Some video games are a miracle to come out and be a great singular experience. Then there are games that grow into franchises, or at least trilogies. There are a lot of good examples where the quality of these trilogies either goes up or at least stays consistent in all forms, from gameplay to storytelling.
6 Greatest Video Game Trilogies You Didn't Know Existed
Despite the success necessary for a video game to receive not one but two sequels, these video game trilogies have been completely overlooked.
The original Mass Effect trilogy is one great example that had a divisive ending, but otherwise, it’s one of the most solid trilogies ever made. What about the opposite side of the coin? Are there trilogies, or sequential sets of games that got worse each time, or at least didn’t have an even design throughout? Let’s dive into video game history and find out how these games started high and ended poorly.
There will be spoilers for the Castlevania section only.
Lost Planet: Extreme Condition
Starship Troopers
- Lost Planet: Extreme Condition (2006 Xbox 360)
- Lost Planet 2 (2010 PC, PS3, and Xbox 360)
- Lost Planet 3 (2013 PC, PS3, and Xbox 360)
This series began with Lost Planet: Extreme Condition in 2006 in Japan for the Xbox 360, which was exclusive to the platform, and it was released in North America a year later. For a new generation, Capcom seemed to want yet another horror series under their belt, which was an interesting prospect, admittedly. Instead of zombies, players fought alien bugs in snowy conditions with a wild assortment of futuristic guns and even mini mechs that ranged from ones carrying heavy artillery to more mobile ones that could transform. Like the later Resident Evil games, Lost Planet: Extreme Condition was more of an action game devoid of horror except for the B-Movie level cutscenes. It was a cool new franchise for a new era of consoles, but sadly, the franchise never figured out what it wanted to be.
Lost Planet 2 was released in 2010 on a variety of consoles and was a much more multiplayer-focused game akin to Monster Hunter, another Capcom series. Players could go into the episodes alone, but the AI partners were bad enough that it was a deterrent to play without others online. Missions varied, but for the most part, they ended with gigantic boss battles that rivaled anything from the first game, which could be cool, but the overall design of the game was messy. Lost Planet 3 was a prequel released in 2013 that focused on story, telling a heartfelt tale about a miner just trying to gather enough money to send home to his family. The action was overall the same, but less bombastic and campy, and thus a bit less special. From B-Movie horror to multiplayer madness to a touching fatherly story, Lost Planet truly was lost as a series.
Castlevania: Lords Of Shadow
The Beginnings Of Belmont And Dracula
- Castlevania: Lords of Shadow (2010 PS3 and Xbox 360)
- Castlevania: Lords of Shadow - Mirror of Fate (2013 3DS, PS3, and Xbox 360)
- Castlevania: Lords of Shadow 2 (2014 PC, PS3, and Xbox 360)
Castlevania: Lords of Shadow was released for a plethora of systems in 2010, and it was the first game that MercurySteam developed on behalf of Konami for the Castlevania series. It was set up as an origin story for the Belmont clan and Dracula, starring Gabriel Belmont going after the titular Lords of Shadow. It was a decent enough action-adventure game that threw a lot of other games into the mix, from the action of God of War to the scaling of Shadow of the Colossus pertaining to some bosses. It was never a massive success critically, but it had its fans, and the ending was the most prolific thing about it. To fully discuss this trilogy, there needs to be spoilers, which will start after this.
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Gabriel became Dracula, reforming the very idea of Castlevania as a series. The next game, Castlevania: Lords of Shadow - Mirror of Fate, was released first for the 3DS in 2013 and later that same year on consoles in an HD edition. It was a 2D game made to appease the older Castlevania fans, mainly focusing on Simon and Trevor Belmont, along with Alucard. It was a fine enough side adventure that fell short of greatness, but the big game was the finale, Castlevania: Lords of Shadow 2, and it too had issues. One thing the Castlevania series didn’t need was stealth mechanics, which there is plenty of in the early stages of the game. The story can also feel a bit convoluted, and while finally being able to play as Dracula in a game can be empowering, it’s not the massive power draw that some fans probably dreamed of. Overall, MercurySteam’s Castlevania experiment was an interesting but uneven diversion.
Dino Crisis
Resident Dinosaur
- Dino Crisis (1999 PS1
- Dino Crisis 2 (2000 PS1
- Dino Crisis 3 (2003 Xbox)
Capcom released Dino Crisis for the PS1 in 1999, which was a survival horror premise akin to Jurassic Park. Regina and her fellow agents were sent to investigate an island that had become quiet. They soon discovered the research lab was experimenting on dinosaurs, which then escaped and killed everyone. Instead of the zombie-infested mansion of Resident Evil, players had to contend with various forms of dinosaurs in a lab on a remote island. It wasn’t as iconic as Resident Evil, but it was certainly a solid spiritual spinoff that had plenty of intense moments. Dino Crisis 2 was released a year later in 2000 on the PS1 and featured more outdoor locations and had more of an emphasis on action.
The quality of both games is about even, but the lack of the more methodical horror elements made the sequel a lesser experience for some. The real jumping of the shark moment came in 2003 with Dino Crisis 3, an original Xbox exclusive. The game was set hundreds of years in the future, wherein a group of agents discovers a long lost space ship that was now overrun with mutated dinosaurs. It’s such a ridiculous premise that it almost feels like a modern game trying to push the boundaries of weird ideas like Goat Simulator or Fight Crab. While it had some cool ideas, like the jetpack, Dino Crisis 3 simply wasn’t scary, and the camera angles were not the greatest. It can be thanked for ending the franchise forever, and the game has never left the system or become backwards compatible.
Final Fantasy 13
The Lightning Trilogy
- Final Fantasy 13 (2009 PS3)
- Final Fantasy 13-2 (2011 PS3 and Xbox 360)
- Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy 13 (2013 PS3 and Xbox 360)
Final Fantasy 13 was released in Japan in 2009 for the PS3 and a year later in North America. The game starred Lightning, a soldier who gets cursed with magic, along with her sister Serah, who gets taken away. It was a more linear experience than what some fans were used to, and it’s an overall polarizing entry in the series, akin to Final Fantasy 2 and Final Fantasy 8. It is an expansive game with a cool and quick turn-based battle system, and it eventually opened up in the last third. Linear or not, it felt like a big-budget RPG with amazing graphics and a killer soundtrack that no one can argue against. This was followed up by Final Fantasy 13-2 in 2011 in Japan and a year later elsewhere. It’s a direct continuation of the story, only this time the party consisted of just two characters.
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Serah was trying to rescue Lightning, and she was assisted by a time traveler, Noel, as they went between eras to fix anomalies. The gameplay was still turn-based, but players could catch monsters and add them as third-party members in battle. It was an interesting setup for a sequel, but the reuse of assets made it feel a bit cheaper by comparison, and focusing on a character that was barely in the original, Serah, was an odd choice. Odder still was the final game, Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy 13, which was released in 2013 in Japan and a year later in the West. Players assumed the role of Lightning and were constrained to limited time spans, which made it frustrating. No RPG should have a countdown clock attached to it, as it defeats the purpose of the genre. Overall, banking so much on such a divisive game, Final Fantasy 13, was probably not the smartest idea.
Parasite Eve
Not My Brea
- Parasite Eve (1998 PS1)
- Parasite Eve 2 (1999 PS1)
- The 3rd Birthday (2010 PSP)
Parasite Eve was released for the PS1 in 1998, which was a golden era for Square, as they released a lot of experimental games. It was a turn-based RPG, but players could run around the battle arenas to dodge attacks, and when they aimed their telekinetic powers or guns, there was a grid that conveyed the area of attack. It took place in modern-day New York City, wherein an incident found the city in a mutant apocalypse consisting of humans melting into goo and animals turning into monsters. Aya was a detective, tied directly to the mystery, and she was a strong and confident character, who was assisted by a well-rounded cast. It brilliantly blended survival horror games, which was big following after Resident Evil in 1996, and RPGs. Perhaps that was a double-edged sword because Square decided to fall more in line with Resident Evil’s gameplay style with Parasite Eve 2.
It was released in 1999 in Japan for the PS1 and a year later in North America. Aya was now a member of the FBI, with the game starting in L.A. Before quickly moving to the Mojave Desert, where she investigated an underground lab. Players fired their weapons in real-time, but there were still some psychic abilities too. It was good, but a bit of an odd turnaround for those who loved the NYC setting and hybrid gameplay. Things went further into the action category with The 3rd Birthday for the PSP. Released first in Japan, the game moved to the West a year later, in 2011. Aya was still the protagonist who could now use her mind to travel back in time to prevent a new NYC apocalypse. She didn’t act the same, almost like a shell of her former confident self. The game is not bad, but it strayed so far away from the original. Nothing can ever deteriorate Parasite Eve, though, which will hopefully return one day.
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