Game Franchises Timeline Games

Thirty-six decks cover the big gaming series, each ordered by the year its games first came out. Some are sweeping: Video games mixes 108 landmark releases from across the industry, Game consoles lines up fifty machines by launch, and Mario games runs to forty-four cards. Others zoom in on a single series, like Grand Theft Auto, Far Cry or The Elder Scrolls at ten cards apiece. A few sort something other than whole games, such as Minecraft updates and mobs or Pokémon starters by generation. Cards go down one at a time, and each miss costs a life.

Start with a series you have played through, since Zelda, Mario Kart or Call of Duty tend to stick in memory. The tough part is that long-running franchises pile up releases close together: yearly sequels, remakes, handheld spin-offs and expansions all crowd the same stretch. Decks like Warcraft, Fallout and BioWare include add-ons, and Dragon Quest and Monster Hunter count from their first Japanese release, which can shift things from what you remember.