Normally, I am not one to argue a “best-of” list in any serious manner. Due to the subjectivity behind these lists, there will never be a definitive list that everyone can agree on. The “best-of” lists that are the worst are the ones voted on by “the people”, because regular people make the worst choices.
In spite of that, people love to make them anyway and argue about them till the cows come home. Recently, Guinness announced its top 50 video game franchises, as chosen by you. Snap judgment: you suck. If you would like to read the full list, I advise you to hit the link. Otherwise, continue to read as I highlight a few key spots and add snarky commentary.
#1 Halo
Full disclosure: I HATE Halo. Now with that out of the way, I can say objectively that this probably belongs in the top 10. Number one though? Are people crazy? I think objectively speaking, you can only go two ways with #1 best franchise in video games: Mario, or Tetris. I can lay down cases for both that no other video game can reach. Not even Halo.
#4 Guitar Hero
Full disclosure: I have HATED Guitar Hero ever since Activision put Neversoft on Guitar Hero III and drove the entire music genre into the ground.
In it’s prime, Guitar Hero really was a revolution in video games. But is it the #4 best franchise? Hell no. Since the series peaked at III as far as sales go, Activision has ruined the entire genre by releasing 800 poorly-made Guitar Hero games a year with diminishing returns each time.
#25 WWE Smackdown vs. Raw
Really!? There’s no Street Fighter on this list, but Smackdown vs. Raw made it? A series of mediocre wrestling games that haven’t been great since the Nintendo 64 days?
#31 Goldeneye 007
Now this is my favourite entry on this list. Not because I absolutely love this game (I still do) but because it doesn’t make any sense in the context of this list. Goldeneye 007 is not a franchise. There is only one. The EA made spin-off game doesn’t count. Goldeneye 007 is an amazing game, but one game does not a franchise make. Why was this even nominated?
#46 Lego Batman
Now this is where I look at this list and think it’s a complete joke. No offense to Lego Batman. I’ve played it and think it’s fun. But I don’t think it deserves to be involved in this discussion for two reasons: it’s not one of the best games ever made, and it’s not a franchise. Just like Goldeneye, there is only one Lego Batman. Until someone announces a sequel, this shouldn’t even be deserving of a nomination.
If this list was truly made by “you”…you have terrible video game taste and poor reading comprehension. This list is worthless. I’m sorry I brought it to your attention.
In Third Person 