10 Video Game Franchises With Only Perfect Entries

We could sit and debate at length whether it's even possible to achieve such a quality, yet, considering that being human is naturally irregular and malleable, I like to think perfection isn't the absence of errors but rather the full manifestation of one's strengths.

From this definition, where we seek not a supposed complete homogeneity but a practically innate talent for crafting adventures whose authorial goals are fulfilled, it becomes much more possible to think of flawless titles.

Therefore, in order to give shape to this vision and recognize the names that have come closest to that state of quintessence, I invite you to discover this list of ten video game franchises with only perfect entries.

10 Max Payne

The King of TPS

Despite changing developers for its latest installment, both Remedy and Rockstar did a commendable job establishing Max Payne as the undisputed king of third-person shooters.

Years have passed since the franchise's last iteration, and many more since the original's release, and no other game in the genre has come as close to achieving a balance of stylization, gameplay expression, technical prowess, and atmosphere as these three.

Each in its own way, they elevate the status of third-person shooters with a captivating protagonist, stories brimming with mystery, and immersive environments, going to great lengths to deliver action-packed campaigns rather than static, practically turn-based exchanges of bullets.

If we were to consider the most outstanding creations within the genre, I wouldn't be surprised if the Max Payne trilogy swept the top three, as they're truly pivotal works for the industry.

9 Dishonored

Flawless Shadows

The recent events surrounding Arkane Studios fill me with a sharp pain I can't even describe, because it's difficult to believe that a team capable of creating such an impressive stealth series as Dishonored could find itself in such dire straits.

As such, the video game industry demonstrates its structural deficiencies by allowing the studio behind two of the most immersive, complete, replayable, and creative stealth titles in history, along with one of the best standalone expansions ever conceived, to be left wondering if they have a future.

From the way the player interacts with the story and setting through their actions, to the divine art design, magnificent lore, and tremendous soundtrack, the adventures of Corvo, Emily, and Billy are masterclasses in how to create captivating experiences.

Add to it the best level design you can find, and thinking of Dishonored through any of its representatives is to think of the epitome of stealth, a reality that is etched in history until further notice.

8 Death Stranding

Two Majestic Journeys

Hideo Kojima is a guarantor of truly incredible experiences that often garner mixed reviews from consumers because they are based on his artistic vision rather than market trends, which is why what he did with Death Stranding deserves all the respect in the world.

If you allow for the necessary concessions to the experimental spirit of both pieces, you encounter a fascinating universe whose construction is complex yet legitimate, capable of serving as a premonitory mirror of human events that have happened and will happen to us.

This ability to study society and express it through a couple of campaigns about making deliveries, rebuilding the world, and forging (or breaking) bonds is unprecedented in the video game industry, and I don't even know if it will have successors.

Whether you think about its movement and management mechanics, focus on the action, stealth, and horror sections, rely on its historic soundtrack or impressive atmosphere, or prioritize its magnificent narrative composition, Death Stranding is a franchise with a soul completely foreign to modern AAA projects.

7 BioShock

Unbeatable Dystopias

On the other hand, one IP that truly resonated with virtually the entire interactive media landscape and left a lasting impression was BioShock, even despite the unjustified undervaluation of its second installment.

Understanding that this might be the first surprise on the list, precisely because BioShock 2 isn't elevated to the same level as its peers, it's important to recognize it as a worthy counterpart to its older sibling, from whom it learned everything and whom it even surpassed in numerous aspects.

Having clarified said point, the truth is Irrational Games, with Rapture and Columbia as its protagonists, managed to convey two of the most contrasting and captivating dystopias in the video game industry, using an unblemished atmosphere and revolutionary environmental storytelling to tell everything without saying a word.

Thanks to its characters and plot twists, but also to its mythology and aesthetics, the gameplay allows itself to present conventional shooters because the heavy load is carried holistically, creating fluid campaigns that exploit its strengths in such a magical way that it makes it seem as if they have no weaknesses.

6 Hades

Duo of Gods

Supergiant Games completely fooled me with Hades because, just when I thought the roguelike genre had reached its apex and we'd never see anything like it again, they were already surpassing themselves less than half a decade later with Hades 2.

The duo of Zagreus and Melinoë is among the most irreverently pristine pairings I can remember within our medium, each one the star of two installments that, honestly, I find it difficult to give anything shorter than a perfect score.

Even though the second game surpasses the first, both are a masterful expression of character development, audiovisual design, gameplay progression, mythological adaptation, and intricate interplay of mechanical systems, along with a dozen other aspects that I won't list to avoid being redundant.

Indie games are usually close to perfection because of their innate ability to materialize artistic visions without outside biases, keeping their works pure but simple, but Hades goes further by being a genuinely complex and ambitious perfection, which is outlandish.

5 Metro

An Unforgettable Apocalypse

From the first time I played a Metro entry, I knew I was experiencing something special, but completing the trilogy thoroughly solidified my conviction that it's one of the finest and most underrated of all time.

Considering the level of immersion achieved by all three games through gameplay and atmosphere, creating a symbiosis between mechanics, narrative, aesthetics, and sound that instantly transports you, I'm always baffled due to their constant omission from lists about the best FPS games.

Whether facing off against indefinable subterranean beasts in massive firefights or stealthily stalking bandits and Nazis, the thrill you feel with every step, whether from tension or adrenaline, doesn't have many equivalents in this century.

Thanks to its outstanding diegetics and life-changing themes, I only hope my earthly existence lasts long enough to promulgate the excellence of its journeys until it becomes so popular that we can categorize it as mainstream.

4 Portal

Divinity in Puzzles

Back when Valve was still regularly developing single-player titles, they churned out masterpiece after masterpiece as if it were effortless, and that inevitably includes the two installments of the superb Portal series.

Within the puzzle genre, whether physics-based or otherwise, we haven't witnessed again a set of mechanics and challenges so creative that it makes you feel like there are no limits to human imagination.

The inventiveness with which both titles place you in unheard circumstances, alongside memorable antagonists who make each campaign enjoyable and motivating, is truly captivating; the kind of magic that makes you want to enjoy the games constantly through the years.

That a puzzle game feels replayable speaks volumes about its exceptional quality, and the truth is, few things in life are as enjoyable as playing through both Portal entries back-to-back, even if you've already done it a dozen times.

3 Hollow Knight

Undisputed Reigns

Repeating verbatim what I said about Hades, Team Cherry achieved an exceptional feat by creating the best Metroidvania ever made, and then going on to create the best Metroidvania ever made again, because those are the only adjectives I can apply to the Hollow Knight series.

After the first title revitalized the genre and molded it in its own image, the second arrived to purify the unrefinable, expanding its scope and detail to a level that, for years, I thought was humanly unattainable.

The countless passionate individuals who conceived the realms of Hallownest and Pharloom are a reflection of an amazing world, with captivating stories, exciting bosses, and a sense of cohesion and interconnectivity worthy of real, living spaces.

Whether you're fighting, exploring, contemplating, or experimenting, Hollow Knight and Hollow Knight: Silksong are pure wonders with the talent to win your heart so easily that it feels as if they've bewitched you, and this is a trait exclusive to the greatest.

2 Dark Souls

Revolutionary Monarchs

As with BioShock, including Dark Souls on this list inevitably implies a defense of its second representative, which I've been championing for over ten years as a misunderstood masterpiece.

In that regard, the cycle of the undead curse is meta-replicated within the trilogy's very structure, where each installment fulfills a different function to thoroughly depict the circle they propose in-game.

Through a revolutionary first installment that changed the video game industry with an unparalleled identity, a successor that refutes its founder to contrast and empower it, and a conclusion whose purpose is to brilliantly conclude the lessons learned from its predecessors, Dark Souls is pure dialectic.

They all follow the same formula, though each one embellishes it mechanically, atmospherically, and thematically with a distinctive set of values ​​and symbols that differentiate and connect them, always maintaining interaction as the cornerstone of the whole.

Given it's the past decade's most influential IP, its inclusion was non-negotiable, but if it was awarded such a degree of impact, it is precisely because its greatness, individually and collectively, is transcendental.

1 Half-Life

Setting the Standards for Video Games

The mention of Valve as a mass-producer of masterpieces suggested Half-Life would reign supreme in this article, but it's tough to find another franchise that can boast two industry-defining experiences.

It's incomparably impossible to understand the interactive medium without Gordon Freeman's presence on our screens, as the mechanical, technical, and narrative elements it presents helped shape the 21st century of video games.

Real-time narrative progression, unique physics and interaction systems without scripts, fluid campaigns without hand-holding, the subversion of expectations, the variability of objectives... To this day, these remain the blueprint for creating an interactive work.

Furthermore, Half-Life can boast of being the only series to which we could add its virtual reality installment and still take first place, because Half-Life: Alyx is the best in the history of its kind, and nothing even comes close.

With all this in mind, in a direct comparison within the perfection pseudo-scale, Half-Life's average is so absurdly high throughout its entries, as well as being important for the growth of the art, that it can only be praised as the true sovereign.