Tribute: Top 10 Xbox 360 Video Game Franchises PART 1

As we approach the dawn of a new generation of video game consoles, let's take some time to reflect on the best of what one particular console had to offer since it's debut in 2005, the Xbox 360.

To date, there have been about 1000 game titles released for Microsoft's popular gaming system. There have many truly outstanding titles, from Dead Rising to Red Dead Redemption to Skyrim to GTA5. However there are some key franchises that debuted during this generation that call for special recognition. The criteria I used for creating this list was:

• The franchise must have at least two games in the series
• The franchise debuted during the 360's generation (so you won't see any Halo on this list)
• And, if a friend was buying the 360 today and asked "What games should I play on this system?" 

Although most of you may disagree with my rankings of these franchise, I doubt many will disagree on the importance of these titles on this system. Anyone picking up a Xbox 360 for the first time (I know. But there are lots who get into gaming late!) should consider starting with the titles on this list. They will provide you with many hours of gaming excellence, many times with a decent storyline!


And now...Part 1 of the Top 10 Video Game Franchises on the Xbox 360!

 #10 Dead Space (2008) 

Dead Space 2 (2011)    Dead Space 3 (2013)

This is a series I am fine admitting that I did not finish. Why? Because it freaked me out TOO much. That's not to say it was a poor game or series. On the contrary, it was extremely well done. The area to sound design was a particular strong point causing many gamers to say to only way to experience the Dead Space series is with the lights off and headphones on. Although some gamers were disappointed with the third installment, most will agree this series should at least be experienced...if you dare!

#9 Left 4 Dead (2008)

Left 4 Dead 2 (2009)

So you like zombies? You have friends that like zombies? Then L4D is the only way to go. This first person shooter shines when playing 4-player co-op online. Each player takes on the persona of one of the four main characters that are trying to make sense of what is going on and to survive. The key survival mechanic is that this game makes it nearly impossible for a teammate to "lone wolf" it without getting ambushed by the hoards. You MUST stay together in order to survive. L4D2 improved on the formula of the first and created a really fun humans vs. zombies. Single players don't bother.

#8 Dance Central (2010)

Dance Central 2 (2011)   Dance Central 3 (2012)

Okay, full disclosure. I'm a song and dance guy that's been involved with musical theater since high school. Dance Central scratched that itch of learning fun choreography and performing it with friends. Sure it was in our living room. And yes some of us (not me of course) looked silly. BUT IT WAS A BLAST! It wasn't until DC2 where the game really shines by allowing two dancers to perform at the same time. Any of these installments works well individually but the developer of DC, Harmonix, allowed users to import all the songs from other CD games into the most recent release, making it a one-stop party game. I should mention that the dance routines were much more complex and sophisticated than rival series "Let's Dance" making it a better choice for grown-ups! 

#7 Gears of War (2006)

GoW 2 (2008)  GoW 3 (2011) 

When Gears of War demoed at the big E3 convention in LA, you could hear jaws hit the floor. The game immediately launched game director, Cliffy B, to celebrity status. A great story line (though flawed), great dude-bro characters and...a chainsaw mounted on a gun! The ultimate shooter mash up weapon! Gears of War's only major critique was that is was too short. Epic Games more than made up for it in the sequel with a longer story and an excellent co-op wave-based mode called Horde, the goal being to hold off 50 waves of enemies on the same map. GoW 3 wrapped up the story (mostly) and did it's best to try to add theatrical emotion to the ending. Better yet, having 4-player co=op mode for the story made it very fun to complete with friends. A "prequel" called GoW: Judgment came out in 2013 featuring only supporting characters didn't advance the story and came off as a money grab. 

#6 Black Ops (2010)

Black Ops 2 (2012)

Now I know what you are saying. "Black Ops is a Call of Duty game and COD was around before the 360 even came out!" Yes, technically it's true. The 360 debuted with Call of Duty 2 as a launch title. However....Black Ops did not continue the numbering system that had been established. (That ended with COD4: Modern Warfare.) So in essence, Black Ops was it's own storyline and, since it was the first to be developed by Treyarch, went for a different feel from prior COD games. If you had to jump into COD, I recommend starting with the Block Ops series. You'll know if this your kind of shooter or not pretty quickly. If the confusing storyline doesn't do it for you, the fast, twitchy multiplayer may hook you like it did millions of players. The zombie modes are also excellent and give some variety from the standard multiplayer modes. By the way, Nuketown was by far my favorite map on both of these installments. I played MANY hours on just that one map.

#5 Batman: Arkham Asylum (2009)

Arkham City (2011)   Arkham Origins (2013)

When Arkham Asylum was released in 2009, it was considered a sleeper hit on many levels. First, past Batman games did not have a reputation for being good games. Nearly all were quite poor in fact. Secondly, it was a super hero game, which super hero games also had a terrible track record up to this point. Arkham Asylum changed everything. From it's amazing graphics to it's intriguing storyline to it's fabulous acting. And then there's the gameplay. Here's reviewers say "I actually felt like Batman when playing this game" was not an uncommon phrase. The fighting system alone pretty much changed how fighting was designed in similar subsequent games, where Arkham became the gold standard that all others were compared to.  Arkham City went the "Bigger, better" route and this year's Origins promises to be a cherry on top of this fabulous series.

Continue with THE TOP 10 XBOX 360 VIDEO GAME FRANCHISES PART 2
for the final 4 franchises plus my favorite pick from XBLA! Feel free to comment on my first 6 entries in the comments below!