Only one game... series.

[Madame Adequate]

So this is the typical "You can only play one X forever" thing, but with the twist that instead of one game, I'm allowing you to pick one series.

Assume you get all DLC or whatever and whatever secondary things are necessary will exist, e.g. an Internet connection and a sufficient playerbase for an online game, all that stuff. You can use mods.

Now, defining exactly what is part of a series is a bit trickier for some games, but we'll basically go for anything that either has the same series in the title (So FF would include Tactics, but not Vagrant Story, for example) or which is explicitly in the same series even when games are unrelated or in different genres or whatever (System Shock/BioShock, Warcraft/WoW, etc.)

We'll not bother with projecting too far into the future, but if a game is announced and all that, assume it will come out.

Go.

[Pike]

oh god this is gonna be tough.

Leaning towards Warcraft. You get your MMOs and your RTS games all in one spot. Also maybe a card game if we're letting Hearthstone in.

[Skyblade]

oh god this is gonna be tough.

Leaning towards Warcraft. You get your MMOs and your RTS games all in one spot. Also maybe a card game if we're letting Hearthstone in.

Well, if we're counting DLCs and such there's also all the mods, like the original DotA.

[Pike]

oh god this is gonna be tough.

Leaning towards Warcraft. You get your MMOs and your RTS games all in one spot. Also maybe a card game if we're letting Hearthstone in.

Well, if we're counting DLCs and such there's also all the mods, like the original DotA.

Yep! Also the tower defense and golem madness style maps which were more fun than DotA but never got as popular.

[Skyblade]

oh god this is gonna be tough.

Leaning towards Warcraft. You get your MMOs and your RTS games all in one spot. Also maybe a card game if we're letting Hearthstone in.

Well, if we're counting DLCs and such there's also all the mods, like the original DotA.

Yep! Also the tower defense and golem madness style maps which were more fun than DotA but never got as popular.

Tower defense was generally awesome, but there were plenty of awful ones, and way too many tuned to multiplayer-only.

Honestly, the campaign mission in The Frozen Throne was probably my favorite tower defense map.

Lest we forget, there are also the Peggle and Bejeweled add-ons for WoW, plus a host of other mini-games.

[Pumpkin]

Final Fantasy

[Electroshock Therapy]

Hmmm. Let's see. The three series I play the most are:
1) Mega Man - I suck at those games so they can last me a good loooong time. And they're usually get up and go, so that's good for replays.
2) Legend of Zelda - Games can last a while. Good puzzles and action/adventure gameplay which is swell. A nice variety of exploration and action.
3) Final Fantasy - Not the most immersive gameplay-wise, but they take forever to beat so that's a pro for this choice.

So my answer is... draw from a hat.

[Spuuky]

You are really going to count Warcraft 3 and WoW as being the same "series"? They really aren't. They're the same IP, but the games aren't related in any other way. WoW is definitely not Warcraft 4. They may be "explicitly" in the same series but that's truly just a marketing tool.

[metagloria]

Final Fantasy and there's not a particularly close second. I mean, good grief, that's over 20 games that are all classics.

[Skyblade]

Final Fantasy and there's not a particularly close second. I mean, good grief, that's over 20 games that are all classics.

Yeah, like Mystic Quest!

[Madame Adequate]

You are really going to count Warcraft 3 and WoW as being the same "series"? They really aren't. They're the same IP, but the games aren't related in any other way. WoW is definitely not Warcraft 4. They may be "explicitly" in the same series but that's truly just a marketing tool.

Yes I am because that's the conceit of the thread.

[Egami]

Yeah, like Mystic Quest!

Mystic Quest's music drinks your milkshake :P

As far as which series goes, Final Fantasy for me of course, it isn't even a contest.

[Karifean]

One series, huh. That actually makes Final Fantasy put up more of a fight against Warcraft.

I mean Warcraft still wins, but hey, Final Fantasy would be a not-all-that-distant second. At least as long as there's no stupid rule like "you will forever forget about all other games you've ever played" because then FF and WTC would take the lead. I'm not planning on forgetting the series that shaped me.

[Skyblade]

Yeah, like Mystic Quest!

Mystic Quest's music drinks your milkshake :P

As far as which series goes, Final Fantasy for me of course, it isn't even a contest.

In which case we get the core series, the tactical RPGs, Theatrhythm, Dissidia, the mobile games (All the Bravest FTW!), two MMOs, the Crystal Chronicles games... Yeah, there's a lot here, too.

[Bolivar]

Probably Final Fantasy for me, too. Such variety, much feels.

Almost tempted to say Zelda though.

[chionos]

Depends. Is this a theoretically setting where theoretical games that should exist actually do exist? In that case I'd have to give some serious consideration to Half-Life. Again, this is assuming that HL2:E3 and HL3 and P3 actually exist (and don't ruin the franchise).

It's really hard to not pick Final Fantasy. There's just so much there. But I could probably be content with Zelda, Metroid, or TES, too.

[Skyblade]

There is indeed a question of whether we should count games that have yet to be made. If there is a series doing well and that is expected (or known) to have more games coming, will those be allowed? Or only ones released so far?

[Madame Adequate]

I wondered about that myself, and where to draw the line is the problem. We can assume some series will carry on - FF is a likely candidate to reach quite a few more iterations - and some might be revived or rebooted, but knowing exactly which is not something we can predict, and we don't know how they'll turn out either. Hardly anyone expected the Firaxis XCOM to be good but it's a classic, same with Deus Ex HR, but Turok became mediocre and Tomb Raider has been all over the place.

So I think I'd say announced games will happen for sure, and assume a reasonable amount of DLC or whatever for them, but beyond that cut it off.

[Denmark]

if i believed that a good metroid game would ever be made again i'd say that series. failing that i'll say zelda.

[escobert]

Either FF, Zelda, Fallout or Elder Scrolls. I can't choose one.

[Del Murder]

FF definitely. There's enough there to keep you going for years, especially with the two MMOs and all the spinoffs.

[Madame Adequate]

I'm torn between Warcraft and Final Fantasy myself. Both have a good number of games - very, very big games at that - and both have at least one MMO on offer as well. I may have to give it to FF because, for one thing, TWO MMOS good gracious, and secondly, some of the other games are timless classics too. But... I don't know, Warcraft II and III, to say nothing of WoW...

I wouldn't be entirely dissatisfied with something like Mario or something with a good online component like Halo, either. And I could survive, if imperfectly, on a sportsball franchise or something too.

[Skyblade]

Mario. Wow. Sports games, racers, RPGs, puzzle games...

Practically everything except MMOs and shooters.

[Shlup]

Part of me wants to say Mario because the games are fun, but the Zelda games are the ones I most look forward to. Though Tomb Raider's pretty high up there since the reboot; hopefully the second game will be at least as good as the first.

[chionos]

Ooohh, I forgot about Tomb Raider.

This raises a new question for me. Would you be forced in any way to play games in the series you don't want to play?

Cause if so, instead of basing my decision on the series with the most games I'd want to play, I'd base it on the series with the least number of games I don't want to play. i.e. TR wouldn't have a chance.

Neither would Mario, Metroid, RE, SH, or pretty much any long-running franchised series of games. And FFXIII alone annoys me so much I probably would have to pass on Final Fantasy as a series. I'm not joking, either. I seriously hate that game (I'm playing 13-2 now, and it's not nearly as bad).

Would shoot TES far up on my list of possibilities along with some smaller series like Mass Effect.

[NeoCracker]

IT's one of two options. Final Fantasy, because there are a lot of them and a fair variety, many of which are awesome.

However I think I'm going Shin Megami Tensei. So many fantastic RPG's, but two SRPG's I'd rate higher the Tactics with Devil Survivor, and Persona 3 and 4 stand as a couple of gamings best RPG's. Not to mention the main SMT titles, IV being the only one I've played through really.

But FF's shear volume gives it a close second.

[Rez09]

Would the RPG Maker series be a valid pick? There are tons of games people have made with them, including a lot more than just RPGs, and I could make my own stuff.

[Madame Adequate]

This raises a new question for me. Would you be forced in any way to play games in the series you don't want to play?

Nope, you can play or not play whatever games in the series you like and you don't have to play any videogames at all if you don't want to, but when you do play, you're limited to the series.

[Pike]

Mario is pretty hard to argue with now that it's been brought up. I can also see Pokemon being a contender between the RPGs and the many spinoffs.

Despite being my favorite series I don't know if I would pick TES for this. I don't think there's enough gameplay variety within the series for this particular scenario. They do have an MMO now, but they lack any strategy games, whereas Warcraft brings both the MMO and two (maybe even three) of the greatest strategy games of all time.

[Spuuky]

Probably still Dota, MTG, or LoL. I've played those individual games far more than any series.

[Shiny]

I would say Skyrim or an MMO because theyre heavily mod-able and neverdending, but going with Final Fantasy as the diversity of story and level grinding are all different game to game. There's a lot of spin off games I haven't even touched yet and a few of the older ones I haven't played. It will take me eons to beat Monster Arena in FFX anyway. Still going ;___;

[Loony BoB]

Final Fantasy. Too easy.

1. FFXI + FFXIV = Social Interaction. Not only for basic gameplay but now this also includes Triple Triad and Chocobo Racing, as of... well, tomorrow, I think. There is also the added bonus of these games still getting updates, and FFXIV will probably be getting updates for a long time to come.
2. The other games will allow me to keep my sanity because I really prefer single player games to MMOs.
3. There is a variety in the other games - not simply RPG stuff, but also FPS and tactical games, which will allow me to get a bit more variety in my gaming than most other series would allow. Only Mario, if anything, might be able to beat FF in this regard. Not sure as I've played very few Mario games.
4. Potential for more games to come out in the series that aren't just the same games as before with a new storyline. That is a massive bonus.

[LunarWeaver]

This is the meanest thing somebody has done to me.