There is nothing better than discovering a video game franchise and then playing through all its main games in quick succession, a journey that constantly reinforces your love as you realize this series can do no wrong. During these moments, even weaker entries become more enjoyable, which is probably the primary reason I have fond memories of Devil May Cry 2. However, once in a while, the unthinkable happens, and you play through a series that legitimately can claim to consist of nothing but 10/10 masterpieces, at least in relation to the core games.

Game development is, obviously, extremely challenging, and plenty of things can go wrong over the many years required to create magic. Consequently, perfect video game series are almost unheard of, and the precious few that exist should be celebrated. If nothing else, they should be played if you are interested in their genres.

A few notes and criteria:

  • We are only counting mainline games and not spin-offs, as that would eliminate pretty much every franchise. That said, we will mention a few great spin-offs.
  • To qualify, a franchise has to have three main games.
  • Ultimately, not everyone will agree on whether a game is a 10/10, and there is no purely objective answer. We are going to focus on series with games that are exclusively highly regarded, rather than subjective picks. For example, I think the One Piece Pirate Warriors games are all awesome, but I wouldn't expect anybody else to agree.

Honorable Mentions: Franchises That Mostly Have 10/10 Games

Video Game Series That Have One Or More Entries That Fall A Bit Short

  • Grand Theft Auto: Most of the main entries are 10/10, but Rockstar has re-released a few versions that are far from perfect.
  • Max Payne: All three games are brilliant, but Rockstar's entry is slightly polarizing.
  • Metal Gear Solid: I almost included MGS, but Guns of the Patriots and The Phantom Pain are not universally adored.
  • Red Dead: The Redemption games are arguably 10/10, but Red Dead Revolver is just decent.
  • God of War: Ascension qualifies as a main entry, and it is not great. The first God of War is also nowhere near as incredible as its sequels.
  • Infamous: I love all the Infamous games, but none of them are unquestionably 10/10. Well, maybe Infamous 2, although the story isn't great. Still, does that really matter?
  • The Legend of Zelda: Zelda II is certainly not 10/10. Don't get me wrong, it is still pretty great.
  • Uncharted: The first game was great for its time, but it has not aged extremely well. Uncharted 3 is also very polarizing.
  • The Witcher: The Witcher 2 and 3 are nearly perfect, but the first game could use a remake.
  • Xenoblade Chronicles: Xenoblade Chronicles 2 seems to divide people.
  • Dark Souls: If the picks were solely based on my opinion, FromSoftware's Soulsborne would be first on the list. However, I know people tend to love or hate Dark Souls 2.
  • Street Fighter: The numbered entries are mostly brilliant, but the first game is rough, and the fifth entry took a long time to become great.
  • Hitman: Honestly, I'd argue the World of Assassination Trilogy is perfect. The earlier games are mostly excellent, too, but a few entries are just good.
  • Dragon Quest: Probably the most consistent JRPG franchise of all time, and I could totally see the argument that all the main games are 10/10.
  • Batman Arkham: Arkham Knight is somewhat let down due to the Batmobile sections, and Arkham Origins is underappreciated but not perfect. Technically, Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League is also part of the series, so...yeah.
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Half-Life

Valve's Masterpiece Video Game Franchise That Is Nearly Flawless

  • Main Half-Life Games That Are All 10/10: Half-Life, Half-Life 2, Episodes 1 & 2, and Half-Life Alyx
  • Expansions & Multiplayer Only Half-Life Games That Are Arguably 10/10: Opposing Force, Blue Shift, Decay, Deathmatch, and Lost Coast

Out of all franchises ever, Half-Life is arguably the only one that genuinely has nothing but 10/10 games, including expansions and multiplayer spin-offs. If we are talking solely about the mainline entries, then Valve's series is a no-brainer, as Half-Life and Half-Life 2 are two of the most influential first-person games of all time. The latter is more highly regarded than its predecessor, but make no mistake, the original Half-Life was groundbreaking and still holds up as one of the grandest projects of the '90s. Half-Life Alyx is arguably the best VR game of all time, and it is worth investing in the technology just to play it. While not fully fleshed out experiences that rival their predecessors, the episodes are nevertheless incredible additions to Half-Life 2 that should not be skipped or ignored.

The most impressive thing about this series is just how well all of these games have aged. The first two titles are more than two decades old, and yet they are an absolute blast to play through today. You don't need nostalgia to appreciate their quality, and their brilliance still shines as brightly as it did all those years ago.

Forza Horizon

Xbox's Open-World Racing Game Franchise That Is Basically Perfect

  • All Forza Horizon Games That Are 10/10: Forza Horizon 1–5

After Half-Life, Forza Horizon is the franchise with the most obvious perfect track record, although its niche genre means it might not be the first series that comes to mind. Compared to its sim sibling, Forza Horizon is all about over-the-top arcade racing and gorgeous sandboxes, with every entry being set in impressively realistic regions from around the world.

Although each sequel introduces new elements, your favorite might just come down to whether you prefer Australia, Colorado, or Mexico, as the games are so fundamentally amazing that they are guaranteed to offer a good time. Personally, Forza Horizon 4 is my top pick, just because I used to live in Edinburgh and enjoy revisiting the city through Playground's open-world. Otherwise, every entry is equally brilliant, addictive, and simple to pick up and play.

Now, to be fair, Forza Horizon 4 temporarily had a bug that made it unplayable, so that almost disqualifies the series. Still, it was fixed in a few days.

3D Super Mario

Super Mario's 3D Games Are Always Must-Play

  • Main 3D Super Mario Games That Are All 10/10: Super Mario 64, Super Mario Sunshine, Super Mario Galaxy 1 & 2, Super Mario 3D Land, Super Mario 3D World, and Super Mario Odyssey
  • Other 3D Super Mario Games That Are Close To 10/10: Super Mario 64 DS (Still great, but the controls are nowhere near as good as the original version) and Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker (Great puzzle spin-off game, but not quite on the same level as the main entries)

Another easy inclusion, Nintendo always seems to hit the mark when it comes to 3D Super Mario. Super Mario 64 might be the most important and plain-old fun game of the 1990s, and age has done absolutely nothing to dull its appeal. Super Mario Galaxy and its sequel are the best games on the Nintendo Wii, and they are prime contenders for the greatest 3D platformers of all time. Super Mario Odyssey is like an evolved form of Super Mario 64, and it gets pretty much everything right. Super Mario 3D Land does an amazing job of showing off the 3DS's hardware and capabilities, all the while delivering an adventure that could rival home console releases in most areas.

The only somewhat questionable entries are Super Mario Sunshine and Super Mario 3D World, although the only argument is whether they are 9/10 or 10/10. The latter is probably the safest and least experimental 3D Super Mario, and it does not stick in the mind quite as long as nearly every other mainline game in the franchise. That said, it is still fantastic and among the very best games on the Wii U. On the other hand, Super Mario Sunshine is arguably the most experimental entry, and the F.L.U.D.D. Movement system is not for everyone; however, if it clicks with you, you will not find anything else quite like Sunshine.

Super Smash Bros. And Mario Kart could also qualify, but I went with 3D Super Mario as there is more of a reason to replay all the entries nowadays.

Baldur’s Gate

Baldur's Gate 3 Is Not The Only 10/10 Game

  • Main Baldur's Gate Games That Are All 10/10: Baldur's Gate 1–3
  • Baldur's Gate Spin-Offs That Are Good But Probably Not 10/10: Dark Alliance Games

Ah, Baldur's Gate, an RPG series that, technically, has been producing gold for four decades. Larian's Baldur's Gate 3 was such a massive success story that it largely overshadows everything that came before it, and it plays differently enough from BioWare's original entries to stand on its own two feet. BG3 serves as a prime example that a release does not have to be flawless to be a 10/10. Especially at launch, the game had its share of bugs, along with difficulty spikes that can make for a frustrating experience at times. However, BG3's writing, scope, dialogue, character, player choices, and narrative are so good that nothing else really matters. As long as you enjoy turn-based RPGs, you will almost certainly adore Larian's masterpiece.

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BioWare's Baldur's Gate games show their age nowadays, but they are arguably still the developer's best pure RPGs, a statement that is not made lightly. The games greatly influenced future epics like Dragon Age: Origins, and their gameplay was genre-pushing for their era. The first game can be slightly hard to fully love nowadays, as it has enough rough edges and jank to make for an uneven experience. Still, it was a 10/10 when it was originally released. Baldur's Gate 2 is comfortably one of the greatest RPGs of all time, and it is the main reason so many long-time fans wanted the series to return.

Pikmin

A Unique Video Game Franchise That Offers Nothing But Homeruns

  • All Pikmin Games That Are 10/10: Pikmin 1–4
  • Pikmin Spin-off Games That Are Not 10/10: Hey! Pikmin and Pikmin Bloom

Pikmin is oddly amazing. Have you ever tried to describe these games to somebody? It is near impossible to do so in a way that makes sense or paints the series in a positive light. Yet, the second someone boots one of the main Pikmin titles, they will quickly find themselves immersed in its tiny world and unexpectedly intuitive controls. Everything just comes together to create a franchise that is largely one of a kind, even if a similar project pops up from time to time. Something like Tinykin is great in its own right, but it is not a replacement for Pikmin, as nothing seems to be able to scratch the same itch.

Considering Nintendo built the series around such novel gameplay, the fact that the first game hit things immediately out of the park was truly incredible, and an argument could be made that the original Pikmin is still the best. However, all three main sequels fine-tune and expand on their predecessors' ideas, all the while maintaining the same core gameplay loop and sheer joy.

The spin-offs are, admittedly, really not great, but the mainline Pikmin games qualify.

Persona

A JRPG Franchise Synonymous With Greatness

  • All Mainline Persona Games That Are 10/10: Persona 3–5, Including Remakes and Remasters like Persona 3 FES, Persona 3 Portable, Persona 3 Reload, Persona 4 Golden, and Persona 5 Royal. Persona 1 and 2 also qualify, but they are products of their time.
  • All Persona Spin-Off Games That Are 10/10: Persona 4 Arena Ultimax
  • All Persona Spin-Offs That Are Fantastic But Probably Not 10/10: Persona 3: Dancing in Moonlight, Persona 4: Dancing All Night, Persona 5: Dancing in Starlight, Persona 5 Strikers, Persona Q: Shadow of the Labyrinth (and the sequel), and Persona 5: The Phantom X

OK, this one is a bit of a strange case, as Persona 1 and 2 tend to be forgotten and ignored. They are completely overshadowed by their successors, and their gameplay and storytelling are pretty different from everything that came after. Still, they are stellar monster-collecting JRPGs and PS1 classics in their own right. If you have never played them, give them a try as they might surprise you.

From the third entry, Persona has been on an unprecedented run of success, especially for a JRPG series that has produced a LOT of spin-offs. Nearly all games that carry the Persona name are quality, but the numbered entries are exclusively all-time greats. Persona 3 set the benchmark and wrote the guidelines for the franchise's future, and it tells arguably the best story in the series. Persona 4 had nearly all of its predecessor's strengths, along with improved visuals. If someone were to say that P4G is the greatest JRPG of all time, they would not need to justify it. Finally, Persona 5 helped extend the series' widespread appeal by delivering top-notch visuals, music storytelling, and characters. Then, somehow, P5R took the 10/10 base game and made it better.

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