History Main / SequelNumberSnarl

* ''ComicBook/TheIncredibleHulk'': ''ComicBook/TheIncredibleHulk1968'' was originally canceled after six issues. After appearing in various other mags and becoming more popular, the Hulk was given a new solo feature in the ''ComicBook/TalesToAstonish'' anthology. When Marvel finally found a better distributor, the character became its own mag again with ''ComicBook/TheIncredibleHulk1968'', but it neither started over with a new #1 nor did it continue the original numbering, it continued that of ''Tales of Astonish'', with #102. This resulted in confusion over whether the revival should be considered a resumption of the original series or a second volume -- Marvel's website uses the former interpretation while their trade collections prefer the latter.

* ''ComicBook/TheIncredibleHulk'' was originally canceled after six issues. After appearing in various other mags and becoming more popular, the Hulk was given a new solo feature in the ''ComicBook/TalesToAstonish'' anthology. When Marvel finally found a better distributor, ''The Incredible Hulk'' became its own mag again, but it neither started over with a new #1 nor did it continue the original numbering, it continued that of ''Tales of Astonish'', with #102. This resulted in confusion over whether the revival should be considered a resumption of the original series or a second volume -- Marvel's website uses the former interpretation while their trade collections prefer the latter.

** Interestingly, this has been introduced in-universe with the Doctor themself. Originally, when regeneration was introduced, it wasn't stated that William Hartnell's character was in fact the First Doctor. The Fourth Doctor serial "The Brain of Morbius" has a scene alluding to prior regenerations. However, it was later firmly established in "The Five Doctors" that the First Doctor was the original incarnation, at least for now. Then came "The Name of the Doctor" and "The Day of the Doctor", which introduced a new regeneration between 8 and 9. It was stated that the Doctor doesn't consider the War Doctor to be worthy of the title, so he doesn't count in the numbering. Add in "The Time of the Doctor", which stated that Ten's aborted regeneration/half-human duplicate from "Journey's End" actually counted against the regeneration limit, and you have a situation where the Twelfth Doctor could technically be considered the Fourteenth. Then, after ''that'', "The Timeless Children" stated that the Doctor had numerous incarnations prior to the First (with the ones from "The Brain of Morbius" specifically included) which had been wiped from their memory.

* ''Literature/TheChroniclesOfNarnia'' started out in chronological order, but the [[Literature/TheHorseAndHisBoy fifth]] and [[Literature/TheMagiciansNephew sixth]] books published [[AnachronicOrder are respectively]] an {{interquel}} (set during the TimeSkip at the end of the [[Literature/TheLionTheWitchAndTheWardrobe first book]]) and a {{prequel}} (set before any of the other books). More recent editions of the series number the books in chronological order, but many fans still maintain that reading them in publication order is more rewarding, because the prequel contains [[CallForward references that only make sense if you've read the other books first]]. As for Creator/CSLewis himself, he never really cared about the order in which people read his books.

[[folder:Video Games]]
[[/folder]]

* ''VideoGame/AceCombat'':
** The series contains six numbered games (of which ''[[VideoGame/AirCombat 1]]'' and ''[[VideoGame/AceCombat2 2]]'' weren't originally part of the main continuity, and ''[[VideoGame/AceCombat3Electrosphere 3]]'' is set [[DistantFinale after]] ''[[VideoGame/AceCombat04ShatteredSkies 04]]'', ''[[VideoGame/AceCombat5TheUnsungWar 5]]'', and ''[[VideoGame/AceCombat6FiresOfLiberation 6]]'') and five oddly numbered ones: ''[[VideoGame/AceCombatAdvance Advance]]'' (prequel to ''3''), ''[[VideoGame/AceCombatZeroTheBelkanWar Zero]]'' ([[EpisodeZeroTheBeginning prequel to the entire series]] and, more specifically, ''5''), ''[[VideoGame/AceCombatXSkiesOfDeception X]]'' (released before ''6'' but set after it; the "X" here is not the Roman numeral for ten either), ''Xi'' ({{interquel}} [[HeroOfAnotherStory to]] ''X''; the "i" is presumably indicative of the game being developed for [=iOS=], meaning the "Xi" shouldn't be read as the 14th letter of the Greek alphabet), and ''[[VideoGame/AceCombatJointAssault X2]]'' (which was eventually stripped of the "number" because it had nothing to do with ''X'' except [[UsefulNotes/PlayStationPortable the platform]]). Thankfully, [[Creator/BandaiNamcoEntertainment Namco]] StoppedNumberingSequels at ''VideoGame/AceCombatAssaultHorizon'', in part because, like ''X2/Joint Assault'', [[AlternateContinuity that game is set in a different continuity from the numbered games]].
** Following ''Assault Horizon'', Project Aces would release ''[[VideoGame/AceCombatAssaultHorizonLegacy Assault Horizon Legacy]]'' (which actually has nothing to do with ''Assault Horizon'', being a [[VideoGameRemake remake]] of ''2'' that better ties the game into the Strangereal world, hence why it's known as ''Ace Combat 3D: Cross Rumble'' [[MarketBasedTitle in Japan]]), ''[[VideoGame/AceCombatNorthernWings Northern Wings]]'' (a [[DashedPlotLine "midquel"]] of [[ContinuitySnarl questionable continuity]] [[TheGreatestStoryNeverTold spanning the events of]] ''04'', ''5'', and ''6''), and ''[[VideoGame/AceCombatInfinity Infinity]]'' (another title set in the real world instead of Strangereal [[note]]the others being ''Joint Assault/X2'' and ''Assault Horizon''[[/note]], [[MythologyGag only with elements of nearly every other preceding game in the series]] and a WholePlotReference to ''04''). Then they announced ''VideoGame/{{Ace Combat 7|SkiesUnknown}}'' for the eighth generation consoles, bringing this trope back in full force after a brief wane.
* ''Adventure Quiz: Capcom World'' was followed by ''Adventure Quiz 2: Hatena? no Daibōken'', the handheld game ''Capcom Quiz: Hatena? no Daibouken'', and ''Adventure Quiz: Capcom World 2'', making the sequel the third game or fourth game if counting the handheld game.
* The first game in the ''Franchise/AssassinsCreed'' series was simply ''VideoGame/{{Assassins Creed|I}}'', the sequel was ''VideoGame/AssassinsCreedII'', followed by ''VideoGame/AssassinsCreedBrotherhood'' and ''VideoGame/AssassinsCreedRevelations''. It then went back to numbered sequels with ''VideoGame/AssassinsCreedIII'', which is the fifth game. While the snarl was justified with ''Brotherhood'' and ''Revelations'' for revisiting a previous protagonist instead of presenting an all-new story, ''VideoGame/AssassinsCreedIV'' was numbered ''and'' a prequel to ''III''. Numbering fell apart for good after that. ''VideoGame/AssassinsCreedRogue'' has a new protagonist and takes place between ''IV'' and ''III''. ''VideoGame/AssassinsCreedUnity'' and ''VideoGame/AssassinsCreedSyndicate'' both have completely new protagonists and take place in new time periods but do not get numbers. Then we got ''VideoGame/AssassinsCreedOrigins'', the tenth game in the franchise, whose Assassin's story is a prequel to the rest of the games, and ''VideoGame/AssassinsCreedOdyssey'', the eleventh game in the franchise, is a prequel to ''that'' game. If sorted by the order of the modern times framing device instead of the historical time, though, it just follows production order.
* ''VideoGame/AngryBirds'' released, then a sequel called ''VideoGame/AngryBirdsSeasons'' released. After that, a crossover game called ''VideoGame/AngryBirdsRio'' came out, and after that, ''VideoGame/AngryBirdsSpace'' dropped. Only after that, and many, many, more installments, did ''VideoGame/AngryBirds2'', which is the 15th game in the series, finally get made.
* The ''VideoGame/{{Battlefield}}'' series has this. ''Battlefield 2'' was actually the third installment, for instance (which makes some sense; ''Battlefield Vietnam'' wasn't as well-received as ''1942''). ''VideoGame/{{Battlefield 3}}'', on the other hand, is at the very least the ''eleventh game'' in the series. ''VideoGame/{{Battlefield 1}}'' is actually the ''fifteenth'' entry in the series; the odd title choice is because the game covers the events of UsefulNotes/{{World War|I}} '''[[UsefulNotes/WorldWarI I]]'''.
* ''VideoGame/{{BEMANI}}'' games often have spinoff games between numbered versions. The smallest example of this trope is every ''VideoGame/{{beatmania}} IIDX'' game from ''beatmania IIDX 2nd Style'' onwards actually being the ''n''+1st game due to ''beatmania IIDX substream'' being released between ''1st Style'' and ''2nd Style''. Things get even more complicated with other numbered ''BEMANI'' games.
* The ''Bravely Default'' series has ''VideoGame/BravelyDefault'', ''VideoGame/BravelySecond''... and ''VideoGame/BravelyDefaultII''. Note that ''Default II'' [[ThematicSeries is set on an entirely different world from]] ''Default'' and ''Second'', the latter of which [[SequelHook teased another adventure in Luxendarc]] in its [[TheStinger Stinger]]. (''Bravely Third'', perhaps?)
* ''VideoGame/BubbleBobble'' (originally released for the arcades in 1986) was followed by numerous sequels: ''VideoGame/RainbowIslands: The Story of Bubble Bobble 2'' (a 1987 arcade sequel that played nothing like the first game), ''Parasol Stars: The Story of Bubble Bobble III'' (a UsefulNotes/TurboGrafx16 sequel to ''Rainbow Islands'' released in 1991), ''Bubble Bobble Part 2'' (separate NES and Game Boy sequels to the original game released in 1993), ''Bubble Symphony'' (the third arcade game in the series, released in 1994 and also known as ''Bubble Bobble II'' outside Japan and North America), ''Bubble Memories: The Story of Bubble Bobble III'' (the fourth arcade game, released in 1996), and ''Bubble Bobble 4 Friends'' (first released on the Switch in 2019, later released on [=PS4=] and Steam).
* ''VideoGame/CallOfDuty'' had its fourth game named ''Call of Duty 4: VideoGame/ModernWarfare''. Its sequels are named ''Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2'' and ''Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3''. Then there's ''VideoGame/CallOfDutyBlackOps'', which went off on its own sequel-numbering scheme on top of being sequels to ''World at War''. Everything else that's not ''Black Ops'' since then -- ''[[VideoGame/CallOfDutyGhosts Ghosts]]'', ''[[VideoGame/CallOfDutyAdvancedWarfare Advanced Warfare]]'', and ''[[VideoGame/CallOfDutyInfiniteWarfare Infinite Warfare]]'' -- [[StoppedNumberingSequels hasn't bothered with numbers]] because none of them follow on from another game's story.
* The original ''VideoGame/ClockTower'' was never released outside Japan, so when ''Clock Tower 2'' for the UsefulNotes/PlayStation was localized, [[SequelFirst they dropped the "2" from the title.]] The later ''Clock Tower II: The Struggle Within'' is actually a spin-off originally titled ''Clock Tower: Ghost Head'', which at least allowed ''VideoGame/ClockTower3'' to retain its numbering for its worldwide release.
* The German version of ''VideoGame/CommandAndConquerRedAlert'' was explicitly dubbed the second part of the series (it was actually a {{prequel}}, later retconned into something distinct, or whatever). Then [[VideoGame/CommandAndConquerTiberianSun the actual sequel to the first game]] was released as part three. They stopped renumbering the games after that, and consequently released ''VideoGame/CommandAndConquerTiberiumWars'' as part three, too (but the public wasn't confused as everybody knew what the deal was by that point thanks to TheInternet).
* ''VideoGame/{{Contra}}'':
** Because ''Super Contra'' was already taken by the prior arcade sequel, the 1992 [[UsefulNotes/SuperNintendoEntertainmentSystem Super NES]] entry in the series was instead titled ''Contra III: The Alien Wars'' in North America (the Japanese version on the other hand, went with ''[[MarketBasedTitle Contra Spirits]]''). However, the originally announced title was actually ''Contra IV: The Alien Wars''. The reason for this being that Creator/{{Konami}} intended to release another game on the [[UsefulNotes/NintendoEntertainmentSystem NES]], titled ''Contra Force'', to serve the position of ''Contra III'' (although one could be forgiven for assuming that ''Operation C'' was filling this position as well, since it was essentially a sequel to ''Super C'', the NES version of the aforementioned ''Super Contra''). But because ''Contra Force'' was delayed, Konami released ''Alien Wars'' ahead and renumbered it accordingly. This probably worked out for the better though, as ''Contra Force'' was really just [[DolledUpInstallment an unrelated game]] that was repurposed as a ''Contra'' entry in North America and was really more of a spin-off than a proper mainline entry, with the game being set in modern times and featuring human terrorists as the main adversaries instead of aliens.
** The ''Contra'' series for the most part avoided using numbered titles, but when Creator/{{WayForward}} produced their own ''Contra'' game for the Nintendo DS in 2007, they opted to title their game ''Contra 4'', as it was designed to be a direct follow-up to ''Contra III''. One could assume that were no other ''Contra'' games released since ''Contra III'' if it wasn't for the fact that the aforementioned ''Contra Force'' (1992), ''Contra: Hard Corps'' (1994), ''Contra: Legacy of War'' (1996), ''C: The Contra Adventure'' (1998), ''Contra: Shattered Soldier'' (2002), and ''Neo Contra'' (2004), were all released in-between.
* The ''VideoGame/CorpseParty'' series suffers from this. You have the original game, now known as ''VideoGame/CorpsePartyPC98'', and its remakes, which completely revamp the storyline and add the subtitles ''Blood Covered'' and ''[[ColonCancer Blood Covered: ...Repeated Fear]]''. There's also a {{Fan|Sequel}} {{Prequel}} to PC-98 called ''VideoGame/CorpsePartyZero''. ''Repeated Fear'' got a sequel called ''Book of Shadows'', the final chapter of which provides the title for its direct sequel, ''Blood Drive''. There's also ''Corpse Party 2U'', a DenserAndWackier side game. ''Another'' sequel set some time '''after''' that called ''VideoGame/CorpseParty2DeadPatient'' gets a proper number because it's centered on an entirely different cast while being set in the same universe. ''Whew''.
* ''VideoGame/CounterStrike 2'' is an update to ''Counter-Strike: Global Offensive'', which itself is the fourth installment of ''Counter-Strike'', rather than a separate game.
* ''VideoGame/CrashBandicoot'' has ''VideoGame/CrashBandicoot4ItsAboutTime'' as the eighth mainline entry in the series, with the name deriving from it being [[AnachronicOrder a direct sequel to the original trilogy]]. All the games released between ''[[VideoGame/CrashBandicoot3Warped Warped]]'' and ''It's About Time'' weren't numbered... at least, not in their native English releases. In Japan, the fourth and fifth games, ''[[VideoGame/CrashBandicootTheWrathOfCortex Wrath of Cortex]]'' and ''[[VideoGame/CrashTwinsanity Twinsanity]]'', got the NumberedSequels treatment.
* ''Crazy Castle'':
** The series starts with ''Roger Rabbit'' on the Famicom, becoming ''Mickey Mouse'' on the Game Boy, the first game in the ''Mickey Mouse'' series in Japan, and the second ''Crazy Castle'' game. Both games were released separately as ''VideoGame/TheBugsBunnyCrazyCastle'' in the US.
** ''Mickey Mouse II'' became ''The Bugs Bunny Crazy Castle 2'' in the US and ''Mickey Mouse'' and ''Hugo'' in Europe. In Japan, the Game Boy Bugs Bunny games were collected as the ''Bugs Bunny Collection''.
** ''Mickey Mouse III: Balloon Dreams'' was released in the US as ''Kid Klown in Night Mayor World''.
** ''Mickey Mouse IV: The Magical Labyrinth'' became ''The Real Ghostbusters'' in the US and ''Garfield Labyrinth'' in Europe.
** ''Mickey Mouse V: The Magical Stick'' was released as ''Mickey Mouse: Magic Wands!'' in the US and ''Mickey Mouse V: Zauberstäbe!'' in Europe, being the last game in the ''Mickey Mouse'' series in Japan, the first ''Mickey Mouse'' in the US, and the second ''Mickey Mouse'' in Europe.
** ''Bugs Bunny: Crazy Castle 3'' was released in all territories as the third ''Crazy Castle'', making it the third ''Bugs Bunny'' game in Japan and the second ''Bugs Bunny'' game released in Japan due to the game following the ''Bugs Bunny Collection'', the sixth game after ''Mickey Mouse'', the seventh game in the ''Crazy Castle'' series, the fourth ''Bugs Bunny'' game in the US, and the second ''Bugs Bunny'' game in Europe, and was also released in Japan as the separate game ''Go! Kid! Soreyuke!! Kid: Go! Go! Kid''.
** ''Bugs Bunny: Crazy Castle 4'' is the fifth ''Bugs Bunny'' game in the US.
** ''Woody Woodpecker: Crazy Castle 5'' is the eleventh or twelfth game in Japan, ninth game in the US, and eighth game in Europe.
* The ''VideoGame/{{Deception}}'' series [[OddlyNamedSequel2ElectricBoogaloo goes]]: ''Tecmo's Deception: Invitation to Darkness'' (''Devil's Deception'' [[MarketBasedTitle in Europe]]), ''[[SequelTheOriginalTitle Kagero: Deception II]]'', ''Deception III: Dark Delusion'', ''VideoGame/{{Trapt}}'', ''Deception IV: Blood Ties'', and ''Deception IV: The Nightmare Princess''. This gives the impression that ''Trapt'' is either a spin-off released between ''Deception III'' and ''IV'' or not even part of the series at all, while ''Nightmare Princess'' is just [[UpdatedRerelease an expanded edition]] of ''Blood Ties'' (due to having the same numbered title) when it's actually a direct sequel. However, [[MarketBasedTitle the Japanese titles]] are completely different for each game and the numbering does not match their English counterparts as a result. The Japanese series goes: ''Kokumeikan'' (which loosely translates to "Mansion of Engraved Fate"), ''Kagerō: Kokumeikan Shinshō'' (''Kagerō'' means "Prison of Shadows" and the subtitle translates "The New Chapter of Kokumeikan"), ''Sōmatō'' (loosely translates to "Blue Torch of Evil"), ''Kagerō II: Dark Illusion'', ''Kagerō: Darkside Princess'', and ''Kagerō: Another Princess''. While the last two games didn't have any numbered titles in Japan, [[https://www.gamecity.ne.jp/kagero3-2/ the official Japanese sites]] have "[=kagero3=]" and "[=kagero3-2=]" in their [=URLs=].
* The title of the first ''VideoGame/DokaponKingdom'' translates to ''Dokapon Kingdom IV''. The second one has ''3・2・1'' in the title. Most games after just don't have numbers. The first game's ''IV'' alludes to the fact that four people can play.
* The ''VideoGame/{{Doom}}'' sequels consist of ''[[VideoGame/DoomII Doom II: Hell on Earth]]'', ''VideoGame/FinalDoom'' (built on the ''Doom II'' system), ''VideoGame/{{Doom 64}}'' (which is not a port of a prior game in the series despite what the SuperTitle64Advance may imply), ''VideoGame/{{Doom 3}}'', ''Doom 3: Resurrection of Evil'' (an expansion of the original ''Doom 3''), the 2016 game [[RecycledTitle simply titled]] ''VideoGame/{{Doom|2016}}'' (initially announced as ''Doom IV'') and ''VideoGame/DoomEternal''.
* ''Franchise/DoubleDragon'':
** ''Super Double Dragon'', released for the Super NES in 1992, was not a numbered sequel to any of the prior ''VideoGame/DoubleDragon'' games, nor did it really follow the same continuity as the previous games either, but that didn't stop publisher Tradewest from counting it when they made ''Double Dragon V: The Shadow Falls'', a fighting game based on [[WesternAnimation/DoubleDragon1993 the animated TV show]] released for the Super NES and Genesis in 1994, which also had no continuity with the prior games in the series. Creator/ArcSystemWorks would eventually release an official ''VideoGame/DoubleDragonIV'' in 2017 developed by former members of Technos, [[{{Unreboot}} serving as a sequel to the NES versions of the first three games]] (rather than the original arcade games).
** ''Double Dragon II'' could refer to the arcade game ''[[VideoGame/DoubleDragonII Double Dragon II: The Revenge]]'' or its console adaptations (most notably the NES version), as well as an original UsefulNotes/GameBoy sequel to [[VideoGame/DoubleDragonI the first game]]. The Game Boy version was actually repurposed from a canceled sequel to the Technos arcade game ''Renegade'' that was titled ''The Renegades'', but the story and graphics were redesigned when the publisher shift from American Technos to Acclaim in order to better fit with the ''Double Dragon'' setting. The game would be released in Japan as a ''VideoGame/KunioKun'' spin-off, but with chibi-style character designs similar to ''Downtown Nekketsu Monogatari'' (aka ''VideoGame/RiverCityRansom''), rather than the more realistic style of the original ''Nekketsu Kōha Kunio-kun'' (aka ''Renegade'').
* ''VideoGame/DragonSlayer'' includes:
** ''Dragon Slayer'', the first game of the ''Dragon Slayer'' series.
** ''VideoGame/DragonSlayerIIXanadu'', the second game of the ''Dragon Slayer'' series, and the first game of the the ''Xanadu'' series, followed by ''Xanadu Scenario II'', ''VideoGame/{{Faxanadu}}'', ''The Legend of Xanadu'', ''The Legend of Xanadu II: The Last Dragon Slayer'', ''Xanadu Next'' and ''VideoGame/TokyoXanadu''.
** ''Dragon Slayer Jr: Romancia'', the third game.
** ''Dragon Slayer IV: Drasle Family'', the fourth game, known as ''VideoGame/LegacyOfTheWizard''.
** ''Dragon Slayer V: Sorcerian'', with add-ons ''Sorcerian Utility Vol. 1'', ''Sorcerian Additional Scenario Vol. 1'', ''Sorcerian Additional Scenario Vol. 2 – Sengoku Sorcerian'', ''Sorcerian Additional Scenario Vol. 3 – Pyramid Sorcerian'', ''Sorcerian New Scenario Vol. 1 – The Visitor from Outer Space'', ''Selected Sorcerian 1'', ''Selected Sorcerian 2'', ''Selected Sorcerian 3'', ''Selected Sorcerian 4'', ''Selected Sorcerian 5'', and ''Gilgamesh Sorcerian''.
** ''Dragon Slayer: The Legend of Heroes'': The sixth ''Dragon Slayer'' game, and the first game of ''[[VideoGame/TrailsSeries The Legend of Heroes]]''.
** ''Lord Monarch'': Real-time strategy spin-off, considered the seventh ''Dragon Slayer'' game.
** ''Dragon Slayer: The Legend of Heroes II'': The eighth ''Dragon Slayer'' game, second in ''The Legend of Heroes'' series. Did not have an English release.
** ''The Legend of Heroes'' drops ''Dragon Slayer'' from the title, and continues with ''The Legend of Heroes III: Shiroki Majo'', ''The Legend of Heroes IV: Akai Shizuku'', and ''The Legend of Heroes V: Umi no Oriuta''. The localized titles are ''The Legend of Heroes II: Prophecy of the Moonlight Witch'', ''The Legend of Heroes: A Tear of Vermillion'', and ''The Legend of Heroes III: Song of the Ocean''.
** The sixth entry in ''The Legend of Heroes'' consists of ''The Legend of Heroes: Sora no Kiseki First Chapter'', ''The Legend of Heroes: Sora no Kiseki Second Chapter'', and ''The Legend of Heroes: Sora no Kiseki The 3rd'', respectively localized as ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsInTheSky'', ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsInTheSkySecondChapter'', and ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsInTheSkyTheThird''.
** The seventh entry of ''The Legend of Heroes'' is ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsFromZero'' and ''The Legend of Heroes: Trails to Azure''
** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfNayutaBoundlessTrails '' is an action spin-off in the same universe as ''The Legend of Heroes'', not part of the main series.
** The eighth entry in ''The Legend of Heroes'' consists of ''The Legend of Heroes: Sen no Kiseki I-IV'', localized as ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsOfColdSteel I-IV''.
* Creator/KoeiTecmo's ''VideoGame/DynastyWarriors'' series has a less severe version of ''Final Fantasy''[='s=] original problem in that the Japanese and English numbering are skewed by one. This is because the series started with a game called ''Dynasty Warriors'' that was a FightingGame under the name ''[[Literature/RomanceOfTheThreeKingdoms Sangoku]] Musou'' in Japan. The "sequel" underwent a dramatic GenreShift into the OneManArmy HackAndSlash style that is the ''Warriors'' signature and was thus titled ''Shin Sangoku Musou''. Every subsequent game in Japan has been numbered in accordance with that. However, in English territories, ''Shin Sangoku Musou'' continued the ''Dynasty Warriors'' name by being called ''Dynasty Warriors 2''. So ''Shin Sangoku Musou 2'' is ''Dynasty Warriors 3'', ''[=SSM3=]'' is ''[=DW4=]'', and so on.
* ''VideoGame/FatalFury'': The [[AttractMode attract sequence]] of ''Real Bout Fatal Fury 2: The Newcomers'' markets it as the "7th Episode of ''Fatal Fury''", the previous ones being ''Fatal Fury: King of Fighters'' (first), ''Fatal Fury 2'' (second), ''Fatal Fury Special'' (third), ''Fatal Fury 3: Road to the Final Victory'' (fourth), ''Real Bout Fatal Fury'' (fifth) and ''Real Bout Fatal Fury Special'' (sixth). Out of these seven games, only ''Fatal Fury Special'' was an updated version of the previous game (''Fatal Fury 2''). The original ''Real Bout Fatal Fury'' carries over the character roster from ''Fatal Fury 3'', but has a completely different combat system than the one used in previous games, while ''Real Bout Special'' and ''Real Bout 2'' are each substantially different from the last as well. The pattern seems to be that numbered sequels were focused on introducing new characters, while the ''Special'' entries [[DreamMatchGame brought back previously retired characters]]. But then along came ''VideoGame/GarouMarkOfTheWolves'', which wiped the whole slate clean by bringing back only Terry Bogard. Between ''Real Bout 2'' and ''Garou'', there was also ''Fatal Fury: Wild Ambition'', a [[BroadStrokes retelling]] of the original ''Fatal Fury'' with the addition of characters from later titles (plus two newcomers and [[VideoGame/ArtOfFighting Ryo Sakazaki]], "returning" from ''Special'', as [[LegacyCharacter Mr. Karate II]]), and ''Fatal Fury: 1st Contact'', a portable version of ''Real Bout 2'' for the UsefulNotes/NeoGeoPocket Color. Then, there's the never released sequel ''Garou: Mark of the Wolves 2''.
* ''Franchise/FinalFantasy'':
** ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyIV'' was originally released in North America as ''II'', and ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyVI'' as ''III'' due to the lack of English versions of ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyII'', ''[[VideoGame/FinalFantasyIII III]]'' and ''[[VideoGame/FinalFantasyV V]]'' on their original platforms. Synchronizing the sequels as of ''VII'' confused westerners briefly who were not informed of the regional changes, but the numbering has caught on. The UsefulNotes/VirtualConsole releases of ''Final Fantasy IV'' and ''VI'' in western regions, being straight emulation of the Super NES versions, kept the earlier westernized numbering, although there were already localized ports of those game for the UsefulNotes/PlayStation and UsefulNotes/GameBoyAdvance that kept the original Japanese numbering.
** Up until ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyIX'', every entry in the franchise was a standalone game, but after that Square released ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyX'', they decided to make a direct sequel to that game under the rather awkward title of ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyX2'' (that's "Ten Two"). Since then, they have went to do sequels and spinoffs to prior and even later entries (most notably the ''Franchise/CompilationOfFinalFantasyVII'' line), but they all avoided using double numerals... at least until ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXIII2'' ("Thirteen Two"). ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXV'' itself was repurposed from an abandoned ''Franchise/FabulaNovaCrystallisFinalFantasy'' spin-off titled ''Final Fantasy Versus XIII''.
** ''Then'' you have ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXI'' and ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXIV'', which are [=MMOs=] and have more in common with each other than with any of the other numbered entries or than the direct sequels have in common with the numbered entries that spawned them.
* Despite consisting entirely of NumberedSequels, the continuity in ''VideoGame/FiveNightsAtFreddys'' is rather confusing (and that is before you add ''[[VideoGame/FiveNightsAtFreddysWorld FNaF World]]'', which is most likely in an AlternateContinuity to begin with). What we know for sure, though, is that [[spoiler:''2'' definitely takes place before ''1'', ''4'' may be set either before ''2'' or at the same time at ''2'']], ''3'' is set after ''1'', and ''[[VideoGame/FiveNightsAtFreddysSisterLocation Sister Location]]'' is set before ''3''.
* ''Gal*Gun 2'' is the third main game of the ''VideoGame/GalGun'' series, coming after ''Double Peace'' (and not counting ''VR''). This is probably because ''DP'' was primarily aimed at the handheld systems while ''VR'' aimed at virtual reality, leaving ''Gal*Gun 2'' only as the second primarily console/PC release.
* The third ''VideoGame/{{Gauntlet}}'' game could refer to ''Gauntlet III'', a PC game, ''Gauntlet: The Third Encounter'' for the Atari Lynx, or ''Gauntlet Legends'', which was the third proper arcade game in the series. To add to the confusion, there was also a ''Gauntlet 4'' for the Genesis released after both, ''Gauntlet III'' and ''Third Encounter'', even though it's really just a port of the first ''Gauntlet'' game with an added quest mode.
* The first game in the ''VideoGame/{{Gex}}'' trilogy is simply called ''Gex'', and the last one is called ''Gex 3: Deep Cover Gecko'', but the second game is called ''Gex: Enter the Gecko'', no "2" involved.
* The Jaleco-published soccer game ''Goal!'' for the NES was a localized version of ''Moero!! Pro Soccer'' for the Famicom, part of their "Moero!!" series of sports titles. For the sequel, Jaleco decided to adopt the English title for the Japanese version and thus, ''Goal!'' on the Famicom is actually ''Goal! Two''.
* The ''Gorky'' series began with ''Gorky 17'' (also known as ''VideoGame/{{Odium}}''), then ''Gorky Zero'' and then ''Gorky 02''.
* ''VideoGame/{{Gradius}}'':
** The original ''Gradius'' had its fair share of direct sequels. The first of these was ''Salamander'' in 1986 (known in the U.S. as ''Life Force''), which began development as a ''Gradius'' sequel, but was ultimately released under a different title when it was deemed too different from ''Gradius'' and is nowadays treated as a spin-off. Konami's UsefulNotes/{{MSX}} division then ended up making their own ''Gradius'' sequel titled ''Gradius 2'' (spelled with an Arabic numeral) in 1987, which was not based on any prior arcade game. The "true" arcade sequel, ''Gradius II'' (spelled with a Roman numeral), was eventually released in 1988 and all the mainline ''Gradius'' sequels from that point on used Roman numerals.
** In Europe, the MSX version of ''Gradius 2'' is known as ''Nemesis 2'', which was taken from the export title used for the arcade and MSX versions of the first game (the NES version kept the ''Gradius'' title everywhere), while the arcade version of '' Gradius II'' was retitled ''Vulcan Venture''. ''Gradius 2''/''Nemesis 2'' would have its own sequel, which is known as ''Nemesis 3: Eve of Destruction'' in Europe and ''GOFER no Yabō Episode II'' in Japan (which is derived from the subtitle of the arcade's ''Gradius II'').
** When ''Gradius III'' was released for the Super NES in North America, many publications and players made the assumption that Konami was counting ''Life Force'' on the NES as the second game, since the Famicom port of ''Gradius II'' was never released outside Japan.
** Note that the original ''Gradius'' itself, much like ''Salamander'', began development as a sequel to another Konami game, ''Scramble'' (which was released in 1981). However, this connection was not obvious to many people until ''Scramble'' was featured in the pre-title sequence of ''Gradius Galaxies'' for the Game Boy Advance. ''Scramble'' itself had a prior sequel titled ''Super Cobra''.
* ''VideoGame/GrandTheftAuto'' has a total of seven mainline entries on PC and consoles. The initial sequel was naturally ''VideoGame/GrandTheftAuto2'', which retained the top-down format of the first game. It was followed by the revolutionary ''VideoGame/GrandTheftAutoIII'', which brought the series to 3D and pioneered the open-world action genre. Then came the two prequels, ''VideoGame/GrandTheftAutoViceCity'' and ''VideoGame/GrandTheftAutoSanAndreas'', which were standalone games based on the ''GTA III'' engine. For a while it was speculated that Rockstar Games were going [[StoppedNumberingSequels to stop numbering newer titles]] and simply title each game after the location they took place in. This was later proven false when the next game, ''VideoGame/GrandTheftAutoIV'', resumed the numbering from where the third entry left off. This was followed by ''VideoGame/GrandTheftAutoV'', making it the seventh mainline game. Of course, this isn't counting the few expansion packs that were made (the two London Mission Packs for the original game and ''Episodes from Liberty City'' for ''GTA IV''), nor the four portable games (with the two ''City Stories'' games, originally for PSP, getting ports on [=PS2=]).
* ''VideoGame/GuiltyGear'' started off simple enough, with [[VideoGame/GuiltyGearTheMissingLink the first game]] (subtitled ''The Missing Link'' [[MarketBasedTitle in certain regions]]), and then ''[[VideoGame/GuiltyGearX X]]'' and ''[[VideoGame/GuiltyGearXX XX]]'' ([[CapcomSequelStagnation and the latter's many retoolings]]). But then ''Guilty Gear XX Accent Core Plus'' ended up being a sequel plot-wise to the original ''XX'', and then there was ''VideoGame/GuiltyGear2Overture'' (which made a VideoGame3DLeap ''[[OddballInTheSeries and]]'' underwent a GenreShift in addition to [[PutOnABus jettisoning most the cast]] by means of a TimeSkip), and all the ''X'' and ''XX'' games were declared to be {{Gaiden Game}}s (albeit in-canon Gaiden Games). Fair enough, but then came the next game in the main continuity: ''VideoGame/GuiltyGearXrd -SIGN-'', which was followed by ''Guilty Gear Xrd -REVELATOR-'' and ''Guilty Gear Xrd REV 2''. The next installment would then drop the Xs completely, being titled ''VideoGame/GuiltyGearStrive''.
* The ''VideoGame/GuitarHero'' and ''VideoGame/RockBand'' series have this as well.
** First we have ''Guitar Hero'' ''I-III'', simple. Then we have ''World Tour,'' which is counted as the official fourth game in the series. Then ''5'', yes ''5'', no Roman numerals, and ''Warriors of Rock,'' which is counted as the sixth entry in the main series. Then we have the band-centric games. The Music/{{Aerosmith}} game was released in between ''III'' and ''World Tour'', weirdly the same year as ''World Tour,'' but built on ''III''[='s=] engine, Music/{{Metallica}}'s game was released between ''World Tour'' and ''5'', followed by Music/VanHalen's game. ''Then'' we have ''expansions''! ''Rocks the 80s'' was made after ''II'' but before ''III'', ''Smash Hits'' was released before ''5'' and after ''Metallica'', and ''Band Hero'' was released only a ''few months'' after ''5''. Then we have the portable games for the DS, 3 in all, and various mobile games! To say Creator/{{Activision}} milked the franchise would be an understatement. Then there's the reboot, ''Guitar Hero Live,'' which was a revamp to the series. If we were only to count the titles released to consoles, it'd be 13.
** ''Rock Band'', luckily, has a more manageable list of games. They have ''Rock Bands 1-4''. In 2009, 2 games were released in between ''2'' and ''3''; ''The Beatles: Rock Band'' and ''Lego Rock Band.'' In 2010, they released ''Music/GreenDay: Rock Band'' several months before ''3'' came out. There were also some mobile games and even track packs (which were just DLC packs put on a disc with a download code to export them to the main series), the only one of any real worth being the ''Music/{{ACDC}} Live'' pack, which you couldn't buy through the regular DLC store due to the band's stance on how they want their music sold. They also had ''Rock Band Blitz'' out in 2012, which is more of a revamped version of their previous ''Amplitude'' and ''Frequency'' titles that was more like the track packs, since the main songs in the game were available to get through buying it before they eventually came to the DLC store. Altogether, it's 9, with the main games, band-centric games, spin-offs, and the AC/DC track pack, not counting the mobile games.
* The ''VideoGame/HalfLife'' series started with ''VideoGame/HalfLife1'', but then three subsequent LowerDeckEpisode games taking place at the same time chronologically, ''VideoGame/HalfLifeOpposingForce'', ''VideoGame/HalfLifeBlueShift'', and ''VideoGame/HalfLifeDecay'', were released. Then we get into ''VideoGame/HalfLife2'', which is followed by ''Half-Life 2: Episode 1'', despite the fact that it's technically the second part if we count ''Half-Life 2'' as the first ''[=HL2=]'' episode. ''Half-Life 2: Episode 2'' is similarly the third part of the ''[=HL2=]'' story arc. ''VideoGame/HalfLifeAlyx'' is an {{interquel}} set five years before ''Half-Life 2'' but it also presents itself as the ''fourth'' part of the ''[=HL2=]'' story arc by dropping a LateArrivalSpoiler about ''Episode 2'' in its very first screen, getting the player back on track about what previously happened in the series during a real-life SequelGap of ''12 years'' [[spoiler:because ''Alyx'' ends with a CosmicRetcon on said event in ''Episode 2'', TheStinger jumping back forward to a retconned ''Episode 2'' ending]]. There's also the bonus level demos ''Half-Life Uplink'' and ''Lost Coast''.
* ''Franchise/{{Halo}}'' is a minor example compared to others, but seeing as it has one major entry that was not a {{Numbered Sequel|s}} (''VideoGame/HaloReach''), ''VideoGame/Halo4'' is actually the fifth major game in-series, ''VideoGame/Halo5Guardians'' is the sixth, and so on. Although, as of ''VideoGame/HaloInfinite'' (the entry following ''Halo 5''), the series has StoppedNumberingSequels, so this may not matter so much in the future.
* ''VideoGame/Hitman2016'' is the sixth entry in the ''Franchise/{{Hitman}}'' series, making ''VideoGame/Hitman2'' and ''VideoGame/Hitman3'' the seventh and eighth game respectively. The trio is officially acknowledged as its own ''VideoGame/WorldOfAssassinationTrilogy'', but the reset in the numbering scheme gives off the impression that they're part of some kind of ContinuityReboot, which it's not, as they're still in-continuity with the older ''Hitman'' games, so it's more of a SoftReboot situation, and the trilogy even going out of its way to reference [[Literature/{{Hitman}} obscure]] [[ComicBook/Agent47BirthOfTheHitman lore]] from other places.
* The ''VideoGame/{{Homeworld}}'' franchise consists of ''Homeworld'' (1999), ''Homeworld: Cataclysm'' (2000), ''Homeworld 2'' (2003), and the prequel ''Homeworld: Deserts of Kharak'' (2016), originally announced as ''Homeworld: Shipbreakers''.
* The Creator/DataEast arcade game ''[[VideoGame/JoeAndMac Joe & Mac]]'' was originally subtitled ''Tatakae Genshijin'' (Fighting Caveman) in Japan. The first sequel to the series, ''Tatakae Genshijin 2: Rūkī no Bōken'' (The Adventure of Rookie), was released for the Super Famicom and did not star Joe and Mac (hence the different subtitle) , so it was retitled ''Congo's Caper'' overseas. When ''Tatakae Genshijin 3'' brought back the original duo, that game ended becoming ''Joe & Mac 2: Lost in the Tropics'' in North America. Simple enough? However, the European version went back to the original numbering and became ''Joe & Mac 3'', likely due to the existence of a separate arcade sequel titled ''Joe & Mac Returns'' that was released during the same year.
* ''Franchise/KingdomHearts'': The series features ''VideoGame/{{Kingdom Hearts|I}}'', ''VideoGame/KingdomHeartsII'', and ''VideoGame/KingdomHeartsIII'', which are all native to home consoles, feature a similar "Command Menu" gameplay style, and follow Sora, Donald and Goofy. However, the series also features several unnumbered games and prequels originally released on a mix of handheld games (''VideoGame/KingdomHeartsChainOfMemories'', ''VideoGame/KingdomHearts358DaysOver2'', ''VideoGame/KingdomHeartsBirthBySleep'', ''VideoGame/KingdomHearts3DDreamDropDistance''), [[VideoGame/KingdomHeartsCoded mobile phones]], and in one case, [[VideoGame/KingdomHeartsX internet browsers]]. These unnumbered games have significant differences from the numbered games, often featuring unique gameplay and/or different player characters, which may explain why they don't get numbers, but this tends to confuse newcomers since the lack of a number implies ''wrongly'' that they aren't totally necessary to understand [[MythArc the overarching plot]]. This naming convention has created a situation where, in release order, ''Kingdom Hearts'' is the first game, ''Kingdom Hearts II'' is the ''third'' game, and ''Kingdom Hearts III'' is the ''eleventh''.
* The first installment of Creator/FromSoftware's first-person dungeon crawler series ''VideoGame/KingsField'' was only released in Japan, being a launch game for the original [=PlayStation=] over there. As a result, ''King's Field II'' dropped the numeral for its western release, while ''King's Field III'' was renumbered ''King's Field II''. The fourth entry [[StoppedNumberingSequels avoided this whole numbering conundrum]] somewhat by being titled ''King's Field: The Ancient City'' in the U.S., but it was still titled ''King's Field IV'' in Japan and Europe.
* ''VideoGame/KirbysDreamLand2'' is the third game in the mainline ''Franchise/{{Kirby}}'' franchise, and ''VideoGame/KirbysDreamLand3'' is the fifth. It isn't meant to represent an AlternateContinuity either; the games in between are also canon. They're named more for inheriting the laid-back pace of the original ''VideoGame/KirbysDreamLand'' rather than the more action-packed style established by ''VideoGame/KirbysAdventure''.
* The ''VideoGame/LegacyOfKain'' series started out with ''Blood Omen: Legacy of Kain''. The sequel shifted the subtitle to the forefront and was titled ''Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver''. This was followed by ''Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver 2'' and then by ''Legacy of Kain: Blood Omen 2'', the reasoning being that they were sub-series, the ''Blood Omen'' games featuring Kain as protagonist and the ''Soul Reaver'' games following Raziel. The developers finally did away with the "numbered sub-series" idea when they released the fifth and currently final game titled ''Legacy of Kain: Defiance'' which follows both.
* ''VideoGame/LittleBigPlanet'' only counts the console games with numbered sequels. This means that ''[=LittleBigPlanet=] 2'' is actually the ''third'' game in the series (or fourth, if you count spin-off ''Sackboy's Prehistoric Moves''), because of the release of the PSP ''[=LittleBigPlanet=]'' in between the original [=PS3=] ''[=LittleBigPlanet=]'' and ''[=LBP2=]''. This also means that ''[=LittleBigPlanet=] 3'' can be anywhere from the fifth to the ''eighth'' game in the series due to the release of ''[=LittleBigPlanet=] Vita'' between ''[=LBP2=]'' and ''[=LBP3=]'', plus the release of two more spin-offs, ''[=LittleBigPlanet=] Karting'' and ''Run Sackboy! Run!''
* All the ''VideoGame/MaddenNFL'' entries are numbered after the year following their release with the exception of the 2014 edition, which was titled ''Madden 25'' to [[MilestoneCelebration commemorate the 25th anniversary]] of the original 1988 Apple II version of ''John Madden Football''. The series would resume to regular numbering with ''Madden 15'', so it remains to be seen what they'll do when they eventually get to the actual 2025 edition.
* ''VideoGame/MegaManAndBass'', originally released in 1998 for the [[UsefulNotes/SuperNintendoEntertainmentSystem Super Famicom]] in Japan as a cheap alternative to ''VideoGame/MegaMan8'' aimed at younger players who hadn't transitioned yet to the newer generation of consoles at the time (the UsefulNotes/PlayStation and UsefulNotes/SegaSaturn), was at one point nicknamed among fans "Mega Man 9". An official ''VideoGame/MegaMan9'' wouldn't be released until a decade later in 2008. Internally, the game was titled ''Rockman [[{{Interquel}} 8.5]]''. Notably the title was excluded from the ''[[CompilationRerelease Mega Man Legacy Collection]]'' series, which otherwise includes all the numbered Mega Man titles from 1 through 10.
* ''VideoGame/MetalGear'':
** The original ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolid'' got its title due to the fact that it was the third (canonical) game in the series following the original ''VideoGame/{{Metal Gear|1}}'' and ''VideoGame/MetalGear2SolidSnake'', both on the UsefulNotes/{{MSX}}2, as well as [[VideoGame3DLeap the first game in the series to be in 3D]] (note the {{pun}} on a three-dimensional object being a "solid"). But because of the obscurity of the first two [=MSX2=] games due to their lack of North American releases (''Solid Snake'' in particular was never ported to any other platform outside the [=MSX2=] at the time), the next mainline in the series was not ''Metal Gear 4'', but rather ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolid2SonsOfLiberty'', giving the impression that the first ''Metal Gear Solid'' was [[MorePopularSpinoff a more successful spin-off]] to the [=MSX2=] games rather than a direct sequel to them. The remaining members of the canon, ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolid3SnakeEater'' (actually a prequel), ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolid4GunsOfThePatriots'', ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolidPeaceWalker'' [[note]]see below[[/note]] and ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolidVGroundZeroes'' and ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolidVThePhantomPain''[[note]]see belower[[/note]], followed suit. The sole exception to the naming scheme is ''VideoGame/MetalGearRisingRevengeance'', a SpinOff whose title is somehow [[PerfectlyCromulentWord even weirder than the rest]].
** While the [=MSX2=] ''Metal Gear'' games were never released in North America back in their day, Konami did end up making two games in the series for the NES. The first ''Metal Gear'' on the NES was a [[ReformulatedGame reworked port]] of its [=MSX2=] counterpart, but the second one was a completely different sequel titled ''VideoGame/SnakesRevenge'' that actually started development before ''Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake'', which technically makes ''Metal Gear 2'' the third installment and ''Metal Gear Solid'' the fourth one, although ''Snake's Revenge'' was never localized in Japan (despite being developed there). While the in-game plot summaries in ''Metal Gear Solid'' makes it clear that it's a sequel to ''Solid Snake'' and not ''Snake's Revenge'', it was still common to make the mistaken assumption that they were different titles for the same game or even refer to the [=MSX2=] entries as "the first two NES games."
** ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolidPortableOps'' for the PSP was initially counted as the sixth canonical entry in the series, being developed between the release of ''Metal Gear Solid 3'' on the [=PS2=] and ''Metal Gear Solid 4'' on the [=PS3=]. But the game was developed with very minimal involvement from series's director Creator/HideoKojima. When Kojima himself later directed ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolidPeaceWalker'' (the seventh game in the series he directed), which was also on the PSP, he demoted ''Portable Ops'' to a {{broad strokes}} side-story status, going as far as to throw in a DiscontinuityNod within the game's script. In fact, ''Peace Walker'' originally had the WorkingTitle of ''Metal Gear Solid 5'' in an attempt to drive the point that it was a legitimate follow-up to ''Metal Gear Solid 4'' in spite of the switch from the advanced [=PS3=] to the more limited PSP hardware. And while the game was ultimately released without a numbered title, it would later be given a remastered release on the [=PS3=] and Xbox 360 (a privilege that was not given to ''Portable Ops'') and the actual ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolidV'' would eventually serve as a direct sequel to ''Peace Walker''.
** ''Ground Zeroes'' and ''The Phantom Pain'' were originally intended to be portions of a single game (''Metal Gear Solid V''), but a prolonged development period resulted in ''Ground Zeroes'' being sold by itself as a stand-alone game a year before ''The Phantom Pain'' was released in order recoup production costs. Because of this, it is unclear whether ''Ground Zeroes'' and ''The Phantom Pain'' should be counted as two separate entries or as a single work divided into separate episodes. While ''Ground Zeroes'' and ''The Phantom Pain'' were eventually re-released as part of a single bundle, they still function as separate applications within the same disc, with the option to switch from one title to the other from the main menu.
* ''Franchise/{{Metroid}}'':
** ''VideoGame/SuperMetroid'' and ''VideoGame/MetroidFusion'' were called "Metroid 3" and "Metroid 4", respectively, in their opening sequences. ''VideoGame/MetroidPrime'' came out the same time as ''Fusion'', and was intended to be just a GaidenGame between the [[VideoGame/{{Metroid 1}} original]] and ''[[VideoGame/MetroidIIReturnOfSamus Return of Samus]]''. But then the ''Prime'' series was a runaway success, [[VideoGame/MetroidPrimeTrilogy forming its own nested sub-series]].
** Within the mainline series, the chronology is still thrown off by ''VideoGame/MetroidOtherM'', an interquel between ''Super'' and ''Fusion''. Numbers wouldn't reappear in the series' titles until ''VideoGame/MetroidDread'', the chronological follow-up and proper sequel to ''Fusion'', which was billed as "Metroid 5" in its E3 reveal.
* ''Franchise/MortalKombat'':
** ''VideoGame/MortalKombatVsDCUniverse'' started development as the eighth mainline installment of the franchise before Creator/WarnerBros got involved with the project and turned it into a crossover with their Creator/DCComics characters, which led to the company buying the IP and forming Creator/NetherrealmStudios after the original developer Midway went out of business. Despite this, the next entry, an in-continuity reboot [[RecycledTitle simply titled]] ''[[RecycledTitle Mortal Kombat]]'', was still referred to as "VideoGame/MortalKombat9" by Ed Boon on social media, suggesting that ''Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe'' still counted as a mainline entry. This would be reflected by the naming choices for the two entries afterward, ''VideoGame/MortalKombatX'' (which is officially meant to be the letter "X", but was obviously chosen to invoke the image of a Roman numeral ten) and ''VideoGame/MortalKombat11'' (the first numbered title in the series since ''VideoGame/MortalKombat4'').
** The next installment after that? ''VideoGame/MortalKombat1''. No, not ''Mortal Kombat 12''. ''Mortal Kombat '''[[Title1 1]]'''''. This is because it's another ContinuityReboot and [[VideoGame/MortalKombat1992 the 1992 original]] officially has no number, but since most fans already dubbed the first game "Mortal Kombat 1" on account of [[VideoGame/MortalKombatII its sequel]] and this game is the ''twelfth'' entry in the series, plenty found the naming choice to be [[OddlyNamedSequel2ElectricBoogaloo inspired]].
* The ''VideoGame/{{Mother}}'' series is straightforward enough... in Japan. ''Outside'' of Japan, ''Mother 2'' was the first game released, as ''VideoGame/{{EarthBound|1994}}''. However, the first ''Mother'' game was initially considered for release in the United States, and a nearly finished prototype to this end, titled ''Earth Bound'' (spelled as two words), was found in the late 1990s. For the purposes of keeping things straight, this English version of the game was commonly referred to as "[=EarthBound=] Zero" in fan communities until its official release on the Wii U's Virtual Console as ''VideoGame/EarthBoundBeginnings'' in 2015. ''VideoGame/{{Mother 3}}'', [[NoExportForYou which still remains officially unlocalized]], is mostly called by its Japanese title and never as ''[=EarthBound=] 2''.
* The arcade sequels to ''VideoGame/OutRun'' consist of ''Turbo [=OutRun=]'' (1989), ''[=OutRunners=]'' (1993), ''[=OutRun=] 2'' (2003), ''[=OutRun=] 2 SP'' (2004) and ''[=OutRun=] 2 SP SDX'' (2006).
* ''VideoGame/PacMan2TheNewAdventures'' is more like the tenth ''VideoGame/PacMan'' sequel.
* Had the planned ''VideoGame/{{Pico}}'' game ''Pico 2'' been completed and released as intended, it would have been the fifth official game in the series. The second game to feature Pico was ''Pico V.S. Bear'', and the second game overall was ''Nene's Interactive Suicide''. In this case, the "2" is supposed to indicate following up on plot points established in ''Pico's School'', the game it was to be a direct sequel to.
* ''VideoGame/Psychonauts2'' is the second sequel to ''VideoGame/{{Psychonauts}}'', with the first being ''VideoGame/PsychonautsInTheRhombusOfRuin''.
* ''Franchise/ResidentEvil'':
** ''VideoGame/ResidentEvilCodeVeronica'', despite being essentially a sequel to the first three ''Resident Evil'' games on the original UsefulNotes/{{PlayStation}}, specifically ''VideoGame/ResidentEvil2'' due to its focus on Claire Redfield and her search for her brother Chris, as well as the return of antagonist Albert Wesker to the series, it was not given a numbered title (in contrast to ''VideoGame/ResidentEvil3Nemesis'', which was more of a parallel sequel to the first ''VideoGame/{{Resident Evil|1}}'', with the first half of the story actually taking place before the events of ''2''). The reason for this being that ''Code: Veronica'' was co-developed by Capcom and Sega with the intent of being a [[UsefulNotes/SegaDreamcast Dreamcast]]-exclusive. When Sega left the hardware race and discontinued the Dreamcast, the game was quickly ported to the [=PS2=] in the form of an expanded edition with additional cutscenes and this version would later arrive to the [[UsefulNotes/NintendoGameCube GameCube]] after Capcom ported ''2'' and ''3'' to the same platform. Ironically the next numbered entry in the series, ''VideoGame/ResidentEvil4'', underwent a similar situation: it was originally designed as a [=GameCube=]-exclusive, but the underwhelming sales of the console led to the game quickly ported to the [=PS2=] months after its initial release and it went on to become the most ported title ever with each new console generation.
** The next subtitled entry in the series was ''VideoGame/ResidentEvilRevelations'' for the UsefulNotes/Nintendo3DS in 2012, which was released a few months before ''VideoGame/ResidentEvil6'' during the same year. Originally it was meant to be a standalone side-entry, but its success led to the game being ported to various home HD consoles and PC, eventually getting a sequel in the form of ''VideoGame/ResidentEvilRevelations2'', which was released on multiple platforms from the get-go. Both games take place between numbered entries (the original ''Revelations'' is set between ''Resident Evil 4'' and ''5'', while ''Revelations 2'' is set between ''5'' and ''6'') and involve characters from the mainline titles, but they're marketed as part of a spin-off line separate from the mainline series.
* Similar to ''Hitman'' above, ''VideoGame/SamuraiShodown'' opted for its 2019 installment [[RecycledTitle to share its title with the very first entry in the series]], giving the impression of, at the very least, a SoftReboot. The reality is that, as of this writing, [[NonLinearSequel it's the second game chronologically]], coming between ''V'' (known as ''Samurai Spirits [[EpisodeZeroTheBeginning Zero]]'' [[MarketBasedTitle in Japan]]) and the original. Looking at the rest of the series timeline ([[Timeline/SamuraiShodown as seen here]]) only complicates matters, as the games are in AnachronicOrder (''I'' > ''III'' > ''IV'' > ''II'', followed by the ''64'' titles, ''Sen/Edge of Destiny'', and ''[[DistantFinale Warriors Rage]]'') and ''[=SamSho=] VI'' (the ''tenth'' installment, released after ''V'' and its ''Special'' [[CapcomSequelStagnation update]] but before ''Sen'') [[DreamMatchGame isn't even canon to begin with]].
* ''VideoGame/SeriousSam: The Second Encounter'' (or "''TSE''") and ''Serious Sam 2'' (sometimes referred to as "''[=SS2=]''"" or "''II''") are actually two different games. The former is a MissionPackSequel to the original, while the latter is a completely new installment--released well after ''The Second Encounter''--with its own art style, setting and story line. Both of these were followed by ''Serious Sam 3: BFE'' ("''Before the First Encounter''") a prequel to the original game (referred heretofore as "''TFE''", or "''The First Encounter''"). And that's not counting ''Serious Sam HD'' and ''Serious Sam: The Second Encounter HD'' which are [[UpdatedRerelease Updated Re-releases]] of ''TFE'' and ''TSE'', respectively.
* The webgame ''WesternAnimation/ShaunTheSheep: Home Sheep Home'' had a sequel, with the same basic gameplay but slightly different graphics and more of a story, called ''Home Sheep Home 2: A Little Bit Epic: Lost in London''. The following two games, having the same graphics, were apparently seen more as {{Expansion Pack}}s to the second game, so they were also called ''Home Sheep Home 2: A Little Bit Epic'', with the [[ColonCancer third subtitles]] being ''Lost Underground'' and ''Lost in Space''.
* In addition to the numbered games, ''Franchise/ShinMegamiTensei'' has three other games officially recognized as mainline titles: ''VideoGame/ShinMegamiTenseiIf'', ''VideoGame/ShinMegamiTenseiStrangeJourney'', and ''VideoGame/ShinMegamiTenseiIVApocalypse''. Beyond those three, there are other games that are treated as mainline in certain cases, but not given the same standing or consistency as the aforementioned three, most notably the Famicom games based on the ''Literature/DigitalDevilStory'' novels and the Xbox title ''VideoGame/ShinMegamiTenseiNINE''.
* ''VideoGame/{{Shinobi}}'':
** ''VideoGame/ShinobiIIIReturnOfTheNinjaMaster'' happens to be the third ''Shinobi'' game for the UsefulNotes/SegaGenesis. However, the first two ''Shinobi'' games on the Genesis were both sequels as well. ''VideoGame/TheRevengeOfShinobi'', was a direct sequel to the original ''VideoGame/{{Shinobi|1987}}'' released for the arcades and [[UsefulNotes/SegaMasterSystem Master System]], while ''VideoGame/ShadowDancer: The Secret of Shinobi'' was marketed as the sequel to ''The Revenge of Shinobi'' in western territories, making it unclear which games ''Shinobi III'' is counting in its numbering. However, the lineage is much clearer with the Japanese titles: ''The Revenge of Shinobi'' and ''Shinobi III'' [[MarketBasedTitle were originally known as]] ''The Super Shinobi'' and ''The Super Shinobi II'' respectively, making them a distinct line from the more arcade-inspired ''Shadow Dancer'' (which was loosely based on the arcade sequel to ''Shinobi'' of the same name). It helps that the Mega Drive version of ''Shadow Dancer'' was never actually part of the same continuity as ''The Super Shinobi'' series in Japan -- it branches off completely from the original ''Shinobi'' and stars Joe Musashi's son Hayate -- but the plot and the protagonist's identity were changed in the English localization in order to avoid confusing western players with an alternate timeline.
** The Master System also had its own exclusive sequel to ''Shinobi'' titled ''The Cyber Shinobi'' in 1991, which was subtitled ''Shinobi Part II'' on the title screen.
** A Game Gear game titled ''Shinobi II: The Silent Fury'' was released in 1992 (just a year before ''Shinobi III: Return of the Ninja Master''), but this was actually a sequel to the first ''Shinobi'' game on the Game Gear, which was an original game and not a port of the arcade version. The in-game titles for both games are ''The G.G. Shinobi'' and ''The G.G. Shinobi II: The Silent Fury''.
** To put it another way, if one were to factor in all the games in the series up to ''Shinobi III'', they'd learn that the entry with a "III" in the title was actually the ''ninth'' game released. (And that count only drops by one if ''VideoGame/AlexKidd in Shinobi World'' is excluded.)
** The confusion doesn't end there either; following ''Shinobi III'' and the generally unrelated ''VideoGame/ShinobiLegions'' (also known as ''Shin Shinobi Den'' in Japan and ''Shinobi X'' in Europe[[note]]which coincidentally happens to be the tenth game in the series, meaning the "X" in ''Shinobi X'' ([[https://archive.org/details/Electronic_Gaming_Monthly_61/page/n51/mode/2up which was the original Japanese title as well]]) could possibly stand for the Roman numeral ten[[/note]]), the series would go on hiatus until the SoftReboot that was [[VideoGame/Shinobi2002 the 2002 installment]] ([[RecycledTitle simply titled]] ''[[RecycledTitle Shinobi]]''). This would be followed by a UsefulNotes/GameBoyAdvance game [[RecycledTitle also titled]] ''Revenge of Shinobi'' (but having nothing to do with its namesake ''or'' the 2002 game), ''VideoGame/{{Nightshade|Kunoichi}}'' (a sequel to the 2002 game, known as ''Kunoichi'' in Japan; like the 2002 ''Shinobi'', the game's logo features the kanji 忍[[note]]"shinobi"[[/note]] behind the title for marketing purposes), and -- [[SequelGap after eight years]] -- [[VideoGame/Shinobi2011 a third game]] bearing the name ''Shinobi'' (this time a ''prequel'' to the entire series starring Joe's father Jiro).
* ''Franchise/SilentHill'' had three {{numbered sequels}}, a prequel (''[[VideoGame/SilentHillOrigins Origins/Zero]]''), a subtitled sequel (''[[VideoGame/SilentHillHomecoming Homecoming]]''), and a reimagining of the first (''[[VideoGame/SilentHillShatteredMemories Shattered Memories]]''). ''VideoGame/SilentHillDownpour'' was tentatively titled "Silent Hill 8" until someone realized the problem.
* ''Franchise/SonicTheHedgehog'':
** Officially, it goes ''VideoGame/{{Sonic the Hedgehog|1}}'' (released in 1991), ''[[VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehog2 Sonic 2]]'' (1992), ''[[VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehogCD Sonic CD]]'' (1993), ''[[VideoGame/Sonic3AndKnuckles Sonic 3]]'' (1994), ''Sonic & Knuckles'' (1994) which is an [[MissionPackSequel expansion]] of ''Sonic 3'', ''[[VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehog4 Sonic 4: Episode I]]'' (2010), and then ''Sonic 4: Episode II'' (2012). There are also 8-bit versions of ''Sonic'' and ''Sonic 2'' which run separately from the more well-known 16-bit games.
** The Dreamcast games ''VideoGame/SonicAdventure'' (ported to the [=GameCube=] as ''Sonic Adventure DX''), followed by ''VideoGame/SonicAdventure2'' (ported to the [=GameCube=] as ''Sonic Adventure 2 Battle'', not to be confused with the UsefulNotes/GameBoyAdvance game ''VideoGame/SonicBattle''). Storylines from this series continue into the multiplatform releases of ''VideoGame/SonicHeroes'', and then further into ''VideoGame/ShadowTheHedgehog'', before releasing [[RecycledTitle yet another game]] titled ''[[VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehog2006 Sonic the Hedgehog]]''.
** There's also ''Sonic 3D Blast'', which was renamed ''VideoGame/Sonic3DFlickiesIsland'' in Europe, which has no direct connection to any other game, not in the least ''VideoGame/SonicBlast'' for the UsefulNotes/GameGear.
* ''VideoGame/SoulSeries'':
** The series did not actually start with the original ''Soulcalibur'', [[SequelDisplacement but rather with]] ''Soul Edge''. However, [[Creator/BandaiNamcoEntertainment Namco]] was forced to rename the UsefulNotes/PlayStation port ''Soul Blade'' [[MarketBasedTitle outside Japan]] in order to [[WritingAroundTrademarks get around a trademark dispute]] with game designer Tim Langdell over the use of the word "Edge". As a result, when it came time to make the sequel, Namco decided to retitle the series ''Soulcalibur'' in order to avoid having two different names for the series between markets, although Langdell's ownership of the word "Edge" would later be proven fraudulent after a separate trademark dispute with Creator/ElectronicArts over ''VideoGame/MirrorsEdge''.
** Because of this, ''VideoGame/SoulcaliburV'' director Daishi Odashima originally wanted to title the sixth entry ''Soul Edge 2'' to reflect [[SoftReboot the new direction he wanted to take with the series]], but [[PublisherChosenTitle Namco wasn't having that]], likely due to the can of worms that would've opened up.
** ''VideoGame/SoulcaliburVI'' didn't help matters either; while being numbered like a sequel, it is actually a ContinuityReboot of the series that primarily retells the events of the original ''Soulcalibur'' [[AdaptationalExpansion with some new elements and deviations]] [[note]]though the ending of ''Soul Edge'' and a few events leading up to ''Soulcalibur II'' are also covered[[/note]] and could be considered a second starting point in general. [[spoiler:Zasalamel and Cassandra's Soul Chronicles, [[ZigZaggingTrope on the other hand]], show that--much like ''VideoGame/MortalKombat9''--the original canon is still intact. The latter story, in fact, frames the events of ''V'' as the BadFuture of the series, [[ArcWelding effectively tying together both timelines]] and making ''VI'' a "proper" sequel to its predecessor.]]
* An OlderThanTheNES example of this is Creator/{{Atari}}'s ''VideoGame/{{Sprint|2}}'' series of arcade games. ''Sprint 2'' started the series in 1976, followed by ''Sprint 4'', ''Sprint 8'', ''Sprint One'' (switching from Arabic numerals to words), ''Super Sprint'', ''Championship Sprint'', and finally ''Badlands'' (which is ''Sprint'' in a [[AfterTheEnd post-apocalypse]] setting). The confusing thing is that the numbers in the first four ''Sprint'' titles do not indicate the game's order in the series. It actually indicates how many human players can race at the same time. So ''Sprint One'' got its name for being a one player game, even though it was the fourth in the series chronologically.
* ''VideoGame/{{StarCraft|I}}'' was initially released on 31 March 1998. By 2009 the franchise included various novels, add-ons, etc., as well as a major ExpansionPack, ''Brood War''. When ''[[VideoGame/StarCraftII Starcraft II]]'' came out in 2010, there was a noticeable DoubleTake by some fans at the fact that it was "only" the first sequel. As though to confuse things further, it came in three parts (''[[VideoGame/StarCraftIIWingsOfLiberty Wings of Liberty]]'', ''[[VideoGame/StarCraftIIHeartOfTheSwarm Heart of the Swarm]]'' and ''[[VideoGame/StarCraftIILegacyOfTheVoid Legacy of the Void]]''), and it's difficult to know whether to consider each of them separate video games or expansion packs or what.
* The ''Franchise/StarWars: VideoGame/DarkForces'' series continues the movies' approach at long chains of subtitles. The games include ''Star Wars: Dark Forces'', ''Star Wars: Dark Forces II - Jedi Knight'', ''Star Wars: Jedi Knight - Mysteries of the Sith'' (an expansion pack), ''Star Wars: Jedi Knight II - Jedi Outcast'', ''Star Wars: Jedi Knight - Jedi Academy''.
* ''Franchise/StreetFighter'':
** Each numbered ''Street Fighter'' title since ''VideoGame/StreetFighterII'' is treated by Creator/{{Capcom}} as it was its own series of games. This was because rather than working immediately on ''VideoGame/StreetFighterIII'' after completing ''Street Fighter II: The World Warrior'' (the first iteration), Capcom decided to do [[CapcomSequelStagnation reiterations of the same game]] before working a full-fledged sequel. It started simple enough with ''Street Fighter II: Champion Edition'' (the second iteration), which turned the CPU-only boss characters into playable fighters and allowed for mirror matches, but then they made three more upgrades after that: ''Street Fighter II: Hyper Fighting'' (third entry), ''Super Street Fighter II'' (fourth entry) and ''Super Street Fighter II Turbo'' (fifth entry). Even after ''Super Turbo'', Capcom ended up working on a bunch of other ''Street Fighter'' installments -- the ''VideoGame/StreetFighterAlpha'' prequel series, [[VideoGame/StreetFighterTheMovie the tie-in game(s)]] for [[Film/StreetFighter the 1994 live-action film]], the polygonal ''VideoGame/StreetFighterEX'' series, and crossovers such as ''VideoGame/XMenVsStreetFighter'' and ''VideoGame/MarvelSuperHeroesVsStreetFighter'' -- before eventually releasing ''VideoGame/StreetFighterIII: New Generation''. Naturally, ''Street Fighter III'' would have its own iterations in the form of ''2nd Impact'' and ''3rd Strike'', as did ''VideoGame/StreetFighterIV'' with ''Super Street Fighter IV'', ''Arcade Edition'' and ''Ultra Street Fighter IV''.
** ''Street Fighter Alpha: Warriors' Dreams'' was not a numbered ''Street Fighter'' entry, despite being the first all-new ''Street Fighter'' game developed by Capcom since ''Street Fighter II: The World Warrior'' (not counting ''The Movie'' tie-in games), partly because it was a much lower-budget game that was made to get rid of unsold/returned stocks [=CPS1=]/[=CPS2=] boards, but also because it was a prequel to ''Street Fighter II'', so it was treated as its own side-series of games, with the follow-ups being numbered like conventional sequels (e.g. ''Street Fighter Alpha 2'', ''Street Fighter Alpha 3''). This logic felt out the window when the eventual ''VideoGame/StreetFighterIV'' series turned out to be an interquel set between ''II'' and ''III'', as well as the succeeding ''VideoGame/StreetFighterV'', likely a result of the lukewarm reception of the ''III'' series back in its day. It would not be until ''VideoGame/StreetFighter6'', released 24 years after ''3rd Strike'' in 2023, that the series [[CliffhangerWall would finally move beyond]] the events of the ''III'' series.
** Chronologically the series goes ''SFI'' -> ''Alpha'' & ''Alpha 2'' (the second game overwrites the first one for the most part) > ''Alpha 3'' > ''SFII'' (each iteration overwrites the last) > ''SFIV'' > ''Super/Ultra SFIV'' > ''SFV'' > ''SFIII: New Generation'' & ''2nd Impact'' > ''3rd Strike'' > ''[=SF6=]''.
* ''Franchise/SuperMarioBros'':
** The mainline Mario games have two different games titled ''VideoGame/SuperMarioBros2'': the original Japanese game (aka ''VideoGame/SuperMarioBrosTheLostLevels'') and the game that the rest of the world is familiar with (adapted from the Japan-exclusive ''VideoGame/DokiDokiPanic''). This was done since ''Lost Levels'' was essentially [[MissionPackSequel a level pack]] for the first game with the difficulty spiked up, and Nintendo of America wanted a more original and less frustrating game (presumably to avoid the conundrum of having to renumber ''VideoGame/SuperMarioBros3'' when it came time to localize that game in the West, which is what would've happened had they decided to just skip ''Lost Levels'' completely without releasing a substitute game). Ultimately, both games were recursively made available in both Japan and overseas (with Japan receiving ''Super Mario Bros. 2'' under the name ''Super Mario USA''), and were further canonized by the inclusion of their features in future games, so the snarl is now limited to their names.
** Strictly speaking, ''VideoGame/WarioLandSuperMarioLand3'' and ''VideoGame/SuperMarioWorld2YoshisIsland'' aren't really proper sequels of their respective predecessors, but instead [[PoorlyDisguisedPilot spin-offs]], which is why ''their'' own respective sequels dropped the original titles and went by the subtitle instead (e.g. ''Wario Land II'' instead of ''Super Mario Land 4'', ''Yoshi's Island DS'' instead of ''Super Mario World 3''). Interestingly, the original ''VideoGame/SuperMarioWorld'' was originally going to be titled ''Super Mario Bros. 4'' and this WorkingTitle was still used on the packaging of the Japanese version (it isn't used in the actual game); meanwhile, ''Yoshi's Island'' didn't have the ''World 2'' moniker in Japan, so the full name was ''Super Mario: Yoshi's Island''.
** ''VideoGame/WarioLand'' gets another problem due to the release of ''VideoGame/VirtualBoyWarioLand'', which is the second game in the series but isn't counted amongst the numbered titles. This means that ''VideoGame/WarioLandII'', ''[[VideoGame/WarioLand3 3]]'', and ''[[VideoGame/WarioLand4 4]]'' are actually the third, fourth, and fifth games.
** The ''Super Mario Advance'' series has its own numbering system, despite the games themselves simply being Game Boy Advance ports of the NES and Super NES titles. The ''Advance'' games are released in no particular order: the first game is a port of the U.S. version of ''VideoGame/SuperMarioBros2'', the second game is a port of ''VideoGame/SuperMarioWorld'', the third game is a port of ''Super Mario World 2: VideoGame/YoshisIsland'' (thankfully, they didn't use the full title of ''Yoshi's Island'', dropping the ''Super Mario World 2'' portion to make room for ''Super Mario Advance 3'' instead), and the fourth game has the rather weird title of ''Super Mario Advance 4: VideoGame/SuperMarioBros3''.
** ''VideoGame/NewSuperMarioBros2'' is actually the third game in the ''VideoGame/NewSuperMarioBros'' series; the current pattern is that only the portable titles are numbered, while the home titles are named after the console they're on (the actual second entry is ''VideoGame/NewSuperMarioBrosWii'').
** ''VideoGame/MarioParty'': Only console entries are numbered, so you have the original game plus nine numbered sequels. Then you add in all of the handheld games, which were released in-between the console games: ''Mario Party-e'' (which makes use of the e-Reader accessory for the UsefulNotes/GameBoyAdvance, hence the name), ''VideoGame/MarioPartyAdvance'', ''VideoGame/MarioPartyDS'', ''VideoGame/MarioPartyIslandTour'', ''VideoGame/MarioPartyStarRush'', and ''The Top 100'' (the 100 referring to the amount of minigames in it; obviously it's not the 100th game). ''VideoGame/SuperMarioParty'' and ''Mario Party Superstars'' instead bear new titles with no numbers, though for reference they're the 17th and 18th games released.
* ''VideoGame/TalesOfEternia'' was released in North America on the original [=PlayStation=] as ''VideoGame/TalesOfDestiny II'' due to Creator/{{Mattel}} owning the trademark for the name "Eternia" (the title remained unchanged in Europe, where it was released on the PSP). This would eventually cause a bit of confusion among fans when an actual ''Tales of Destiny 2'' was released in Japan for the [=PS2=], which was never released overseas.
* ''VideoGame/TeenageMutantNinjaTurtles'':
** The first ''TMNT'' video game for the NES was localized to the Japanese Famicom under a {{completely different title}}, ''Geki Kame Ninja Den'' (which literally means "Fierce Turtle Ninja Story"). When the sequel, ''[[VideoGame/TeenageMutantNinjaTurtlesTheArcadeGame TMNT II: The Arcade Game]]'', was localized, they kept the English title and dropped the numeral and subtitle. Because of this, when ''[[VideoGame/TeenageMutantNinjaTurtlesTheManhattanProject TMNT III: The Manhattan Project]]'' was released in Japan, it was renumbered ''[=TMNT2=]''.
** Also worth noting that ''TMNT II'' was a port of the ''TMNT'' arcade game and not a direct sequel to the first NES game. The addition of a numeral to the title and the subtitle "The Arcade Game" were merely done to distinguish it from the first game. Likewise ''[[VideoGame/TeenageMutantNinjaTurtlesTurtlesInTime Turtles in Time]]'', the second arcade game, became ''TMNT IV'' when it was ported to the Super NES in order to take into account the prior three games on the original NES.
** There were also a trilogy of Game Boy games released at the same time as the NES and Super NES games that had their own numbering: ''TMNT: Fall of the Foot Clan'', ''TMNT II: Back from the Sewers'' and ''TMNT III: Radical Rescue''.
* ''VideoGame/TonyHawksProSkater'' were numbered up to ''4''. The next three used subtitles instead. Then the eighth installment was called ''Project 8'', followed by four more games (plus spin-offs) without numbers. The series is capped off with [[ObviousBeta a rushed cash-in]] released in 2015 simply named ''Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 5''.
* In Japan, the order of the second and third ''VideoGame/{{Wizardry}}'' games were swapped when they ported by ASCII to the Famicom, thus ''Wizardry II'' on the Famicom is actually a port of ''Wizardry III'' and vice-versa. Thankfully, the subtitles make it clear that ''Wizardry II'' is based on Scenario #3 and ''Wizardry III'' is Scenario #2. This isn't much of an issue on the NES, as Scenario #3 was [[NoExportForYou skipped over]] in favor of Scenario #2, allowing it to retain its actual numbering. For whatever reason, there was no port of ''Wizardry IV'', on either, the Famicom or Super Famicom, as ASCII opted to skip directly to ''Wizardry V'' and ''VI'' on the Super Famicom (the former would be localized by Capcom on the Super NES).
* ''VideoGame/WolfensteinIITheNewColossus'' is nowhere near the second game in the ''VideoGame/{{Wolfenstein}}'' franchise, nor is it the second game in its continuity (it's the fifth), nor is it even the sequel to the game simply titled ''[[VideoGame/Wolfenstein2009 Wolfenstein]]'', as ''VideoGame/WolfensteinTheNewOrder'' and ''VideoGame/WolfensteinTheOldBlood'' were both released and take place between the two. The only sensible way to interpret the "II" is the fact that it's the second standalone game in the series to be developed by Creator/MachineGames. A common joke among fans is to suggest that the "II" is actually an "11", since it ''is'' technically the eleventh game to be released in the series, if you count the [[MissionPackSequel Mission-Pack Sequels]] ''Spear of Destiny'' and ''Enemy Territory'' as well as the spin-off ''Wolfenstein RPG''.
* ''VideoGame/WonderBoy'':
** The series initially consisted of two games: [[VideoGame/WonderBoy1 the original]] (a side-scrolling platformer) and its sequel, ''[[VideoGame/WonderBoyInMonsterLand Wonder Boy: Monster Land]]'' (which was an action RPG). Both were originally arcade games, but were much more popular as UsefulNotes/SegaMasterSystem games. In Japan, the second game was retitled ''Super Wonder Boy: Monster World'' when it was ported to the console due to the existence of the similarly-titled Super Cassette Vision game ''Waiwai Monsterland''. The export version of the port, however, didn't had to deal with this conundrum and thus, has a title much closer to the original arcade version, adding a preposition in the middle (''Wonder Boy '''in''' Monster Land'').
** Two different games were then made to serve the position of ''Wonder Boy III''. The first one was yet another arcade game, a forced-scrolling platform/shoot-'em-up hybrid titled ''VideoGame/WonderBoyIIIMonsterLair''. The arcade game only saw a limited release outside Japan, with the only console ports being a Mega Drive version that was only released in Japan and Europe, and a [=TurboGrafx-CD=] version that was released in North America without the ''Wonder Boy'' branding. The other and much better known version of ''Wonder Boy III'' was the Master System sequel, ''VideoGame/WonderBoyIIITheDragonsTrap'', which stuck to the action RPG formula of the second game without the trappings of being an arcade game. This sequel was initially available only in North America and Europe, although it later got a Japanese release when it was ported to the Game Gear under the title ''Monster World II: Dragon no Wana'', taking its title from the second game's Japanese console port.
** The next game in the series was given the dual-numbered title in the form of ''Wonder Boy V: Monster World III'' in Japan (which implies that ''Monster World II'' on the Game Gear was ''Wonder Boy IV'', despite coming out a bit later in Japan) and ''VideoGame/WonderBoyInMonsterWorld'' everywhere else (since the ''Monster World'' name was never used outside Japan up to this point).
** The sixth and final game in the series, ''VideoGame/MonsterWorldIV'', dropped the ''Wonder Boy'' name completely, since it featured a female protagonist. This final entry in the series was not officially localized until its re-release on digital platforms in 2012.
** The remakes of ''Dragon's Trap'' and ''Monster World IV'', as well as the new entry ''VideoGame/MonsterBoyAndTheCursedKingdom'', dropped numbers altogether in their title (though the latter remake still shows a "MWIV" logo in its intro).

* ''VideoGame/GuiltyGear'' started off simple enough, with [[VideoGame/GuiltyGearTheMissingLink the first game]] (subtitled ''The Missing Link'' [[MarketBasedTitle in certain regions]]), and then ''[[VideoGame/GuiltyGearX X]]'' and ''[[VideoGame/GuiltyGearXX XX]]'' ([[CapcomSequelStagnation and the latter's many retoolings]]). But then ''Guilty Gear XX Accent Core Plus'' ended up being a sequel plot-wise to the original ''XX'', and then there was ''Guilty Gear 2: Overture'' (which made a VideoGame3DLeap ''[[OddballInTheSeries and]]'' underwent a GenreShift in addition to [[PutOnABus jettisoning most the cast]] by means of a TimeSkip), and all the ''X'' and ''XX'' games were declared to be {{Gaiden Game}}s (albeit in-canon Gaiden Games). Fair enough, but then came the next game in the main continuity: ''Guilty Gear Xrd -SIGN-'', which was followed by ''Guilty Gear Xrd -REVELATOR-'' and ''Guilty Gear Xrd REV 2''. The next installment would then drops the Xs completely, being titled ''VideoGame/GuiltyGearStrive''.

* ''VideoGame/MortalKombatVsDCUniverse'' started development as the eighth mainline installment of the ''Franchise/MortalKombat'' franchise before Creator/WarnerBros got involved with the project and turned it into a crossover with their Creator/DCComics characters, which led to the company buying the IP and forming Creator/NetherrealmStudios after the original developer Midway went out of business. Despite this, the next entry, an in-continuity reboot [[RecycledTitle simply titled]] ''[[RecycledTitle Mortal Kombat]]'', was still referred to as "VideoGame/MortalKombat9" by Ed Boon on social media, suggesting that ''Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe'' still counted as a mainline entry. This would be reflected by the naming choices for the two entries afterward, ''VideoGame/MortalKombatX'' (which is officially meant to be the letter "X", but was obviously chosen to invoke the image of a Roman numeral ten) and ''VideoGame/MortalKombat11'' (the first numbered title in the series since ''VideoGame/MortalKombat4'').

* All the ''VideoGame/MaddenNFL'' entries are numbered after their year of release with the exception of the 2014 edition, which was titled ''Madden 25'' to [[MilestoneCelebration commemorate the 25th anniversary]] of the original 1988 Apple II version of ''John Madden Football''. The series would resume to regular numbering with ''Madden 15'', so it remains to be seen what they'll do when they eventually get to the actual 2025 edition.

* The 2016 video game simply titled ''[[VideoGame/Hitman2016 Hitman]]'' is the sixth entry in the ''Franchise/{{Hitman}}'' series, making ''VideoGame/Hitman2'' and ''VideoGame/Hitman3'' the seventh and eighth game respectively. The trio is officially acknowledged as its own ''World of Assassination'' trilogy, but the reset numbering gives the impression that they're part of some kind of ContinuityReboot, even though in reality they're still in-continuity with the older ''Hitman'' games.

* The ''Franchise/{{Halloween}}'' Films. The series is fairly straightforward at first, with ''Film/{{Halloween|1978}}'', ''Film/{{Halloween II|1981}}'', ''Film/HalloweenIIISeasonOfTheWitch'', ''Film/Halloween4TheReturnOfMichaelMyers'', and ''Film/Halloween5TheRevengeOfMichaelMyers''. Then things start to go off the rails with a sixth movie titled ''Film/HalloweenTheCurseOfMichaelMyers''. Following that, we get ''Film/HalloweenH20TwentyYearsLater'', an AlternateContinuity film that totally ignores the last three movies, and then a follow up to that film called ''Film/HalloweenResurrection''. It then becomes really hard to keep track of things with the 2007 reboot ''Film/{{Halloween|2007}}'' directed by Rob Zombie, and the followup to that film ''Film/{{Halloween II|2009}}'' two years later. Then, finally, we got ''Film/{{Halloween|2018}}'' in 2018, which is a sequel to the Original ''Film/{{Halloween|1978}}'' that discards all the previous films in the franchise. So, all told, there are three films in the franchise simply titled "''Halloween''", two films titled "''Halloween II''" and a film titled "''Halloween''" that serves as a direct sequel to a movie titled "''Halloween''".

* The ''Bravely Default'' series has ''VideoGame/BravelyDefault'', ''VideoGame/BravelySecond''... and ''VideoGame/BravelyDefaultII''. Note that ''Default II'' [[NonLinearSequel is set on an entirely different world from]] ''Default'' and ''Second'', the latter of which [[SequelHook teased another adventure in Luxendarc]] in its [[TheStinger Stinger]]. (''Bravely Third'', perhaps?)

* UsefulNotes/MicrosoftWindows has gone through several naming conventions for its major releases. At first, sequential numbering was used (1.0, 2.0, 3.0, 3.1). The Windows NT operating systems continued this numbering (3.1, 3.5, 4.0), while the DOS-based OS's switched to TitleByYear (95, 98, Millennium Edition). Windows NT briefly adopted the year titling (2000), before switching to named releases (XP, Vista). Finally, sequential numbering was reimplemented and has remained ever since (7, 8, 8.1, 10, 11). Windows 7 got its number not from being the seventh version of Windows (it's at least the fourteenth), but from being a successor to Windows Vista, which was referred to internally as Windows NT 6.0. [[UnInstallment There is no Windows 9]], officially due to how different Windows 10 is from Windows 8, but allegedly also because some legacy programs might confuse it with the Windows 9x line.

* In addition to the numbered games, ''Franchise/ShinMegamiTensei'' has three other games officially recognized as mainline titles: ''VideoGame/ShinMegamiTenseiIf'', ''VideoGame/ShinMegamiTenseiStrangeJourney'', and ''VideoGame/ShinMegamiTenseiIVApocalypse''. Beyond those three, there are other games that are treated as mainline in certain cases, but not given the same standing or consistency as the aforementioned three, most notably the Famicom games based on the ''Literature/DigitalDevilStory'' novels and the Xbox title ''Shin Megami Tensei NINE''.