn the hillsides and forests surrounding Sonobe, Japan, a young boy named Shigeru Miyamoto wandered into a cave with only a lantern for light.
- Silent HillKonami Computer Entertainment Tokyo began work on the first game in September 1996. A group of staff members within that studio formed what would become…
- Mass EffectIn 2148, humanity discovered an alien outpost on Mars that contained a mass relay. This artifact enabled faster-than-light travel to other relays scattered…
- Tom Clancy's Splinter CellUbisoft Montreal spent two years building the first Splinter Cell game before releasing it as an exclusive title for the Xbox in 2002.
- Battlefield (video game series)On the 10th of September 2002, Electronic Arts released Battlefield 1942 for Microsoft Windows and OS X computers. This title marked the beginning of a…
- Mana (series)In 1987, Square sent a letter to customers who had placed pre-orders for an ambitious Famicom Disk System project titled The Emergence of Excalibur.
- Mortal KombatIn 1991, four people began work on a project that would change video games forever. Ed Boon handled programming while John Tobias managed art and story.
- Middle-earth in video gamesMelbourne House released The Hobbit in 1982, marking the start of a licensed video game series based on J. R. R. Tolkien's works.
- Star Wars: Rogue Squadron (series)LucasArts and Factor 5 joined forces to create the first Star Wars: Rogue Squadron game. The title launched on the 7th of December 1998 for the Nintendo 64…
- TekkenIn 1994, Namco released the first Tekken arcade cabinet, marking a pivotal shift in video game history. This machine ran on the Namco System 11 board and…
- DarkstalkersIn 1994, Capcom released Darkstalkers: The Night Warriors in Japanese arcades. This release marked a departure from the realistic martial arts style that…
- Gran Turismo (series)In 1992, Kazunori Yamauchi began work on a racing game while employed at Sony Computer Entertainment Japan. His initial team consisted of five people who…
- Final FantasyHironobu Sakaguchi stood at the edge of a career cliff in 1987. Square, the company he worked for, faced financial trouble and potential bankruptcy.
- Dead or Alive (franchise)In 1996, the first Dead or Alive game released on arcade hardware introduced a three-button control scheme that changed how players approached fighting games.
- Granblue FantasyIn the town of Zinkenstill, a Captain and their winged companion Vyrn relax before spotting an Erste Empire airship in the sky.