Best in Series?

PostBest in Series? by **Lime** » Fri May 18, 2018 11:54 am

It seems that we're all finding we have less time for games, as life's other commitments start to become priorities. :dread:

So, with less time to play, it makes sense (on some level... I know this isn't the purist approach) to just play games that are the best or most complete examples of a games series. Reading the Yakuza thread made me think 'I could never play all these, so if I had to pick one, which should it be?'.

So, to kick this off, I'm going to suggest that if you've only got time for one Professor Layton game, make it 'Professor Layton vs Phoenix Wright'

I've played them all, and this seemed the most complete, with a great story, good puzzles and a fine set of characters.
From what I've played so far, the latest 'Katrielle & the Millionaires Conspiracy' is one to miss.

So, for the purposes of making this a discussion, let's have your 'best in series' recommendations!

Please, let's not make this into a big argument! Make your selection from a game series, and explain (to people that might not know the series) why it stands out as the one worth playing if you have limited game time.

Let's take it as read that it doesn't mean all the others are crap! But you could also point out if there's one (or more) in the series worth avoiding.

Gemini73 · PostRe: Best in Series? by **Gemini73** » Fri May 18, 2018 1:05 pm

I would suggest a very new release in Assassin's Creed Origins.

Of all the AC games this is, without a shadow of doubt, the most accomplished in the entire series. There's plenty to do but it doesn't feel cumbersome as each quest and sub quest are interlinked in one form or another thus giving you more insight to not just your key goals and the world around you, but how you might better accomplish said goals.

Movement is so much more fluid, leaving behind the 'stickiness' (for lack of a better word) that plagued previous AC titles. Also, Bayek can now scale all but the most sheer and smoothest of surfaces, but even those have a work around. Much like Nintendo's BotW, if you see a huge mountain then you can climb it.

Combat is a breath of fresh air for the series. It's not only so much better than the clumsy combat of earlier iterations, but is now a finely polished system that other developers can learn from. For example, switching from your melee weapon of choice to your bow in an instance during combat (Legolas style) is hugely satisfying. Being surrounded is no longer a clumsy game of chance like before as your assassin now whirls and spins in flurry of precision strikes and awesome killing blows. Combat on horseback or camel is equally as good. Smashing someone over the back the skull with your spear as you charge by, knocking them of their mount or feet, never grows old.

The RPG-lite elements Origins brings to series are also welcome, allowing you to mould Bayek as you see fit. Whether seer, hunter, warrior, or a mish-mash of all three so as to create your perfect assassin.

All in all AC Origins just works. The most un-Assassin's Creed, Assassin's Creed game, and it's all the better for it.

Oh, and it looks absolutely gorgeous and has a fabulous musical score.

PostRe: Best in Series? by **Squinty** » Fri May 18, 2018 6:30 pm

I would suggest Mega Man 9 if you want to play a classic MM game. Certainly has the best gameplay of the classic series. The older games all have issues, 3 and 4 are my favourites but they aren't flawless. MM9 is just great from start to finish, consistently challenging.

Bluesky · PostRe: Best in Series? by **Kriken** » Sat May 19, 2018 11:24 am

I have in mind a few games that are the best in their series but are not exactly noob-friendly or perhaps aren't by far and away the best one - like for example, I feel like a few of the Zelda games are arguably the best.

However, I have a pretty solid recommendation for the Advance Wars series - and that is Advance Wars: Dual Strike for the DS. At its core it plays exactly like the previous games in the series but there are more units, more modes and generally a lot more content. You also have access to every commanding officer in the series up to that point (apart from Sturm), which is cool not only for the multiplayer but for the hard campaign where you can select any CO for any mission. Adds tons of replayability.

And of course this title looks and sounds better than the prior GBA games.

Story-wise, this game also isn't a bad starting point since it introduces of a couple of new protagonists to replace some of the old ones, and you don't need to be familiar with old storylines or plot points. It also takes place in a new area of the game's world. The story is essentially a re-tread of the old ones: Black Hole is trying to take over a continent.

I will say that all the games in the series are pretty accessible. None of them are a bad starting point. But Dual Strike is the high point in terms of content and aesthetics - the latter just not in terms of objective better quality, but because for this game they were really aiming for a more beautiful/charming look. The whole game just oozes charm. The older games are worth checking out after Dual Strike for sure.

On another side note, I also really like Advance Wars: Dark Conflict. Maybe even more than Dual Strike just because I like the mechanics more as well as the big nerf to CO powers for a purer strategy experience. It's a reboot with a new cast of characters and it goes for a darker and more 'realistic' tone. It's also worth checking out after Dual Strike because it's great, but I'd say check out Dual Strike first because it has a lot more content (including a Hard mode campaign, which Dark Conflict lacks) and is a better reflection of what the rest of the series is like.

PostRe: Best in Series? by **Saint of Killers** » Sat May 19, 2018 11:40 am

Yakuza: Yakuza 0
It offers a bit of everything from the previous games: drama, hi-larious sub-stories and characters, probably the best combat of any of the Yakuza games (though it also one of the crappier character upgrade interfaces), lots of diversions and 2 of the best mini-games in the series. (Real estate and night club management.)

Ys: Ys Origin
One of the most satisfying hack and slash games I have ever played. It's ridiculously satisfying playing as the melee characters! (Magic guy is okay, too.) Add in a interesting story and characters (some more so than others), and stupendously good music and challenging boss fights and you really can't go wrong.

PostRe: Best in Series? by **Lime** » Sun May 20, 2018 11:08 am

Saint of Killers wrote:Ys: Ys Origin
One of the most satisfying hack and slash games I have ever played. It's ridiculously satisfying playing as the melee characters! (Magic guy is okay, too.) Add in a interesting story and characters (some more so than others), and stupendously good music and challenging boss fights and you really can't go wrong.

This sounds interesting to me - do you need to play in long sessions or can you drop in and out?

On the casual site, if you want to pass time with a 'match 3 or more' type puzzler, 4 Elements stand out for me, since rather than having a fixed play area, it scrolls and there are various tricks and traps to overcome. Very satisfying! There are some weak 'find the hidden object' and 'spot the difference' levels mixed in, but they are few & far between, and there is a hint system to assist with finding them if you're playing on a small screen (I've played on 3DS and PC). It's often just a pound or two to buy, and I've played through it 3 or 4 times, just because it's so satisfying. Not particularly hard, but satisfying.

PostRe: Best in Series? by **Saint of Killers** » Sun May 20, 2018 12:26 pm

Lime wrote:
Saint of Killers wrote:Ys: Ys Origin
One of the most satisfying hack and slash games I have ever played. It's ridiculously satisfying playing as the melee characters! (Magic guy is okay, too.) Add in a interesting story and characters (some more so than others), and stupendously good music and challenging boss fights and you really can't go wrong.

This sounds interesting to me - do you need to play in long sessions or can you drop in and out?

On the casual site, if you want to pass time with a 'match 3 or more' type puzzler, 4 Elements stand out for me, since rather than having a fixed play area, it scrolls and there are various tricks and traps to overcome. Very satisfying! There are some weak 'find the hidden object' and 'spot the difference' levels mixed in, but they are few & far between, and there is a hint system to assist with finding them if you're playing on a small screen (I've played on 3DS and PC). It's often just a pound or two to buy, and I've played through it 3 or 4 times, just because it's so satisfying. Not particularly hard, but satisfying.

Either! If the combat hooks you then you'll *want* to play it for extended sessions, but can just as easily drop in and out if that's more your thing. There's nothing in the game which says you *must* play for extended sessions; manual saves and checkpoints see to that.

It was recently released on XB1 and is also available on PS4 and Vita (crossbuy), and PC.

PostRe: Best in Series? by **Trelliz** » Sun May 20, 2018 12:37 pm

Forza Motorsport 4

This was the last in the main series on the 360 and had a large roster, the Fujimi Kaido point-to-point races and was the last game before a fundamental design shift for 5 which I think has been for the worst. In FM4 you had races with certain requirements, some were restrictive to specific models/makes/years, however many more simply stated engine aspiration, front/rear wheel drive or a particular country. This gave you some flexibility to bring a wider range of cars to a race if you wanted to, whereas in 5 onwards every car is pigeonholed into a particular grouping and only cars from within that group can be used. Also there were microtransactions in 4, however they were much more understated compared to how many prompts and notices there are in 5.

Gemini73 · PostRe: Best in Series? by **Gemini73** » Mon May 21, 2018 10:13 am

Forza 4 is definitely my favourite in the series and is the only one I still own.

PostRe: Best in Series? by **Curls** » Mon May 21, 2018 6:40 pm

Burnout Revenge - 3 was my favourite by a long way. But if you've never played any, Revenge is the complete package. Paradise is a beautiful game. But isn't the classic arcade racing burnout like the rest.

PostRe: Best in Series? by **Ironhide** » Tue May 22, 2018 2:29 pm

Going on a slightly more retro slant here:

Ridge Racer Type 4 - This is without doubt the pinnacle of the RR games, almost everything about the game is perfect, the graphics, presentation, soundtrack and car handling were all top notch and the visual novel style career mode was a great touch. Namco were on full form during this time period as almost every PS1 game they produced was fantastic, Tekken 3 and Soul Blade being prime examples of this.

PostRe: Best in Series? by **Peter Crisp** » Tue May 22, 2018 2:35 pm

Baldur's Gate 2 is still the best RPG ever made.

NickSCFC · PostRe: Best in Series? by **NickSCFC** » Tue May 22, 2018 2:42 pm

3D fighters...

Virtua Fighter 3, Tekken 4, Dead or Alive 3

The elevated planes were amazing and added so much to the gameplay and tactics, why they were dropped I'll never know.

PostRe: Best in Series? by **OrangeRKN** » Tue May 22, 2018 2:54 pm

If you only play one Final Fantasy game, it should be The Last Story

If you only play one Mario Kart game, it should be Diddy Kong Racing

And if you only play one Zelda game, it should be Link's Awakening

PostRe: Best in Series? by **Jenuall** » Wed May 23, 2018 10:00 am

OrangeRakoon wrote:And if you only play one Zelda game, it should be Link's Awakening

Oh yeah!

PostRe: Best in Series? by **OrangeRKN** » Wed May 23, 2018 10:10 am

I really love the art style and the Japanese-inspired design

Lime wrote:
So, to kick this off, I'm going to suggest that if you've only got time for one Professor Layton game, make it 'Professor Layton vs Phoenix Wright'

I've played them all, and this seemed the most complete, with a great story, good puzzles and a fine set of characters.
From what I've played so far, the latest 'Katrielle & the Millionaires Conspiracy' is one to miss.

This is very interesting to hear. I am a massive PW fan but have only played the 1st Layton game on DS (enjoyed it, but didn't love it). I could see the appeal though. I have always been tempted by this cross over, but its stubborn refusal to drop in price means i have always shy'd away. Maybe i should take the plunge after all.

PostRe: Best in Series? by **Jenuall** » Wed May 23, 2018 10:27 am

OrangeRakoon wrote:I really love the art style and the Japanese-inspired design

It's just a great game in so many ways, I love that it's just that bit more odd than what other Zelda's had offered up to that point in time. That's one of the reasons why I rate Majora's Mask so highly as well.

PostRe: Best in Series? by **OrangeRKN** » Wed May 23, 2018 10:32 am

Unfortunately Okamiden wasn't quite so good, but it's still worth playing

PostRe: Best in Series? by **Jamo3103** » Wed May 23, 2018 2:29 pm

For me...

Wind Waker HD

I know it wouldn't be everybody's choice but for me it's the perfect Zelda to play. It's comfortably the most accessible 3D Zelda game, the art style is timeless and on the whole it is absolutely charming. I could play it over and over and never tire of it. The HD version is the best choice simply because it fixes the biggest flaw in the game, the tedious Triforce Hunt, which now takes a fraction of the time to complete.

It would be easy to play other 3D Zelda's and be put off early on, be it by convoluted save systems, motion controls, slow intro's or simply by the intimidating scale. Wind Waker has none of those flaws and is the perfect entry point if you want to give the series a try.

Best in Series?

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