Ranked · Games · Updated June 2026

The Best Video Game Series to Play in Order

Story-driven sagas, genre-defining classics, and worlds you lose months inside — these are the game franchises worth playing in order. We weighed narrative payoff, consistency across entries, and how much each series rewards going deep. Controller-ready, ranked best-first.

  1. 1
    The Witcher Games in OrderGame

    Three games, one staggering arc — Wild Hunt is the high-water mark for RPG storytelling.

    See the order
  2. 2
    Mass Effect Games in OrderGame

    Your Shepard, your choices, three games of consequences — the definitive sci-fi space opera trilogy.

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  3. 3
    The Legend of Zelda Games in OrderGame

    Decades of reinvention; every entry redefines what an adventure game can be.

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  4. 4
    The Last of Us Games in OrderGame

    Two games of brutal, character-first storytelling that prove games can gut you.

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  5. 5
    God of War Games in OrderGame

    Greek-myth spectacle reborn as an aching father-son saga — the 2018 pivot is genius.

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  6. 6
    Red Dead Redemption Games in OrderGame

    A dying-West elegy with the most lived-in open world ever built.

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  7. 7
    Dark Souls & FromSoftware Games in OrderGame

    Punishing, cryptic, endlessly imitated — it launched a whole genre and never softened.

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  8. 8
    Final Fantasy Games in OrderGame

    Forty years of bold reinvention; no two numbered entries play remotely alike.

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  9. 9
    Metal Gear Solid Games in OrderGame

    Kojima's stealth-espionage opus — equal parts genius, absurd, and decades ahead.

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  10. 10
    Persona Games in OrderGame

    Social-sim by day, dungeon-crawl by night — stylish JRPGs you'll never want to end.

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  11. 11
    BioShock Games in OrderGame

    Would you kindly play the smartest shooter ever written about free will?

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  12. 12
    Resident Evil Games in OrderGame

    Survival horror's gold standard, reinventing itself from tank controls to first-person dread.

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  13. 13
    Halo Games in OrderGame

    The shooter that defined a console era — Master Chief's saga still hits hard.

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  14. 14
    Fallout Games in OrderGame

    Darkly funny post-nuclear RPGs where every wasteland choice actually matters.

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  15. 15
    Grand Theft Auto Games in OrderGame

    Satirical open-world chaos perfected — each city is a playground and a punchline.

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  16. 16
    Uncharted Games in OrderGame

    Nathan Drake's cinematic treasure hunts — blockbuster adventure with real heart.

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  17. 17
    The Elder Scrolls Games in OrderGame

    Boundless fantasy worlds you can disappear into for literal hundreds of hours.

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  18. 18
    Baldur’s Gate Games in OrderGame

    From CRPG pioneer to BG3's modern masterpiece — tabletop freedom, fully realized.

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Frequently asked questions

Which video game series should a beginner start with?

For story-first players, The Last of Us or God of War (2018) are perfect on-ramps — cinematic, accessible, and gripping. If you want a sprawling RPG, The Witcher 3 stands alone well even without playing the first two. Avoid starting with Dark Souls unless you crave a challenge.

Should I play these in release order or chronological order?

Release order is almost always best — it follows how mechanics and stories were designed to unfold. The Witcher, Mass Effect, and The Last of Us reward release order especially. A few like God of War and Metal Gear have prequels, but their twists land hardest played as released.

How long does it take to play one of these series in full?

It varies wildly. Uncharted's main games run roughly 40-50 hours total, while a single Elder Scrolls or Persona entry can eat 80-100+ hours alone. Budget months, not weekends, for completionist runs of RPG-heavy series like Fallout or The Witcher.

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