History BreakthroughHit / VideoGames

* ''VideoGame/MarioPlusRabbidsKingdomBattle'' for [[Creator/{{Ubisoft}} Ubisoft Milan]]

* ''VideoGame/BaldursGate'' for Creator/{{Bioware}}.

* ''VideoGame/{{Frequency|Harmonix}}'' and ''Amplitude'' (2003) brought Creator/{{Harmonix}} into the gaming business, but it was their first entry in the ''VideoGame/GuitarHero'' franchise that made them a household name in the RhythmGame genre.

* ''VideoGame/DeadByDaylight'' for Behavior Interactive.

** Creator/RyuGaGotokuStudio for years had developed the 'VideoGame/LikeADragon'' series in Japan to commercial success, but its presence internationally was limited at best. Following the commercial flop of ''VideoGame/YakuzaDeadSouls'' Sega started to think that the ''Yakuza'' series had failed overseas and considered no longer releasing games internationally until Sony partnered with Sega and released ''VideoGame/Yakuza5'' digitally in the west to much greater success, convincing Sega to recommit to international releases. In 2017 ''VideoGame/Yakuza0'' was released internationally on the Platform/PlayStation4, receiving critical acclaim and smashing sales expectations, firmly establishing the series as an international franchise. Subsequent releases on the PC and Platform/XboxOne further expanded the audience for ''Like A Dragon'' and subsequent games in the series have enjoyed much greater exposure and sales internationally.

** CreatorRyuGaGotokuStudio for years had developed the 'VideoGame/LikeADragon'' series in Japan to commercial success, but its presence internationally was limited at best. Following the commercial flop of ''VideoGame/YakuzaDeadSouls'' Sega started to think that the ''Yakuza'' series had failed overseas and considered no longer releasing games internationally until Sony partnered with Sega and released ''VideoGame/Yakuza5'' digitally in the west to much greater success, convincing Sega to recommit to international releases. In 2017 ''VideoGame/Yakuza0'' was released internationally on the Platform/PlayStation4, receiving critical acclaim and smashing sales expectations, firmly establishing the series as an international franchise. Subsequent releases on the PC and Platform/XboxOne further expanded the audience for ''Like A Dragon'' and subsequent games in the series have enjoyed much greater exposure and sales internationally.

* ''VideoGame/TheKingOfFighters '94'' for Creator/{{SNK}}. Its popularity [[MorePopularSpinoff surpassed the games it was spun off from]] (''VideoGame/FatalFury'', ''VideoGame/ArtOfFighting'') and quickly became a recognizable franchise of its own.

** ''Serious Sam 3: BFE'' also helped establish Creator/DevolverDigital as a publisher, along with ''VideoGame/HotlineMiami'' the following year.

* ''VideoGame/FireEmblemShadowDragonAndTheBladeOfLight'' for Creator/IntelligentSystems in Japan, ''VideoGame/SuperMetroid'' worldwide. ''VideoGame/PaperMario'' would prove to be another breakthrough for them during the UsefulNotes/Nintendo64 days, and ''VideoGame/FireEmblemAwakening'' is what got them recognized for ''Franchise/FireEmblem'' worldwide.

* The VideoGameRemake of ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaLinksAwakening'' for Creator/{{Grezzo}} (as a second-party developer). While they were already known for their remakes of ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOcarinaOfTime Ocarina of Time]]'' and ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaMajorasMask Majora's Mask]]'' for the [[UsefulNotes/Nintendo3DS 3DS]], their remake of ''Link's Awakening'' had the benefit of being on a more mainstream console, granting it and Grezzo much more exposure.

* ''VideoGame/SyphonFilter'' for Sony Bend Studio (originally known as Eidetic until the UsefulNotes/PlayStation2 era).

** ''VideoGame/{{Sonic the Hedgehog|1}}'' made Sega popular in the US and was the title that was most often packaged with the UsefulNotes/SegaGenesis.
** In its native Japan, it was ''VideoGame/VirtuaFighter'', as it essentially launched the "3D arena fighter" genre, and its UsefulNotes/SegaSaturn port helped sell consoles there.
** Creator/{{Atlus}} first gained recognition within their home country of Japan with the original ''VideoGame/{{Persona 1}}''. However, they had largely been ignored in the West for its first twenty years, with its flagship ''Franchise/ShinMegamiTensei'' games often either [[NoExportForYou getting the export shaft]][[note]]It's rather telling that the first ''Megami Tensei'' game of any sort with a US release was ''Jack Bros.'', a UsefulNotes/VirtualBoy title[[/note]] or becoming {{Cult Classic}}s at best. Tellingly, the studio by the late [[UsefulNotes/TheSixthGenerationOfConsoleVideoGames sixth generation of consoles]] was [[https://www.dexerto.com/gaming/persona-director-reveals-persona-3-saved-atlus-from-collapse-2274054/ on the verge of collapse]]. Many in the studio were told that ''VideoGame/Persona3'' would be their last game, so then-director Katsuya Hashino debated with the higher-ups to make the game more mainstream-friendly. It paid off, and the game was exported to the West and it really put Atlus on the map, with ''VideoGame/Persona4'' and subsequent ''Franchise/{{Persona}}'' spinoffs practically [[CashCowFranchise printing money]] for Atlus's foreign branches. ''VideoGame/Persona5'' became not just Atlus's best-selling title to date, but bringing it a level of mainstream recognition that not even ''4'' received.

* The ''ACA UsefulNotes/NeoGeo'' line for Hamster Corporation. The company had existed in profitable obscurity as a publisher of casual games and no-frills arcade ports since the late 90's, but their line of Neo Geo rereleases ended up being bigger sellers thanks to Creator/{{SNK}}'s resurgence in the video game market and being near-launch titles for the popular but then game-starved UsefulNotes/NintendoSwitch. The success of ''ACA Neo Geo'' allowed Hamster to ink deals with companies like Nintendo and Namco for its ''Arcade Archives'' brand as well as give the company the financial resources necessary to purchase the entire catalogue of defunct developers like Creator/VideoSystem, cementing Hamster as one of the big players in the retro rerelease market.

* ''[[VideoGame/DarkSoulsI Dark Souls]]'' for Creator/FromSoftware. Though its [[SpiritualSuccessor spiritual predecessor]] ''VideoGame/DemonsSouls'' was critically acclaimed, it was only a mildly cult hit that was exclusive to the UsefulNotes/PlayStation3, while ''Dark Souls'' was MultiPlatform and able to ride the positive word-of-mouth afterwards to monstrous success.

* ''VideoGame/{{Pitfall}}'' for Creator/{{Activision}} in the UsefulNotes/{{Atari 2600}} era, and ''VideoGame/TonyHawksProSkater'' in the UsefulNotes/PlayStation era. ''VideoGame/CallOfDuty'' provided the company with yet another breakthrough.

* ''VideoGame/NinjaGaiden'' for Masato Kato.

** ''VideoGame/GrandTheftAutoIII'' for T2's Rockstar Games branch, less than two months ahead of ''VideoGame/MaxPayne''. They've had many modest hits prior to ''GTA 3'' including [[VideoGame/GrandTheftAuto2 its direct predecessor]], ''VideoGame/EarthwormJim64'', and the cult classic ''Midnight Club'', but none of them have made a fraction of ''3[='=]s'' cultural impact and making the company industry titans.

** ''VideoGame/DragonQuestI'' for Enix.

* ''VideoGame/{{Battlefield}}: 1942'' for DICE.

* Creator/{{Atlus}} first gained recognition within their home country of Japan with the original ''VideoGame/{{Persona 1}}''. However, they had largely been ignored in the West for its first twenty years, with its flagship ''Franchise/ShinMegamiTensei'' games often either [[NoExportForYou getting the export shaft]][[note]]It's rather telling that the first ''Megami Tensei'' game of any sort with a US release was ''Jack Bros.'', a UsefulNotes/VirtualBoy title[[/note]] or becoming {{Cult Classic}}s at best. Then they brought ''VideoGame/Persona3'' to the West and it really put Atlus on the map, with ''VideoGame/Persona4'' and subsequent ''Franchise/{{Persona}}'' spinoffs practically [[CashCowFranchise printing money]] for Atlus's foreign branches. ''VideoGame/Persona5'' became not just Atlus's best-selling title to date, but bringing it a level of mainstream recognition that not even ''4'' received.

** ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyI'' for Square. After their previous games selling poorly, ''Final Fantasy'' not only sold well but kickstarted one of the longest-running series in video games.
*** ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyVII'' was even more of a breakthrough, since that game took the ''Franchise/FinalFantasy'' franchise from popular-but-cult to international [[EasternRPG JRPG]] phenomenon (it was the first installment released in Europe, as the series had been virtually unknown in that territory up until that point). ''FFVII'' was also the breakthrough of character designer Creator/TetsuyaNomura.