It is vital that any video game series looking for success defines its identity clearly and concisely. Players need to know what they’re getting when they pick up aMarioorZeldagame. However, this often means that a series is restricted to one genre of games, lest it alienate its audience. This is where spin-offs come in.
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Spin-offs allow game developers to try out new and interesting visual styles and game mechanics, without changing their main series too much. Often, they are only given a series’ name as a marketing tactic to attract fans. These games are not to be discounted however, because companies like Nintendo, have actually produced some extremely high quality spin-offs for its various franchises over the years.
Xenoblade Chronicles
With the release and success ofXenoblade Chronicles 3, MonolithSoft’s RPG series has continued its streak of successes since the critical acclaim that the originalXenoblade Chroniclesreceived. Despite seeming iconic now though, the series is actually quite young, and hasn’t seen much opportunity for spin-off titles.
While some may not consider it a spin-off,Xenoblade Chronicles Xis a title outside the somewhat linked canon of the otherXBCtitles, which also makes many big changes to the way that the series plays. It takes the open world exploration of the series to heights that haven’t been attempted again since, and its current absence from the Switch library is a massive missed opportunity.
Donkey Kong
Donkey Kongis a rather strange franchise. The originalDonkey Kongsaw the first appearance of Mario, but the plumber soon grew to outshine his simian rival. NowDKis seen as a spin-off series toMarioitself, and has struggled to find its identity over the years.
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Most people know the series forDonkey Kong: Countryand its sequels, but it’s hard to state what the series’ main identity is. Despite this, there have been some full-blown spin-offs, likeDiddy Kong RacingandMario vs Donkey Kong. The series does also have stranger entries like theDonkey Kongagames that are more of a mixed bag, but, overall, the spin-off offerings from the big ape lean mostly positive.
Fire Emblem
While it’s a big name these days,Fire Emblemhas actually been quite niche for most of its lifespan. BeforeSuper Smash Bros Meleeintroduced Marth and Roy to the west, the series wasn’t even available in english. Even after that, it tookFire Emblem: Awakeningfor the series to finally find its footing in Nintendo’s catalog.
As such, there haven’t been too many FE spin-offs.Tokyo Mirage Sessions #FEcrossed the series over withShin Megami Tensei, creating a pretty good, if tedious RPG. The series also managed to be successfully adapted for the mobile market withFE: Heroes.FE: Warriors, however, is the best spin-off the series has seen, managing to evolve the scale of the series’ battles.
The Legend of Zelda
Despite being one of Nintendo’s heavy hitters,The Legend of Zeldahas actually had a rather mixed history, especially early on. While the originalLegend of Zeldais still universally loved today, its sequel,Zelda 2, has since become the dark horse of the series, and there is no shortage of criticism for titles likeSkyward SwordandTwilight Princess.
On the spin-off front, the series also had a bad start with the now infamousZeldaCD-I games. These titles were failures in everything from gameplay to story and sales, and seem to have somewhat scared Nintendo offZeldaspin-offs for some time. With the release ofHyrule Warriorson the Wii U however,Zeldaspin-offs have seen a massive improvement.HWstill accounts for most of the series' great spin-offs, but titles likeCadence of HyruleandFour Swordsshow thatZeldais a series still ripe for crossovers and spin-offs.
Pokemon
While not owned entirely by Nintendo, thePokemonseries has a long and storied history with the company, particularly in the video game market.Pokemon RedandBluecould be considered partially responsible for the original gameboy’s success, and everyPokemongame since has helped Nintendo sell consoles in the millions. With such importance in and out of video games, it should come as no surprise to learn thatPokemonhas no shortage of spin-off titles
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There are occasional forgettable titles likePokemon Dash, but theMystery Dungeon,SnapandStadiumseries are what people think about when discussingPokemonspin-offs, and are all iconic in their own right.Pokemonseems to have somewhat slowed down with its spin-offs recently, but many fans are still begging for new entries forPokken TournamentandPokemon Legends, proving that demand is in no short supply.
Kirby
It can often be heard within discussions of theKirbyseries, that there has never been a badKirbygame. It’s hard to deny this when the series continually delivers light, breezy adventures with a hidden challenge for experienced players and tons of content. Especially in recent years though, the series has been pumping out spin-off after spin-off without ever dropping the ball.
There are some oldKirbyclassics likeKirby’s Dream CourseandKirby Air Ridethat still hold up today, but in the 3DS and Switch eras, games likeKirby Fighters,Kirby Battle Royaleand the newly releasedKirby’s Dream Buffethave proven that the pink puffball can take on new gameplay styles whenever he wants without seeing a massive drop in quality.
Mario
The originalSuper Marioon the NES helped stake Nintendo’s claim on the video game market, and ever since,Mariogames have been an integral part of Nintendo’s success. Considering the series’ long history and massive popularity, it’s received almost too many spin-offs to even name. While the list includes some stinkers, there are so many spin-offs in total that they are far outpaced by the good ones.
Some of these spin-offs likeMario Kartand the various Mario sports games could even be counted as new series of their own.Mariohas spanned almost every genre gaming has to offer, and has even headlines crossovers withSonicandThe Rabbids, each time creating something memorable and profitable in their own right.
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