List of multimedia franchises originating in games, toys, and merchandise
Following is a list of multimedia franchises originating in games, toys, and merchandise.
In the following tables, the initial media through which the franchise characters or settings became known is shown in boldface. Only works of fiction are considered part of the series; a book or a documentary film about the franchise is not itself an installment in the franchise.
Franchises originating in video games
Including film and/or television works
Not including film and/or television works
Franchise (creator) |
Literature | Comics | Video games | Other media |
---|---|---|---|---|
Alan Wake | yes | no | Alan Wake (2010)
Alan Wake's American Nightmare (2012) expansion pack |
soundtrack and others merchandise |
Banjo-Kazooie | no | yes | Banjo-Kazooie (1998) | action figures,toys, adn others merchandise |
Battlefield | Battlefield 3: The Russian (2011)
Battlefield 4: Countdown to War(2013) |
no | Battlefield 1942 (2002) | action figures and others merchandise |
Bioshock | yes | no | Bioshock (2007)
Bioshock 2 (2010) BioShock Infinite (2013) |
soundtrack, action figures, board games, clothes and others merchandise |
Bloodborne | no | various | Bloodborne (2015) | Card game, board game and other merchandise |
Contra | no | yes | Contra (1985) | various merchandise |
Crysis | Crysis Legion (2011)
Crysis Escalation (2013) |
yes | Crysis (2007)
Crysis Warhead (2008) expansion pack Crysis 2 (2011) Crysis 3 (2013) |
Board game, action figures and others merchandise |
Darksiders | no | yes | Darksiders (2010)
Darksiders II (2012) Darksiders III (2018) Darksiders Genesis (2019) Spin-off |
Action Figures and others merchandise |
Dead Island
(Techland) |
yes | yes | Dead Island (2011)
Dead Island Riptide (2013) expansion pack Escape Dead Island (2014) spin-off |
various merchandise |
Destiny
(Bungie) |
yes | yes | Destiny (2014) | Artbooks, Guidebooks, Soundtracks, Cooksbook, and various others merchandise |
Deus Ex | Deus Ex: Icarus Effect (2011)
Deus Ex: Fallen Angel (2013) Deus Ex: Black Light (2016) Deus Ex: Hard Line (2016) |
Deus Ex: Human Revolution (2011)
Deus Ex: Children's Crusade (2016) Deus Ex: The Dawning Darkness (2016) |
Deus Ex (2000)
Deus Ex: Invisible War (2003) Deus Ex: Human Revolution (2011) Deus Ex: Mankind Divided (2016) |
Art Books, Guide Books and others merchandises |
Diablo | various | various | Diablo (1996) Diablo II (2000) Diablo III (2012) |
|
Dishonored | various | no | Dishonored (2012)
Dishonored 2 (2016) Dishonored: Death of the Outsider (2017) expansion pack |
Tabletop role-playing game and others merchandise |
Drakengard | various light novels and books | various manga | Drakengard (2003)
numerous sequels and spin-offs |
CD drama, soundtracks, musical band, stage play and others merchandise |
Duke Nukem | no | Duke Nukem: Glorious Bastard (2011) | Duke Nukem (1991) | Action Figures, toys and others merchandise |
The Elder Scroll | The Infernal City (2009)
Lord of Souls (2011) and several others |
no | The Elder Scrolls: Arena (1994) | board games, tabletop role-playing games and several others mercahndises |
The Evil Within | yes | yes | The Evil Within (2014)
The Evil Within 2 (2017) |
various merchandise |
Fable | Fable: The Balverine Order (2010)
several others |
no | Fable (2004) | Music, soundtrack and others merchandise |
Fallout | no | yes | Fallout (1997) | tabletop wargame, board games and others merchandise |
Five Nights at Freddy's (Scott Cawthon) |
various | trilogy graphic novels based on novels trilogy | Five Nights at Freddy's (2014) numerous sequels and spin-offs |
merchandise |
Gears of War | Gears of War: Aspho Fields (2008) several sequels |
Gears of War (comics) | Gears of War (2006) Gears of War 2 (2008) Gears of War 3 (2011) Gears of War: Judgment (2013) |
board game |
God of War | yes | yes | God of War (2005) several sequels and side games |
music |
Guild Wars | various | no | Guild Wars (2005) | Artbooks, Guidebooks, soundtracks and numerous others merchandise |
Horizon Zero Dawn | no | various | Horizon Zero Dawn (2017)
Horizon Forbidden West (2022) |
Action figures, soundtrack and others merchandise |
Ico | yes | no | Ico (2001)
Shadow Of The Colossus (2005) The Last Guardian (2016) |
Soundtrack, Artbook, Guidebook and various merchandise |
Infamous | no | yes | Infamous (2009)
Infamous 2 (2011) Infamous: Festival of Blood (2011) expansion pack Infamous Second Son (2014) Infamous First Light (2014) expansion pack |
various merchandise |
Just Cause | no | yes | Just Cause (2006)
Just Cause 2 (2010) Just Cause 3 (2015) Just Cause 4 (2018) |
various merchandise |
Killzone | yes | yes | Killzone (2004)
Killzone: Liberation (2006) spin-off Killzone 2 (2009) Killzone 3 (2011) Killzone: Mercenary (2013) spin-off Killzone Shadow Fall (2013) |
various merchandise |
Left 4 Dead | no | The Sacrifice (2010) | Left 4 Dead (2008)
Left 4 Dead 2 (2009) |
songs, figure action, music and others merchandise |
Legacy Of Kain | no | yes | Blood Omen: Legacy of Kain (1996) | Merchandise |
Life Is Stranger | yes | yes | Life Is Stranger (2015) | Merchandise |
Metal Gear (Hideo Kojima) |
yes | several | Metal Gear (1987) numerous sequels and spin-offs |
other media |
Metroid
(Nintendo) |
no | various | Metroid (1986) | Soundtracks and others merchandise |
Onimusha
(Capcom) |
yes | yes | Onimusha Warlords (2001) | Guide books, soundtracks and others merchandise |
Portal | no | Portal 2: Lab Rat (2011) | Portal (2007)
Portal 2 (2011) |
Board game, T-shirt, collectibles and others merchandise |
Quake | no | yes | Quake (1998) | Guide books and others merchandise |
Sekiro:Shadows Die Twice | no | Sekiro Side Story: Hanbei the Undying (2020) | Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice (2019) | Guide Books and various merchandise |
Soulcalibur | yes | yes | Soul Edge (1995) | Action figure, collectible cards, and various others merchandise |
Splatoon
(Nintendo) |
no | various | Splatoon (2015)
Splatoon 2 (2017) |
Amiibo Figures, Music and others merchandise |
StarCraft | yes | yes | StarCraft (1998 and later expansions) StarCraft II (2010 and later expansions) |
tabletop games |
Suikoden | yes | yes | Suikoden (1995) | guide books and various merchandise |
Star Fox
(Nintendo) |
no | various | Star Fox (1993) | Amiibo Figures, Web video and others merchandise |
Thief | no | yes | Thief: The Dark Project (1998)
Thief II: The Metal Age (2000) Thief: Deadly Shadows (2004) Thief (2014) |
Merchandise |
Watch Dogs | yes | yes | Watch Dogs (2014)
Watch Dogs 2 (2016) Watch Dogs: Legion (2020) |
Merchandise |
Wolfenstein | no | yes | Wolfenstein 3D (1992) | guide books and others merchandise |
Franchises originating in board games, card games, tabletop games and role-playing games
Franchises originating in toys, attractions and other media
See also
- List of fictional shared universes in film and television – many multimedia franchises are based in fictional universes
- List of public domain works with multimedia adaptations
- List of highest-grossing media franchises
- Media mix
References
- ^ Roger Parry, The Ascent of Media: From Gilgamesh to Google Via Gutenberg (2011), p. 317, ISBN 1857885708: "Along with associated feature films, comic books, and character merchandise, Mario has become a hugely valuable global multimedia franchise".
- ^ a b Harry J. Brown, Videogames and Education (2008), p. 41, ISBN 0765629496:
In one of the most celebrated ventures in media convergence, Larry and Andy Wachowski, creators of The Matrix trilogy, produced the game Enter the Matrix (2003) simultaneously with the last two films of the trilogy, shooting scenes for the game on the movie's sets with the movie s actors, and releasing the game on the same day as The Matrix: Reloaded. Likewise, on September 21, 2004, Lucasfilm jointly released a new DVD box set of the original Star Wars trilogy with Star Wars: Battlefront, a combat game in which players can reenact battles from all six Star Wars films. In 2005, Peter Jackson likewise produced his blockbuster film King Kong (2005) in tandem with a successful King Kong game designed by Michael Ancel and published by Ubisoft. In the last several years, numerous licensed videogame adaptations of major summer and holiday blockbusters were released a few days before or a few days after their respective films, including: all three Star Wars films (1999–2005); all five Harry Potter films (2001–2008); all three Spider-Man films (2002–2007); Hulk (2002); The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002); The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003); The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe (2005); Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest (2006); Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End (2007); and Transformers (2007). These multimedia franchises have made it more difficult to distinguish the production of films and videogames as separate enterprises.
- ^ Marc DiPaolo, War, Politics and Superheroes: Ethics and Propaganda in Comics and Film (2011), p. 39, ISBN 0786485795: "The multimedia franchise is bolstered by the imaginations of the Transformers fans that imbue the flimsy material with their own potent fantasies of family cars and household devices turning into robots".