History Sandbox / DuelingWorksGames

** '''Concept:''' Multiplayer ActionAdventure games on the UsefulNotes/PlayStationPortable

** '''Approach:''' '''Concept:''' Both are ActionAdventure games developed in Japan by Creator/TeamIco and Creator/PlatinumGames exclusively for Sony's UsefulNotes/PlayStation4 and Microsoft's UsefulNotes/XboxOne respectively. Both games have a human protagonist accompanied by a PetMonstrosity (a griffin and a dragon, respectively).
** '''Approach:''' ''The Last Guardian'' was announced in 2009, originally for the UsefulNotes/PlayStation3, before getting stuck in [[{{Vaporware}} development hell]]. ''Scalebound'' was announced in 2014, but there was no information about it for a year afterwards. The main difference between them is that ''Scalebound'' is much more action oriented than ''The Last Guardian''. \\\

** '''Approach:''' ''Breath of the Wild'' was the latest entry in the long running ''Franchise/TheLegendOfZelda'' series, being both a launch title on the UsefulNotes/NintendoSwitch and the final first-party game on the UsefulNotes/WiiU. ''Horizon'' is an original IP on the UsefulNotes/PlayStation4, the most popular console of the generation. \\\

** '''Approach:''' Both games were very graphically impressive for their time and played a big part making the CD-ROM format take off. Neither game had much, if any, character interaction or text and instead focused on visuals, atmosphere and abstract puzzles. Interestingly, both were originally released on the UsefulNotes/{{Macintosh}}, a format known for its lack of original games. \\\

** '''Concept:''' Trilogies of urban {{Beat Em Up}}s released on rival platforms (''SOR'' came out on the UsefulNotes/SegaGenesis while ''Final Fight'' came out on the SNES).

** '''Concept:''' Arcade-style flight combat games released in 1995 for the UsefulNotes/PlayStation.

** '''Approach:''' Though neither was originally developed by a major video game company, and both had appeared on numerous computers previously, Nintendo and Sega acquired the rights to release console versions of these games, and they were among the launch titles for the UsefulNotes/GameBoy and UsefulNotes/GameGear, respectively. (Sega also produced several ''Tetris'' UsefulNotes/{{Arcade Game}}s.) \\\

** '''Approach:''' ''Meteos'' was a launch title or close to it for the UsefulNotes/NintendoDS, while ''Lumines'' was the same for the UsefulNotes/PlayStationPortable. \\\

** '''Concept:''' More Victorian-era puzzling with snappily dressed protagonists, this time on the UsefulNotes/Nintendo3DS.

** '''Concept:''' The UsefulNotes/PlayStation4 gets a console-exclusive Tetris game. Not to be outdone, three months later, the UsefulNotes/NintendoSwitch gets one too.

** '''Concept:''' 3D overhead shooters exclusive to the original UsefulNotes/PlayStation, exhibited side by side at E3 1997.

** '''Concept:''' Two snowboarding games come out for the UsefulNotes/{{Nintendo 64}} almost simultaneously.

** '''Approach:''' Let's face it, the real fight's between the control systems: ''Wii Sports'' demonstrated the UsefulNotes/{{Wii}} Remote, ''Kinect Sports'' is made for the UsefulNotes/Xbox360's controller-less camera system, and ''Sports Champions'' utilizes the [[UsefulNotes/PlayStation3 PlayStation Move]]. \\\

** '''Approach:''' ''Tony Hawk'' relied mostly on name recognition (with the Hawkman and several other pro skaters making appearances), while the ''skate'' series promised a different approach to trick control (utilizing both analog sticks on the [[UsefulNotes/PlayStation3 PS3]] and UsefulNotes/Xbox360 controllers instead of the face buttons and D-Pad). \\\

** '''Concept:''' UsefulNotes/NintendoGameCube-exclusive[[note]]The ''Resident Evil'' remake would later get an UpdatedRerelease in 2015 for PC, UsefulNotes/PlayStation3 and [[UsefulNotes/PlayStation4 4]], and UsefulNotes/Xbox360 and [[UsefulNotes/XboxOne One]][[/note]] survival horror games released in spring 2002, set in a vacant mansion filled with grotesque monsters and idiosyncratic puzzles. At the time, they were the only M-rated [=GameCube=] games on the market.

** '''Approach:''' ''[=DayZ=]'' began life as a PC-exclusive GameMod for ''VideoGame/{{ARMA}} II'' that takes place in that game's [[{{Ruritania}} Eastern European setting]], eventually being expanded into a stand-alone game in 2013. ''State of Decay'' and ''Infestation'' are set in [[FlyoverCountry rural America]], with ''Decay'' available on both UsefulNotes/XboxLiveArcade and PC, whereas ''Infestation'' is a PC exclusive. Finally, ''[=ZombiU=]'' takes place in UsefulNotes/{{London}} and is exclusive to the UsefulNotes/WiiU, making use of that console's touch screen controller. \\\

** '''Approach:''' Both games were designed by Creator/YasumiMatsuno and were released in the same year (1997 in Japan and 1998 in North America; release order remained the same). It should be noted that ''Tactics Ogre'' is originally a 1995 UsefulNotes/SuperFamicom game and that ''Final Fantasy Tactics'' is its SpiritualSuccessor.\\\

** '''Concept:''' UsefulNotes/{{Wii}}-based cheerleading games.

* ''[[VideoGame/PoliceQuest Police Quest: Open Season]]'' (1993) vs. ''Blue Force'' (1993)

** '''Approach:''' ''Auto Chess'' started off as a very popular GameMod in ''VideoGame/Dota2''. Valve attempted to contact the mod's creators, Drodo Games, to collaborate with them in making a stand-alone version of the mod (similar to ''Dota 2'''s own history as a custom game in ''VideoGame/Warcraft3''), but found that they had already started work on such a project, so they made ''Dota Underlords'' in response. ''Dota Underlords'' thus started out as a nearly identical port of ''Auto Chess'', though later patches have since caused it to become significantly different by introducing new items, heroes, alliances, and [[HeroUnit Underlord units]]. ''Teamfight Tactics'' is Riot's own answer to the autobattler phenomenon, featuring ''League of Legends'' characters and items. Unlike its competitors, ''TFT'' is played on a hexagon-based grid, and it is played within the ''League of Legends'' client, rather than as its own stand-alone game; this also means it does not have a mobile version, unlike the other games mentioned here. ''Battlegrounds'', Blizzard's take, uses a simplified format with two rows on the field instead of a grid and combat using a fully turn-based attack order. It is also directly built into ''Hearthstone's'' client, and is available on both PC and mobile.\\\

** '''Approach:''' ''Breath of the Wild'' was the latest entry in the long running ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZelda'' series, being both a launch title on the UsefulNotes/NintendoSwitch and the final first-party game on the UsefulNotes/WiiU. ''Horizon'' is an original IP on the UsefulNotes/PlayStation4, the most popular console of the generation. \\\

** '''Approach:''' '''Concept:''' Both are ActionAdventure games developed in Japan by Creator/TeamIco and Creator/PlatinumGames exclusively for Sony's UsefulNotes/PlayStation4 and Microsoft's UsefulNotes/XboxOne respectively. Both games have a human protagonist accompanied by a CoolPet (a griffin and a dragon respectively).

** '''Concept:''' A Victorian-era puzzle game where you're a European archaeologist with a [[NiceHat top hat]] and a younger sidekick, for a Nintendo handheld. With ''Layton and the Last Specter'' specifically, specify the sidekick as a young lady and add "released Fall 2011".

** '''Concept:''' UsefulNotes/{{Wii}}-based [[TheCheerleader cheerleading]] games.

** '''Approach:''' Midway made the first two NBA Jam games for arcades and Acclaim ported them to consoles. A dispute over the name led to a split where Acclaim kept the NBA Jam name and made a sequel, while Midway made its own sequel under a different name. Also notable is that ''Extreme'' is in 3D, while ''Hangtime'' remains 2D.

** '''Approach:''' Though ''1080° Snowboarding'' was developed first, ''Snowboard Kids'' had a substantially shorter production cycle and actually beat ''1080'' to release by a few weeks. One crucial difference is that ''1080'' is focused on realistic snowboarding and executing tricks, but ''Snowboard Kids'' is essentially [[MascotRacer a kart racer with snowboarding physics]], with very stylized character design and surreal settings, and a focus on the racing aspect.

** '''Approach:''' Activision and Neversoft put out ''THPS'', while the latter four were done by Acclaim, Z-Axis, SEGA and Konami respectively. ''AI'', ''Dave Mirra'' and ''Evolution'' generally copied the look and feel of the ''THPS'' games while ''Jet Set Radio'' tried to separate itself from the others through its use of CelShading and emphasis on Graffiti tagging.

** '''Approach:''' Madden was more known for leaning more towards an arcadey-feel, while NFL 2K set out to be the most realistic football game in the market. NFL 2K5 also had the licence of ESPN and was able to use their personalities, while EA didn't have a particular network license, but it did have Al Michaels and John Madden calling the games.

** '''Approach:''' Let's face it, the real fight's between the control systems: ''Wii Sports'' demonstrated the UsefulNotes/{{Wii}} Remote, ''Kinect Sports'' is made for the UsefulNotes/Xbox360's controller-less camera system, and ''Sports Champions'' utilizes the [[UsefulNotes/PlayStation3 PlayStation Move]].

** '''Approach:''' ''Tony Hawk'' relied mostly on name recognition (with the Hawkman and several other pro skaters making appearances), while the ''skate'' series promised a different approach to trick control (utilizing both analog sticks on the [[UsefulNotes/PlayStation3 PS3]] and UsefulNotes/Xbox360 controllers instead of the face buttons and D-Pad).

** '''Approach:''' When EA's game was announced, UFC President Dana White was furious, since he had failed to make a deal with EA before eventually partnering with THQ for ''Undisputed''. White later even declared that anyone who signs their likeness to EA will '''never''' work for UFC (which he later retracted).

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|| Initiator || Imitators/Competitors || Description || Implementation || Winner? ||
|| ''VideoGame/UltimaI'' (1981) || ''VideoGame/{{Wizardry}}'' (1981) || {{Trope Codifier}}s of {{Western RPG}}s, inspired by ''TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons'' || ''Ultima'' focused on a single slightly customizable hero(ine) while ''Wizardry'' featured an entire party of characters created from scratch.[[note]]In fact, ''Ultima III'' introduced party members in response to ''Wizardry''.[[/note]] Both initially stuck closely to the spirit of ''Dungeons & Dragons'', but ''Ultima'' eventually shifted away from it to focus more on story and [[KarmaMeter morality]]. ''Wizardry'' however embraced the spirit fully and remained a [[NintendoHard hardcore]] dungeon crawler. || In America and Europe: ''Ultima''. Both series fizzled out and died around the turn of the millennium, but ''Ultima'' had been more successful commercially and remains alive thanks to ''VideoGame/UltimaOnline'', which still has an active playerbase. In Japan: ''Wizardry'', where the series saw [[GermansLoveDavidHasselhoff unexpected success]] and remains alive and popular with [[NoExportForYou Japan-exclusive]] titles still being made more than 10 years after the last official game. ||
|| ''VideoGame/DungeonCrawl'' (1997) || ''VideoGame/DungeonsOfDredmor'' (2011)\\
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''VideoGame/TalesOfMajEyal'' (2012) || Roguelikes typically played with tileset graphics as opposed to the traditional [=ASCII=] graphics, with a focus on polishing the genre for a modern audience. || ''Crawl'' is generally considered the heir to ''Nethack'', featuring a single dungeon, a hunger system as a time limit, and a focus on resource management. [=ToME=] has an overworld with many dungeons, no time limit of this type, almost no consumable resources to manage, and generally takes longer to play, a full game taking 12-18 hours as opposed to 4-8. || Although ''Dungeon Crawl'' is generally the most respected by veterans of the genre, who call the other two games easy, overly grindy, and poorly balanced, ''VideoGame/TalesOfMajEyal'' is the winner, as it has won Ascii Dreams: Roguelike of the Year on three consecutive years, the only game to ever do so. Its fans typically dislike ''Crawl'''s nature as a LuckBasedMission and its counterintuitive strategy. ''VideoGame/DungeonsOfDredmor'' was a commercial success, but was considered watered-down and silly by many as it attempted to pander to more casual fans of the genre. Still, it can be considered a success in its own way. ||
|| ''VideoGame/DragonAgeII'' (2011) || ''VideoGame/TheWitcher2AssassinsOfKings'' (2011) || Sequels to {{Western RPG}}s set in a DarkFantasy setting with lots of BlackAndGrayMorality. || ''The Witcher'' is focused on one pre-set main character, while ''Dragon Age'' utilizes a customizable protagonist and party-based gameplay. || Both games were well-received with good critical reviews -- ''the Witcher 2'' more so than ''Dragon age II'' -- but did have some hurdles. Many fans were disappointed with the different direction that ''Dragon Age II'' took, while ''Witcher 2'' faced some criticism for a few bugs and flaws until they were patched out. ||
|| ''VideoGame/{{Wasteland 2}}'' (2014) || ''VideoGame/{{Fallout 4}}'' (2015) || Sequels to [[WesternRPG western rpgs]] set in a [[AfterTheEnd Post-Apocalyptic]] United States. || ''Wasteland 2'' is played as an Isometric [=CRPG=] with a turn-based combat system similar to ''Fallout 1'' and ''2''. Like ''Fallout 3 ''and ''New Vegas'', ''Fallout 4'' is an action RPG that can be played in a first or third person perspective. Ironically, Wasteland 2 is made by many of the people (Director/Producer included) who worked on ''Fallout 1'' and ''2''. They created ''Fallout'' as a SpiritualSuccessor to ''Wasteland'' because they couldn't get the rights from Electronic Arts at that time. Now a lot of ''Fallout'' veterans see ''Wasteland 2'' as a SpiritualSuccessor to the first two ''Fallout'' games. || ''Fallout 4'' by a landslide. While ''Wasteland 2'' was hailed as a great old school [=CRPG=], ''Fallout 4'' got better reviews and sold about 12 million units in its first week. ||
|| ''VideoGame/DragonAgeInquisition'' (2014) || ''VideoGame/TheWitcher3WildHunt'' (2015) || The third installments in {{Western RPG}} series set in a DarkFantasy setting with lots of BlackAndGrayMorality. The worlds in both games are [[OpeningTheSandbox much, much larger]] this time around. || Same as above. || Both games have received high critical and commercial acclaim—with ''Wild Hunt'' inching out in reviews and with many more awards. ||
|| ''VideoGame/PillarsOfEternity'' (2015) || ''VideoGame/TormentTidesOfNumenera'' (2017) || Isometric [=CRPGs=] crowdfunded mainly on Website/{{Kickstarter}}, intended as {{Genre Throwback}}s to the Creator/InterplayEntertainment/Creator/BlackIsleStudios era of ''TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons''-based games, particularly ''VideoGame/BaldursGate'' and ''VideoGame/PlanescapeTorment''. || The two games share some of the same devs, including Creator/ChrisAvellone, who previously worked at Black Isle, and both studios encouraged their fans to donate to each other's Kickstarters. ''Torment'' is based on Monte Cook's ''TabletopGame/{{Numenera}}'' setting and ruleset, while ''Pillars'' uses a homegrown but clearly D&D-inspired setting and system. || ''Torment'' earned slightly more from its crowdfunding efforts ($4.5 million to ''Pillars''[='=] $4.3 million), but ''Pillars'' released first in March 2015 to rave reviews (89/100 on Metacritic), [[https://www.paradoxplaza.com/news/Pillars-500K-Sold/ had sold half a million copies by October]], and already has a sequel, ''[[VideoGame/PillarsOfEternityIIDeadfire Deadfire]]'', released in 2018. ''Torment'' released in January 2017 to similarly strong critical response (82/100 Metacritic). ||
|| ''VideoGame/BionicleMasksOfPower'' ([[https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCmz1Z5C9fwxHDiKYPgoTz7A 2016]]) || ''VideoGame/BionicleQuestForMataNui'' ([[https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCpDnhOuhJ3Sxr4SpBudL15Q 2020]])\\
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''VideoGame/{{Bionicle}}: the Legend of Mata Nui REBUILT'' ([[https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCZoCnxk-SDHD2B2H6ZMvx-w 2019]]) || ''Toys/{{Bionicle}}'' {{fan game}}s recreating the 2001 saga. || ''Masks of Power'' and ''Quest for Mata Nui'' are both {{Action RPG}}s, with ''Masks'' focusing more on exploration and ''Quest'' focusing more on combat. ''Legend of Mata Nui REBUILT'' is a FanRemake of the [[{{Vaporware}} highly publicized yet ultimately canceled]] tie-in game of the same name. || Too early to tell. ||
|| ''VideoGame/HorizonZeroDawn'' (2017) || ''VideoGame/MassEffectAndromeda'' (2017) || Open-world [=WRPGs=] with a strong sci-fi bent, which were both released in Spring 2017. || Despite ''Horizon'' taking place AfterTheEnd, and ''Andromeda'' being a SpaceOpera, they shared a lot of similar story and gameplay elements, in particular the widespread presence of ancient, hostile machine enemies, and exploring high-tech underground installations. || ''Horizon'' wins this one rather handily, being regarded as one of the best [=PS4=] games to date, and getting strong sales figures. ''Andromeda'' received a SoOkayItsAverage reaction from critics, a massive backlash from gamers due to its ObviousBeta status and various other shortcomings. ||
|| ''VideoGame/Fallout76'' (2018) || ''VideoGame/TheOuterWorlds'' (2019) || {{Action RPG}}s set in PunkPunk {{dystopia}}s. || ''Fallout 76'', developed and published by Creator/BethesdaSoftworks, is an online multiplayer {{prequel}} to the ''VideoGame/{{Fallout}}'' series, set on an AtomPunk [[AfterTheEnd post-nuclear Earth]]. ''The Outer Worlds'', developed by Creator/ObsidianEntertainment (developers of ''VideoGame/FalloutNewVegas'' and descended from ''Fallout'' creator Creator/BlackIsleStudios) and published by Creator/PrivateDivision, is a RaygunGothic single-player RPG set in a faraway MegaCorp-ridden space colony, and is largely [[CapitalismIsBad a satire of laissez-faire capitalism run amok]]. || ''Fallout 76'' was heavily criticized for rampant bugs, lack of plot, and abuse of {{microtransactions}} and an expensive premium service (also heavily bugged) (49-52/100 on Metacritic). It also sold fewer copies than either preceding ''Fallout'' game. ''The Outer Worlds'' drew some flak pre-launch due to the PC version not being available on UsefulNotes/{{Steam}} for the first year[[note]]Private Division initially inked an exclusivity agreement with Creator/EpicGames' competing service. Creator/{{Microsoft|Studios}} bought Obsidian in mid-2019, and ensured the game would also be available on its own Windows Store.[[/note]], but managed one of the smoothest launches of any Obsidian game to date and has much higher review scores (81-86/100 on Metacritic). [[HilariousInHindsight Amusingly]], this rivalry became somewhat moot after both Obsidian and Bethesda became part of Creator/XboxGameStudios. ||

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|| Initiator || Imitators/Competitors || Description || Implementation || Winner? ||


|| ''VideoGame/NBAJam Extreme'' (1996) || ''NBA Hangtime'' (1996) || Fast-paced two-on-two basketball games with over-the-top dunks, no fouls besides goaltending, and players catching fire after making three straight baskets. || Midway made the first two NBA Jam games for arcades and Acclaim ported them to consoles. A dispute over the name led to a split where Acclaim kept the NBA Jam name and made a sequel, while Midway made its own sequel under a different name. Also notable is that ''Extreme'' is in 3D, while ''Hangtime'' remains 2D. || Despite more advanced graphics, ''Extreme'' couldn't compete with ''Hangtime'''s added depth and far faster load times. Acclaim continued to make ''Jam'' as more of a simulation, while Midway adapted the formula further to make ''NBA Showtime'' and ''NBA Ballers''. ||
|| ''[[VideoGame/TenEightySnowboarding 1080° Snowboarding]]'' (1998) || ''VideoGame/SnowboardKids'' (1998) || Two snowboarding games come out for the UsefulNotes/{{Nintendo 64}} almost simultaneously. || Though ''1080° Snowboarding'' was developed first, ''Snowboard Kids'' had a substantially shorter production cycle and actually beat ''1080'' to release by a few weeks. One crucial difference is that ''1080'' is focused on realistic snowboarding and executing tricks, but ''Snowboard Kids'' is essentially [[MascotRacer a kart racer with snowboarding physics]], with very stylized character design and surreal settings, and a focus on the racing aspect. || Though ''Snowboard Kids'' was briefly able to take ''1080'''s thunder due to coming out first, it was quickly overshadowed by its more realistic counterpart. That being said, in the long term, ''1080'' was forgotten, with the very rare sequel every now and then, whereas ''Snowboard Kids'' became a CultClassic with three sequels over the next few years before it, too, was forgotten. ||
|| ''VideoGame/TonyHawksProSkater'' (1999) || ''Dave Mirra Freestyle BMX'' (2000)\\
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''VideoGame/JetSetRadio'' (2000)\\
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''Aggressive Inline'' (2002)\\
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''Evolution Skateboarding'' (2002) || Early extreme sports games || Activision and Neversoft put out ''THPS'', while the latter four were done by Acclaim, Z-Axis, SEGA and Konami respectively. ''AI'', ''Dave Mirra'' and ''Evolution'' generally copied the look and feel of the ''THPS'' games while ''Jet Set Radio'' tried to separate itself from the others through its use of CelShading and emphasis on Graffiti tagging. || ''AI'' and ''Dave Mirra BMX'' were decent games, but ''AI'' never received any follow-up while ''BMX XXX'' [[FranchiseKiller failed]] and led to Creator/{{Acclaim}}'s [[CreatorKiller death]]. Evolution Skateboarding is best known for its ''Castlevania'' and ''Metal Gear Solid'' levels, otherwise being forgotten as a poor ''Tony Hawk'' ripoff. ''Tony Hawk'' and ''Jet Set Radio'' are the most fondly remembered of them all, however ''Tony Hawk'' outlasted all four and made far more money, remaining a household name in "extreme sports" games until ''Tony Hawk RIDE'' screwed everything up. ||
|| ''[[VideoGame/MaddenNFL Madden]] 2005'' || ''NFL 2K5'' || Realistic football simulations based on the (then upcoming) 2005 NFL season. || Madden was more known for leaning more towards an arcadey-feel, while NFL 2K set out to be the most realistic football game in the market. NFL 2K5 also had the licence of ESPN and was able to use their personalities, while EA didn't have a particular network license, but it did have Al Michaels and John Madden calling the games. || One of the fiercest competitions ever seen from two competing sports games. 2K Games got the upper-hand in the battle when the launch price for ''NFL 2K5'' was '''$19.99''', compared to ''Madden's'' $49.99 launch price. EA was fearful that ''Madden'' could be outsold by another football game. Not only did they slash the price to match ''2K5'', but they were able to acquire to exclusive license from the NFL and NFLPA so they would be the only video game company to make NFL games. 2005 still remains the closest instance ''Madden'' came to being outsold by a competing football game. Both are regarded as phenomenal games to this very day, with Madden winning acclaim with the revolutionary "Hit Stick" feature and a refined franchise mode, while ''2K5'' won acclaim for its overall presentation and focus on realism. While ''Madden 2005'' is still fondly remembered, ''NFL 2K5'' is still regarded by many to be the best football game of all time and the game that every ''Madden'' is measured up to even with the newest installments. ||
|| ''VideoGame/WiiSports'' (2006) || ''Kinect Sports'' (2010)\\
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''Sports Champions'' (2010) || [[MiniGameGame Sports game compilations]] showing off a system's new motion controls. || Let's face it, the real fight's between the control systems: ''Wii Sports'' demonstrated the UsefulNotes/{{Wii}} Remote, ''Kinect Sports'' is made for the UsefulNotes/Xbox360's controller-less camera system, and ''Sports Champions'' utilizes the [[UsefulNotes/PlayStation3 PlayStation Move]]. || ''Wii Sports'' had a four-year head start, being bundled with the UsefulNotes/{{Wii}} at launch and becoming synonymous with it. The other two systems [[FollowTheLeader played catch-up]], with their motion controls as optional add-ons to existing systems -- the Kinect got most of the hype (in both cases, the sports games were lost in the shuffle as only one of several showcase titles). ||

|| ''VideoGame/TonyHawksProSkater'' (starting from ''Proving Ground'') (2007) || ''VideoGame/{{Skate}}'' (2007) || WideOpenSandbox Skateboarding simulators. || ''Tony Hawk'' relied mostly on name recognition (with the Hawkman and several other pro skaters making appearances), while the ''skate'' series promised a different approach to trick control (utilizing both analog sticks on the [[UsefulNotes/PlayStation3 PS3]] and UsefulNotes/Xbox360 controllers instead of the face buttons and D-Pad). || ''Skate'' won this battle handily. Even before ''RIDE'' and ''Shred'' ultimately [[FranchiseKiller scuttled what was left]] of the ''Hawk'' franchise's popularity, ''skate'' routinely outperformed and outsold its competition. ||
|| ''UFC 2009 Undisputed'' || ''EA Sports MMA'' (2010) || Video games based on UsefulNotes/MixedMartialArts, the former focusing on UFC (and Pride in a future installment), the latter on Strikeforce and several smaller promotions || When EA's game was announced, UFC President Dana White was furious, since he had failed to make a deal with EA before eventually partnering with THQ for ''Undisputed''. White later even declared that anyone who signs their likeness to EA will '''never''' work for UFC (which he later retracted). || Both games were critically very well received though ''Undisputed'' was criticized for online mode glitches. ''Undisputed'' was a far more successful franchise, spawning two sequels. Eventually, UFC purchased Strikeforce and in June 2012 announced that the video game license had been transferred to EA Sports to create what became ''EA Sports UFC.'' If anyone is to be called a winner, it would be UFC the company. ||

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|| Initiator || Imitators/Competitors || Description || Implementation || Winner? ||

|| ''VideoGame/EternalDarkness'' (2002) || ''VideoGame/{{Resident Evil|1}}'' remake (2002) || UsefulNotes/NintendoGameCube-exclusive[[note]]The ''Resident Evil'' remake would later get an UpdatedRerelease in 2015 for PC, UsefulNotes/PlayStation3 and [[UsefulNotes/PlayStation4 4]], and UsefulNotes/Xbox360 and [[UsefulNotes/XboxOne One]][[/note]] survival horror games released in spring 2002, set in a vacant mansion filled with grotesque monsters and idiosyncratic puzzles. At the time, they were the only M-rated [=GameCube=] games on the market. || ''Eternal Darkness'' is a psychological horror game strongly inspired by the works of Creator/HPLovecraft, while ''Resident Evil'' (aka the [=REmake=]) relies more on BodyHorror, science fiction elements, and jump scares. || Pretty much a tie. Both were well-received by critics and players alike. However it's worth noting that the ''[=REmake=]'' has been ported and rereleased several times since it came out, while ''Darkness's'' SpiritualSuccessor ''Shadow of the Eternals'' has failed to hit Kickstarter targets twice and is stuck in DevelopmentHell. ||
|| ''Infestation: Survivor Stories'' (formerly ''The War Z'') (2012) || ''VideoGame/ZombiU'' (2012)\\
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''VideoGame/StateOfDecay'' (2013)\\
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''VideoGame/{{DayZ}}'' (2013) || Four ZombieApocalypse games built heavily around survival, with players experiencing {{Permadeath}}s when killed and being given new characters instead of respawning. || ''[=DayZ=]'' began life as a PC-exclusive GameMod for ''VideoGame/{{ARMA}} II'' that takes place in that game's [[{{Ruritania}} Eastern European setting]], eventually being expanded into a stand-alone game in 2013. ''State of Decay'' and ''Infestation'' are set in [[FlyoverCountry rural America]], with ''Decay'' available on both UsefulNotes/XboxLiveArcade and PC, whereas ''Infestation'' is a PC exclusive. Finally, ''[=ZombiU=]'' takes place in UsefulNotes/{{London}} and is exclusive to the UsefulNotes/WiiU, making use of that console's touch screen controller. || ''[=DayZ=]'' wins on account of the hype that came out of its beta, to the point where sales of its "daddy" game, ''VideoGame/{{ARMA}} II'', skyrocketed, people purchasing it just to play ''[=DayZ=]''. Its success helped [[GenreLaunch spawn]] an entire new genre of survival games -- and all this was ''before'' its full release! Both ''State of Decay'' and ''[=ZombiU=]'' received positive reviews, though ''Decay'' takes silver on account of it being [[http://www.destructoid.com/state-of-decay-sells-550k-on-xbox-live-arcade-256497.phtml the sleeper hit of summer 2013]], selling over half a million units in two weeks despite being a downloadable title that relied almost entirely on word of mouth. ''[=ZombiU=]'', meanwhile, [[http://www.destructoid.com/ubisoft-zombiu-not-profitable-no-sequel-plans-257720.phtml lost money]] for Creator/{{Ubisoft}}.\\
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The big loser was ''Infestation: Survivor Stories'', a blatant [[TheMockbuster mockbuster]] of ''[=DayZ=]'' that is best known for the outcry that resulted when it was released with [[ObviousBeta severe bugs]] and [[NeverTrustATrailer without a number of promised features]] -- but hey, [[BribingYourWayToVictory the microtransaction store]] was working perfectly! The backlash was loud enough that UsefulNotes/{{Steam}} not only pulled the game from sale, but '''offered refunds to those who weren't satisfied.''' As a final insult, ''Infestation'' wasn't the game's original title -- the developers[[note]]Whose boss is also known for VideoGame/BigRigsOverTheRoadRacing[[/note]] had to change it from ''The War Z'' due to a trademark dispute concerning [[Film/WorldWarZ the film adaptation]] of ''Literature/WorldWarZ''. ||
|| ''VideoGame/DeadByDaylight'' (2016) || ''VideoGame/FridayThe13thTheGame'' (2017)\\
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''VideoGame/LastYearTheNightmare'' (2018) || AsymmetricMultiplayer horror games where players take on the role of either the killer out of a SlasherMovie, or the would-be-victims trying to survive his rampage. || ''Dead By Daylight'' has a selection of original killers along with classic killers like Michael Myers from the ''Franchise/{{Halloween}}'' series, Leatherface from ''Film/TheTexasChainsawMassacre'' and Freddy Krugger from ''Franchise/ANightmareOnElmStreet'' to play as.\\
\\
''Friday the 13th'' is a licensed adaptation of [[Franchise/FridayThe13th the film series]], boasting the involvement of special effects artist Creator/TomSavini, composer Harry Manfredini, and actor Creator/KaneHodder, all of whom are famous for their work on the films. Initially, the studio was working on a SpiritualAdaptation of the ''Friday'' films titled ''Slasher Vol. 1: Summer Camp'' (which would've dueled with the ''Friday'' game itself), but when Sean S. Cunningham (the director of the first film) saw their work, he gave them his blessing to make a licensed adaptation.\\
\\
''Last Year'', meanwhile, was successfully funded through Website/{{Kickstarter}}, but is currently on hold due to an IP dispute with Creator/NewLineCinema over similarities to the ''Friday'' films. The developers have continued working on it, however, and intend to release it in fall 2018 with the offending elements removed. The game also notably has a more lighthearted tone, informed more by '90s teen horror movies than the '80s slasher influences of ''Friday'' or the TorturePorn of ''Dead by Daylight''. || Both games got similar review scores, but ''Dead by Daylight'' outlasted ''Friday the 13th'', which ultimately wound up [[ScrewedByTheLawyers a victim of the legal battle]] between Victor Miller and Sean S. Cunningham over the rights to the ''Friday'' film series but had been losing for a while by then. Currently, ''Dead by Daylight'' manages well over ten thousand players average at any given time and over 25,000 at peak hours, while ''Friday the 13th'' had been bleeding players even before the lawsuit forced Illfonic to cease all development; these days, it's well under a thousand players even at peak hours, and at times only a few hundred. ||

||border=1
|| Initiator || Imitators/Competitors || Description || Implementation || Winner? ||
|| ''VideoGame/DanceDanceRevolution'' (1998) || ''VideoGame/PumpItUp'' (1999) || Rhythm games that debuted extremely close to each other (November 1998 and August 1999, respectively) in which the player steps on panels as instructed by on-screen arrows. || ''Dance Dance Revolution'' is four panels and developed by Konami under their BEMANI line, ''Pump It Up'' is five panels and developed by Andamiro. Both games have their own unique styles and songlists, complete with in-house artists, and both sport more difficult modes of play for more advanced players, but each with their own spin. || This duel is one of the longest and hardest fought in rhythm gaming history, with both series being something of [[WorthyOpponent Worthy Opponents]] to each other. Both of the latest releases (''DDR 2013'' and ''PIU Prime'') have switched to a [[DownloadableContent patch-based]] form of updating (gaining new content every few months but otherwise staying the same game): as before, Konami started it first, but ''Prime'' has consistent updates each month, so the duel lives on. Oddly enough, Konami actually made a short-lived ''Pump'' clone as a ''VideoGame/PopNMusic'' [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5bmu7xHS7L4 spin-off.]] ||

|| ''VideoGame/RockBand'' (2007) || ''VideoGame/GuitarHero'' post-''World Tour'' (2008) || Rhythm games wherein you play songs by hitting notes on a plastic guitar or drum pads, or sing along and try to match the pitch. || You read that right. Following the success of ''VideoGame/RockBand'', ''Guitar Hero'' added drums and vocals to its fourth main installment, which it continued to use in subsequent {{Mission Pack Sequel}}s. || Ultimately, there were no winners. ''Guitar Hero'' was officially cancelled on February 9, 2011. ''Rock Band'' also saw its sales take a heavy plunge and Harmonix was sold off for '''fifty dollars'''. It's unknown which series did better financially -- while ''Guitar Hero'' generally sold more copies, ''Rock Band'' also sold respectably well and its staggering amount of DLC did well enough that new songs were added on a weekly basis for about five years. Of the two series, ''Rock Band'' was generally far better received both by critics and fans. Though in 2015, this changed... See below. ||
|| ''VideoGame/PowerGigRiseOfTheSixString'' (2010) || ''VideoGame/RockBand 3'' (2010) || Rhythm games that also teach you how to play real music. || ''Rock Band 3'' has keyboards, and cymbals for drums. ''Power Gig'' doesn't have keyboards or bass, and has air drums. || No contest. ''Rock Band 3'' received rave reviews, while ''Power Gig'' has been compared (''unfavorably'') to the aforementioned ''Rock Revolution''. ||
|| ''VideoGame/JustDance'' (2009) || ''VideoGame/DanceCentral'' (2010) || Rhythm games that require you to dance. Notably, they both require you to do full-body motion. || ''Just Dance'' is, as the name implies, all about dancing, while ''Dance Central'' has some ExcusePlot and characterized [[VirtualPaperDoll avatars]], and was the first full-body dancing console game released (whereas Just Dance initially required the player to hold the Wiimote in one hand; the series was later adapted for Kinect beginning with ''Just Dance 3'', thus supporting full-body motion as well). However, ''Just Dance'' has several features not present in Dance Central, the most important one being having different dance routines for multiple players for the same song (in ''Dance Central'', this can only be achieved by having the two players choose different difficulty levels; Dance Central Spotlight changes this by including eight routines for every song). Also, the difficulty for the dance routines in ''Just Dance'' are on average easier. || ''Just Dance'' is pretty much the only motion-control dance game franchise left today which still churns out titles year by year, so despite all the love ''Dance Central'' ever gets (even if Dance Central Spotlight, the last entry, often gets criticized), ''Just Dance'' is the clear winner. ||
|| ''VideoGame/DanceCentral'' (2010) || ''VideoGame/DanceMasters'' (a.k.a. ''Dance Evolution'') (2010) || Rhythm games that require you to dance. || ''VideoGame/DanceCentral'' involves actual dancing while ''[=DanceMasters=]'' requires you to just hit targets or strike poses in the style of dancing. It is [[RuleOfFun fun]] to actually perform the dances involved in Masters, though. || Split among international lines. Harmonix's ''Dance Central'' is more popular in America and Europe, while Konami's ''Dance Masters''/''Dance Evolution'' is more popular in Japan. Like Bemani, both games were a relief to many newcomers who were daunted by the songs many DDR hardcores play. ||

|| ''VideoGame/RockBand 4'' (2015) || ''VideoGame/GuitarHeroLive'' (2015) || [[{{Revival}} Resurrected]] music games wherein you play songs by using plastic instruments, both due for a late 2015 release. || ''Rock Band 4'' has the classic five button gameplay, allows transfer of most previous DLC and disc songs, and is intended to be a "platform" for all future updates through patches and further downloadable content rather than creating entirely new sequels. ''Live'' returns to guitar-only gameplay with a new, six button (three rows of three) controller. Due to changes in the gameplay system, previous songs, both on-disc and DLC, cannot be transferred to ''Live''. The ''Guitar Hero'' TV system seems intended to provide a better downloadable content experience to compete with ''Rock Band''[='=]s. || ''Rock Band 4'' got the better reviews, but ''Guitar Hero Live'' sold more copies. Both games earned an 80 on Metacritic, despite weak reviews for the on-disc setlists. However, ''Rock Band 4'' is still getting new DLC tracks as of December 2018 while ''Guitar Hero Live''[='=]s GH TV has been discontinued. ||
|| ''Idol Paradise'' (2014) || ''VideoGame/TokyoSeventhSisters''\\
\\
''IDOL-RISM'' (2014)\\
\\
''Idol Chronicle'' (2015)\\
\\
''VideoGame/AikatsuPhotoOnStage'' (2016)\\
\\
''VideoGame/EightBeatStory'' (2016)\\
\\
''Idol Connect -Asterisk Live-'' (2016) || Mobile female idol rhythm games which follows the success of ''VideoGame/LoveLiveSchoolIdolFestival'' and ''[[Franchise/TheIdolmaster The Idolm@ster Cinderella Girls]]''. || ''Idol Paradise'' relies on GPS as a method to scout for idols. ''Tokyo 7th Sisters'' has weekly events which has only breaks during maintenance. ''IDOL-RISM'' is the only idol game which has idols of both genders. ''Idol Chronicle'' has a relatively unique gimmick of having fixed characters and uses equipable clothing and accessories instead. ''Aikatsu Photo On Stage'' is an adaptation of a formerly existing game series. ''8 Beat Story'' has a unique system where characters can only evolve after maxing affections instead of levels or having duplicate copies in other rhythm games. ''Idol Connect -Asterisk Live-'' is more or less a clone of ''The Idolm@aster Cinderella Girls Starlight Stage'', except with an addition of a fan system. || ''IDOL-RISM'', ''Idol Chronicle'' and ''Idol Connect'' have shut down, with the latter lasted for a mere 3 months. ''Idol Paradise'' is unknown outside Japan thanks to its GPS mechanic preventing foreign players from playing. ''Aikatsu Photo On Stage'' is doing relatively well, but considering that [[VideoGame/{{Aikatsu}} the parent series]] has dead, its long term survival is in doubt (though having contents from ''VideoGame/AikatsuStars'' helped). ''8 Beat Story'' has just released on May 2016, which has seen some potential (with a live a mere '''four months''' after release) but its popularity is relatively small. Thus, the winner goes to ''Tokyo 7th Sisters'', which had a dedicated ''Comiket booth twice'' and two live concerts. ||
|| ''VideoGame/JustShapesAndBeats'' (2018) || ''VideoGame/ProjectArrhythmia'' (2019) || Hybrid Rhythm/Action games where the player plays a monochromatic shape that has to avoid other monochromatic shapes that move to the beat. || || TBD. ''Just Shapes and Beats'' was critically acclaimed and was very well received by critics and fans alike. ''Project Arrythmia'' has yet to be released. ||

||border=1
|| Initiator || Imitators/Competitors || Description || Implementation || Winner? ||
|| ''VideoGame/{{Gungriffon}}'' (1996) || ''VideoGame/ArmoredCore'' (1997) || Console mech games with a RealRobot flavour. || ''Armored Core'' is played from a third-person perspective and is heavily focused around [[CharacterCustomization building your own mech]]. ''Gungriffon'' is played from a cockpit view and casts the player as a participant in combined arms scenarios. || The original installments for both series sold well in their native Japan and were critically aclaimed, but ''Gungriffon'' suffered from being released on the struggling UsefulNotes/SegaSaturn. The series ended after the poorly received ''Allied Strike'', while ''Armored Core'' is still going strong. ||

|| ''VideoGame/{{Dodonpachi}}'' (1995) || ''Franchise/TouhouProject'' (1996) || {{Bullet Hell}}s featuring lots and lots of bullets and an ExcusePlot as per most Shoot 'em ups. The difference is ''Dodonpachi'' uses the traditional ships and Touhou is about little girls shooting each other. || It should be noted that when ZUN first unveiled the series, he made a direct TakeThat to ''Dodonpachi'', stating his series could have more bullets thanks to the HitboxDissonance. ...It's clear the idea caught on, because later installments of the Dodonpachi series and MOST Bullet Hells used this. || While ''Dodonpachi'' was big in its time, ''Touhou'' Project is THE definitive danmaku series, to the point where nearly every danmaku game nowadays borrows elements from ''Touhou''. ''Touhou'' has seen immense popularity since 2002, and continues with an enormous fanbase that produces games, fanime, manga... The list goes on, but the winner is clear. ||
|| ''VideoGame/{{One}}'' (1997) || ''VideoGame/{{Apocalypse}}'' (1998) || 3D overhead shooters exclusive to the original UsefulNotes/PlayStation, exhibited side by side at E3 1997. || ''One'' has more emphasis on platforming and cinematic setpieces. ''Apocalypse'' is more actioney and features Creator/BruceWillis's likeness as its main selling point; unfinished in its original version, the game was redeveloped by Neversoft after its resemblance to ''One'' was noted. || Both games were modest critical and financial successes. If you're stretching things, one could say ''Apocalypse'' had more impact, as Neversoft reused its engine for the massively successful ''VideoGame/TonyHawksProSkater'' series. ||
|| ''Zombie Apocalypse'' (2009) || ''VideoGame/NationRed'' (2009)\\

''Burn Zombie Burn'' (2009)\\

''VideoGame/DeadNation'' (2010) || Downloadable [[TopDownView top-down]] shooters about surviving [[ZombieApocalypse the inevitable]]. || ''VideoGame/DeadNation'' has a linear story mode and is the DarkerAndEdgier one of the group, while the rest (especially ''Burn Zombie Burn'') are more over-the-top. || If going by number of installments alone, then ''Zombie Apocalypse'' (one sequel) and ''Burn Zombie Burn'' (a Spiritual Successor in the ActionRPG ''All Zombies Must Die!''). As for critical reception, ''Dead Nation'' wins with a slight edge over ''Burn Zombie Burn''. ||

[[folder:Sports Game]]

|| ''VideoGame/NBAJam Extreme'' (1996) || ''NBA Hangtime'' (1996) || Fast-paced two-on-two basketball games with over-the-top dunks, no fouls besides goaltending, and players catching fire after making three straight baskets. || Midway made the first two NBA Jam games for arcades and Acclaim ported them to consoles. A dispute over the name led to a split where Acclaim kept the NBA Jam name and made a sequel, while Midway made its own sequel under a different name. Also notable is that ''Extreme'' is in 3D, while ''Hangtime'' remains 2D. || Despite more advanced graphics, ''Extreme'' couldn't compete with ''Hangtime'''s added depth and far faster load times. Acclaim continued to make ''Jam'' as more of a simulation, while Midway adapted the formula further to make ''NBA Showtime'' and ''NBA Ballers''. ||
|| ''[[VideoGame/TenEightySnowboarding 1080° Snowboarding]]'' (1998) || ''VideoGame/SnowboardKids'' (1998) || Two snowboarding games come out for the UsefulNotes/{{Nintendo 64}} almost simultaneously. || Though ''1080° Snowboarding'' was developed first, ''Snowboard Kids'' had a substantially shorter production cycle and actually beat ''1080'' to release by a few weeks. One crucial difference is that ''1080'' is focused on realistic snowboarding and executing tricks, but ''Snowboard Kids'' is essentially [[MascotRacer a kart racer with snowboarding physics]], with very stylized character design and surreal settings, and a focus on the racing aspect. || Though ''Snowboard Kids'' was briefly able to take ''1080'''s thunder due to coming out first, it was quickly overshadowed by its more realistic counterpart. That being said, in the long term, ''1080'' was forgotten, with the very rare sequel every now and then, whereas ''Snowboard Kids'' became a CultClassic with three sequels over the next few years before it, too, was forgotten. ||
|| ''VideoGame/TonyHawksProSkater'' (1999) || ''Dave Mirra Freestyle BMX'' (2000)\\

''VideoGame/JetSetRadio'' (2000)\\

''Aggressive Inline'' (2002)\\

''Evolution Skateboarding'' (2002) || Early extreme sports games || Activision and Neversoft put out ''THPS'', while the latter four were done by Acclaim, Z-Axis, SEGA and Konami respectively. ''AI'', ''Dave Mirra'' and ''Evolution'' generally copied the look and feel of the ''THPS'' games while ''Jet Set Radio'' tried to separate itself from the others through its use of CelShading and emphasis on Graffiti tagging. || ''AI'' and ''Dave Mirra BMX'' were decent games, but ''AI'' never received any follow-up while ''BMX XXX'' [[FranchiseKiller failed]] and led to Creator/{{Acclaim}}'s [[CreatorKiller death]]. Evolution Skateboarding is best known for its ''Castlevania'' and ''Metal Gear Solid'' levels, otherwise being forgotten as a poor ''Tony Hawk'' ripoff. ''Tony Hawk'' and ''Jet Set Radio'' are the most fondly remembered of them all, however ''Tony Hawk'' outlasted all four and made far more money, remaining a household name in "extreme sports" games until ''Tony Hawk RIDE'' screwed everything up. ||
|| ''[[VideoGame/MaddenNFL Madden]] 2005'' || ''NFL 2K5'' || Realistic football simulations based on the (then upcoming) 2005 NFL season. || Madden was more known for leaning more towards an arcadey-feel, while NFL 2K set out to be the most realistic football game in the market. NFL 2K5 also had the licence of ESPN and was able to use their personalities, while EA didn't have a particular network license, but it did have Al Michaels and John Madden calling the games. || One of the fiercest competitions ever seen from two competing sports games. 2K Games got the upper-hand in the battle when the launch price for ''NFL 2K5'' was '''$19.99''', compared to ''Madden's'' $49.99 launch price. EA was fearful that ''Madden'' could be outsold by another football game. Not only did they slash the price to match ''2K5'', but they were able to acquire to exclusive license from the NFL and NFLPA so they would be the only video game company to make NFL games. 2005 still remains the closest instance ''Madden'' came to being outsold by a competing football game. Both are regarded as phenomenal games to this very day, with Madden winning acclaim with the revolutionary "Hit Stick" feature and a refined franchise mode, while ''2K5'' won acclaim for its overall presentation and focus on realism. While ''Madden 2005'' is still fondly remembered, ''NFL 2K5'' is still regarded by many to be the best football game of all time and the game that every ''Madden'' is measured up to even with the newest installments. ||
|| ''VideoGame/WiiSports'' (2006) || ''Kinect Sports'' (2010)\\

''Sports Champions'' (2010) || [[MiniGameGame Sports game compilations]] showing off a system's new motion controls. || Let's face it, the real fight's between the control systems: ''Wii Sports'' demonstrated the UsefulNotes/{{Wii}} Remote, ''Kinect Sports'' is made for the UsefulNotes/Xbox360's controller-less camera system, and ''Sports Champions'' utilizes the [[UsefulNotes/PlayStation3 PlayStation Move]]. || ''Wii Sports'' had a four-year head start, being bundled with the UsefulNotes/{{Wii}} at launch and becoming synonymous with it. The other two systems [[FollowTheLeader played catch-up]], with their motion controls as optional add-ons to existing systems -- the Kinect got most of the hype (in both cases, the sports games were lost in the shuffle as only one of several showcase titles). ||

|| ''VideoGame/TonyHawksProSkater'' (starting from ''Proving Ground'') (2007) || ''VideoGame/{{Skate}}'' (2007) || WideOpenSandbox Skateboarding simulators. || ''Tony Hawk'' relied mostly on name recognition (with the Hawkman and several other pro skaters making appearances), while the ''skate'' series promised a different approach to trick control (utilizing both analog sticks on the [[UsefulNotes/PlayStation3 PS3]] and UsefulNotes/Xbox360 controllers instead of the face buttons and D-Pad). || ''Skate'' won this battle handily. Even before ''RIDE'' and ''Shred'' ultimately [[FranchiseKiller scuttled what was left]] of the ''Hawk'' franchise's popularity, ''skate'' routinely outperformed and outsold its competition. ||
|| ''UFC 2009 Undisputed'' || ''EA Sports MMA'' (2010) || Video games based on UsefulNotes/MixedMartialArts, the former focusing on UFC (and Pride in a future installment), the latter on Strikeforce and several smaller promotions || When EA's game was announced, UFC President Dana White was furious, since he had failed to make a deal with EA before eventually partnering with THQ for ''Undisputed''. White later even declared that anyone who signs their likeness to EA will '''never''' work for UFC (which he later retracted). || Both games were critically very well received though ''Undisputed'' was criticized for online mode glitches. ''Undisputed'' was a far more successful franchise, spawning two sequels. Eventually, UFC purchased Strikeforce and in June 2012 announced that the video game license had been transferred to EA Sports to create what became ''EA Sports UFC.'' If anyone is to be called a winner, it would be UFC the company. ||

[[folder:Stealth Game]]
||border=1
|| Initiator || Imitators/Competitors || Description || Implementation || Winner? ||
|| ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolid'' (1998) || ''VideoGame/SyphonFilter'' (1999)\\
\\
''VideoGame/SplinterCell'' (2002) || Stealth-based third-person action-adventure games in which you play as a grizzled badass soldier on covert missions, untangling complicated terrorist plots with the help ([[TheMole or hinderance]]) of MissionControl. || ''Metal Gear Solid'' mixes stealth gameplay and [[ShownTheirWork technical detail]] with [[HumongousMecha anime]] [[McNinja tropes]]. ''Syphon Filter'' blended stealth and run-and-gun gameplay with its conspiracy plot. ''Splinter Cell'' was supported by techno-thriller author Creator/TomClancy, and was more of a pure stealth game with a slower pace than the other two, though later installments leaned into the ActionizedSequel trope. ''Metal Gear Solid'' used an isometric perspective but later games moved to a traditional third-person camera, while ''Syphon Filter'' and ''Splinter Cell'' used traditional third-person perspectives from the start. || While each series was well-received and profitable, ''Metal Gear Solid'' takes first place overall. The original ''Metal Gear Solid'' is one of the most influencial games of all time, wowing critics and players with its Hollywood-like presentation and [[{{Deconstruction}} Deconstructive plot]], and spawned a massive and successful series that has sold over 50 million copies in total. ''Splinter Cell'' wasn't quite as influencial, but consistanly receives high review scores and has sold over 31 million copies in total as of 2011. ''Syphon Filter'' became one of the best-selling action games on the Playstation 1 with three titles on the console, though its sales numbers and impact never matched the other two series. ''Metal Gear Solid'' remains a relevant series today, while ''Splinter Cell'' has been on hiatus since 2013's ''Blacklist'' and ''Syphon Filter'' waned after the [=PS1=] era, eventually suffering a FranchiseKiller with 2007's ''Logan's Shadow''. ||

[[folder:Survival Horror]]
||border=1
|| Initiator || Imitators/Competitors || Description || Implementation || Winner? ||

|| ''VideoGame/EternalDarkness'' (2002) || ''VideoGame/{{Resident Evil|1}}'' remake (2002) || UsefulNotes/NintendoGameCube-exclusive[[note]]The ''Resident Evil'' remake would later get an UpdatedRerelease in 2015 for PC, UsefulNotes/PlayStation3 and [[UsefulNotes/PlayStation4 4]], and UsefulNotes/Xbox360 and [[UsefulNotes/XboxOne One]][[/note]] survival horror games released in spring 2002, set in a vacant mansion filled with grotesque monsters and idiosyncratic puzzles. At the time, they were the only M-rated [=GameCube=] games on the market. || ''Eternal Darkness'' is a psychological horror game strongly inspired by the works of Creator/HPLovecraft, while ''Resident Evil'' (aka the [=REmake=]) relies more on BodyHorror, science fiction elements, and jump scares. || Pretty much a tie. Both were well-received by critics and players alike. However it's worth noting that the ''[=REmake=]'' has been ported and rereleased several times since it came out, while ''Darkness's'' SpiritualSuccessor ''Shadow of the Eternals'' has failed to hit Kickstarter targets twice and is stuck in DevelopmentHell. ||
|| ''Infestation: Survivor Stories'' (formerly ''The War Z'') (2012) || ''VideoGame/ZombiU'' (2012)\\
\\
''VideoGame/StateOfDecay'' (2013)\\
\\
''VideoGame/{{DayZ}}'' (2013) || Four ZombieApocalypse games built heavily around survival, with players experiencing {{Permadeath}}s when killed and being given new characters instead of respawning. || ''[=DayZ=]'' began life as a PC-exclusive GameMod for ''VideoGame/{{ARMA}} II'' that takes place in that game's [[{{Ruritania}} Eastern European setting]], eventually being expanded into a stand-alone game in 2013. ''State of Decay'' and ''Infestation'' are set in [[FlyoverCountry rural America]], with ''Decay'' available on both UsefulNotes/XboxLiveArcade and PC, whereas ''Infestation'' is a PC exclusive. Finally, ''[=ZombiU=]'' takes place in UsefulNotes/{{London}} and is exclusive to the UsefulNotes/WiiU, making use of that console's touch screen controller. || ''[=DayZ=]'' wins on account of the hype that came out of its beta, to the point where sales of its "daddy" game, ''VideoGame/{{ARMA}} II'', skyrocketed, people purchasing it just to play ''[=DayZ=]''. Its success helped [[GenreLaunch spawn]] an entire new genre of survival games -- and all this was ''before'' its full release! Both ''State of Decay'' and ''[=ZombiU=]'' received positive reviews, though ''Decay'' takes silver on account of it being [[http://www.destructoid.com/state-of-decay-sells-550k-on-xbox-live-arcade-256497.phtml the sleeper hit of summer 2013]], selling over half a million units in two weeks despite being a downloadable title that relied almost entirely on word of mouth. ''[=ZombiU=]'', meanwhile, [[http://www.destructoid.com/ubisoft-zombiu-not-profitable-no-sequel-plans-257720.phtml lost money]] for Creator/{{Ubisoft}}.\\
\\
The big loser was ''Infestation: Survivor Stories'', a blatant [[TheMockbuster mockbuster]] of ''[=DayZ=]'' that is best known for the outcry that resulted when it was released with [[ObviousBeta severe bugs]] and [[NeverTrustATrailer without a number of promised features]] -- but hey, [[BribingYourWayToVictory the microtransaction store]] was working perfectly! The backlash was loud enough that UsefulNotes/{{Steam}} not only pulled the game from sale, but '''offered refunds to those who weren't satisfied.''' As a final insult, ''Infestation'' wasn't the game's original title -- the developers[[note]]Whose boss is also known for VideoGame/BigRigsOverTheRoadRacing[[/note]] had to change it from ''The War Z'' due to a trademark dispute concerning [[Film/WorldWarZ the film adaptation]] of ''Literature/WorldWarZ''. ||
|| ''VideoGame/DeadByDaylight'' (2016) || ''VideoGame/FridayThe13thTheGame'' (2017)\\
\\
''VideoGame/LastYearTheNightmare'' (2018) || AsymmetricMultiplayer horror games where players take on the role of either the killer out of a SlasherMovie, or the would-be-victims trying to survive his rampage. || ''Dead By Daylight'' has a selection of original killers along with classic killers like Michael Myers from the ''Franchise/{{Halloween}}'' series, Leatherface from ''Film/TheTexasChainsawMassacre'' and Freddy Krugger from ''Franchise/ANightmareOnElmStreet'' to play as.\\
\\
''Friday the 13th'' is a licensed adaptation of [[Franchise/FridayThe13th the film series]], boasting the involvement of special effects artist Creator/TomSavini, composer Harry Manfredini, and actor Creator/KaneHodder, all of whom are famous for their work on the films. Initially, the studio was working on a SpiritualAdaptation of the ''Friday'' films titled ''Slasher Vol. 1: Summer Camp'' (which would've dueled with the ''Friday'' game itself), but when Sean S. Cunningham (the director of the first film) saw their work, he gave them his blessing to make a licensed adaptation.\\
\\
''Last Year'', meanwhile, was successfully funded through Website/{{Kickstarter}}, but is currently on hold due to an IP dispute with Creator/NewLineCinema over similarities to the ''Friday'' films. The developers have continued working on it, however, and intend to release it in fall 2018 with the offending elements removed. The game also notably has a more lighthearted tone, informed more by '90s teen horror movies than the '80s slasher influences of ''Friday'' or the TorturePorn of ''Dead by Daylight''. || Both games got similar review scores, but ''Dead by Daylight'' outlasted ''Friday the 13th'', which ultimately wound up [[ScrewedByTheLawyers a victim of the legal battle]] between Victor Miller and Sean S. Cunningham over the rights to the ''Friday'' film series but had been losing for a while by then. Currently, ''Dead by Daylight'' manages well over ten thousand players average at any given time and over 25,000 at peak hours, while ''Friday the 13th'' had been bleeding players even before the lawsuit forced Illfonic to cease all development; these days, it's well under a thousand players even at peak hours, and at times only a few hundred. ||
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Tower Defense]]
* ''VideoGame/DungeonDefenders'' (2010) vs. ''VideoGame/OrcsMustDie'' (2011)
** '''Concept:''' TowerDefense games with a mixture of third-person action and RPGElements.
** '''Approach:''' ''VideoGame/OrcsMustDie'' is faster-paced and single-player, while ''VideoGame/DungeonDefenders'' is slower-paced but can be played with up to four players at a time.
[[/folder]]

* ''VideoGame/GoldenAxe'' (1989) vs. ''VideoGame/KnightsOfTheRound'' (1991)
** '''Concept:''' Sword-themed Beat 'em Up with ridable mounts released for the arcade in the early '90 era. Both games let you choose between three warriors with various strengths and weaknesses.
** '''Approach:''' While ''Golden Axe'' is set in a SwordAndSorcery world, ''Knights of The Round'' is closer to [[Myth/KingArthur Arthurian legends]] with many liberties taken with the myths. ''Golden Axe'' allows you to damage all enemies on-screen with magic while ''Knights of The Round'' give you a [[CastFromHitPoints special attack]]. Both games allows you to choose between 3 characters. \\\

* ''VideoGame/HouseOfTheDead'' (Sega) (1996) vs. ''VideoGame/CarnEvil'' (Midway) (1998)
** '''Concept:''' Horror-themed {{Light Gun Game}}s that hit arcades in the late 1990s.
** '''Approach:''' ''House of the Dead'' played its horror theme somewhat straight ([[{{Narm}} emphasis on "somewhat"]]), while ''[=CarnEvil=]'' dropped all pretenses and went with BloodyHilarious BlackComedy. \\\\

* ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXIV'' (2010) vs. ''VideoGame/PhantasyStarOnline2'' (2012)
** '''Concept:''' MMORPG titles based on long-running JRPG series that, at one point, competed with one another on opposing consoles (Nintendo for ''Final Fantasy'' and Sega for ''Phantasy Star'').
** '''Approach:''' At the time that ''[=PSO2=]'' launched, the original iteration of FFXIV was four months from being shut down, having been an abysmal failure. Eventually, FFXIV relaunched as ''A Realm Reborn'' and proved to be much more successful than its predecessor. \\\

[[folder:Party Game]]
* ''VideoGame/MarioParty'' (1998) vs. ''VideoGame/SonicShuffle'' (2000)
** '''Concept:''' Two games involving the then-new party game genre, and both were developed by Hudson Soft. ''Mario Party'', of course, features Mario and his friends, and the gimmick with their board play involves rolling dice and collecting enough coins to earn Stars. Whoever has the most Stars after a set number of turns wins. ''Sonic Shuffle'' was a Dreamcast-exclusive, and used cards that then determined how many spaces Sonic and his friends could move, plus they could move in multiple directions. There were seven stones, and all of them had to be collected for the game to end; again, player with the most stones wins.
** '''Approach:''' Mario's series originally had the option of playing 20, 35, or 50 turns, with a Mini-Game played at the end of each turn. Listing all the details would require its own page, but BigBad Bowser acted as a {{Whammy}} on the board with his space. You originally had to play a game and then purchase it, but after two games, they were unlocked upon first play. Sonic, on the other hand, had no Whammy spaces with that series' BigBad Dr. Eggman, who instead had his own card with a roulette of doom shuffled into the deck. Mini-Games could only be played by landing on the Mini-Game space, which also handed out Mini-Events, though "Accident" Mini-Games and a board ending game also came with the package.\\\
[[/folder]]

* ''VideoGame/{{Pikmin}}'' (2001) vs. ''VideoGame/{{Overlord}}'' (2007)
** '''Concept:''' Adventure/RTS hybrids where your character leads a small army of followers.
** '''Approach:''' In ''Pikmin'' you're a tiny spaceman leading tiny flower aliens in exploring a garden. ''Overlord'' is a fantasy parody that has fun with EvilTropes; you're an EvilOverlord going out with your [[LaughablyEvil enthusiastically destructive]] {{Mook}}s to pillage, plunder, and conquer. \\\

|| ''VideoGame/{{Bemani}}'' (1997) || ''VideoGame/GuitarHero'' (2005)\\
\\
''VideoGame/RockBand'' (2007) || Rhythm games that require special instrument controllers. || ''VideoGame/RockBand'' and ''VideoGame/GuitarHero'' are Western imitators of the Japanese-borne originators ''VideoGame/{{Beatmania}}'', ''VideoGame/DrumMania'', and ''Guitar Freaks''. || In Japan and a couple spots in East Asia, Bemani is the clear winner. Everywhere else, Bemani is relatively unknown outside of ''[[VideoGame/DanceDanceRevolution DDR]]''. Konami [[NoExportForYou decided too soon that nobody outside of Asia likes rhythm games]], and especially not Bemani's NintendoHard difficulty on harder settings; Creator/{{Activision}} through [=RedOctane=] and [[Creator/ElectronicArts EA]] through Harmonix simply filled the niche and ran away with pockets bulging with cash, now fighting each other instead of Konami for supremacy. Late in the game, Konami finally realized that there was demand in the West for rhythm games, and unsuccessfully tried to cash in with ''Rock Revolution''. ||

|| ''VideoGame/GuitarHero'' pre-''World Tour'' (2005) || ''VideoGame/RockBand'' (2007) || Rhythm games wherein you play songs by hitting notes on a plastic guitar. || ''VideoGame/GuitarHero'' came first; when the license was passed to another development studio, the original team created ''VideoGame/RockBand'' as a SpiritualSuccessor, upping the ante by adding drums and vocals. Each franchise has a different timing window, overdrive system, and hammer-on/pull-off system. ''VideoGame/RockBand''[='=]s extra songs were released as DownloadableContent while ''VideoGame/GuitarHero'''s were released as less frequent DLC, along with {{Mission Pack Sequel}}s. || See below. ||

|| ''VideoGame/{{Aikatsu}}'' (2012) || ''VideoGame/PriPara'' (2014) || Arcade games for young girls that focus on idols. || It should be noted that while ''Aikatsu!'' had no predecessors, ''[=PriPara=]'' is a spin-off of ''VideoGame/PrettyRhythm'', sharing some elements with that series. || ''Aikatsu!'' did pretty well in its first two years, making 13 billion yen. When ''[=PriPara=]'' came out, it became more popular than ''Aikatsu'' and made 7 billion yen in its first year, increasing to twice that amount by 2016. Its popularity led to the release of a boatload of spin-offs, including four movies, two musicals, and multiple sold-out events. Ratings-wise, ''Aikatsu!'' got 5 million viewers per episode and appeared in the list of top 10 anime shows of the week multiple times pre-Akari Generation as ratings decreased, while ''[=PriPara=]'' averaged 2 million viewers an episode. ''[=PriPara=]'' won out in the end as it was more successful. ||

|| ''VideoGame/TraumaCenter: Under the Knife'' (2005) || ''VideoGame/LifesignsSurgicalUnit'' (2007) || Combination VisualNovel and stylized surgery simulator. || ''Lifesigns'' actually debuted in Japan first with its predecessor ''Kenshuui Tendō Dokuta'' in the end of 2004. || ''Trauma Center'' became a very successful franchise both in Japan and abroad, totalling five installments across two hardware platforms, while ''Lifesigns'' was the final game released. ||

|| ''VideoGame/{{Gradius}}'' series (1985) || ''VideoGame/RType'' series (1987) || Shoot'em ups with lots of powerups. || || Both have strong [[CultClassic cult followings]] to this day, and both ''Gradius'' and ''R-Type'' had even branched out into TurnBasedStrategy RPG territory with ''Cosmic Wars'' and ''Gradius Arc'' for ''Gradius'' and ''R-Type Command/Tactics'' for ''R-Type''. ||

|| ''VideoGame/CoolBoarders'' (1996) || ''[[VideoGame/TenEightySnowboarding 1080° Snowboarding]]'' (1998)\\

''VideoGame/{{SSX}}'' (2000)\\

''Amped: Freestyle Snowboarding'' (2001) || "Extreme" snowboarding games featuring varied courses, stunt jumps, challenge modes and unlockable characters || ''Cool Boarders'' was first to the market, while ''1080°'' arrived a year later around the same time as ''Boarders 2'', the franchise's highest-selling installment. || ''1080°'' took a bite out of ''Boarders''' dominance in the genre, and the release of ''SSX'' finished it off in 2000/2001. The whole snowboarding genre nearly went under afterward due to oversaturation, even with [[MediumBlending boldly strange]] titles like ''{{Amped3}}''. ''SSX'' is the only franchise to have survived and produced more installments since then. ||
|| ''[[VideoGame/TenEightySnowboarding 1080° Snowboarding]]'' (1998) || ''VideoGame/SnowboardKids'' (1998) || Two snowboarding games come out for the UsefulNotes/{{Nintendo 64}} almost simultaneously. || Though ''1080° Snowboarding'' was developed first, ''Snowboard Kids'' had a substantially shorter production cycle and actually beat ''1080'' to release by a few weeks. One crucial difference is that ''1080'' is focused on realistic snowboarding and executing tricks, but ''Snowboard Kids'' is essentially [[MascotRacer a kart racer with snowboarding physics]], with very stylized character design and surreal settings, and a focus on the racing aspect. || Though ''Snowboard Kids'' was briefly able to take ''1080'''s thunder due to coming out first, it was quickly overshadowed by its more realistic counterpart. That being said, in the long term, ''1080'' was forgotten, with the very rare sequel every now and then, whereas ''Snowboard Kids'' became a CultClassic with three sequels over the next few years before it, too, was forgotten. ||
|| ''VideoGame/TonyHawksProSkater'' (1999) || ''Dave Mirra Freestyle BMX'' (2000)\\

''VideoGame/JetSetRadio'' (2000)\\
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''Aggressive Inline'' (2002)\\
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|| ''VideoGame/MLBTheShow'' (2006-present) || ''R.B.I. Baseball'' (2014-present) || Licensed games for Major League Baseball. || ''The Show'' is a long-running series by Sony Interactive Entertainment, and the last man standing after EA and 2K stopped producing baseball games. ''R.B.I.'' is produced and published directly by the league itself, and is the first game to bear the ''R.B.I. Baseball'' name since Tengen's ''R.B.I. Baseball '95'' on the Sega 32X. || A decisive victory for Sony's baseball sim. ''R.B.I.'' may be on more platforms, but its critical and commercial performance pales in comparison to ''The Show''. ||

|| ''[[VideoGame/AloneInTheDark1992 Alone in the Dark]]'' (1992) || ''VideoGame/ResidentEvil'' (1996) || In both games the protagonists must fight their way through a mansion filled with puzzles and monsters to uncover its secrets and survive to tell the tale. || ''Alone in the Dark'' was released way before and features a Lovecraftian style of horror. ''Resident Evil'' has better graphics, live-action cutscenes and looks more like an interactive zombie B-movie. || After spawning several multi-million-selling installments and a solid live-action movie series, ''Resident Evil'' is today one of the world's top videogame franchises. ''Alone in The Dark'' tried to follow the same path, but [[FranchiseKiller fell into oblivion]] instead after the release of two [[VideoGameMoviesSuck lousy Uwe Boll movies]], the failure of the 2008 game and ''[=AitD: Illumination=]'', a cheaply made, barely noticed InNameOnly co-op shooter cash-in. ||
|| ''Franchise/ResidentEvil'' (1996) || ''Franchise/SilentHill'' (1999) || Same as above, except that Silent Hill's setting spans an entire cursed town. || In contrast to ''Resident Evil'''s zombie-killing frenzy, ''Silent Hill'' features more puzzles, less monsters and a more mature and psychological storyline. || For a long time, both series were relatively neck-and-neck, with us reaching the consensus that ''Resident Evil'' is, generally, more "popular" while ''Silent Hill'' is, generally, more respected as a horror series. However, ''Resident Evil'' ultimately ended up [[VictoryByEndurance the winner by default]] with the release of ''VideoGame/ResidentEvil7'', thanks to Creator/{{Konami}} arbitrarily cancelling ''VideoGame/SilentHills'' for no reason at all and basically ceasing to give a shit about the series (unless you like pachinko machines). ||
|| ''[[VideoGame/AloneInTheDark2008 Alone in the Dark]]'' (2008 reboot) || ''VideoGame/AlanWake'' (2010) || An episodic game where a normal man investigates and fights against a villain that is responsible for said paranormal. || ''Alone in the Dark'' is the continuation of the classic series set in [[BigApplesauce New York's Central Park]], while ''Alan Wake'' is set in rural Washington state and is inspired by Creator/StephenKing and ''Series/TwinPeaks''. || ''Alan Wake'' got a much better initial reception than ''Alone in the Dark'', which was first released in [[ObviousBeta a highly unpolished state]] that landed on many "worst of the year" lists. However, an UpdatedRerelease for UsefulNotes/PlayStation3, ''Alone in the Dark: Inferno'', corrected many of these problems and received better reviews. ||

* ''VideoGame/FireEmblem'' (1990) vs. ''VideoGame/ShiningForce'' (1992)
** '''Concept:''' Fantasy-themed strategy [=RPGs=] where you command a squad of up to a dozen heroes at a time.
** '''Approach:''' Nintendo's ''Fire Emblem'' series focuses more on its story and character development, while Sega's ''Shining Force'' puts more emphasis on its combat system. The ''Franchise/ShiningSeries'' later branched out into ActionRPG territory, while ''Fire Emblem'' has stuck to its SRPG roots throughout all of its incarnations.\\\

* ''VideoGame/WiiFit'' (2007) vs. ''EA Sports Active'' (2009)
** '''Concept:''' Fitness games for the Wii.
** '''Approach:''' ''Wii Fit'' uses the pack-in Balance Board for its exercises, while EA Sports Active uses its own motion sensor and resistance band, allowing for more varied exercises.\\\

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|| Initiator || Imitators/Competitors || Description || Implementation || Winner? ||
|| ''VideoGame/BoulderDash'' (1984) || ''VideoGame/{{Repton}}'' (1985) || The founders of the rocks-and-diamonds genre, with ''Boulder Dash'' having comparatively more focus on dexterity, ''Repton'' more on logical puzzle-solving. || ''Repton'' creator Tim Tyler was inspired by a description of ''Boulder Dash'', but had never actually played the game. || ''Boulder Dash'' is more widely known and has far more imitators -- nearly all subsequent games follow BD in details such as rocks falling at the same speed the player moves, diamonds also falling, etc. However, ''Repton'' is still alive, with a fanbase creating new levels, to this day. ||
|| ''VideoGame/{{Tetris}}'' (Game Boy) (1989) || ''VideoGame/{{Columns}}'' (1990) || Simple to play but highly addictive games based on FallingBlocks. || Though neither was originally developed by a major video game company, and both had appeared on numerous computers previously, Nintendo and Sega acquired the rights to release console versions of these games, and they were among the launch titles for the UsefulNotes/GameBoy and UsefulNotes/GameGear, respectively. (Sega also produced several ''Tetris'' UsefulNotes/{{Arcade Game}}s.) || ''Tetris'', without a doubt, though Nintendo no longer has an exclusive license, with licenses being distributed to various developers by The Tetris Company (though Nintendo has released installments since then; it has released its own game, ''Tetris DS'', in addition to distributing Creator/HudsonSoft's ''Tetris Axis'' in North America and rereleasing the UsefulNotes/GameBoy game on the UsefulNotes/Nintendo3DS UsefulNotes/VirtualConsole). ''Columns'' had numerous smaller-scale releases throughout the 90s, many of which [[NoExportForYou did not even leave Japan]], but was ultimately relegated to re-releases after Sega began to fully utilize the far-more-popular ''VideoGame/PuyoPuyo'' series that they acquired in 1998. ||
|| ''VideoGame/PuyoPuyon'' (1999) || ''[[VideoGame/MagicalDrop Magical Drop F]]'' (1999) || 4th mainline entries in competition-based arcade series, released exclusively for consoles in 1999, that mostly ditches SuperDeformed character art and experiments with field-clearing {{Limit Break}}s. || Two fundamentally different puzzle games (''Puyo Puyo'' is a FallingBlocks game, ''Magical Drop'' is a "grab and toss" sorting game) with near-identical premises, created by two companies desperate for a hit.[[note]]Creator/{{Compile}} had already lost the ''Puyo Puyo'' series to Creator/{{Sega}} at this point and was running on borrowed time. Meanwhile, Creator/DataEast had retreated from the arcade scene following ''Magical Drop III'' and was struggling in the console space.[[/note]] ''Puyo Puyo~n'' released first, with ''Magical Drop F'' coming seven months later. || ''Puyo Puyo~n'' "wins," if only due to the legacy of ''Puyo Puyo'' compared to ''Magical Drop''. Both games are generally agreed to have suffered hard from {{Sequelitis}}, and neither developer lasted beyond early 2004. ''Puyo Puyo'' ultimately regained its former glory thanks to a {{Retool}} by Sega; ''Magical Drop'' didn't get a major sequel until 2012, which also had a mixed reception and appears to have killed [[FranchiseKiller both the franchise]] and [[CreatorKiller the indie team that developed it]]. ||
|| ''VideoGame/{{Lumines}}'' (2004) || ''VideoGame/{{Meteos}}'' (2005) || Stylish FallingBlocks games, developed by Q Entertainment and released in 2005 for portable systems. || ''Meteos'' was a launch title or close to it for the UsefulNotes/NintendoDS, while ''Lumines'' was the same for the UsefulNotes/PlayStationPortable. || ''Lumines'' has had more sequels on PSP, [[UsefulNotes/PlayStation2 PS2]], UsefulNotes/XboxLiveArcade, PC, UsefulNotes/PlayStationNetwork, and UsefulNotes/PlayStationVita. ''Meteos'' only got a Creator/{{Disney}}-themed DolledUpInstallment for DS and an Xbox Live Arcade sequel. ||
|| ''Crush the Castle'' (2009) || ''VideoGame/AngryBirds'' (2009) || Physics-based games that involve you firing things into objects to make them crash and kill the opponent || ''Crush the Castle'' is a free browser title and is more violent than ''Angry Birds'' || ''Crush the Castle'' only had two installments, three if you count the "Player Pack". ''Angry Birds'' has over eight games and is a CashCowFranchise. ||
|| ''VideoGame/AngryBirds'' (2009) || ''Pirates vs. Ninjas vs. Zombies vs. Pandas'' (2010) || Physics-based strategy games that revolve around firing characters to destroy structures in a quest for revenge. || ''Birds'' is more linear and cartoony, while ''[=PvNvZvP=]'' is a different, more serious art style, has more characters, and allows the order of the firing devices and character line to be changed. || Which one has been purchased over ''500'' million times, is more recognized, and has [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bMltvlqEM54 its own parody]]? Point goes to ''Angry Birds'', although ''[=PvNvZvP=]'' isn't a bad game in itself. ||
|| ''VideoGame/ProfessorLaytonAndTheLastSpecter'' (2011) || ''VideoGame/DoctorLautrecAndTheForgottenKnights'' (2011) || A Victorian-era puzzle game where you're a European archaeologist with a [[NiceHat top hat]] and a younger sidekick, for a Nintendo handheld. With ''Layton and the Last Specter'' specifically, specify the sidekick as a young lady and add "released Fall 2011". || ''Doctor Lautrec'' is said to be inspired by ''Layton'', though ''Lautrec'' adds stealth gameplay and {{Mons}} combat to ''Layton'''s pure puzzles. Further, Layton is a QuintessentialBritishGentleman while Lautrec is a FrenchJerk. || ''VideoGame/ProfessorLayton'' wins. Fans of ''Layton'' haven't taken much of a liking to ''Lautrec'', and ''Layton'' is one of the most popular series on the UsefulNotes/NintendoDS[=/=]UsefulNotes/Nintendo3DS. ||
|| ''VideoGame/ProfessorLaytonAndTheMiracleMask'' (2012) || ''VideoGame/RhythmThiefAndTheEmperorsTreasure'' (2012) || More Victorian-era puzzling with snappily dressed protagonists, this time on the UsefulNotes/Nintendo3DS. || ''Rhythm Thief'', like ''Lautrec'', is also inspired by ''Layton'', while adding musical-themed mini-games and puzzles to the mix. || ''Rhythm Thief'' sold poorly despite positive reviews, so ''Layton'' wins again. ||
|| ''VideoGame/TetrisEffect'' (2018) || ''VideoGame/Tetris99'' (2019) || The UsefulNotes/PlayStation4 gets a console-exclusive Tetris game. Not to be outdone, three months later, the UsefulNotes/NintendoSwitch gets one too. || ''Tetris Effect'' is focused on the visual effects, has a large soundtrack, and has gameplay centered on single-player with rule variants. ''Tetris 99'' is pretty minimal in visual presentation, has a much more limited selection of skins and music, and sticks to traditional ''Tetris'' gameplay but with 99 people playing at once under a Battle Royale system, as popularized by games like ''VideoGame/PlayerunknownsBattlegrounds'' and ''VideoGame/{{Fortnite}}''. || With the dust settled, ''Tetris 99'' has become a KillerApp for the Nintendo Switch Online service and the latest big splash onto the battle royale genre, with monthly events and crossovers with Nintendo franchises. ''Tetris Effect'', though still very much respected and a great seller for the [=PlayStation=] VR, couldn't quite gather quite the tremendous momentum ''Tetris 99'' did. This was quite the DarkHorseVictory, considering Sony aggressively hyped ''Tetris Effect'' for months whereas ''Tetris 99'' had InvisibleAdvertising, released on the day it was announced. ||

||Initiator || Imitators/Competitors || Description || Implementation || Winner? ||
|| ''VideoGame/TotalAnnihilation'' (1997) || ''VideoGame/{{Starcraft}}'' (1998) || Futuristic RTS released in a close timeframe in 1997. || The two are very much polar oppposites despite being in the same genre. ''Starcraft'' has [[CompetitiveBalance three different factions with markedly different playstyles]], simple resource management, heavy emphasis on unit micromanagement, and an involved plot with many characters. ''Total Annihilation'' has only two factions with minor differences, a complicated flow based resource system, a similarly complicated tier system for unit creation, an emphasis on large-scale action and long term strategy with almost no micromanagement, and a sparse backstory with no named characters. || ''VideoGame/{{Starcraft}}'' is one of the most influential video games of all time; in addition to shaping the future of RTS, it basically invented [=eSports=] as we know it. It has not one but ''two'' South Korean cable channels devoted to it exclusively. ''Total Annihilation'', for its part, also sold well, spawned an [[VideoGame/{{Spring}} independent remake]], two {{Spiritual Sequel}}s in ''VideoGame/SupremeCommander'' and ''VideoGame/PlanetaryAnnihilation'', and still has fans producing {{Game Mod}}s [[LongRunners to this day]]. It was, in short, a successful video game. It's just that it has the bad luck of being compared with ''[=StarCraft=]'', which is less a videogame and more a globe-spanning cultural force. ||
|| ''Star Wars Force Commander'' (2000) || ''VideoGame/StarTrekArmada'' (2000) || RealTimeStrategy games, based on the massively popular ''Franchise/StarWars'' and ''Star Trek'' franchises. || Both games were released in early-mid 2000. ''Armada'' had a top-down viewpoint, while ''Force Commander'' had a full 3D camera system. || ''Armada'' sold better, and its mod-friendly nature soon gave rise to a huge fan community and a sequel. ''Force Commander'' wasn't a total disaster, but its sloppy gameplay mechanics and CameraScrew soon turned gamers off of it. Creator/LucasArts would have more luck with its {{Spiritual Successor}}s, ''Galactic Battlegrounds'' and ''VideoGame/EmpireAtWar'' (which incidentally adopted a very ''Armada''-like interface and perspective for its space combat portions). ||
|| ''VideoGame/{{Pikmin}}'' (2001) || ''VideoGame/{{Overlord}}'' (2007) || Adventure/RTS hybrids where your character leads a small army of followers. || In ''Pikmin'' you're a tiny spaceman leading tiny flower aliens in exploring a garden. ''Overlord'' is a fantasy parody that has fun with EvilTropes; you're an EvilOverlord going out with your [[LaughablyEvil enthusiastically destructive]] {{Mook}}s to pillage, plunder, and conquer. || ''Pikmin'' is considered by most to be the better game, and gets more recognition as part of Creator/{{Nintendo}}'s family of franchises. That said, ''Overlord'' did fairly well for itself and eventually got a multi-platform sequel and two spin-off games onto Nintendo consoles, funnily enough. ||
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Role-Playing Game (Western)]]
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||border=1
|| Initiator || Imitators/Competitors || Description || Implementation || Winner? ||
|| ''VideoGame/LaserGhost'' (Sega) (1989) || ''VideoGame/BeastBusters'' (SNK) (1989) and ''VideoGame/CryptKiller'' (Konami) (1995) || Three of the first light gun arcade cabinets to allow up to three players simultaneously, against hordes of horror creatures, released at around the same time. || Both ''Laser Ghost'' and ''Beast Busters'' are set in a random American town, overrun by ghosts and zombies respectively, while ''Crypt Killer'' is set around the world where three explorers attempt to defeat creatures to receive a treasure; the former has a more cartoonish tone but all three are inspired by Western horror B-movies with the latter being inspired by ''Franchise/IndianaJones''. || Neither game became especially famous, and all three are mostly forgotten today. ''Laser Ghost'' received a Sega Master System port in 1991, which however wasn't a direct remake of the arcade. ''Beast Busters'' received three sequels in the span of 25 years, but one had pretty much nothing to do with it, another one was made for the failed Neo Geo 64 system and as such never received much attention, and the last one was a smartphone app that lasted barely a year. ''Crypt Killer'' received [=PlayStation=] and Sega Saturn ports and it had no sequel whatsoever. Technically ''BB'' wins, but good luck finding anyone who has ever heard of it. ||
|| ''VideoGame/LethalEnforcers'' (Konami) (1992) || ''VideoGame/VirtuaCop'' (Sega) (1994) and ''VideoGame/TimeCrisis'' (Namco) (1995) || Original light gun games that have some "saving the day from terrorist/criminals" plot. || ''Virtua Cop'' and ''Time Crisis'' use systems to allow the player to hide out of the way of incoming fire, while ''Lethal Enforcers'' does not. || ''Lethal Enforcers'' fell off the map, despite a few sequels (and one aimed at ''Time Crisis'' -- ''VideoGame/{{Police 911}}''), ''Virtua Cop'' probably enjoys the nostalgic value and comes in a close second to ''Time Crisis'', since the last game was released in early the 2000s and it did receive three sequels (one short of ''Time Crisis''' four) and a remake. ''Time Crisis'' is the winner here, getting four sequels, and you're most likely to find it out of the three (in any incarnation) in a given arcade (or in bigger arcades, you'll find that the Time Crisis machines outnumber Virtua Cop machines two to one). ||
|| ''VideoGame/HouseOfTheDead'' (Sega) (1996) || ''VideoGame/CarnEvil'' (Midway) (1998) || Horror-themed {{Light Gun Game}}s that hit arcades in the late 1990s. || ''House of the Dead'' played its horror theme somewhat straight ([[{{Narm}} emphasis on "somewhat"]]), while ''[=CarnEvil=]'' dropped all pretenses and went with BloodyHilarious BlackComedy. || While ''[=CarnEvil=]'' was a pretty big hit (one of Midway's last major arcade hits, in fact) it had no sequel and has never been ported to a home system. ''House of the Dead'' proved to be a massive hit in arcades and has become one of Sega's biggest franchises with three arcade sequels, all ported to at least one home system, eight spinoff games, and two ([[VideoGameMoviesSuck awful]]!) film adaptations. ||
|| ''VideoGame/SilentScope'' (1999) || ''Golgo 13'' (1999) || Light Gun games where the player takes the role of a sniper (or assassin). || Both featured rifles fixed to the cabinet. While the scope in ''Silent Scope'' was a smaller monitor, the scope in ''Golgo 13'' was a real scope. The screen itself would zoom in when it detected the player was peering through it. || ''Silent Scope'' was a modest hit, was ported to several consoles and had two sequels. ''Golgo 13'', while it also had two sequels, was not ported to any console and was only released in Japan (perhaps because it was based on a [[Manga/Golgo13 a manga series]] which at the time was barely known oustide of Japan). ||
|| ''VideoGame/TimeCrisis'' (Namco) (1995) || ''Johnny Nero Action Hero'' (ICE/Play Mechanix) (2004) || Action-themed {{Light Gun Game}}s that hit arcades in the early 2000s with similar gameplay. || ''Time Crisis'' played its terrorism theme somewhat straight ([[{{Narm}} emphasis on "somewhat"]]), while ''Johnny Nero Action Hero'' dropped all pretenses and went with hilariously {{Comic Book}}-themed [[ActionGenre action-comedy]] with aliens, mummies, and wild west zombies/ghosts. || While ''Johnny Nero Action Hero'' was a moderate hit (despite the arcades declining in America due to the rise of {{First Person Shooter}}s, in fact) it had no sequel, has never been ported to a home system, achieved a small "CultClassic" status, and was a kit-only game. ''Time Crisis'' proved to be a massive hit in arcades and has become one of Namco's biggest franchises with four arcade sequels, all ported to at least one home system, and six spinoff games. ||

|| ''VideoGame/{{Everquest}} 2'' (2004) || ''VideoGame/WorldOfWarcraft'' (2004) || High fantasy [=MMORPGs=] || The first ''Everquest'' was the first successful 3D MMO, but its unforgiving game mechanics were beginning to show their age. Menaced by game juggernaut Creator/{{Blizzard|Entertainment}}'s first MMO, the sequel was rushed to market and suffered for it. || ''World of Warcraft'' is the largest game in the industry with over 12 million active subscriptions at its peak. ''Everquest 2'' rarely even rates a mention. ||
|| ''VideoGame/SecondLife'' (2003) || IMVU (2004), ''VideoGame/PlaystationHome'' (2008), Small Worlds (2008), Google Lively (2008), many others || MMO/social entertainment virtual worlds where people hang out, interact, play games, and customize [[VirtualPaperDoll their avatars]] and [[AHomeOwnerIsYou living quarters]]. || ''Second Life'' (and many of its competitors) is all about user-generated content; everything in the game (outside the tutorial items) was made by ordinary players. ''Home'', on the other hand, is more structured, with all content made by the developers, keeping it rather family-friendly (and advertiser-friendly) by comparison. In addition, ''Home'' is only on UsefulNotes/PlayStation3, while ''Second Life'' and most of its other competitors are for computers. || Of all the many social entertainment games out there (and there are many), ''Second Life'' has garnered the most media attention, the most parodies, the largest user base, and overall, the most success, though it's also notorious for [[TheRuleOfFirstAdopters the sheer amount of sex]] that permeates it, including just about every kink known to man (and some that aren't). ''Home'' took a while to start delivering on its promises; early on, it was seen as a symbol of many of the [=PlayStation=] 3's problems, but [[GrowingTheBeard its fortunes quietly improved]] with those of Sony's console. By the time it was announced that it would be shutting down in 2015 (with the [=PlayStation=] 3 on its way out), [[http://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/2014-09-30-playstation-home-sonys-most-successful-failure one observer]] called it "Sony's most successful failure" in how it continued to build a dedicated fanbase despite being mocked and all but forgotten initially. The other games have seen varying degrees of success, though most of them still live in ''Second Life'''s shadow. ||


|| ''VideoGame/PetSociety'' (2008) || ''VideoGame/PetVille'' (2009) || Multiplayer Website/{{Facebook}} games based around raising {{Funny Animal}}s. || ''Pet Ville'' is a sister game to ''VideoGame/FarmVille''. ''Pet Society'' came out first but is rather similar to ''[=FarmVille=]''. || ''Pet Society'' has more players, a bigger fanbase, and lacks the {{Hatedom}} that ''Pet Ville'' has. ||
|| ''VideoGame/StarWarsTheOldRepublic'' (2011) || ''VideoGame/GuildWars2'' (2012) || Next-generation story-focused [=MMORPG=]s that are (optionally in [=TOR=]'s case) free-to-play. || Not actually a case of initiator and imitator, these games were the hope of 2012 ushering in a new generation of [=MMORPG=]s with a much greater emphasis on story and defying established conventions of the genre. || ''Guild Wars 2'' is a commercial and critical success that has been actively supported by fans and its producer. Although ''The Old Republic'' was initially a smash hit, sales, subscriptions, and critical praise fell off sharply after a few months in light of the game's tepid support, numerous delays of promised content, uncommunicative developers, and severe restrictions on free-to-play players. ||
|| ''VideoGame/WorldOfTanks'' (2011) || ''VideoGame/WarThunder'' (2012) || VehicularCombat MMO with focus on UsefulNotes/WorldWarII and early UsefulNotes/ColdWar tanks. || ''World of Tanks'' was the first on the scene, with more focus on competitive gameplay, while War Thunder was more of a FollowTheLeader but initially focused more on aircraft. With the latest updates however, tanks are also becoming a big focus. When compared to each other, World of Tanks has a more arcade-like feel while War Thunder focuses heavily on realism, though both games have lots of ShownTheirWork between them. || Currently, ''World of Tanks'' has a larger fanbase and more publicity (to the point that google searches make mention of it pretty often). However, ''War Thunder'' itself has found success by mixing tank and aircraft gameplay to offer the experience of combined arms warfare. That said, the ground vehicles are a relatively new update to ''War Thunder'' so it may still catch up to ''World of Tanks''. ||
|| ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXIV'' (2010) || ''VideoGame/PhantasyStarOnline2'' (2012) || MMORPG titles based on long-running JRPG series that, at one point, competed with one another on opposing consoles (Nintendo for ''Final Fantasy'' and Sega for ''Phantasy Star''). || At the time that ''[=PSO2=]'' launched, the original iteration of FFXIV was four months from being shut down, having been an abysmal failure. Eventually, FFXIV relaunched as ''A Realm Reborn'' and proved to be much more successful than its predecessor. || ''FFXIV'', by merit of being an international smash hit following its relaunch with thousands of players subscribed, critical acclaim, and financial success that pulled Square Enix back from the brink of financial ruin. ''[=PSO2=]'', on the other hand, is a decent free-to-play game in its own right, but has been hampered by [[NoExportForYou having never been officially released outside of Japan]] ([[BadExportForYou not counting the abysmal SEA version that made FFXIV 1.0 look like a masterpiece in comparison]]) and the western release for the game teased in 2012 [[{{Vaporware}} never so much as being mentioned again]] until 2019. The game finally received its western release in 2020, but by this point, ''FFXIV'''s successes have far eclipsed it. ||

[[folder:Party Game]]

|| Initiator || Imitators/Competitors || Description || Implementation || Winner? ||

|| ''VideoGame/MarioParty'' (1998) || ''VideoGame/SonicShuffle'' (2000) || Two games involving the then-new party game genre, and both were developed by Hudson Soft. ''Mario Party'', of course, features Mario and his friends, and the gimmick with their board play involves rolling dice and collecting enough coins to earn Stars. Whoever has the most Stars after a set number of turns wins. ''Sonic Shuffle'' was a Dreamcast-exclusive, and used cards that then determined how many spaces Sonic and his friends could move, plus they could move in multiple directions. There were seven stones, and all of them had to be collected for the game to end; again, player with the most stones wins. || Mario's series originally had the option of playing 20, 35, or 50 turns, with a Mini-Game played at the end of each turn. Listing all the details would require its own page, but BigBad Bowser acted as a {{Whammy}} on the board with his space. You originally had to play a game and then purchase it, but after two games, they were unlocked upon first play. Sonic, on the other hand, had no Whammy spaces with that series' BigBad Dr. Eggman, who instead had his own card with a roulette of doom shuffled into the deck. Mini-Games could only be played by landing on the Mini-Game space, which also handed out Mini-Events, though "Accident" Mini-Games and a board ending game also came with the package. || ''Mario Party'' by several miles. The first game did have an infamous control stick gimmick with a few of its games that actually required Nintendo to hand out gloves when people started tearing their hands; that scheme was eliminated from future games and the original game was never reissued as a result, but otherwise, it started a long series of games that is a regular franchise for Nintendo, though it's far from being without its detractors (the Game Informer magazine editors hate almost all of these games with a passion, the exception being ''Mario Party 6'' due to its Mic Mini-Games). ''Sonic Shuffle'' got dealt negative press immediately due to being on a dying system and Hudson unwittingly enforcing TheComputerIsACheatingBastard trope on it; the game's A.I. was very difficult to deal with no matter what skill level you were on (a recurring problem for SEGA games in the 2000s) and were smart enough to possibly require SaveScumming to beat the game's story mode, plus Mini-Games could not be played in a Mini-Game only mode without unlocking it first, plus there were a few glitches. G4 called this game a "spectacular failure" in 2003, and the game's lukewarm reception [[StillbornFranchise sent any ideas of a ''Sonic Shuffle'' series deep into the ocean.]] This is one of the few Sonic games prior to SEGA leaving the console race to never get reissued on future consoles; if one wishes to play it, [[KeepCirculatingTheTapes they will need the disc and a Dreamcast (same rules apply for the first Mario Party; that one requires its cartridge and a Nintendo 64).]] ||

[[folder:Puzzle Game]]

|| ''VideoGame/BoulderDash'' (1984) || ''VideoGame/{{Repton}}'' (1985) || The founders of the rocks-and-diamonds genre, with ''Boulder Dash'' having comparatively more focus on dexterity, ''Repton'' more on logical puzzle-solving. || ''Repton'' creator Tim Tyler was inspired by a description of ''Boulder Dash'', but had never actually played the game. || ''Boulder Dash'' is more widely known and has far more imitators -- nearly all subsequent games follow BD in details such as rocks falling at the same speed the player moves, diamonds also falling, etc. However, ''Repton'' is still alive, with a fanbase creating new levels, to this day. ||
|| ''VideoGame/{{Tetris}}'' (Game Boy) (1989) || ''VideoGame/{{Columns}}'' (1990) || Simple to play but highly addictive games based on FallingBlocks. || Though neither was originally developed by a major video game company, and both had appeared on numerous computers previously, Nintendo and Sega acquired the rights to release console versions of these games, and they were among the launch titles for the UsefulNotes/GameBoy and UsefulNotes/GameGear, respectively. (Sega also produced several ''Tetris'' UsefulNotes/{{Arcade Game}}s.) || ''Tetris'', without a doubt, though Nintendo no longer has an exclusive license, with licenses being distributed to various developers by The Tetris Company (though Nintendo has released installments since then; it has released its own game, ''Tetris DS'', in addition to distributing Creator/HudsonSoft's ''Tetris Axis'' in North America and rereleasing the UsefulNotes/GameBoy game on the UsefulNotes/Nintendo3DS UsefulNotes/VirtualConsole). ''Columns'' had numerous smaller-scale releases throughout the 90s, many of which [[NoExportForYou did not even leave Japan]], but was ultimately relegated to re-releases after Sega began to fully utilize the far-more-popular ''VideoGame/PuyoPuyo'' series that they acquired in 1998. ||
|| ''VideoGame/PuyoPuyon'' (1999) || ''[[VideoGame/MagicalDrop Magical Drop F]]'' (1999) || 4th mainline entries in competition-based arcade series, released exclusively for consoles in 1999, that mostly ditches SuperDeformed character art and experiments with field-clearing {{Limit Break}}s. || Two fundamentally different puzzle games (''Puyo Puyo'' is a FallingBlocks game, ''Magical Drop'' is a "grab and toss" sorting game) with near-identical premises, created by two companies desperate for a hit.[[note]]Creator/{{Compile}} had already lost the ''Puyo Puyo'' series to Creator/{{Sega}} at this point and was running on borrowed time. Meanwhile, Creator/DataEast had retreated from the arcade scene following ''Magical Drop III'' and was struggling in the console space.[[/note]] ''Puyo Puyo~n'' released first, with ''Magical Drop F'' coming seven months later. || ''Puyo Puyo~n'' "wins," if only due to the legacy of ''Puyo Puyo'' compared to ''Magical Drop''. Both games are generally agreed to have suffered hard from {{Sequelitis}}, and neither developer lasted beyond early 2004. ''Puyo Puyo'' ultimately regained its former glory thanks to a {{Retool}} by Sega; ''Magical Drop'' didn't get a major sequel until 2012, which also had a mixed reception and appears to have killed [[FranchiseKiller both the franchise]] and [[CreatorKiller the indie team that developed it]]. ||
|| ''VideoGame/{{Lumines}}'' (2004) || ''VideoGame/{{Meteos}}'' (2005) || Stylish FallingBlocks games, developed by Q Entertainment and released in 2005 for portable systems. || ''Meteos'' was a launch title or close to it for the UsefulNotes/NintendoDS, while ''Lumines'' was the same for the UsefulNotes/PlayStationPortable. || ''Lumines'' has had more sequels on PSP, [[UsefulNotes/PlayStation2 PS2]], UsefulNotes/XboxLiveArcade, PC, UsefulNotes/PlayStationNetwork, and UsefulNotes/PlayStationVita. ''Meteos'' only got a Creator/{{Disney}}-themed DolledUpInstallment for DS and an Xbox Live Arcade sequel. ||
|| ''Crush the Castle'' (2009) || ''VideoGame/AngryBirds'' (2009) || Physics-based games that involve you firing things into objects to make them crash and kill the opponent || ''Crush the Castle'' is a free browser title and is more violent than ''Angry Birds'' || ''Crush the Castle'' only had two installments, three if you count the "Player Pack". ''Angry Birds'' has over eight games and is a CashCowFranchise. ||
|| ''VideoGame/AngryBirds'' (2009) || ''Pirates vs. Ninjas vs. Zombies vs. Pandas'' (2010) || Physics-based strategy games that revolve around firing characters to destroy structures in a quest for revenge. || ''Birds'' is more linear and cartoony, while ''[=PvNvZvP=]'' is a different, more serious art style, has more characters, and allows the order of the firing devices and character line to be changed. || Which one has been purchased over ''500'' million times, is more recognized, and has [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bMltvlqEM54 its own parody]]? Point goes to ''Angry Birds'', although ''[=PvNvZvP=]'' isn't a bad game in itself. ||
|| ''VideoGame/ProfessorLaytonAndTheLastSpecter'' (2011) || ''VideoGame/DoctorLautrecAndTheForgottenKnights'' (2011) || A Victorian-era puzzle game where you're a European archaeologist with a [[NiceHat top hat]] and a younger sidekick, for a Nintendo handheld. With ''Layton and the Last Specter'' specifically, specify the sidekick as a young lady and add "released Fall 2011". || ''Doctor Lautrec'' is said to be inspired by ''Layton'', though ''Lautrec'' adds stealth gameplay and {{Mons}} combat to ''Layton'''s pure puzzles. Further, Layton is a QuintessentialBritishGentleman while Lautrec is a FrenchJerk. || ''VideoGame/ProfessorLayton'' wins. Fans of ''Layton'' haven't taken much of a liking to ''Lautrec'', and ''Layton'' is one of the most popular series on the UsefulNotes/NintendoDS[=/=]UsefulNotes/Nintendo3DS. ||
|| ''VideoGame/ProfessorLaytonAndTheMiracleMask'' (2012) || ''VideoGame/RhythmThiefAndTheEmperorsTreasure'' (2012) || More Victorian-era puzzling with snappily dressed protagonists, this time on the UsefulNotes/Nintendo3DS. || ''Rhythm Thief'', like ''Lautrec'', is also inspired by ''Layton'', while adding musical-themed mini-games and puzzles to the mix. || ''Rhythm Thief'' sold poorly despite positive reviews, so ''Layton'' wins again. ||
|| ''VideoGame/TetrisEffect'' (2018) || ''VideoGame/Tetris99'' (2019) || The UsefulNotes/PlayStation4 gets a console-exclusive Tetris game. Not to be outdone, three months later, the UsefulNotes/NintendoSwitch gets one too. || ''Tetris Effect'' is focused on the visual effects, has a large soundtrack, and has gameplay centered on single-player with rule variants. ''Tetris 99'' is pretty minimal in visual presentation, has a much more limited selection of skins and music, and sticks to traditional ''Tetris'' gameplay but with 99 people playing at once under a Battle Royale system, as popularized by games like ''VideoGame/PlayerunknownsBattlegrounds'' and ''VideoGame/{{Fortnite}}''. || With the dust settled, ''Tetris 99'' has become a KillerApp for the Nintendo Switch Online service and the latest big splash onto the battle royale genre, with monthly events and crossovers with Nintendo franchises. ''Tetris Effect'', though still very much respected and a great seller for the [=PlayStation=] VR, couldn't quite gather quite the tremendous momentum ''Tetris 99'' did. This was quite the DarkHorseVictory, considering Sony aggressively hyped ''Tetris Effect'' for months whereas ''Tetris 99'' had InvisibleAdvertising, released on the day it was announced. ||
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Real Time Strategy]]
||border=1
||Initiator || Imitators/Competitors || Description || Implementation || Winner? ||
|| ''VideoGame/TotalAnnihilation'' (1997) || ''VideoGame/{{Starcraft}}'' (1998) || Futuristic RTS released in a close timeframe in 1997. || The two are very much polar oppposites despite being in the same genre. ''Starcraft'' has [[CompetitiveBalance three different factions with markedly different playstyles]], simple resource management, heavy emphasis on unit micromanagement, and an involved plot with many characters. ''Total Annihilation'' has only two factions with minor differences, a complicated flow based resource system, a similarly complicated tier system for unit creation, an emphasis on large-scale action and long term strategy with almost no micromanagement, and a sparse backstory with no named characters. || ''VideoGame/{{Starcraft}}'' is one of the most influential video games of all time; in addition to shaping the future of RTS, it basically invented [=eSports=] as we know it. It has not one but ''two'' South Korean cable channels devoted to it exclusively. ''Total Annihilation'', for its part, also sold well, spawned an [[VideoGame/{{Spring}} independent remake]], two {{Spiritual Sequel}}s in ''VideoGame/SupremeCommander'' and ''VideoGame/PlanetaryAnnihilation'', and still has fans producing {{Game Mod}}s [[LongRunners to this day]]. It was, in short, a successful video game. It's just that it has the bad luck of being compared with ''[=StarCraft=]'', which is less a videogame and more a globe-spanning cultural force. ||
|| ''Star Wars Force Commander'' (2000) || ''VideoGame/StarTrekArmada'' (2000) || RealTimeStrategy games, based on the massively popular ''Franchise/StarWars'' and ''Star Trek'' franchises. || Both games were released in early-mid 2000. ''Armada'' had a top-down viewpoint, while ''Force Commander'' had a full 3D camera system. || ''Armada'' sold better, and its mod-friendly nature soon gave rise to a huge fan community and a sequel. ''Force Commander'' wasn't a total disaster, but its sloppy gameplay mechanics and CameraScrew soon turned gamers off of it. Creator/LucasArts would have more luck with its {{Spiritual Successor}}s, ''Galactic Battlegrounds'' and ''VideoGame/EmpireAtWar'' (which incidentally adopted a very ''Armada''-like interface and perspective for its space combat portions). ||
|| ''VideoGame/{{Pikmin}}'' (2001) || ''VideoGame/{{Overlord}}'' (2007) || Adventure/RTS hybrids where your character leads a small army of followers. || In ''Pikmin'' you're a tiny spaceman leading tiny flower aliens in exploring a garden. ''Overlord'' is a fantasy parody that has fun with EvilTropes; you're an EvilOverlord going out with your [[LaughablyEvil enthusiastically destructive]] {{Mook}}s to pillage, plunder, and conquer. || ''Pikmin'' is considered by most to be the better game, and gets more recognition as part of Creator/{{Nintendo}}'s family of franchises. That said, ''Overlord'' did fairly well for itself and eventually got a multi-platform sequel and two spin-off games onto Nintendo consoles, funnily enough. ||
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Role-Playing Game (Western)]]
||border=1
|| Initiator || Imitators/Competitors || Description || Implementation || Winner? ||

|| ''VideoGame/FinalFight'' (1989) || ''VideoGame/StreetsOfRage'' (1991)\\
\\
''VideoGame/RushingBeat'' (aka ''Rival Turf!'', ''Brawl Brothers'' and ''The Peace Keepers'') (1992) || Trilogies of urban {{Beat Em Up}}s released on rival platforms (''SOR'' came out on the UsefulNotes/SegaGenesis, while the UsefulNotes/SuperNES got ''Rushing Beat''; ''Final Fight'' came out before either in arcades, but its first console port and two sequels were on the SNES). || The SNES ''Final Fight'' and the Genesis ''Streets of Rage'' were both released during the 1991 Holidays season, although the Japanese version of the former actually came out earlier (being a Super Famicom launch title). While ''Final Fight'' featured more colorful graphics with larger character sprites, ''Streets of Rage'' gain favor with critics by offering a 2-Player co-op mode (a feature that Capcom later implemented in ''Final Fight 2''). Jaleco later released ''Rival Turf!'' in 1992 as a 2-player alternative to the original ''Final Fight'' and eventually went on to spawn two sequels as well. || ''Final Fight'' and ''Streets of Rage'' sold better and are remembered much more fondly than the ''Rushing Beat'' series, which more or less faded away with Jaleco's fortunes. ||
|| ''[[http://www.hardcoregaming101.net/arabianmagic/arabianmagic.htm Arabian Magic]]'' (1992) || ''[[http://www.hardcoregaming101.net/arabianfight/arabianfight.htm Arabian Fight]]'' (1992) || Four-player {{Beat Em Up}}s set in ArabianNightsDays and released to arcades in 1992. || Creator/{{Taito}}'s ''Arabian Magic'' and Creator/{{Sega}}'s ''Arabian Fight'' were both produced on 32-bit arcade hardware (albeit 2-D evolutions of earlier 16-bit systems). ''Arabian Fight'' used the somewhat unusual effect of having character sprites zoom as they walk. || Neither game seems to have been popular at the time, and no console ports were produced. Retro critics have found little in ''Arabian Fight''[='s=] favor; unlike ''Arabian Magic'', it has never appeared on a CompilationRerelease. ||
|| ''VideoGame/GoldenAxe'' (1989) || ''VideoGame/KnightsOfTheRound'' (1991) || Sword-themed Beat 'em Up with ridable mounts released for the arcade in the early '90 era. Both games let you choose between three warriors with various strengths and weaknesses. || While ''Golden Axe'' is set in a SwordAndSorcery world, ''Knights of The Round'' is closer to [[Myth/KingArthur Arthurian legends]] with many liberties taken with the myths. ''Golden Axe'' allows you to damage all enemies on-screen with magic while ''Knights of The Round'' give you a [[CastFromHitPoints special attack]]. Both games allows you to choose between 3 characters. || ''Knights of The Round'' is the superior game with better graphics, the ability to play with all three characters simultaneously instead of two. Its gameplay mechanics were more sophisticated with blocking, RPGElements, a more varied enemy roster and bosses. However, ''Golden Axe'' was the more memorable game with more sequels, spin-offs and PortOverdosed. The mounts in ''Golden Axe'' came with their own unique abilities, the music was more engaging and the characters were more remembered today. ||
|| ''VideoGame/DungeonsAndDragonsShadowOverMystara'' (1996) || ''VideoGame/GuardianHeroes'' (1996) || Fantasy-themed Beat 'em Ups with significant RPGElements. || Made by esteemed developers (Creator/{{Capcom}} and Creator/{{Treasure}}, respectively), these games are significantly more complex than what is typical of the genre. Each game features several playable characters with distinct strenghts and weaknesses that gain levels and abilities as the game progresses. There is also usable equipment, several different special attacks and magic spells, and other features such as branching paths and MultipleEndings. ''Shadow over Mystara'' was an arcade-only[[note]]Though it was ported to Sega Saturn along with its predecessor a few years later [[NoExportForYou in Japan only.]][[/note]] sequel to ''Dungeons & Dragons: Tower of Doom'' and is based on the popular TabletopRPG ''TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons''[[note]]Specifically, the ''TabletopGame/{{Mystara}}'' setting.[[/note]] whereas ''Guardian Heroes'' is a wholly original title for the Sega Saturn. ''Guardian Heroes'' is also more plot-driven with a surprisingly detailed story, while the plot of ''Shadow over Mystara'' is [[ExcusePlot very basic]]. || ''Shadow over Mystara'' was well-received, but the lack of a home port outside of Japan hurt it. ''Guardian Heroes'' was critically acclaimed, but didn't sell particularly well. Both are now fondly remembered {{Cult Classic}}s, with ''Shadow over Mystara'' (along with its predecessor) edging out slightly, likely due to its famous source material. ||
|| ''[[VideoGame/DynamiteCop Die Hard Arcade]]'' (1996) || ''Fighting Force'' (1997) || 3D attempts at resurrecting the BeatEmUp genre. || ''Fighting Force'' was originally envisioned as a ''VideoGame/StreetsOfRage'' sequel, which would have made this an in-house dueling. Both games had sequels, but ''Fighting Force'' underwent a GenreShift in its next installment. || ''Fighting Force'' sold better but ''Die Hard Arcade'' is slightly more respected among gamers. Both failed to launch the 3D Brawler genre. ||
|| ''VideoGame/BeatDownFistsOfVengeance'' (2005) || ''VideoGame/UrbanReign'' (2005) || Dark and gritty {{Beat Em Up}}s. || ''Urban Reign'' features cameos from popular ''VideoGame/{{Tekken}}'' characters Paul Phoenix and Marshall Law. || Neither game got much love from the critics, but ''Urban Reign'' received somewhat more favorable (if still mixed) reviews, so it wins. ||

[[folder:Flight Sim/Flight Shooter]]

|| ''VideoGame/StarFox1'' (1993) || ''Cybermorph'' (1993), ''VideoGame/StarTrekStarfleetAcademy'' (SNES/32X versions) (1994) || Sci-fi themed shooting games with primitive polygonal graphics. || All three games came out within six months of each other. The difference is that ''VideoGame/StarFox'' is a rail shooter while the other two are freeform. || ''Star Fox'' was easily the best-reviewed and as the first released, had the biggest "wow factor." ''Starfleet Academy'' wasn't a major hit, but did well enough to lead to a much more successful PC version three years later. ''Cybermorph'', while not totally bad, was critically panned and only had one sequel (''Battlemorph'') on the Jaguar CD just before Atari pulled the plug on the [[UsefulNotes/AtariJaguar Jaguar]]. ||

|| ''VideoGame/AirCombat'' (1995) || ''VideoGame/{{Warhawk}}'' (1995) || Arcade-style flight combat games released in 1995 for the UsefulNotes/PlayStation. || ''Air Combat'' is set in the present; ''Warhawk'' is set in the future. ''Air Combat'', while not a port or sharing any assets, is directly related by developer to the 1992 arcade game of the same name and its own sequel ''Air Combat 22'' from earlier in 1995, while ''Warhawk'' is a [=PlayStation=] exclusive that has no ties beyond the name to the 1986 arcade game. || ''Air Combat'' spawned the successful ''Ace Combat'' series with 16 sequels and spinoffs. ''Warhawk'' didn't receive a new game until 2007 for the [=PS3=], which was critically well-received but commercially unsuccessful. ||

|| ''VideoGame/IL2Sturmovik: Birds of Prey'' (2009) || ''Heroes Over Europe'' (2009) || WWII-themed flight games released within one week of each other. || ''Birds of Prey'' attempts to bridge console and PC sensibilities by offering multiple settings of varying realism, whereas ''Heroes over Europe'' is purely an arcade affair. || ''Birds of Prey'' is the clear winner. It had good critical acclaim, a RecursiveAdaptation (''Wings of Prey'' on PC with the rest of the ''Il-2 Sturmovik'' series) and a cult fanbase, whereas ''Heroes Over Europe'' tanked at retail and had a tepid critical reception. ||
|| ''VideoGame/EliteDangerous'' (2014) || ''VideoGame/StarCitizen'' (2017), ''VideoGame/NoMansSky'' (2016) || Open-world space-simulator sandbox games || ''Elite: Dangerous'' released in the fall of 2014, while ''Star Citizen'' is in open alpha as of winter 2015/2016. ''VideoGame/{{Elite}}'' continues its predecessors' tradition of an expansive procedurally generated universe, while ''Star Citizen'' concentrates on deep immersion in a smaller playable universe, much like its spiritual predecessor ''Privateer''. Note that as far as the developers are concerned, this is explicitly a FriendlyRivalry; Chris Roberts and David Braben are both alpha backers of the other's game, and are both on record as wanting the other to succeed. Likewise, ''No Man's Sky'' promised to be an open-world space-simulator sandbox, with a larger emphasis on exploration. || While it's still too early to tell, ''ED'' is still going strong, especially with the reveal of the existence of an alien civilization in 2017 and the beginning of a large community event to initiate contact with it. ''SC'' is still in alpha stage with still no clear release date in sight, with fans worried the game will never fully release due to the features the developers keep adding in. ''NMS'' stumbled and fell right out of the gate at release when it was revealed the full game did not have nearly as many features as the developers had promised, although work has been made to fix its varying issues in the years since. ||

[[folder:Light Gun Game]]

|| ''VideoGame/LaserGhost'' (Sega) (1989) || ''VideoGame/BeastBusters'' (SNK) (1989) and ''VideoGame/CryptKiller'' (Konami) (1995) || Three of the first light gun arcade cabinets to allow up to three players simultaneously, against hordes of horror creatures, released at around the same time. || Both ''Laser Ghost'' and ''Beast Busters'' are set in a random American town, overrun by ghosts and zombies respectively, while ''Crypt Killer'' is set around the world where three explorers attempt to defeat creatures to receive a treasure; the former has a more cartoonish tone but all three are inspired by Western horror B-movies with the latter being inspired by ''Franchise/IndianaJones''. || Neither game became especially famous, and all three are mostly forgotten today. ''Laser Ghost'' received a Sega Master System port in 1991, which however wasn't a direct remake of the arcade. ''Beast Busters'' received three sequels in the span of 25 years, but one had pretty much nothing to do with it, another one was made for the failed Neo Geo 64 system and as such never received much attention, and the last one was a smartphone app that lasted barely a year. ''Crypt Killer'' received [=PlayStation=] and Sega Saturn ports and it had no sequel whatsoever. Technically ''BB'' wins, but good luck finding anyone who has ever heard of it. ||
|| ''VideoGame/LethalEnforcers'' (Konami) (1992) || ''VideoGame/VirtuaCop'' (Sega) (1994) and ''VideoGame/TimeCrisis'' (Namco) (1995) || Original light gun games that have some "saving the day from terrorist/criminals" plot. || ''Virtua Cop'' and ''Time Crisis'' use systems to allow the player to hide out of the way of incoming fire, while ''Lethal Enforcers'' does not. || ''Lethal Enforcers'' fell off the map, despite a few sequels (and one aimed at ''Time Crisis'' -- ''VideoGame/{{Police 911}}''), ''Virtua Cop'' probably enjoys the nostalgic value and comes in a close second to ''Time Crisis'', since the last game was released in early the 2000s and it did receive three sequels (one short of ''Time Crisis''' four) and a remake. ''Time Crisis'' is the winner here, getting four sequels, and you're most likely to find it out of the three (in any incarnation) in a given arcade (or in bigger arcades, you'll find that the Time Crisis machines outnumber Virtua Cop machines two to one). ||
|| ''VideoGame/HouseOfTheDead'' (Sega) (1996) || ''VideoGame/CarnEvil'' (Midway) (1998) || Horror-themed {{Light Gun Game}}s that hit arcades in the late 1990s. || ''House of the Dead'' played its horror theme somewhat straight ([[{{Narm}} emphasis on "somewhat"]]), while ''[=CarnEvil=]'' dropped all pretenses and went with BloodyHilarious BlackComedy. || While ''[=CarnEvil=]'' was a pretty big hit (one of Midway's last major arcade hits, in fact) it had no sequel and has never been ported to a home system. ''House of the Dead'' proved to be a massive hit in arcades and has become one of Sega's biggest franchises with three arcade sequels, all ported to at least one home system, eight spinoff games, and two ([[VideoGameMoviesSuck awful]]!) film adaptations. ||
|| ''VideoGame/SilentScope'' (1999) || ''Golgo 13'' (1999) || Light Gun games where the player takes the role of a sniper (or assassin). || Both featured rifles fixed to the cabinet. While the scope in ''Silent Scope'' was a smaller monitor, the scope in ''Golgo 13'' was a real scope. The screen itself would zoom in when it detected the player was peering through it. || ''Silent Scope'' was a modest hit, was ported to several consoles and had two sequels. ''Golgo 13'', while it also had two sequels, was not ported to any console and was only released in Japan (perhaps because it was based on a [[Manga/Golgo13 a manga series]] which at the time was barely known oustide of Japan). ||
|| ''VideoGame/TimeCrisis'' (Namco) (1995) || ''Johnny Nero Action Hero'' (ICE/Play Mechanix) (2004) || Action-themed {{Light Gun Game}}s that hit arcades in the early 2000s with similar gameplay. || ''Time Crisis'' played its terrorism theme somewhat straight ([[{{Narm}} emphasis on "somewhat"]]), while ''Johnny Nero Action Hero'' dropped all pretenses and went with hilariously {{Comic Book}}-themed [[ActionGenre action-comedy]] with aliens, mummies, and wild west zombies/ghosts. || While ''Johnny Nero Action Hero'' was a moderate hit (despite the arcades declining in America due to the rise of {{First Person Shooter}}s, in fact) it had no sequel, has never been ported to a home system, achieved a small "CultClassic" status, and was a kit-only game. ''Time Crisis'' proved to be a massive hit in arcades and has become one of Namco's biggest franchises with four arcade sequels, all ported to at least one home system, and six spinoff games. ||

[[folder:MMO]]

|| ''VideoGame/{{Everquest}} 2'' (2004) || ''VideoGame/WorldOfWarcraft'' (2004) || High fantasy [=MMORPGs=] || The first ''Everquest'' was the first successful 3D MMO, but its unforgiving game mechanics were beginning to show their age. Menaced by game juggernaut Creator/{{Blizzard|Entertainment}}'s first MMO, the sequel was rushed to market and suffered for it. || ''World of Warcraft'' is the largest game in the industry with over 12 million active subscriptions at its peak. ''Everquest 2'' rarely even rates a mention. ||
|| ''VideoGame/SecondLife'' (2003) || IMVU (2004), ''VideoGame/PlaystationHome'' (2008), Small Worlds (2008), Google Lively (2008), many others || MMO/social entertainment virtual worlds where people hang out, interact, play games, and customize [[VirtualPaperDoll their avatars]] and [[AHomeOwnerIsYou living quarters]]. || ''Second Life'' (and many of its competitors) is all about user-generated content; everything in the game (outside the tutorial items) was made by ordinary players. ''Home'', on the other hand, is more structured, with all content made by the developers, keeping it rather family-friendly (and advertiser-friendly) by comparison. In addition, ''Home'' is only on UsefulNotes/PlayStation3, while ''Second Life'' and most of its other competitors are for computers. || Of all the many social entertainment games out there (and there are many), ''Second Life'' has garnered the most media attention, the most parodies, the largest user base, and overall, the most success, though it's also notorious for [[TheRuleOfFirstAdopters the sheer amount of sex]] that permeates it, including just about every kink known to man (and some that aren't). ''Home'' took a while to start delivering on its promises; early on, it was seen as a symbol of many of the [=PlayStation=] 3's problems, but [[GrowingTheBeard its fortunes quietly improved]] with those of Sony's console. By the time it was announced that it would be shutting down in 2015 (with the [=PlayStation=] 3 on its way out), [[http://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/2014-09-30-playstation-home-sonys-most-successful-failure one observer]] called it "Sony's most successful failure" in how it continued to build a dedicated fanbase despite being mocked and all but forgotten initially. The other games have seen varying degrees of success, though most of them still live in ''Second Life'''s shadow. ||


|| ''VideoGame/PetSociety'' (2008) || ''VideoGame/PetVille'' (2009) || Multiplayer Website/{{Facebook}} games based around raising {{Funny Animal}}s. || ''Pet Ville'' is a sister game to ''VideoGame/FarmVille''. ''Pet Society'' came out first but is rather similar to ''[=FarmVille=]''. || ''Pet Society'' has more players, a bigger fanbase, and lacks the {{Hatedom}} that ''Pet Ville'' has. ||
|| ''VideoGame/StarWarsTheOldRepublic'' (2011) || ''VideoGame/GuildWars2'' (2012) || Next-generation story-focused [=MMORPG=]s that are (optionally in [=TOR=]'s case) free-to-play. || Not actually a case of initiator and imitator, these games were the hope of 2012 ushering in a new generation of [=MMORPG=]s with a much greater emphasis on story and defying established conventions of the genre. || ''Guild Wars 2'' is a commercial and critical success that has been actively supported by fans and its producer. Although ''The Old Republic'' was initially a smash hit, sales, subscriptions, and critical praise fell off sharply after a few months in light of the game's tepid support, numerous delays of promised content, uncommunicative developers, and severe restrictions on free-to-play players. ||
|| ''VideoGame/WorldOfTanks'' (2011) || ''VideoGame/WarThunder'' (2012) || VehicularCombat MMO with focus on UsefulNotes/WorldWarII and early UsefulNotes/ColdWar tanks. || ''World of Tanks'' was the first on the scene, with more focus on competitive gameplay, while War Thunder was more of a FollowTheLeader but initially focused more on aircraft. With the latest updates however, tanks are also becoming a big focus. When compared to each other, World of Tanks has a more arcade-like feel while War Thunder focuses heavily on realism, though both games have lots of ShownTheirWork between them. || Currently, ''World of Tanks'' has a larger fanbase and more publicity (to the point that google searches make mention of it pretty often). However, ''War Thunder'' itself has found success by mixing tank and aircraft gameplay to offer the experience of combined arms warfare. That said, the ground vehicles are a relatively new update to ''War Thunder'' so it may still catch up to ''World of Tanks''. ||
|| ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXIV'' (2010) || ''VideoGame/PhantasyStarOnline2'' (2012) || MMORPG titles based on long-running JRPG series that, at one point, competed with one another on opposing consoles (Nintendo for ''Final Fantasy'' and Sega for ''Phantasy Star''). || At the time that ''[=PSO2=]'' launched, the original iteration of FFXIV was four months from being shut down, having been an abysmal failure. Eventually, FFXIV relaunched as ''A Realm Reborn'' and proved to be much more successful than its predecessor. || ''FFXIV'', by merit of being an international smash hit following its relaunch with thousands of players subscribed, critical acclaim, and financial success that pulled Square Enix back from the brink of financial ruin. ''[=PSO2=]'', on the other hand, is a decent free-to-play game in its own right, but has been hampered by [[NoExportForYou having never been officially released outside of Japan]] ([[BadExportForYou not counting the abysmal SEA version that made FFXIV 1.0 look like a masterpiece in comparison]]) and the western release for the game teased in 2012 [[{{Vaporware}} never so much as being mentioned again]] until 2019. The game finally received its western release in 2020, but by this point, ''FFXIV'''s successes have far eclipsed it. ||

[[folder:Party Game]]

|| Initiator || Imitators/Competitors || Description || Implementation || Winner? ||

|| ''VideoGame/MarioParty'' (1998) || ''VideoGame/SonicShuffle'' (2000) || Two games involving the then-new party game genre, and both were developed by Hudson Soft. ''Mario Party'', of course, features Mario and his friends, and the gimmick with their board play involves rolling dice and collecting enough coins to earn Stars. Whoever has the most Stars after a set number of turns wins. ''Sonic Shuffle'' was a Dreamcast-exclusive, and used cards that then determined how many spaces Sonic and his friends could move, plus they could move in multiple directions. There were seven stones, and all of them had to be collected for the game to end; again, player with the most stones wins. || Mario's series originally had the option of playing 20, 35, or 50 turns, with a Mini-Game played at the end of each turn. Listing all the details would require its own page, but BigBad Bowser acted as a {{Whammy}} on the board with his space. You originally had to play a game and then purchase it, but after two games, they were unlocked upon first play. Sonic, on the other hand, had no Whammy spaces with that series' BigBad Dr. Eggman, who instead had his own card with a roulette of doom shuffled into the deck. Mini-Games could only be played by landing on the Mini-Game space, which also handed out Mini-Events, though "Accident" Mini-Games and a board ending game also came with the package. || ''Mario Party'' by several miles. The first game did have an infamous control stick gimmick with a few of its games that actually required Nintendo to hand out gloves when people started tearing their hands; that scheme was eliminated from future games and the original game was never reissued as a result, but otherwise, it started a long series of games that is a regular franchise for Nintendo, though it's far from being without its detractors (the Game Informer magazine editors hate almost all of these games with a passion, the exception being ''Mario Party 6'' due to its Mic Mini-Games). ''Sonic Shuffle'' got dealt negative press immediately due to being on a dying system and Hudson unwittingly enforcing TheComputerIsACheatingBastard trope on it; the game's A.I. was very difficult to deal with no matter what skill level you were on (a recurring problem for SEGA games in the 2000s) and were smart enough to possibly require SaveScumming to beat the game's story mode, plus Mini-Games could not be played in a Mini-Game only mode without unlocking it first, plus there were a few glitches. G4 called this game a "spectacular failure" in 2003, and the game's lukewarm reception [[StillbornFranchise sent any ideas of a ''Sonic Shuffle'' series deep into the ocean.]] This is one of the few Sonic games prior to SEGA leaving the console race to never get reissued on future consoles; if one wishes to play it, [[KeepCirculatingTheTapes they will need the disc and a Dreamcast (same rules apply for the first Mario Party; that one requires its cartridge and a Nintendo 64).]] ||

[[folder:Puzzle Game]]

|| ''VideoGame/BoulderDash'' (1984) || ''VideoGame/{{Repton}}'' (1985) || The founders of the rocks-and-diamonds genre, with ''Boulder Dash'' having comparatively more focus on dexterity, ''Repton'' more on logical puzzle-solving. || ''Repton'' creator Tim Tyler was inspired by a description of ''Boulder Dash'', but had never actually played the game. || ''Boulder Dash'' is more widely known and has far more imitators -- nearly all subsequent games follow BD in details such as rocks falling at the same speed the player moves, diamonds also falling, etc. However, ''Repton'' is still alive, with a fanbase creating new levels, to this day. ||
|| ''VideoGame/{{Tetris}}'' (Game Boy) (1989) || ''VideoGame/{{Columns}}'' (1990) || Simple to play but highly addictive games based on FallingBlocks. || Though neither was originally developed by a major video game company, and both had appeared on numerous computers previously, Nintendo and Sega acquired the rights to release console versions of these games, and they were among the launch titles for the UsefulNotes/GameBoy and UsefulNotes/GameGear, respectively. (Sega also produced several ''Tetris'' UsefulNotes/{{Arcade Game}}s.) || ''Tetris'', without a doubt, though Nintendo no longer has an exclusive license, with licenses being distributed to various developers by The Tetris Company (though Nintendo has released installments since then; it has released its own game, ''Tetris DS'', in addition to distributing Creator/HudsonSoft's ''Tetris Axis'' in North America and rereleasing the UsefulNotes/GameBoy game on the UsefulNotes/Nintendo3DS UsefulNotes/VirtualConsole). ''Columns'' had numerous smaller-scale releases throughout the 90s, many of which [[NoExportForYou did not even leave Japan]], but was ultimately relegated to re-releases after Sega began to fully utilize the far-more-popular ''VideoGame/PuyoPuyo'' series that they acquired in 1998. ||
|| ''VideoGame/PuyoPuyon'' (1999) || ''[[VideoGame/MagicalDrop Magical Drop F]]'' (1999) || 4th mainline entries in competition-based arcade series, released exclusively for consoles in 1999, that mostly ditches SuperDeformed character art and experiments with field-clearing {{Limit Break}}s. || Two fundamentally different puzzle games (''Puyo Puyo'' is a FallingBlocks game, ''Magical Drop'' is a "grab and toss" sorting game) with near-identical premises, created by two companies desperate for a hit.[[note]]Creator/{{Compile}} had already lost the ''Puyo Puyo'' series to Creator/{{Sega}} at this point and was running on borrowed time. Meanwhile, Creator/DataEast had retreated from the arcade scene following ''Magical Drop III'' and was struggling in the console space.[[/note]] ''Puyo Puyo~n'' released first, with ''Magical Drop F'' coming seven months later. || ''Puyo Puyo~n'' "wins," if only due to the legacy of ''Puyo Puyo'' compared to ''Magical Drop''. Both games are generally agreed to have suffered hard from {{Sequelitis}}, and neither developer lasted beyond early 2004. ''Puyo Puyo'' ultimately regained its former glory thanks to a {{Retool}} by Sega; ''Magical Drop'' didn't get a major sequel until 2012, which also had a mixed reception and appears to have killed [[FranchiseKiller both the franchise]] and [[CreatorKiller the indie team that developed it]]. ||
|| ''VideoGame/{{Lumines}}'' (2004) || ''VideoGame/{{Meteos}}'' (2005) || Stylish FallingBlocks games, developed by Q Entertainment and released in 2005 for portable systems. || ''Meteos'' was a launch title or close to it for the UsefulNotes/NintendoDS, while ''Lumines'' was the same for the UsefulNotes/PlayStationPortable. || ''Lumines'' has had more sequels on PSP, [[UsefulNotes/PlayStation2 PS2]], UsefulNotes/XboxLiveArcade, PC, UsefulNotes/PlayStationNetwork, and UsefulNotes/PlayStationVita. ''Meteos'' only got a Creator/{{Disney}}-themed DolledUpInstallment for DS and an Xbox Live Arcade sequel. ||
|| ''Crush the Castle'' (2009) || ''VideoGame/AngryBirds'' (2009) || Physics-based games that involve you firing things into objects to make them crash and kill the opponent || ''Crush the Castle'' is a free browser title and is more violent than ''Angry Birds'' || ''Crush the Castle'' only had two installments, three if you count the "Player Pack". ''Angry Birds'' has over eight games and is a CashCowFranchise. ||
|| ''VideoGame/AngryBirds'' (2009) || ''Pirates vs. Ninjas vs. Zombies vs. Pandas'' (2010) || Physics-based strategy games that revolve around firing characters to destroy structures in a quest for revenge. || ''Birds'' is more linear and cartoony, while ''[=PvNvZvP=]'' is a different, more serious art style, has more characters, and allows the order of the firing devices and character line to be changed. || Which one has been purchased over ''500'' million times, is more recognized, and has [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bMltvlqEM54 its own parody]]? Point goes to ''Angry Birds'', although ''[=PvNvZvP=]'' isn't a bad game in itself. ||
|| ''VideoGame/ProfessorLaytonAndTheLastSpecter'' (2011) || ''VideoGame/DoctorLautrecAndTheForgottenKnights'' (2011) || A Victorian-era puzzle game where you're a European archaeologist with a [[NiceHat top hat]] and a younger sidekick, for a Nintendo handheld. With ''Layton and the Last Specter'' specifically, specify the sidekick as a young lady and add "released Fall 2011". || ''Doctor Lautrec'' is said to be inspired by ''Layton'', though ''Lautrec'' adds stealth gameplay and {{Mons}} combat to ''Layton'''s pure puzzles. Further, Layton is a QuintessentialBritishGentleman while Lautrec is a FrenchJerk. || ''VideoGame/ProfessorLayton'' wins. Fans of ''Layton'' haven't taken much of a liking to ''Lautrec'', and ''Layton'' is one of the most popular series on the UsefulNotes/NintendoDS[=/=]UsefulNotes/Nintendo3DS. ||
|| ''VideoGame/ProfessorLaytonAndTheMiracleMask'' (2012) || ''VideoGame/RhythmThiefAndTheEmperorsTreasure'' (2012) || More Victorian-era puzzling with snappily dressed protagonists, this time on the UsefulNotes/Nintendo3DS. || ''Rhythm Thief'', like ''Lautrec'', is also inspired by ''Layton'', while adding musical-themed mini-games and puzzles to the mix. || ''Rhythm Thief'' sold poorly despite positive reviews, so ''Layton'' wins again. ||
|| ''VideoGame/TetrisEffect'' (2018) || ''VideoGame/Tetris99'' (2019) || The UsefulNotes/PlayStation4 gets a console-exclusive Tetris game. Not to be outdone, three months later, the UsefulNotes/NintendoSwitch gets one too. || ''Tetris Effect'' is focused on the visual effects, has a large soundtrack, and has gameplay centered on single-player with rule variants. ''Tetris 99'' is pretty minimal in visual presentation, has a much more limited selection of skins and music, and sticks to traditional ''Tetris'' gameplay but with 99 people playing at once under a Battle Royale system, as popularized by games like ''VideoGame/PlayerunknownsBattlegrounds'' and ''VideoGame/{{Fortnite}}''. || With the dust settled, ''Tetris 99'' has become a KillerApp for the Nintendo Switch Online service and the latest big splash onto the battle royale genre, with monthly events and crossovers with Nintendo franchises. ''Tetris Effect'', though still very much respected and a great seller for the [=PlayStation=] VR, couldn't quite gather quite the tremendous momentum ''Tetris 99'' did. This was quite the DarkHorseVictory, considering Sony aggressively hyped ''Tetris Effect'' for months whereas ''Tetris 99'' had InvisibleAdvertising, released on the day it was announced. ||
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Real Time Strategy]]
||border=1
||Initiator || Imitators/Competitors || Description || Implementation || Winner? ||
|| ''VideoGame/TotalAnnihilation'' (1997) || ''VideoGame/{{Starcraft}}'' (1998) || Futuristic RTS released in a close timeframe in 1997. || The two are very much polar oppposites despite being in the same genre. ''Starcraft'' has [[CompetitiveBalance three different factions with markedly different playstyles]], simple resource management, heavy emphasis on unit micromanagement, and an involved plot with many characters. ''Total Annihilation'' has only two factions with minor differences, a complicated flow based resource system, a similarly complicated tier system for unit creation, an emphasis on large-scale action and long term strategy with almost no micromanagement, and a sparse backstory with no named characters. || ''VideoGame/{{Starcraft}}'' is one of the most influential video games of all time; in addition to shaping the future of RTS, it basically invented [=eSports=] as we know it. It has not one but ''two'' South Korean cable channels devoted to it exclusively. ''Total Annihilation'', for its part, also sold well, spawned an [[VideoGame/{{Spring}} independent remake]], two {{Spiritual Sequel}}s in ''VideoGame/SupremeCommander'' and ''VideoGame/PlanetaryAnnihilation'', and still has fans producing {{Game Mod}}s [[LongRunners to this day]]. It was, in short, a successful video game. It's just that it has the bad luck of being compared with ''[=StarCraft=]'', which is less a videogame and more a globe-spanning cultural force. ||
|| ''Star Wars Force Commander'' (2000) || ''VideoGame/StarTrekArmada'' (2000) || RealTimeStrategy games, based on the massively popular ''Franchise/StarWars'' and ''Star Trek'' franchises. || Both games were released in early-mid 2000. ''Armada'' had a top-down viewpoint, while ''Force Commander'' had a full 3D camera system. || ''Armada'' sold better, and its mod-friendly nature soon gave rise to a huge fan community and a sequel. ''Force Commander'' wasn't a total disaster, but its sloppy gameplay mechanics and CameraScrew soon turned gamers off of it. Creator/LucasArts would have more luck with its {{Spiritual Successor}}s, ''Galactic Battlegrounds'' and ''VideoGame/EmpireAtWar'' (which incidentally adopted a very ''Armada''-like interface and perspective for its space combat portions). ||
|| ''VideoGame/{{Pikmin}}'' (2001) || ''VideoGame/{{Overlord}}'' (2007) || Adventure/RTS hybrids where your character leads a small army of followers. || In ''Pikmin'' you're a tiny spaceman leading tiny flower aliens in exploring a garden. ''Overlord'' is a fantasy parody that has fun with EvilTropes; you're an EvilOverlord going out with your [[LaughablyEvil enthusiastically destructive]] {{Mook}}s to pillage, plunder, and conquer. || ''Pikmin'' is considered by most to be the better game, and gets more recognition as part of Creator/{{Nintendo}}'s family of franchises. That said, ''Overlord'' did fairly well for itself and eventually got a multi-platform sequel and two spin-off games onto Nintendo consoles, funnily enough. ||
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Role-Playing Game (Western)]]
||border=1
|| Initiator || Imitators/Competitors || Description || Implementation || Winner? ||

** '''Approach:''' Both games were very graphically impressive for their time and played a big part making the CD-ROM format take off. Neither game had much, if any, character interaction or text and instead focused on visuals, atmosphere and abstract puzzles. Interestingly, both were originally released on the UsefulNotes/{{Macintosh}}, a format known for its lack of original games.

** '''Approach:''' When Jim Walls, the designer of the original three ''Police Quest'' games, left Creator/{{Sierra}}, they decided to continue the series without him, hiring former LAPD chief Daryl Gates as a consultant for the fourth game. Walls however joined Tsunami Media, a company of former Sierra employees, and created a SpiritualSuccessor named ''Blue Force'' which was released the same year.

** '''Approach:''' ''Phantasmagoria'' used live actors and green screen while ''D'' used pre-rendered 3D-models and enviroments. ''Phantasmagoria'' used a traditional point-and-click interface while ''D'' used a first-person perspective similar to ''VideoGame/{{Myst}}''. Both also had a fairly unprecedented amout of violence and gore for a video game at the time.

|| ''VideoGame/TheSeventhGuest'' (1993) || ''VideoGame/{{Myst}}'' (1993) || SceneryPorn {{Point and Click Game}}s made as {{Killer App}}s for the CD-ROM format. || Both games were very graphically impressive for their time and played a big part making the CD-ROM format take off. Neither game had much, if any, character interaction or text and instead focused on visuals, atmosphere and abstract puzzles. Interestingly, both were originally released on the UsefulNotes/{{Macintosh}}, a format known for its lack of original games. || ''Myst''. It became one of the best-selling games of all time, and had five sequels and a remake. ''The 7th Guest'' sold well but had only two sequels, ''The 11th Hour'' and ''Uncle Henry's Playhouse'', the first of which was poorly received and the second so obscure it sold less than 200 copies worldwide. Both games have later suffered HypeBacklash and gotten a SeinfeldIsUnfunny status, although ''Myst'' is generally regarded as having aged better between the two. ||
|| ''[[VideoGame/PoliceQuest Police Quest: Open Season]]'' (1993) || ''Blue Force'' (1993) || Law enforcement-themed {{Adventure Game}}s with an emphasis on proper police procedual. || When Jim Walls, the designer of the original three ''Police Quest'' games, left Creator/{{Sierra}}, they decided to continue the series without him, hiring former LAPD chief Daryl Gates as a consultant for the fourth game. Walls however joined Tsunami Media, a company of former Sierra employees, and created a SpiritualSuccessor named ''Blue Force'' which was released the same year. || Both games sold poorly, but ''Police Quest'' wins on a technicality due to being better remembered thanks to its esteemed predecessors, and the series survived for two more InNameOnly installments, giving birth to the MorePopularSpinoff ''SWAT''. ''Blue Force'' is almost completely forgotten. ||
|| ''VideoGame/{{D}}'' (1995) || ''VideoGame/{{Phantasmagoria}}'' (1995) || Controversial FMV horror adventure games released in 1995 starring a young woman exploring a haunted mansion to discover the truth of why one of her loved ones have suddenly become violent and murderous. || ''Phantasmagoria'' used live actors and green screen while ''D'' used pre-rendered 3D-models and enviroments. ''Phantasmagoria'' used a traditional point-and-click interface while ''D'' used a first-person perspective similar to ''VideoGame/{{Myst}}''. Both also had a fairly unprecedented amout of violence and gore for a video game at the time. || ''Phantasmagoria'' is more well-known but is also frequently cited as an example of everything wrong with FMV games. ''D'' is much more obscure outside its native Japan, but has a bit of a cult following and its reputation increased somewhat [[DeadArtistsAreBetter after the death of its creator]] Kenji Eno. ||
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Beat 'em Up]]
||border=1
|| Initiator || Imitators/Competitors || Description || Implementation || Winner? ||

** Both games take cues from the ''VideoGame/MonsterHunter'' series, but ''God Eater'''s inspiration seems to show much more clearly. \\\

** ''The Last Guardian'' was announced in 2009, originally for the UsefulNotes/PlayStation3, before getting stuck in [[{{Vaporware}} development hell]]. ''Scalebound'' was announced in 2014, but there was no information about it for a year afterwards. The main difference between them is that ''Scalebound'' is much more action oriented than ''The Last Guardian''. \\\

** '''Concept:''' ''VideoGame/DynastyWarriors'' [[AC:[[RecycledINSPACE in the Japanese Warring States Era]]!]]

|| ''VideoGame/MarvelUltimateAlliance'' (2006) || ''VideoGame/JusticeLeagueHeroes'' (2006) || Superhero games with RPG mechanics where the heroes band together in groups of four to battle a group of well-known supervillains operating under a world-threatening overarching plot. || The main difference is straight from the title: ''MUA'' is a Creator/MarvelComics game, while ''JLH'' is a Creator/DCComics game. Also, ''MUA'' does not focus in a single Marvel superteam, having members from Comicbook/TheAvengers (both classic and New), the Comicbook/XMen and the Comicbook/FantasticFour. || ''Marvel Ultimate Alliance'' offered, in addition to the rather innovative gameplay, plenty of extras in-game (like encyclopedic Marvel trivia) and interaction with [=NPC=]s; while ''Justice League Heroes'' is no slouch either, it is straight-up action-packed, has a shorter length and less characters, which led to it being overshadowed by ''MUA''. ||
|| ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTwilightPrincess'' (2006) || ''VideoGame/{{Okami}}'' (2006) || Both are ActionAdventure games with a protagonist who has been transformed into a wolf (or, in ''Ōkami'''s case, ''is'' a wolf) and must return life/light to a world corrupted by evil. ''Ōkami'' was [[SincerestFormOfFlattery specifically stated]] to be ''Zelda'' influenced, but was released months before the other game. || ''Twilight Princess'' was started on first but [[{{Vaporware}} went through development hell]], so ''Ōkami'' beat it into stores. Also, the majority of ''Ōkami'' heavily focused on a paintbrush mechanic. While ''Twilight Princess'', like previous ''Zelda'' games, takes place in a MedievalEuropeanFantasy setting that [[CultureChopSuey also incorporates]] many elements from [[{{Wutai}} pre-modern Japan]], ''Ōkami'' takes place entirely in a mythological ancient Japan. || Both have been rated in the high 90s, but ''Twilight Princess'' sold nearly 7 million units, making it either the second or third best-selling game in the series. ''Ōkami'', unfortunately, didn't even sell a full million units, even when combining both UsefulNotes/PlayStation2 and UsefulNotes/{{Wii}} sales, and caused Creator/CloverStudio to go out of business (though Capcom saw its CultClassic reputation as enough to warrant ports for the Wii And UsefulNotes/PlayStation3, as well as [[VideoGame/{{Okamiden}} a DS sequel]], nevertheless). ||
|| ''VideoGame/LordOfArcana'' (2011) || ''VideoGame/GodEaterBurst'' (2011) || Multiplayer ActionAdventure games on the UsefulNotes/PlayStationPortable || Both games take cues from the ''VideoGame/MonsterHunter'' series, but ''God Eater'''s inspiration seems to show much more clearly. || ''God Eater'' won easily in the long run, spawning a sequel and an animated series. ||
|| ''VideoGame/TheLastGuardian'' (2016) || ''VideoGame/{{Scalebound}}'' (2017) || Both are ActionAdventure games developed in Japan by Creator/TeamIco and Creator/PlatinumGames exclusively for Sony's UsefulNotes/PlayStation4 and Microsoft's UsefulNotes/XboxOne respectively. Both games have a human protagonist accompanied by a CoolPet (a griffin and a dragon respectively). || ''The Last Guardian'' was announced in 2009, originally for the UsefulNotes/PlayStation3, before getting stuck in [[{{Vaporware}} development hell]]. ''Scalebound'' was announced in 2014, but there was no information about it for a year afterwards. The main difference between them is that ''Scalebound'' is much more action oriented than ''The Last Guardian''. || ''The Last Guardian'', by default. Upon release, the game saw good reviews from both the critics and public. ''Scalebound'' wasn't quite so lucky, as early into January 2017, Microsoft announced the game's cancellation. ||
|| ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaBreathOfTheWild'' (2017) || ''VideoGame/HorizonZeroDawn'' (2017) || Both are post-apocalyptic open world games marketed with protagonists using archery, released in the same week of 2017 || ''Breath of the Wild'' was the latest entry in the long running ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZelda'' series, being both a launch title on the UsefulNotes/NintendoSwitch and the final first-party game on the UsefulNotes/WiiU. ''Horizon'' is an original IP on the UsefulNotes/PlayStation4, the most popular console of the generation. || Both games sold very well and received positive reviews, but ''Breath of the Wild'' quickly became one the best-selling launch titles in Nintendo's history, a KillerApp for the Switch, and was almost immediately hailed as one of the greatest video games of all time, receiving numerous perfect scores. That said, ''Horizon'' did pretty well for itself, scoring very solid reviews and sales, even managing to outsell ''BOTW'' in the UK and generally selling around the same amount as both versions of ''Breath of the Wild'' combined. ||
|| ''VideoGame/MonsterHunterWorld'' (2018) || ''[[VideoGame/GodEater God Eater 3]]'' (2018) || Both are the latest installments of hit multiplayer "hunting" games coming out to PC and modern consoles. || ''Monster Hunter'' started the genre while ''God Eater'' tends to follow closely in its footsteps. Both have started to differentiate from each other in recent years with these installments being the most different. ''Monster Hunter World'' adds a number of changes and improvements in an attempt to make the series bigger in the west, meanwhile ''God Eater 3'' looks to be focusing more on their core fanbase that the game has amassed over the years. || ''Monster Hunter World'' has already launched on consoles (with PC to follow in the fall) and has already met its goal of making the series huge in the West. ''God Eater 3'' however has yet to be released. Whether the changes that ''Monster Hunter World'' made to appeal to the West will help it retain its lead, or whether its success will act as a gateway for other games in the genre such as ''God Eater 3'' to also succeed in the region is yet to be determined. ||

[[folder:Adventure Game]]

|| ''VideoGame/TheSeventhGuest'' (1993) || ''VideoGame/{{Myst}}'' (1993) || SceneryPorn {{Point and Click Game}}s made as {{Killer App}}s for the CD-ROM format. || Both games were very graphically impressive for their time and played a big part making the CD-ROM format take off. Neither game had much, if any, character interaction or text and instead focused on visuals, atmosphere and abstract puzzles. Interestingly, both were originally released on the UsefulNotes/{{Macintosh}}, a format known for its lack of original games. || ''Myst''. It became one of the best-selling games of all time, and had five sequels and a remake. ''The 7th Guest'' sold well but had only two sequels, ''The 11th Hour'' and ''Uncle Henry's Playhouse'', the first of which was poorly received and the second so obscure it sold less than 200 copies worldwide. Both games have later suffered HypeBacklash and gotten a SeinfeldIsUnfunny status, although ''Myst'' is generally regarded as having aged better between the two. ||
|| ''[[VideoGame/PoliceQuest Police Quest: Open Season]]'' (1993) || ''Blue Force'' (1993) || Law enforcement-themed {{Adventure Game}}s with an emphasis on proper police procedual. || When Jim Walls, the designer of the original three ''Police Quest'' games, left Creator/{{Sierra}}, they decided to continue the series without him, hiring former LAPD chief Daryl Gates as a consultant for the fourth game. Walls however joined Tsunami Media, a company of former Sierra employees, and created a SpiritualSuccessor named ''Blue Force'' which was released the same year. || Both games sold poorly, but ''Police Quest'' wins on a technicality due to being better remembered thanks to its esteemed predecessors, and the series survived for two more InNameOnly installments, giving birth to the MorePopularSpinoff ''SWAT''. ''Blue Force'' is almost completely forgotten. ||
|| ''VideoGame/{{D}}'' (1995) || ''VideoGame/{{Phantasmagoria}}'' (1995) || Controversial FMV horror adventure games released in 1995 starring a young woman exploring a haunted mansion to discover the truth of why one of her loved ones have suddenly become violent and murderous. || ''Phantasmagoria'' used live actors and green screen while ''D'' used pre-rendered 3D-models and enviroments. ''Phantasmagoria'' used a traditional point-and-click interface while ''D'' used a first-person perspective similar to ''VideoGame/{{Myst}}''. Both also had a fairly unprecedented amout of violence and gore for a video game at the time. || ''Phantasmagoria'' is more well-known but is also frequently cited as an example of everything wrong with FMV games. ''D'' is much more obscure outside its native Japan, but has a bit of a cult following and its reputation increased somewhat [[DeadArtistsAreBetter after the death of its creator]] Kenji Eno. ||
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Beat 'em Up]]
||border=1
|| Initiator || Imitators/Competitors || Description || Implementation || Winner? ||

[[folder:Action Game]]

|| ''VideoGame/SamuraiWarriors'' (2004) || ''VideoGame/SengokuBasara'' (2005) || ''VideoGame/DynastyWarriors'' [[AC:[[RecycledINSPACE in the Japanese Warring States Era]]!]] || {{Creator/Koei|Tecmo}}'s ''Warriors'' came first, with {{Creator/Capcom}}'s ''VideoGame/SengokuBasara'' coming shortly thereafter. The ''Warriors'' games' stories are somewhat more historically grounded than its competitor. || Series-wide, ''Samurai Warriors'' has the edge due to its association with ''VideoGame/DynastyWarriors'', and is the more well-known of the two outside Japan. In direct head-to-head matchups, it started with a draw. ''[=SW1=]'' scored better than the original ''[=SB=]'' (re-titled and rebranded ''Devil Kings'') in North America, but ''[=SB: Samurai Heroes=]'' (which didn't have any silly changes made to it) beat out ''[=SW3=]''. However, the deciding match happened during the airing of the NHK TV drama ''Sanada-maru'', in which both companies unleashed their Sanada-based spin offs, ''[[VideoGame/SamuraiWarriors Spirit of Sanada]]'' and ''[[VideoGame/SengokuBasara Yukimura-den]]''. The former managed to stay strong and the latter ended up becoming the FranchiseKiller of the series. Thus the overall winner is ''VideoGame/SamuraiWarriors''. ||
|| ''VideoGame/{{Onechanbara}}'' (2004) || ''VideoGame/LollipopChainsaw'' (2012) || A BeatEmUp / HackAndSlash where {{Stripperiffic}} chicks fight zombies. || Keep in mind that ''Lollipop Chainsaw'' was probably never meant to copy ''Onechanbara''. Both games just happen to be built around a similar concept. Ironically, in ''Onechanbara Z Kagura'', one of the main characters happen to wield a chainsaw. But since chainsaws are common in zombie games nowadays, this should just be written off as a coincidence. || ''Lollipop Chainsaw'' is the winner, as it sold better than 200,000 copies, and has the Creator/Suda51/Grasshopper Manufacture weirdness factor going for it. The ''Onechanbara'' games on Xbox 360 and Wii both flopped in North America, ensuring that ''Onechanbara Z Kagura'', [[NoExportForYou didn't get a Western release.]] ||
|| ''VideoGame/GodOfWarI'' (2005) || ''VideoGame/SpartanTotalWarrior'' (2005) || Hack and Slash games set in the time of ancient Greece, drawing upon its mythology. || ''God of War'' is the most over-the-top, with giant bosses and lots of blood and gore. ''Total Warrior'' is a spin-off of the ''VideoGame/TotalWar'' series and puts focus on large scale battles with many combatants on both sides. ''Rise of the Argonauts'' allows the player to make a few choices through the game, affecting their character's personality. || ''God of War '' by a country mile. The other two games received average reviews, but ''God of war'' sold and reviewed very well, going on to span a franchise. ||

|| ''VideoGame/DestroyAllHumans'' (2005) || ''VideoGame/StubbsTheZombie'' (2005) || Games set in a satirical 1950s America where you play as a monster - a [[TheGreys a grey alien]] in ''Destroy All Humans'' and a [[OurZombiesAreDifferent zombie]] in ''Stubbs'' - running around wreaking havok with powers. || ''Stubbs the Zombie'' is the more linear of the two, giving you one mission after another, while ''Destroy All Humans'' has more elements of a sandbox game, with missions being given to you as you unlock more areas. || ''Destroy All Humans'', went on to spawn three sequels, and a remake of the first game was released in 2020. ''Stubbs the Zombie'' never got a sequel. ||
|| ''VideoGame/TitanQuest'' (2006) || ''Loki: Heroes of Mythology'' (2007) || ''VideoGame/Diablo 2'' clones based on [[CrossoverCosmology ancient mythologies]] such as UsefulNotes/AncientGreece, and AncientEgypt. || ''Titan Quest'' is top-down perspective, has 9 classes (can be dual-class) and all dungeons are static. Loki is 3rd person perspective, has 4 classes and dungeons are randomly generated. || ''Loki'' has [[{{Gorn}} lots of blood and gore]] while ''Titan Quest'' was criticized by fans [[BloodlessCarnage for being too family friendly]]. However, ''Loki'' suffers from unresolved bugs, repetitiveness and fell to obscurity. ''Titan Quest'' is more polished and benefit from [[GameMod a mod editor]]. It received an UpdatedRerelease 10 years later and a second expansion. Both games were slammed for their disruptive CopyProtection, Starforce for ''Loki'' and Securom 7 for ''Titan Quest''. ||

|| ''VideoGame/DiabloIII'' (2012) || ''VideoGame/TorchlightII'' (2012) || Top-down HackAndSlash games released in 2012 || The ''VideoGame/{{Torchlight}}'' games are {{Spiritual Successor}}s to classic ''Diablo'', and made by the original ''Diablo'' devs. || Both games received high critical praise on release, and are by no means a slouch in sales either. Going by sales alone though, ''Diablo III'' sold 6.5 million copies, at $60 per copy, in its first week, more than it was expected to sell in its first ''year''. In comparison, Runic Games were pleased to break 1 million copies on the $20 ''Torchlight 1'' since 2009. ''Diablo III'' does have its share of problems, as it was plagued by post-launch issues (server troubles that have since been addressed and complaints about its "always-connected" DRM scheme) and high player backlash from aforementioned issues, lack of modability and the in-game auction house. ||
|| ''VideoGame/IAmAlive'' (2012) || ''VideoGame/TheLastOfUs'' (2013) || A grizzled survivor climbs and scavenges his way through ruins of a modern city after a disaster, fighting off other scavengers. || ''I Am Alive'' came out first and has lingered in [[{{Vaporware}} development hell]] longer but ''Last of Us'' was probably initiated before Creator/NaughtyDog had even heard about ''I Am Alive.'' || Following its release, ''The Last of Us'' has been receiving virtually universal praise from critics and gamers alike, with many declaring it the best game of its console generation. ''I Am Alive'' was a budget title with "[[SoOkayItsAverage okay, but not]] ''[[SoOkayItsAverage great]]''" reviews, so it's safe to say ''The Last of Us'' is the winner. ||
|| ''VideoGame/DMCDevilMayCry'' (2013) || ''VideoGame/MetalGearRisingRevengeance'' (2013) || HackAndSlash games released in early 2013. || Both games are based off a preestablished franchise and made by another studio than the original series. While ''VideoGame/DMCDevilMayCry'' is a ContinuityReboot, ''VideoGame/MetalGearRisingRevengeance'' is a SpinOff. The rivalry seems to have started due to these rather shallow similarities and the fact that they come out around a month apart. It's worth noting that Creator/HidekiKamiya, creator of the original ''VideoGame/DevilMayCry'' currently works at Creator/PlatinumGames, the studio that developed ''Revengeance'', which might have added more fuel to the fire, although he had nothing to do with the development of ''Revengeance'' (since he was busy working on ''VideoGame/TheWonderful101''). || ''Revengeance'' by a country mile. Fans were split on ''[=DmC=]'', but [[CriticalDissonance critics]] loved it. Critics loved ''Revengeance'', but fans loved it even more. So in this case ''[=DmC=]'' had a slight critical edge, but ''Revengeance'' found way more acceptance from the fans and consumer base. And most tellingly of all, ''[=DmC=]'' sold poorly and below Capcom's expectations, while ''Revengeance'' sold well enough that Kojima was already talking about having Platinum Games develop a sequel within a week of the game's release. Another factor in ''Revengeance's'' favor was that Platinum had taken over what was essentially [[{{Vaporware}} a half-abandoned project]] and managed to turn it into a solid game. Comparisons to ''VideoGame/DukeNukemForever'' and ''VideoGame/AliensColonialMarines'' abounded in ''Revengeance's'' initial run that basically said, "THIS is how a game should be SavedFromDevelopmentHell." ||

[[/folder]]

[[folder:Action Adventure]]
||border=1
|| Initiator || Imitators/Competitors || Description || Implementation || Winner? ||

|| ''VideoGame/GodOfWarI'' (2005) || ''VideoGame/SpartanTotalWarrior'' (2005) \\
\\
''VideoGame/RiseOfTheArgonauts'' (2008) || Hack and Slash games set in the time of ancient Greece, drawing upon its mythology. || ''God of War'' is the most over-the-top, with giant bosses and lots of blood and gore. ''Total Warrior'' is a spin-off of the ''VideoGame/TotalWar'' series and puts focus on large scale battles with many combatants on both sides. ''Rise of the Argonauts'' allows the player to make a few choices through the game, affecting their character's personality. || ''God of War '' by a country mile. The other two games received average reviews, but ''God of war'' sold and reviewed very well, going on to span a franchise. ||
|| ''VideoGame/GodOfWarI'' (2005) || ''VideoGame/DantesInferno'' (2010) || Hack and Slash games with blades attached to chains, centering on mid range combat but also using close quarters and magic. Both games use a gothic art style and are based on [[DarkerAndEdgier violently]] [[RefugeInAudacity over-the-top]] interpretations of religious mythology -- [[Myth/ClassicalMythology ancient Greek religion]] for ''[=GoW=]'', and Dante's ''Literature/TheDivineComedy'' for ''Inferno''. [[PressXToNotDie Quick time events.]] [[HotterAndSexier Lots of bare breasts.]] || The creators of ''Dante's Inferno'' actually [[SincerestFormOfFlattery said they weren't trying to be original]]. || They weren't kidding. ''DI'' is pretty much ''God of War II'' except with a crusader instead of a demigod, and more tits. Fan reception of ''God of War'' seems to be strong and the franchise is still going after a highly-acclaimed [[VideoGame/GodOfWarPS4 sequel/soft reboot]] in 2018. On the other hand, everyone had completely forgotten about ''Inferno'' a month or two after its release. ||

|| ''VideoGame/NoMoreHeroes'' (2007) || ''VideoGame/MadWorld'' (2010) || Both are action games with a fairly agile protagonist who dispatches hoards of intercity thugs using wrestling, GoodOldFisticuffs, and battery-powered weapons that glide through people like a hot knife through butter. Both also have a colorful collection of bosses oozing with obscene personality, and seem to incorporate cel-shading into their graphics engine. Lastly, both are named after music. || Each game pushed the Wii into the big kids' playground of [[DarkerAndEdgier adult gaming]], not just in LudicrousGibs, but every single kind of censor-bursting they thought they could get away with. || Both games seem to be neck-and-neck tied in (im)mature jokes, fast-paced gameplay, and strategic boss fights. However, Metacritic scores the games 83% and 81%, giving the match just barely to ''No More Heroes''. With Creator/{{Suda51}} of ''VideoGame/Killer7'' fame behind it, ''Heroes'' is more well-known and wins by a small margin. ||

|| ''VideoGame/HyruleWarriors'' (2014) || ''VideoGame/FireEmblemWarriors'' (2017) || Two most notable franchises of Creator/{{Nintendo}} getting a ''VideoGame/DynastyWarriors'' spin-off. || TBA || ''Hyrule Warriors'' was universally considered the superior game even among the ''Fire Emblem'' fandom. ||

|| ''Franchise/TombRaider'' (1993) || ''VideoGame/{{Uncharted}}'' (2007) || The protagonist climbs, jumps and shoots his/her way through exotic places in search for ancient treasures and confronting evil conspiracies. || ''Tomb Raider'' is more puzzle/platform-oriented while ''Uncharted'' is (much) more focused on combat. || Draw. ''Tomb Raider'' still retains its cult status (much of it thanks to [[MsFanservice Lara Croft's]] popularity) but newer games got poor to average reviews, until it gained a well-received reboot in 2013. Meanwhile, every ''Uncharted'' game is critically acclaimed. Also, ''Uncharted'' has grown stronger with every new installment, but its first-party status prevents it from spreading its fanbase to those who don't have a [=PlayStation=]. ||

|| ''VideoGame/LeisureSuitLarry'' (1987) || ''VideoGame/LesManley'' (1990) || PC adventure games from the early 90s starring a CasanovaWannabe who's out to get laid. || ''Les Manley'' is obscure in America, being a clear British ripoff of ''Leisure Suit Larry'', except it's for the Amiga instead of DOS. With that said, ''Les Manley'' was apparently released (in limited quantities) for DOS, too, || ''Leisure Suit Larry'' by far. If ''Les Manley'' is remembered at all, it's only to mention that it's a second-rate clone of ''Larry''. ||

|| ''VideoGame/WingCommander'' (1990) || The ''VideoGame/XWing''/''VideoGame/TIEFighter'' series (1993) and the ''VideoGame/FreeSpace'' series (1998) || Sci-fi themed "simulations" of space fighter craft featuring both {{Old School Dogfight}}ing and complex interfaces and missions. || ''VideoGame/WingCommander'' was the TropeCodifier for the Space Simulator genre; ''VideoGame/XWing'' came later, but innovated with true 3D graphics and fiendishly complex missions -- as well as the official ''Franchise/StarWars'' brand that inspired ''Wing Commander''. ''VideoGame/FreeSpace'' came later, but combined the strengths of both its competitors. || ''VideoGame/WingCommander'' spawned 4 sequels, the last of which JumpedTheShark; the ''Franchise/{{Star Wars|Expanded Universe}}'' juggernaut marches on, but moved on to more arcade-ish shooters. ''VideoGame/FreeSpace2'' is sometimes blamed for [[GenreKiller killing the genre]], despite rave reviews; nevertheless, the game is still considered a classic and is being actively upgraded and played today. ||
|| ''VideoGame/AceCombat'' series (1992) || ''VideoGame/{{Sidewinder}}'' (1996) & ''VideoGame/AirForceDelta'' (1999) || Pseudo-realistic 3D jet fighters simulations. || ''Ace Combat'' was released early in the UsefulNotes/PlayStation's life to rave reviews and had several sequels. ''Airforce Delta'' was released for the UsefulNotes/SegaDreamcast launch. The first ''Sidewinder'' was released one year after the first console ''Ace Combat'' and attempted to distinguish itself with somewhat more realistic elements. || ''Ace Combat'' is still producing sequels while ''Airforce Delta'' had one sequel early into the life of the Xbox and one more on UsefulNotes/PlayStation2 before being dropped. ''Sidewinder'' had some success in its native Japan and saw four sequels, but failed to catch on in the west and eventually faded into obscurity. ||

|| ''VideoGame/AceCombat'' series (1992) || ''VideoGame/{{HAWX}}'' series (2009) || Modern combat flight sim franchises. ''Ace Combat'' was formerly console-only[[note]]''VideoGame/AceCombatAssaultHorizon'' got a PC release via UsefulNotes/{{Steam}} in 2013[[/note]] while ''HAWX'' has both console and PC versions. || Both ''HAWX'' and ''HAWX 2'' were released in the 4 year gap between ''VideoGame/AceCombat6FiresOfLiberation'' and ''Ace Combat: Assault Horizon''. Gameplay-wise, ''Ace Combat'' tends of focus on more traditional (though slightly arcadey) flight sim mechanics, with ''Assault Horizon'' mixing it up with the Close Range Assault mode. ''HAWX'' tries to differentiate itself with the Assistance OFF mode, which zooms your camera out into a distant 3rd person view, allowing you to perform more advanced maneuvers. || Overall, ''Ace Combat'' has still been going strong since 1992 with numerous iterations and spinoffs while ''HAWX'' only has two games to its name, both released a year apart. Also, almost all AC games have received positive reviews and fan support, while reactions to both ''HAWX'' games is mixed at best. Sales wise, the Xbox 360-exclusive ''Ace Combat 6'' sold nearly as many copies as the 360 and [=PS3=] versions of ''HAWX'' combined while ''Assault Horizon'' sold slightly more than ''HAWX 2''. ''Ace Combat'' still seems to be the modern air combat flight sim franchise to beat. ||

|| ''VideoGame/AcesHigh'' (2000) || ''VideoGame/WarThunder'' (2012) || Massively Multiplayer online air-combat simulators. || Although not the ''first'' game of its type, ''Aces High'' continued in the same format as Kesmai's venerable ''Air Warrior'' series, and many former ''Air Warrior'' players migrated to this simulator when Kesmai's support ceased, enabling it to outlast both ''Warbirds'' and ''Fighter Ace''. ''Aces High'' is unusual for an MMO sim in that there's no "low realism" mode, with a very steep learning curve since all players are subject to the full physics model. Additionally, ''Aces High'' operates on a monthly subscription, with almost all aircraft available to fly without requiring they be unlocked first. ''War Thunder'', which arrived on the scene much more recently, takes a different track with its "FreeToPlay" model, focus on a simplified arcade flight model, and upgrade trees to gain access to its various aircraft (which can also be unlocked with real-money purchases). || Too soon to tell. ''War Thunder'' does enjoy more mainstream success due to its more accessible arcade gameplay over providing more in-depth simulation and [=F2P=] business model, however the neglect of the high-realism gameplay modes, suspect accuracy in its flight modeling, and even the [=F2P=] model that is one of its main draws, have all received stiff criticism. However ''Aces High'' is the clear winner in longevity, having been online for 14 years and continuing to see steady updates and improvements, and in turn maintains a devoted community (many of whom began with ''Air Warrior'' over ''twenty-five years earlier''!) despite its steeper learning curve and monthly subscription that shows no sign of weakening (buoyed by weekly events and scenarios, which draw hundreds of players at a time), and the two titles have a bitter FandomRivalry that doesn't look to be ending any time soon. ||

|| ''Active Worlds'' (1995) || ''VideoGame/SecondLife'' (2003) || Virtual words inspired by TheMetaverse from ''Literature/SnowCrash'' || ''Active Worlds'' uses a subscription model. ''Second Life'' is built around a virtual economy. || ''Active Worlds'' actually predates ''Second Life'' by eight years and was originally based around a consumer/producer model, whereas ''Second Life'' was social from the beginning. ''Second Life'' enjoys much success for its social features and higher amount and quality of user-created content, whereas ''Active Worlds'' is still lingering in obscurity. ||

|| ''VideoGame/CityOfHeroes''/''VideoGame/CityOfVillains'' (2004) || ''VideoGame/ChampionsOnline'' (2009) || {{Superhero}} [=MMORPGs=] || Both games were developed by the same studio, Cryptic. Publisher NC Soft bought the [=CoX=] property and hired most of the people working on it away from Cryptic two years before ''Champions'' launched. || For a fair while ''VideoGame/CityOfHeroes'' was winning, but the attitude between the games was fairly friendly and, unfortunately, ''VideoGame/CityOfHeroes'' eventually closed down. The reaction of ''Champions'' players was far from dueling, and very friendly. The vast majority of ''Champions'' players were sad about ''VideoGame/CityOfHeroes'' closing down, and many ''VideoGame/CityOfHeroes'' players moved to ''Champions''. ||
|| ''VideoGame/WorldOfWarcraft'' (2004) || ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXIV'' (2010) || A Hotbar-based MMO that runs on monthly subscriptions and puts out constant content updates. || [=WoW=] is one of the oldest and remains ''the'' most popular MMORPG on the market right now, more than fifteen years after its initial release. XIV was released in a disgustingly unfinished state reeking of lazy, poor design choices by a creator who ignored things fans requested by the thousands because it went against "his vision", and was generally considered to be the absolute lowest an MMO can reach. After admitting their failure, Square shut the game down entirely, [[YouHaveFailedMe fired the design team]], and rebuilt it from the ground up as ''A Realm Reborn''. || If we're counting the first version of ''FFXIV'', the game may as well not exist considering that it was the laughing stock of [=MMOs=] while ''[=WoW=]'' is still a juggernaut of the genre as a whole. After ''FFXIV'' was retooled into ''A Realm Reborn'', the game redeemed itself by being a highly polished product that earned both critical and financial success from fans and reviewers alike. It says a lot that the game not only had 12 million players during its last beta (more than ''World of Warcraft'' at its absolute peak), but also single-handedly took Square from being financially in the red to a successful company again. By the time that ''Shadowbringers'' launched to critical acclaim that even hit the mainstream gaming press (A rarity in the MMO market), ''Final Fantasy XIV'' is at the status of ''genuinely threatening'' ''[=WoW's=]'' success and reputation as the most successful MMO ever, while schisms between ''[=WoW's=]'' development and gameplay decisions are starting to create sour feelings towards the game -- and leading many to trying ''FFXIV'' as an alternative, meaning for the first time a competitor game may genuinely start getting a leg up on ''World of Warcraft''. By the time of [=WoW's=] 9.1 patch, and FFXIV's incoming ''Endwalker'' expansion, this finally passed the tipping point with multiple major names in the Warcraft community leaving the game in favor of XIV, causing an explosive growth in the game's playebase while [=WoW=] hemhorrages them. In other words, XIV has succeeded at DefeatingTheUndefeatable, and looks poised to take [=WoW=]'s title as the best MMO ever. ||

|| ''VideoGame/WorldOfTanks'' (2011) || ''VideoGame/ArmoredWarfare'' (2015) || VehicularCombat MMO. || Both games focus on competitive [[PlayerVersusPlayer PvP]] matches and share similar game mechanics. ''World of Tanks'' has vehicles dating from ''World War II'' and the early Cold War era while Armored Warfare has vehicles from the Cold War and Post-Cold War Era. However, ''Armored Warfare'' has additional co-op missions and a more fast-paced combat (even their slowest vehicles are faster than their ''World of Tanks'' counterparts). Even with some [[AcceptableBreaksFromReality creative]] [[RuleOfFun liberties]] taken, both games have lots of ShownTheirWork between them. || Currently, ''World of Tanks'' has a larger fanbase and has more publicity by virtue of being around for much longer. However, ''Armored Warfare'' has gained a sizable fanbase with many praising the game for correcting many combat imbalances of ''World of Tanks'' while providing an accessible experience for both hardcore and casual players. Since ''Armored Warfare'' is still in open beta phase, it still may continue to develop and can become a worthy rival to ''World of Tanks''. However, as of 2017, ''Armored Warfare'' has seen a general decline in playerbase due to its own balance issues, and hasn't really succeeded in putting a dent into ''World of Tank'''s own playerbase. ||
|| ''VideoGame/WorldOfWarships'' (2015) || ''VideoGame/WarThunder'' (2012) || VehicularCombat MMO with a focus on UsefulNotes/WorldWarII naval warships. || Similar to its predecessor ''World of Tanks'' which focuses solely on tank combat, ''World of Warships'' focuses solely on naval combat. On the other hand, ''War Thunder'' is focusing on its combined arms gameplay where players can battle on land and in the air simultaneously, and as of 2016, have announced that they will be adding a naval aspect to the game as well. || Still too early to tell since the naval features haven't been fully released in ''War Thunder'' yet, but the developers of ''War Thunder'' have explicitly stated that for balance reasons, players will not be able to control full fledged warships, but will instead be limited only to smaller patrol and torpedo boats. This would most likely limit ''War Thunder'''s ability to directly compete with ''World of Warships''. ||
|| ''VideoGame/CityOfTitans'' (2018) || ''Valiance Online'' (TBA), ''Heroes and Villains'' (TBA), ''Ship of Heroes'' (TBA) || Independently made {{Superhero}} [=MMOs=] made by {{Promoted Fanboy}}s to fill the void left by the cancellation of ''VideoGame/CityOfHeroes''. || ''City of Titans'' was the first to start, having hit Creator/{{Kickstarter}} in 2013 to fund its development and raised over double what they asked for. ''Valiance Online'' followed soon after. ''Heroes and Villains'' was created after ''Titans'' dev Golden Girl split over CreativeDifferences and [[StartMyOwn started her own]] game. ''Ship of Heroes'' was the last to be announced. ''City of Titans'' aims to be a successor while also creating its own identity and mythos, and new gameplay mechanics to stand on its own. ''Valiance Online'' has a heavier sci-fi element, being set in 22nd century California. ''Heroes and Villains'' essentially aims to be a replacement for ''City of Heroes'' by being as close to it as possible. Ship of Heroes takes place in space. || TBA, though of the four, ''Titans'' and ''Valiance'' are the frontrunners for having been in development the longest. ||

|| ''[[VideoGame/FortuneStreet Itadaki Street]]'' (aka ''Fortune Street'', ''Boom Street'') (1991) || ''VideoGame/MarioParty'' (1998) || PartyGame series featuring video game mascots (including ''Franchise/SuperMarioBros'' characters for both). || ''Mario Party'' is a MinigameGame, while ''Fortune Street'' is an investment game similar to ''TabletopGame/{{Monopoly}}''. Where ''Mario Party'' features exclusively ''Franchise/SuperMarioBros'' characters, ''Itadaki Street'' has an assortment of characters from ''Mario'' (in Nintendo installments), ''Franchise/FinalFantasy'' (in [=PlayStation=] installments), and ''VideoGame/DragonQuest'' (in all installments). || ''Itadaki Street'' actually came first, debuting on the [[UsefulNotes/NintendoEntertainmentSystem Famicom]], but didn't add the game mascots or get international release until after ''Mario Party'' established itself. ''Mario Party'' is a well-established franchise that has sold big in the West, while ''Itadaki Street'' only got its first release as an additional mode in ''VideoGame/KingdomHeartsBirthBySleep'', then as a standalone release outside of Japan with the UsefulNotes/{{Wii}} installment. ||

|| ''VideoGame/AngryBirds'' (2009) || ''VideoGame/FlappyBird'' (2013) || Popular mobile games starring birds. || ''Angry Birds'' is a game where birds are launched from slingshots to save their food from pigs. ''Flappy Bird'' is about a yellow bird trying to dodge as many pipes as possible. || ''Angry Birds'' has been around for four years and has become a massive global franchise. However, its rise to popularity was nowhere near as meteoric as ''Flappy Bird,'' which blew up overnight and was much more popular than ''Angry Birds'' was at its peak. However, ''Angry Birds'' will almost certainly maintain much greater longevity as ''Flappy Bird'' fades away. ||

|| ''VideoGame/CommandAndConquer'' series (1995) || ''VideoGame/{{Starcraft}}'' series (1998) || Two of the most prominent Real Time Strategy franchises since the 1990s, the C&C series took a [[TwentyMinutesIntoTheFuture more realistic, Earth-based approach]] in terms of background setting, while ''Starcraft'' focused on a distant inter-stellar future. Both games also pioneered the concept of FactionCalculus. || ''C&C'''s first title, ''Tiberian Dawn'', marked the beginning of proper RTS games in recent era after the release of ''VideoGame/DuneII'', and became a LongRunner since, spawning three sub-series and 17 titles. When comparing with ''Starcraft'' C&C's gameplay is more casual, though ''Tiberium Wars'' and ''Kane's Wrath'' were on the game list in WCG 07-08. || Both series are critically acclaimed while the ''C&C'' series probably won slightly on the financial front (since it has more titles and came out earlier), but after two of the latest installments for ''C&C'' (''Red Alert 3'' and ''Tiberian Twilight'') proved to be ''very'' divisive among its fans, Blizzard ended up with the lead with the release of ''Wings of Liberty'' and ''Heart of the Swarm''. With ''C&C Generals 2'' getting cancelled in late 2013, the future of the ''C&C'' franchise is currently very much in doubt, leading to a victory for Blizzard's ''Starcraft.'' ||

|| ''VideoGame/AgeOfEmpires'' (1997) || ''VideoGame/EmpireEarth'' (2001)\\
\\
''VideoGame/RiseOfNations'' (2003) || Three RealTimeStrategy games with a ''VideoGame/{{Civilization}}'' motif to it (Meaning you are building a city rather than a base. While ''VideoGame/AgeOfEmpires'' focuses on one Era per game (The Ancient Era, The Medieval Era and The Age of Colonialism), ''Empire Earth'' and ''Rise of Nations'' asked you to develop your faction through multiple eras. || It was not uncommon to see all three games sharing shelf-space in office supply stores during the 90s and early 00s. ''Age of Empires'' also had an Ancient-era spin-off, ''VideoGame/AgeOfMythology'', and would be the engine used for the ''VideoGame/StarWarsGalacticBattlegrounds'' series. || While they all fought desperately, eventually the changing attitudes of the game-buying public would kill these three series. ''Empire Earth 3'' dropped the ball with silly units (farting camels, for example) and incredibly simplified gameplay, as well as looking graphically inferior to its competitors. ''Rise of Nations'' would manage a single expansion pack and the well-received, poorly sold spin-off ''VideoGame/RiseOfLegends''. ''Nation''[='=]s developer, Big Huge Games, would ultimately be contracted to work on the final expansion pack of the traditional ''Age of Empires'' games. ''Age of Empires'', despite critical acclaim and decent sales, found itself the victim of the shift to consoles and the final entries did not sell enough to keep Ensemble Studios afloat. A new free-to-play entry in the series was released in 2010, but stopped accepting new users in 2013 with the death of the Games for Windows Live Marketplace, and completely shuttered in 2014. However, ''[=AoE=]'' was revived around that time with the release of an ''[[UpdatedRerelease HD Edition]]'' of the second game on Steam, which included a new expansion that was originally fan-made and support for Steam achievements and the Steam Workshop. ||

|| ''VideoGame/DefenseOfTheAncients'' (2003) || ''VideoGame/{{Demigod}}'' (2009)\\

''VideoGame/LeagueOfLegends'' (2009)\\

''VideoGame/HeroesOfNewerth'' (2010)\\

''VideoGame/{{DotA 2}}'' (2013)\\

''VideoGame/{{Smite}}'' (2014)\\

''VideoGame/HeroesOfTheStorm'' (2015) || MultiplayerOnlineBattleArena games. ''[=DotA=]'' is a hit GameMod for ''VideoGame/WarcraftIII'' which [[GenrePopularizer popularized the genre]]; the other six, listed in order of release, are the various "professional" attempts to cash in on it. || ''[=DotA=]'', ''[=LoL=]'', ''Smite'' and ''[=HoTS=]'' are free to play; ''Demigod'' must be purchased. ''Newerth'' switched to FreeToPlay only recently. ''[=LoL=]'', ''[=HoN=]'' and ''Dota 2'' all (claim to) have at least one member of the original ''[=DotA=]'' staff working on the game. ''Smite'' offers a third person view gameplay akin to MMORPG unlike the others, which all display the action from an isometric perspective. ''[=HoTS=]'' gathers prominent characters from various Blizzard franchises. It's also the only game in the franchise defying the "TheyChangedItSoItSucks" attitude that often dogs the MOBA subgenre. || We have several distinct losers. ''Demigod'' was hamstrung from the start by an anemic roster of heroes; ''[=HotS=]'' had its development team scaled down, and its competitive circuit entirely canceled, at the end of 2018, part of a perceived DorkAge from Creator/BlizzardEntertainment in general.\\

''VideoGame/LeagueOfLegends'' ruled from 2012 to 2018 as the most-played game in the world, before being passed by first ''VideoGame/PlayerUnknownsBattleGrounds'' and then ''VideoGame/{{Fortnite}}'', but ''VideoGame/{{Dota 2}}'' has the old players of [=DotA=] as well as an extremely strong following and a very strong major media presence such as the International and their ''ludicrous'' prize money for winners, making it [=LoL=]'s greatest rival. ''VideoGame/{{Smite}}'' is in third place for the unique 3rd person view (which allows them to release console versions and garner player beyond PC gamers), the mythological aspects which draws myth-buffs to them, and having pretty good publicity. ''Newerth'', which tried to capitalize on the (admittedly huge) crop of StopHavingFunGuys from ''[=DotA=]'', essentially settled for being a CultClassic. But the truth is, anything could happen... and it doesn't even have to be a MOBA to do it. ||

[[folder:Role-Playing Game (Western)]]

|| ''VideoGame/UltimaI'' (1981) || ''VideoGame/{{Wizardry}}'' (1981) || {{Trope Codifier}}s of {{Western RPG}}s, inspired by ''TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons'' || ''Ultima'' focused on a single slightly customizable hero(ine) while ''Wizardry'' featured an entire party of characters created from scratch.[[note]]In fact, ''Ultima III'' introduced party members in response to ''Wizardry''.[[/note]] Both initially stuck closely to the spirit of ''Dungeons & Dragons'', but ''Ultima'' eventually shifted away from it to focus more on story and [[KarmaMeter morality]]. ''Wizardry'' however embraced the spirit fully and remained a [[NintendoHard hardcore]] dungeon crawler. || In America and Europe: ''Ultima''. Both series fizzled out and died around the turn of the millennium, but ''Ultima'' had been more successful commercially and remains alive thanks to ''VideoGame/UltimaOnline'', which still has an active playerbase. In Japan: ''Wizardry'', where the series saw [[GermansLoveDavidHasselhoff unexpected success]] and remains alive and popular with [[NoExportForYou Japan-exclusive]] titles still being made more than 10 years after the last official game. ||
|| ''VideoGame/{{Wizardry}}'' (1981) || ''VideoGame/MightAndMagic'' (1984) || The two original grid-based dungeon crawler Western [=RPGs=], who were the {{Trope Codifier}}s of the genre. || While both series were NintendoHard, ''Wizardry'' was infamous for its difficulty, with the 4th game in the series in particular considered one of the most difficult {{Role Playing Game}}s ever made. Both series ultimately featured a mix of fantasy and sci-fi elements; these were present from the beginning in ''Might and Magic'', whereas sci-fi elements were only introduced in the last few games of the ''Wizardry'' series. || During the Golden Age, the two series were about equal with each other in terms of popularity. While ''Wizardry'' as a series is now defunct in the Western market where it originated, it was a massive hit in Japan and is still alive there. The main ''VideoGame/MightAndMagic'' series is likewise defunct, but the franchise lives on through the ''VideoGame/HeroesOfMightAndMagic'' series of strategy [=RPGs=]. Notably, the ''Wizardry'' series was able to end things on a fairly high note with a GrandFinale in ''Wizardry 8'', whereas the later games in the ''Might & Magic'' series were generally considered [[FranchiseZombie Franchise Zombies]], with the dismal failure of ''Might & Magic 9'' leading to the collapse of the publisher and developer, and the series being cancelled for many years, until an attempt at a revival with ''X''. Time will tell if more sequels to ''X'' are released. ||
|| ''VideoGame/UltimaI'' (1981) || ''VideoGame/TheMagicCandle'' (1989) || Top-down Western [=RPGs=] in which a diverse party of adventurers sets out to accomplish an epic quest; exploration and puzzle-solving ultimately turn out to be more important to resolving the main plot than simply facing the BigBad in a straight-up fight. || The ''Magic Candle'' series had a few features not seen in ''Ultima'', such as the ability to split the party into a number of smaller adventuring units that could act seperately. ''The Magic Candle'' is also much more influenced by ''Literature/TheLordOfTheRings'', whereas ''Ultima'' takes a lot of its influence from ''TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons'' || The ''Ultima'' series by far had a much wider following and is still relatively well-known today, although the ''Magic Candle'' series had quite a cult following back in the day, nowadays it's really only known amongst the older, more hardcore Western RPG enthusiasts (that and possibly the abandonware scene). ||
|| ''VideoGame/MightAndMagic VI: The Mandate of Heaven'' (1992) || ''VideoGame/BaldursGate'' (1998) || {{Reconstruction}}s of the then-dying WesternRPG genre, based on established RPG properties. || ''Might and Magic VI'' brought back the Might and Magic series from a five year hiatus, while ''Baldur's Gate'' attempted a faithful computer adaptation of the ''TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons'' TabletopRPG rules set in the popular ''TabletopGame/ForgottenRealms'' universe. Their winning concept was sticking closely to the spirit of the traditional RPG formula, but trimming down and removing the overly complicated and boring parts to make it more accessible and user-friendly (such as RealTimeWithPause combat). ''Might and Magic'' sticked with old-school party-based dungeon crawling while ''Baldur's Gate'' spiced it up a little with more story and role-playing elements. || ''Baldur's Gate'' is the clear winner, being one of the most beloved games of all time and often credited as almost single-handedly saving the genre. But ''Might and Magic VI'' was a winner in its own right, and along with ''VideoGame/HeroesOfMightAndMagic'' managed to revitalize the ''Might and Magic'' brand for a while. The ''Might and Magic'' sequels [[CapcomSequelStagnation stagnated]] though, while ''Baldur's Gate'' had an EvenBetterSequel (and, as of January 2013, an UpdatedRerelease). ||
|| ''VideoGame/DungeonCrawl'' (1997) || ''VideoGame/DungeonsOfDredmor'' (2011)\\

''VideoGame/TalesOfMajEyal'' (2012) || Roguelikes typically played with tileset graphics as opposed to the traditional [=ASCII=] graphics, with a focus on polishing the genre for a modern audience. || ''Crawl'' is generally considered the heir to ''Nethack'', featuring a single dungeon, a hunger system as a time limit, and a focus on resource management. [=ToME=] has an overworld with many dungeons, no time limit of this type, almost no consumable resources to manage, and generally takes longer to play, a full game taking 12-18 hours as opposed to 4-8. || Although ''Dungeon Crawl'' is generally the most respected by veterans of the genre, who call the other two games easy, overly grindy, and poorly balanced, ''VideoGame/TalesOfMajEyal'' is the winner, as it has won Ascii Dreams: Roguelike of the Year on three consecutive years, the only game to ever do so. Its fans typically dislike ''Crawl'''s nature as a LuckBasedMission and its counterintuitive strategy. ''VideoGame/DungeonsOfDredmor'' was a commercial success, but was considered watered-down and silly by many as it attempted to pander to more casual fans of the genre. Still, it can be considered a success in its own way. ||
|| ''VideoGame/DragonAgeII'' (2011) || ''VideoGame/TheWitcher2AssassinsOfKings'' (2011) || Sequels to {{Western RPG}}s set in a DarkFantasy setting with lots of BlackAndGrayMorality. || ''The Witcher'' is focused on one pre-set main character, while ''Dragon Age'' utilizes a customizable protagonist and party-based gameplay. || Both games were well-received with good critical reviews -- ''the Witcher 2'' more so than ''Dragon age II'' -- but did have some hurdles. Many fans were disappointed with the different direction that ''Dragon Age II'' took, while ''Witcher 2'' faced some criticism for a few bugs and flaws until they were patched out. ||
|| ''VideoGame/{{Wasteland 2}}'' (2014) || ''VideoGame/{{Fallout 4}}'' (2015) || Sequels to [[WesternRPG western rpgs]] set in a [[AfterTheEnd Post-Apocalyptic]] United States. || ''Wasteland 2'' is played as an Isometric [=CRPG=] with a turn-based combat system similar to ''Fallout 1'' and ''2''. Like ''Fallout 3 ''and ''New Vegas'', ''Fallout 4'' is an action RPG that can be played in a first or third person perspective. Ironically, Wasteland 2 is made by many of the people (Director/Producer included) who worked on ''Fallout 1'' and ''2''. They created ''Fallout'' as a SpiritualSuccessor to ''Wasteland'' because they couldn't get the rights from Electronic Arts at that time. Now a lot of ''Fallout'' veterans see ''Wasteland 2'' as a SpiritualSuccessor to the first two ''Fallout'' games. || ''Fallout 4'' by a landslide. While ''Wasteland 2'' was hailed as a great old school [=CRPG=], ''Fallout 4'' got better reviews and sold about 12 million units in its first week. ||
|| ''VideoGame/DragonAgeInquisition'' (2014) || ''VideoGame/TheWitcher3WildHunt'' (2015) || The third installments in {{Western RPG}} series set in a DarkFantasy setting with lots of BlackAndGrayMorality. The worlds in both games are [[OpeningTheSandbox much, much larger]] this time around. || Same as above. || Both games have received high critical and commercial acclaim—with ''Wild Hunt'' inching out in reviews and with many more awards. ||
|| ''VideoGame/PillarsOfEternity'' (2015) || ''VideoGame/TormentTidesOfNumenera'' (2017) || Isometric [=CRPGs=] crowdfunded mainly on Website/{{Kickstarter}}, intended as {{Genre Throwback}}s to the Creator/InterplayEntertainment/Creator/BlackIsleStudios era of ''TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons''-based games, particularly ''VideoGame/BaldursGate'' and ''VideoGame/PlanescapeTorment''. || The two games share some of the same devs, including Creator/ChrisAvellone, who previously worked at Black Isle, and both studios encouraged their fans to donate to each other's Kickstarters. ''Torment'' is based on Monte Cook's ''TabletopGame/{{Numenera}}'' setting and ruleset, while ''Pillars'' uses a homegrown but clearly D&D-inspired setting and system. || ''Torment'' earned slightly more from its crowdfunding efforts ($4.5 million to ''Pillars''[='=] $4.3 million), but ''Pillars'' released first in March 2015 to rave reviews (89/100 on Metacritic), [[https://www.paradoxplaza.com/news/Pillars-500K-Sold/ had sold half a million copies by October]], and already has a sequel, ''[[VideoGame/PillarsOfEternityIIDeadfire Deadfire]]'', released in 2018. ''Torment'' released in January 2017 to similarly strong critical response (82/100 Metacritic). ||
|| ''VideoGame/BionicleMasksOfPower'' ([[https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCmz1Z5C9fwxHDiKYPgoTz7A 2016]]) || ''VideoGame/BionicleQuestForMataNui'' ([[https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCpDnhOuhJ3Sxr4SpBudL15Q 2020]])\\

''VideoGame/{{Bionicle}}: the Legend of Mata Nui REBUILT'' ([[https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCZoCnxk-SDHD2B2H6ZMvx-w 2019]]) || ''Toys/{{Bionicle}}'' {{fan game}}s recreating the 2001 saga. || ''Masks of Power'' and ''Quest for Mata Nui'' are both {{Action RPG}}s, with ''Masks'' focusing more on exploration and ''Quest'' focusing more on combat. ''Legend of Mata Nui REBUILT'' is a FanRemake of the [[{{Vaporware}} highly publicized yet ultimately canceled]] tie-in game of the same name. || Too early to tell. ||
|| ''VideoGame/HorizonZeroDawn'' (2017) || ''VideoGame/MassEffectAndromeda'' (2017) || Open-world [=WRPGs=] with a strong sci-fi bent, which were both released in Spring 2017. || Despite ''Horizon'' taking place AfterTheEnd, and ''Andromeda'' being a SpaceOpera, they shared a lot of similar story and gameplay elements, in particular the widespread presence of ancient, hostile machine enemies, and exploring high-tech underground installations. || ''Horizon'' wins this one rather handily, being regarded as one of the best [=PS4=] games to date, and getting strong sales figures. ''Andromeda'' received a SoOkayItsAverage reaction from critics, a massive backlash from gamers due to its ObviousBeta status and various other shortcomings. ||
|| ''VideoGame/Fallout76'' (2018) || ''VideoGame/TheOuterWorlds'' (2019) || {{Action RPG}}s set in PunkPunk {{dystopia}}s. || ''Fallout 76'', developed and published by Creator/BethesdaSoftworks, is an online multiplayer {{prequel}} to the ''VideoGame/{{Fallout}}'' series, set on an AtomPunk [[AfterTheEnd post-nuclear Earth]]. ''The Outer Worlds'', developed by Creator/ObsidianEntertainment (developers of ''VideoGame/FalloutNewVegas'' and descended from ''Fallout'' creator Creator/BlackIsleStudios) and published by Creator/PrivateDivision, is a RaygunGothic single-player RPG set in a faraway MegaCorp-ridden space colony, and is largely [[CapitalismIsBad a satire of laissez-faire capitalism run amok]]. || ''Fallout 76'' was heavily criticized for rampant bugs, lack of plot, and abuse of {{microtransactions}} and an expensive premium service (also heavily bugged) (49-52/100 on Metacritic). It also sold fewer copies than either preceding ''Fallout'' game. ''The Outer Worlds'' drew some flak pre-launch due to the PC version not being available on UsefulNotes/{{Steam}} for the first year[[note]]Private Division initially inked an exclusivity agreement with Creator/EpicGames' competing service. Creator/{{Microsoft|Studios}} bought Obsidian in mid-2019, and ensured the game would also be available on its own Windows Store.[[/note]], but managed one of the smoothest launches of any Obsidian game to date and has much higher review scores (81-86/100 on Metacritic). [[HilariousInHindsight Amusingly]], this rivalry became somewhat moot after both Obsidian and Bethesda became part of Creator/XboxGameStudios. ||
|| ''VideoGame/PathfinderWrathOfTheRighteous'' (2021) || ''VideoGame/BaldursGateIII'' (2022?) || Fantasy isometric [=RPGs=] based on the UsefulNotes/D20System. || ''WOTR'', developed by Creator/OwlcatGames, is the sequel to 2018's ''VideoGame/PathfinderKingmaker'', and an AdaptationExpansion of the ''Wrath of the Righteous'' Adventure Path for [[TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragonsThirdEdition D&D 3.5E]] derivative ''TabletopGame/{{Pathfinder}}''. ''[=BG3=]'', developed by Creator/LarianStudios, is a DistantSequel to ''VideoGame/BaldursGateII'' and uses ''TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragonsFifthEdition''. Both use TurnBasedCombat and were partly financed via Website/{{Kickstarter}}. || Too early to tell at time of writing. ''WOTR'''s launch received praise for its story and character writing but was marred by [[ObviousBeta a massive number of gameplay bugs]]; the game was also criticized for its [[NintendoHard extreme difficulty tuning]]. ''[=BG3=]'' is still in Early Access, its full release having been delayed several months due to the UsefulNotes/COVID19Pandemic. ||

[[folder:Rhythm Game]]

|| ''VideoGame/DanceDanceRevolution'' (1998) || ''VideoGame/PumpItUp'' (1999) || Rhythm games that debuted extremely close to each other (November 1998 and August 1999, respectively) in which the player steps on panels as instructed by on-screen arrows. || ''Dance Dance Revolution'' is four panels and developed by Konami under their BEMANI line, ''Pump It Up'' is five panels and developed by Andamiro. Both games have their own unique styles and songlists, complete with in-house artists, and both sport more difficult modes of play for more advanced players, but each with their own spin. || This duel is one of the longest and hardest fought in rhythm gaming history, with both series being something of [[WorthyOpponent Worthy Opponents]] to each other. Both of the latest releases (''DDR 2013'' and ''PIU Prime'') have switched to a [[DownloadableContent patch-based]] form of updating (gaining new content every few months but otherwise staying the same game): as before, Konami started it first, but ''Prime'' has consistent updates each month, so the duel lives on. Oddly enough, Konami actually made a short-lived ''Pump'' clone as a ''VideoGame/PopNMusic'' [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5bmu7xHS7L4 spin-off.]] ||
|| ''{{VideoGame/Beatmania}}'' (1997) || ''{{VideoGame/DJMAX}}'' (2004) || Rhythm games where you press buttons to a note chart. DJMAX Technika offered touch based controls similar to ''VideoGame/OsuTatakaeOuendan'' and ''VideoGame/EliteBeatAgents''. || || In terms of popularity and continuity, ''beatmania'' wins. ''DJMAX'' is still popular but because of no new songs, ''Technika 3'''s server closing, and no new games since ''Technika Q'', ''DJMAX'' is falling down slowly. ||
|| ''VideoGame/{{Bemani}}'' (1997) || ''VideoGame/GuitarHero'' (2005)\\

''VideoGame/RockBand'' (2007) || Rhythm games that require special instrument controllers. || ''VideoGame/RockBand'' and ''VideoGame/GuitarHero'' are Western imitators of the Japanese-borne originators ''VideoGame/{{Beatmania}}'', ''VideoGame/DrumMania'', and ''Guitar Freaks''. || In Japan and a couple spots in East Asia, Bemani is the clear winner. Everywhere else, Bemani is relatively unknown outside of ''[[VideoGame/DanceDanceRevolution DDR]]''. Konami [[NoExportForYou decided too soon that nobody outside of Asia likes rhythm games]], and especially not Bemani's NintendoHard difficulty on harder settings; Creator/{{Activision}} through [=RedOctane=] and [[Creator/ElectronicArts EA]] through Harmonix simply filled the niche and ran away with pockets bulging with cash, now fighting each other instead of Konami for supremacy. Late in the game, Konami finally realized that there was demand in the West for rhythm games, and unsuccessfully tried to cash in with ''Rock Revolution''. ||
|| ''VideoGame/DanceDanceRevolution'' (1998) || ''VideoGame/InTheGroove'' (2004) || Rhythm games in which the player steps on panels as instructed by on-screen arrows. || ''VideoGame/DanceDanceRevolution'' came out in 1998, ''VideoGame/InTheGroove'' was released in 2004. ''Konami'', the developer of DDR, gained the rights to ITG as the result of [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/In_the_Groove_%28video_game%29#Lawsuit a lawsuit]] and killed the series. || ''Dance Dance Revolution'' wins. It is immensely more popular among the general public and is the first dance game almost anyone thinks of. However, despite having died several years ago, ''In The Groove'' still is the game of choice of the top-notch players and enjoys a thriving community. ||
|| ''VideoGame/GuitarHero'' pre-''World Tour'' (2005) || ''VideoGame/RockBand'' (2007) || Rhythm games wherein you play songs by hitting notes on a plastic guitar. || ''VideoGame/GuitarHero'' came first; when the license was passed to another development studio, the original team created ''VideoGame/RockBand'' as a SpiritualSuccessor, upping the ante by adding drums and vocals. Each franchise has a different timing window, overdrive system, and hammer-on/pull-off system. ''VideoGame/RockBand''[='=]s extra songs were released as DownloadableContent while ''VideoGame/GuitarHero'''s were released as less frequent DLC, along with {{Mission Pack Sequel}}s. || See below. ||
|| ''VideoGame/RockBand'' (2007) || ''VideoGame/GuitarHero'' post-''World Tour'' (2008) || Rhythm games wherein you play songs by hitting notes on a plastic guitar or drum pads, or sing along and try to match the pitch. || You read that right. Following the success of ''VideoGame/RockBand'', ''Guitar Hero'' added drums and vocals to its fourth main installment, which it continued to use in subsequent {{Mission Pack Sequel}}s. || Ultimately, there were no winners. ''Guitar Hero'' was officially cancelled on February 9, 2011. ''Rock Band'' also saw its sales take a heavy plunge and Harmonix was sold off for '''fifty dollars'''. It's unknown which series did better financially -- while ''Guitar Hero'' generally sold more copies, ''Rock Band'' also sold respectably well and its staggering amount of DLC did well enough that new songs were added on a weekly basis for about five years. Of the two series, ''Rock Band'' was generally far better received both by critics and fans. Though in 2015, this changed... See below. ||
|| ''VideoGame/PowerGigRiseOfTheSixString'' (2010) || ''VideoGame/RockBand 3'' (2010) || Rhythm games that also teach you how to play real music. || ''Rock Band 3'' has keyboards, and cymbals for drums. ''Power Gig'' doesn't have keyboards or bass, and has air drums. || No contest. ''Rock Band 3'' received rave reviews, while ''Power Gig'' has been compared (''unfavorably'') to the aforementioned ''Rock Revolution''. ||
|| ''VideoGame/JustDance'' (2009) || ''VideoGame/DanceCentral'' (2010) || Rhythm games that require you to dance. Notably, they both require you to do full-body motion. || ''Just Dance'' is, as the name implies, all about dancing, while ''Dance Central'' has some ExcusePlot and characterized [[VirtualPaperDoll avatars]], and was the first full-body dancing console game released (whereas Just Dance initially required the player to hold the Wiimote in one hand; the series was later adapted for Kinect beginning with ''Just Dance 3'', thus supporting full-body motion as well). However, ''Just Dance'' has several features not present in Dance Central, the most important one being having different dance routines for multiple players for the same song (in ''Dance Central'', this can only be achieved by having the two players choose different difficulty levels; Dance Central Spotlight changes this by including eight routines for every song). Also, the difficulty for the dance routines in ''Just Dance'' are on average easier. || ''Just Dance'' is pretty much the only motion-control dance game franchise left today which still churns out titles year by year, so despite all the love ''Dance Central'' ever gets (even if Dance Central Spotlight, the last entry, often gets criticized), ''Just Dance'' is the clear winner. ||
|| ''VideoGame/DanceCentral'' (2010) || ''VideoGame/DanceMasters'' (a.k.a. ''Dance Evolution'') (2010) || Rhythm games that require you to dance. || ''VideoGame/DanceCentral'' involves actual dancing while ''[=DanceMasters=]'' requires you to just hit targets or strike poses in the style of dancing. It is [[RuleOfFun fun]] to actually perform the dances involved in Masters, though. || Split among international lines. Harmonix's ''Dance Central'' is more popular in America and Europe, while Konami's ''Dance Masters''/''Dance Evolution'' is more popular in Japan. Like Bemani, both games were a relief to many newcomers who were daunted by the songs many DDR hardcores play. ||
|| ''VideoGame/{{Aikatsu}}'' (2012) || ''VideoGame/PriPara'' (2014) || Arcade games for young girls that focus on idols. || It should be noted that while ''Aikatsu!'' had no predecessors, ''[=PriPara=]'' is a spin-off of ''VideoGame/PrettyRhythm'', sharing some elements with that series. || ''Aikatsu!'' did pretty well in its first two years, making 13 billion yen. When ''[=PriPara=]'' came out, it became more popular than ''Aikatsu'' and made 7 billion yen in its first year, increasing to twice that amount by 2016. Its popularity led to the release of a boatload of spin-offs, including four movies, two musicals, and multiple sold-out events. Ratings-wise, ''Aikatsu!'' got 5 million viewers per episode and appeared in the list of top 10 anime shows of the week multiple times pre-Akari Generation as ratings decreased, while ''[=PriPara=]'' averaged 2 million viewers an episode. ''[=PriPara=]'' won out in the end as it was more successful. ||
|| ''VideoGame/RockBand 4'' (2015) || ''VideoGame/GuitarHeroLive'' (2015) || [[{{Revival}} Resurrected]] music games wherein you play songs by using plastic instruments, both due for a late 2015 release. || ''Rock Band 4'' has the classic five button gameplay, allows transfer of most previous DLC and disc songs, and is intended to be a "platform" for all future updates through patches and further downloadable content rather than creating entirely new sequels. ''Live'' returns to guitar-only gameplay with a new, six button (three rows of three) controller. Due to changes in the gameplay system, previous songs, both on-disc and DLC, cannot be transferred to ''Live''. The ''Guitar Hero'' TV system seems intended to provide a better downloadable content experience to compete with ''Rock Band''[='=]s. || ''Rock Band 4'' got the better reviews, but ''Guitar Hero Live'' sold more copies. Both games earned an 80 on Metacritic, despite weak reviews for the on-disc setlists. However, ''Rock Band 4'' is still getting new DLC tracks as of December 2018 while ''Guitar Hero Live''[='=]s GH TV has been discontinued. ||
|| ''Idol Paradise'' (2014) || ''VideoGame/TokyoSeventhSisters''\\

''IDOL-RISM'' (2014)\\

''Idol Chronicle'' (2015)\\

''VideoGame/AikatsuPhotoOnStage'' (2016)\\

''VideoGame/EightBeatStory'' (2016)\\

''Idol Connect -Asterisk Live-'' (2016) || Mobile female idol rhythm games which follows the success of ''VideoGame/LoveLiveSchoolIdolFestival'' and ''[[Franchise/TheIdolmaster The Idolm@ster Cinderella Girls]]''. || ''Idol Paradise'' relies on GPS as a method to scout for idols. ''Tokyo 7th Sisters'' has weekly events which has only breaks during maintenance. ''IDOL-RISM'' is the only idol game which has idols of both genders. ''Idol Chronicle'' has a relatively unique gimmick of having fixed characters and uses equipable clothing and accessories instead. ''Aikatsu Photo On Stage'' is an adaptation of a formerly existing game series. ''8 Beat Story'' has a unique system where characters can only evolve after maxing affections instead of levels or having duplicate copies in other rhythm games. ''Idol Connect -Asterisk Live-'' is more or less a clone of ''The Idolm@aster Cinderella Girls Starlight Stage'', except with an addition of a fan system. || ''IDOL-RISM'', ''Idol Chronicle'' and ''Idol Connect'' have shut down, with the latter lasted for a mere 3 months. ''Idol Paradise'' is unknown outside Japan thanks to its GPS mechanic preventing foreign players from playing. ''Aikatsu Photo On Stage'' is doing relatively well, but considering that [[VideoGame/{{Aikatsu}} the parent series]] has dead, its long term survival is in doubt (though having contents from ''VideoGame/AikatsuStars'' helped). ''8 Beat Story'' has just released on May 2016, which has seen some potential (with a live a mere '''four months''' after release) but its popularity is relatively small. Thus, the winner goes to ''Tokyo 7th Sisters'', which had a dedicated ''Comiket booth twice'' and two live concerts. ||
|| ''VideoGame/JustShapesAndBeats'' (2018) || ''VideoGame/ProjectArrhythmia'' (2019) || Hybrid Rhythm/Action games where the player plays a monochromatic shape that has to avoid other monochromatic shapes that move to the beat. || || TBD. ''Just Shapes and Beats'' was critically acclaimed and was very well received by critics and fans alike. ''Project Arrythmia'' has yet to be released. ||

[[folder: Simulation]]

|| ''VideoGame/MechWarrior'' (1989) || ''VideoGame/StarSiege'' (1999) || RealRobot HumongousMecha simulators || Creator/{{Dynamix}}, the creators of ''Starsiege'', developed the very first ''Mechwarrior'' game before working on their own mech game. || ''Mechwarrior''. While the ''Starsiege'' games were commercially successful, they couldn't match the might of ''Mechwarrior'', which was backed by an existing [[TabletopGame/BattleTech tabletop game]], a cartoon, and a [[Franchise/BattleTechExpandedUniverse expanded universe]]. ''Mechwarrior'' received 8 sequels (and is still running), numerous expansion packs and [[VideoGame/MechCommander two]] [[VideoGame/MechAssault spinoffs]], whereas ''Starsiege'' had four games and [[VideoGame/{{Cyberstorm}} two]] [[VideoGame/{{Tribes}} spinoffs]]. Starsiege did get the last laugh, as its fast-paced ''Tribes'' spinoff became [[MorePopularSpinoff enormously popular]] and outlived Dynamix. ||
|| ''VideoGame/{{Gungriffon}}'' (1996) || ''VideoGame/ArmoredCore'' (1997) || Console mech games with a RealRobot flavour. || ''Armored Core'' is played from a third-person perspective and is heavily focused around [[CharacterCustomization building your own mech]]. ''Gungriffon'' is played from a cockpit view and casts the player as a participant in combined arms scenarios. || The original installments for both series sold well in their native Japan and were critically aclaimed, but ''Gungriffon'' suffered from being released on the struggling UsefulNotes/SegaSaturn. The series ended after the poorly received ''Allied Strike'', while ''Armored Core'' is still going strong. ||
|| ''VideoGame/TraumaCenter: Under the Knife'' (2005) || ''VideoGame/LifesignsSurgicalUnit'' (2007) || Combination VisualNovel and stylized surgery simulator. || ''Lifesigns'' actually debuted in Japan first with its predecessor ''Kenshuui Tendō Dokuta'' in the end of 2004. || ''Trauma Center'' became a very successful franchise both in Japan and abroad, totalling five installments across two hardware platforms, while ''Lifesigns'' was the final game released. ||

[[folder:Shoot 'em Up]]

|| ''VideoGame/{{Gradius}}'' series (1985) || ''VideoGame/RType'' series (1987) || Shoot'em ups with lots of powerups. || || Both have strong [[CultClassic cult followings]] to this day, and both ''Gradius'' and ''R-Type'' had even branched out into TurnBasedStrategy RPG territory with ''Cosmic Wars'' and ''Gradius Arc'' for ''Gradius'' and ''R-Type Command/Tactics'' for ''R-Type''. ||
|| ''VideoGame/{{Dodonpachi}}'' (1995) || ''Franchise/TouhouProject'' (1996) || {{Bullet Hell}}s featuring lots and lots of bullets and an ExcusePlot as per most Shoot 'em ups. The difference is ''Dodonpachi'' uses the traditional ships and Touhou is about little girls shooting each other. || It should be noted that when ZUN first unveiled the series, he made a direct TakeThat to ''Dodonpachi'', stating his series could have more bullets thanks to the HitboxDissonance. ...It's clear the idea caught on, because later installments of the Dodonpachi series and MOST Bullet Hells used this. || While ''Dodonpachi'' was big in its time, ''Touhou'' Project is THE definitive danmaku series, to the point where nearly every danmaku game nowadays borrows elements from ''Touhou''. ''Touhou'' has seen immense popularity since 2002, and continues with an enormous fanbase that produces games, fanime, manga... The list goes on, but the winner is clear. ||
|| ''VideoGame/{{One}}'' (1997) || ''VideoGame/{{Apocalypse}}'' (1998) || 3D overhead shooters exclusive to the original UsefulNotes/PlayStation, exhibited side by side at E3 1997. || ''One'' has more emphasis on platforming and cinematic setpieces. ''Apocalypse'' is more actioney and features Creator/BruceWillis's likeness as its main selling point; unfinished in its original version, the game was redeveloped by Neversoft after its resemblance to ''One'' was noted. || Both games were modest critical and financial successes. If you're stretching things, one could say ''Apocalypse'' had more impact, as Neversoft reused its engine for the massively successful ''VideoGame/TonyHawksProSkater'' series. ||
|| ''VideoGame/GeometryWars'' (2003) || ''Neon Wars'' (2006) || Top down fast-paced arcade-ish shoot'em ups || || ''Geometry Wars'' is much more well-known than Neon Wars. In addition, there are many installments of ''Geometry Wars'' although both games are critically well-received. ||
|| ''Zombie Apocalypse'' (2009) || ''VideoGame/NationRed'' (2009)\\

''Burn Zombie Burn'' (2009)\\

''VideoGame/DeadNation'' (2010) || Downloadable [[TopDownView top-down]] shooters about surviving [[ZombieApocalypse the inevitable]]. || ''VideoGame/DeadNation'' has a linear story mode and is the DarkerAndEdgier one of the group, while the rest (especially ''Burn Zombie Burn'') are more over-the-top. || If going by number of installments alone, then ''Zombie Apocalypse'' (one sequel) and ''Burn Zombie Burn'' (a Spiritual Successor in the ActionRPG ''All Zombies Must Die!''). As for critical reception, ''Dead Nation'' wins with a slight edge over ''Burn Zombie Burn''. ||

[[/folder]]

[[folder:Sports Game]]
||border=1
|| Initiator || Imitators/Competitors || Description || Implementation || Winner? ||
|| ''VideoGame/FIFASoccer'' (1993) || ''Pro Evolution Soccer'' (2001) || Long running soccer game series. || The samurai vs. knight of soccer games. Since their debut in the mid-90s, both series are a constant source of FandomRivalry. || So far the ''FIFA'' series is usually more acclaimed than ''PES'' (with help of the real FIFA organization that gave it their official seal of approval), although ''PES'' received well for its superior gameplay over their competitor. ||
|| ''VideoGame/NHLHockey'' || ''NHL 2K'' || Realistic hockey simulations. || || EA Sports' ''NHL Hockey'' wins, as 2K Sports haven't made a hockey game since ''NHL 2K11'' (and that was a Wii-exclusive title, even). ||
|| ''VideoGame/NBAJam Extreme'' (1996) || ''NBA Hangtime'' (1996) || Fast-paced two-on-two basketball games with over-the-top dunks, no fouls besides goaltending, and players catching fire after making three straight baskets. || Midway made the first two NBA Jam games for arcades and Acclaim ported them to consoles. A dispute over the name led to a split where Acclaim kept the NBA Jam name and made a sequel, while Midway made its own sequel under a different name. Also notable is that ''Extreme'' is in 3D, while ''Hangtime'' remains 2D. || Despite more advanced graphics, ''Extreme'' couldn't compete with ''Hangtime'''s added depth and far faster load times. Acclaim continued to make ''Jam'' as more of a simulation, while Midway adapted the formula further to make ''NBA Showtime'' and ''NBA Ballers''. ||
|| ''VideoGame/CoolBoarders'' (1996) || ''[[VideoGame/TenEightySnowboarding 1080° Snowboarding]]'' (1998)\\

''VideoGame/{{SSX}}'' (2000)\\

''Amped: Freestyle Snowboarding'' (2001) || "Extreme" snowboarding games featuring varied courses, stunt jumps, challenge modes and unlockable characters || ''Cool Boarders'' was first to the market, while ''1080°'' arrived a year later around the same time as ''Boarders 2'', the franchise's highest-selling installment. || ''1080°'' took a bite out of ''Boarders''' dominance in the genre, and the release of ''SSX'' finished it off in 2000/2001. The whole snowboarding genre nearly went under afterward due to oversaturation, even with [[MediumBlending boldly strange]] titles like ''{{Amped3}}''. ''SSX'' is the only franchise to have survived and produced more installments since then. ||
|| ''[[VideoGame/TenEightySnowboarding 1080° Snowboarding]]'' (1998) || ''VideoGame/SnowboardKids'' (1998) || Two snowboarding games come out for the UsefulNotes/{{Nintendo 64}} almost simultaneously. || Though ''1080° Snowboarding'' was developed first, ''Snowboard Kids'' had a substantially shorter production cycle and actually beat ''1080'' to release by a few weeks. One crucial difference is that ''1080'' is focused on realistic snowboarding and executing tricks, but ''Snowboard Kids'' is essentially [[MascotRacer a kart racer with snowboarding physics]], with very stylized character design and surreal settings, and a focus on the racing aspect. || Though ''Snowboard Kids'' was briefly able to take ''1080'''s thunder due to coming out first, it was quickly overshadowed by its more realistic counterpart. That being said, in the long term, ''1080'' was forgotten, with the very rare sequel every now and then, whereas ''Snowboard Kids'' became a CultClassic with three sequels over the next few years before it, too, was forgotten. ||
|| ''VideoGame/TonyHawksProSkater'' (1999) || ''Dave Mirra Freestyle BMX'' (2000)\\

''VideoGame/JetSetRadio'' (2000)\\

''Aggressive Inline'' (2002)\\
\\
''Evolution Skateboarding'' (2002) || Early extreme sports games || Activision and Neversoft put out ''THPS'', while the latter four were done by Acclaim, Z-Axis, SEGA and Konami respectively. ''AI'', ''Dave Mirra'' and ''Evolution'' generally copied the look and feel of the ''THPS'' games while ''Jet Set Radio'' tried to separate itself from the others through its use of CelShading and emphasis on Graffiti tagging. || ''AI'' and ''Dave Mirra BMX'' were decent games, but ''AI'' never received any follow-up while ''BMX XXX'' [[FranchiseKiller failed]] and led to Creator/{{Acclaim}}'s [[CreatorKiller death]]. Evolution Skateboarding is best known for its ''Castlevania'' and ''Metal Gear Solid'' levels, otherwise being forgotten as a poor ''Tony Hawk'' ripoff. ''Tony Hawk'' and ''Jet Set Radio'' are the most fondly remembered of them all, however ''Tony Hawk'' outlasted all four and made far more money, remaining a household name in "extreme sports" games until ''Tony Hawk RIDE'' screwed everything up. ||
|| ''[[VideoGame/MaddenNFL Madden]] 2005'' || ''NFL 2K5'' || Realistic football simulations based on the (then upcoming) 2005 NFL season. || Madden was more known for leaning more towards an arcadey-feel, while NFL 2K set out to be the most realistic football game in the market. NFL 2K5 also had the licence of ESPN and was able to use their personalities, while EA didn't have a particular network license, but it did have Al Michaels and John Madden calling the games. || One of the fiercest competitions ever seen from two competing sports games. 2K Games got the upper-hand in the battle when the launch price for ''NFL 2K5'' was '''$19.99''', compared to ''Madden's'' $49.99 launch price. EA was fearful that ''Madden'' could be outsold by another football game. Not only did they slash the price to match ''2K5'', but they were able to acquire to exclusive license from the NFL and NFLPA so they would be the only video game company to make NFL games. 2005 still remains the closest instance ''Madden'' came to being outsold by a competing football game. Both are regarded as phenomenal games to this very day, with Madden winning acclaim with the revolutionary "Hit Stick" feature and a refined franchise mode, while ''2K5'' won acclaim for its overall presentation and focus on realism. While ''Madden 2005'' is still fondly remembered, ''NFL 2K5'' is still regarded by many to be the best football game of all time and the game that every ''Madden'' is measured up to even with the newest installments. ||
|| ''VideoGame/WiiSports'' (2006) || ''Kinect Sports'' (2010)\\
\\
''Sports Champions'' (2010) || [[MiniGameGame Sports game compilations]] showing off a system's new motion controls. || Let's face it, the real fight's between the control systems: ''Wii Sports'' demonstrated the UsefulNotes/{{Wii}} Remote, ''Kinect Sports'' is made for the UsefulNotes/Xbox360's controller-less camera system, and ''Sports Champions'' utilizes the [[UsefulNotes/PlayStation3 PlayStation Move]]. || ''Wii Sports'' had a four-year head start, being bundled with the UsefulNotes/{{Wii}} at launch and becoming synonymous with it. The other two systems [[FollowTheLeader played catch-up]], with their motion controls as optional add-ons to existing systems -- the Kinect got most of the hype (in both cases, the sports games were lost in the shuffle as only one of several showcase titles). ||
|| ''VideoGame/MLBTheShow'' (2006-present) || ''R.B.I. Baseball'' (2014-present) || Licensed games for Major League Baseball. || ''The Show'' is a long-running series by Sony Interactive Entertainment, and the last man standing after EA and 2K stopped producing baseball games. ''R.B.I.'' is produced and published directly by the league itself, and is the first game to bear the ''R.B.I. Baseball'' name since Tengen's ''R.B.I. Baseball '95'' on the Sega 32X. || A decisive victory for Sony's baseball sim. ''R.B.I.'' may be on more platforms, but its critical and commercial performance pales in comparison to ''The Show''. ||
|| ''VideoGame/TonyHawksProSkater'' (starting from ''Proving Ground'') (2007) || ''VideoGame/{{Skate}}'' (2007) || WideOpenSandbox Skateboarding simulators. || ''Tony Hawk'' relied mostly on name recognition (with the Hawkman and several other pro skaters making appearances), while the ''skate'' series promised a different approach to trick control (utilizing both analog sticks on the [[UsefulNotes/PlayStation3 PS3]] and UsefulNotes/Xbox360 controllers instead of the face buttons and D-Pad). || ''Skate'' won this battle handily. Even before ''RIDE'' and ''Shred'' ultimately [[FranchiseKiller scuttled what was left]] of the ''Hawk'' franchise's popularity, ''skate'' routinely outperformed and outsold its competition. ||
|| ''UFC 2009 Undisputed'' || ''EA Sports MMA'' (2010) || Video games based on UsefulNotes/MixedMartialArts, the former focusing on UFC (and Pride in a future installment), the latter on Strikeforce and several smaller promotions || When EA's game was announced, UFC President Dana White was furious, since he had failed to make a deal with EA before eventually partnering with THQ for ''Undisputed''. White later even declared that anyone who signs their likeness to EA will '''never''' work for UFC (which he later retracted). || Both games were critically very well received though ''Undisputed'' was criticized for online mode glitches. ''Undisputed'' was a far more successful franchise, spawning two sequels. Eventually, UFC purchased Strikeforce and in June 2012 announced that the video game license had been transferred to EA Sports to create what became ''EA Sports UFC.'' If anyone is to be called a winner, it would be UFC the company. ||

[[folder:Stealth Game]]
||border=1
|| Initiator || Imitators/Competitors || Description || Implementation || Winner? ||
|| ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolid'' (1998) || ''VideoGame/SyphonFilter'' (1999)\\
\\
''VideoGame/SplinterCell'' (2002) || Stealth-based third-person action-adventure games in which you play as a grizzled badass soldier on covert missions, untangling complicated terrorist plots with the help ([[TheMole or hinderance]]) of MissionControl. || ''Metal Gear Solid'' mixes stealth gameplay and [[ShownTheirWork technical detail]] with [[HumongousMecha anime]] [[McNinja tropes]]. ''Syphon Filter'' blended stealth and run-and-gun gameplay with its conspiracy plot. ''Splinter Cell'' was supported by techno-thriller author Creator/TomClancy, and was more of a pure stealth game with a slower pace than the other two, though later installments leaned into the ActionizedSequel trope. ''Metal Gear Solid'' used an isometric perspective but later games moved to a traditional third-person camera, while ''Syphon Filter'' and ''Splinter Cell'' used traditional third-person perspectives from the start. || While each series was well-received and profitable, ''Metal Gear Solid'' takes first place overall. The original ''Metal Gear Solid'' is one of the most influencial games of all time, wowing critics and players with its Hollywood-like presentation and [[{{Deconstruction}} Deconstructive plot]], and spawned a massive and successful series that has sold over 50 million copies in total. ''Splinter Cell'' wasn't quite as influencial, but consistanly receives high review scores and has sold over 31 million copies in total as of 2011. ''Syphon Filter'' became one of the best-selling action games on the Playstation 1 with three titles on the console, though its sales numbers and impact never matched the other two series. ''Metal Gear Solid'' remains a relevant series today, while ''Splinter Cell'' has been on hiatus since 2013's ''Blacklist'' and ''Syphon Filter'' waned after the [=PS1=] era, eventually suffering a FranchiseKiller with 2007's ''Logan's Shadow''. ||

[[folder:Survival Horror]]
||border=1
|| Initiator || Imitators/Competitors || Description || Implementation || Winner? ||
|| ''[[VideoGame/AloneInTheDark1992 Alone in the Dark]]'' (1992) || ''VideoGame/ResidentEvil'' (1996) || In both games the protagonists must fight their way through a mansion filled with puzzles and monsters to uncover its secrets and survive to tell the tale. || ''Alone in the Dark'' was released way before and features a Lovecraftian style of horror. ''Resident Evil'' has better graphics, live-action cutscenes and looks more like an interactive zombie B-movie. || After spawning several multi-million-selling installments and a solid live-action movie series, ''Resident Evil'' is today one of the world's top videogame franchises. ''Alone in The Dark'' tried to follow the same path, but [[FranchiseKiller fell into oblivion]] instead after the release of two [[VideoGameMoviesSuck lousy Uwe Boll movies]], the failure of the 2008 game and ''[=AitD: Illumination=]'', a cheaply made, barely noticed InNameOnly co-op shooter cash-in. ||
|| ''Franchise/ResidentEvil'' (1996) || ''Franchise/SilentHill'' (1999) || Same as above, except that Silent Hill's setting spans an entire cursed town. || In contrast to ''Resident Evil'''s zombie-killing frenzy, ''Silent Hill'' features more puzzles, less monsters and a more mature and psychological storyline. || For a long time, both series were relatively neck-and-neck, with us reaching the consensus that ''Resident Evil'' is, generally, more "popular" while ''Silent Hill'' is, generally, more respected as a horror series. However, ''Resident Evil'' ultimately ended up [[VictoryByEndurance the winner by default]] with the release of ''VideoGame/ResidentEvil7'', thanks to Creator/{{Konami}} arbitrarily cancelling ''VideoGame/SilentHills'' for no reason at all and basically ceasing to give a shit about the series (unless you like pachinko machines). ||
|| ''[[VideoGame/AloneInTheDark2008 Alone in the Dark]]'' (2008 reboot) || ''VideoGame/AlanWake'' (2010) || An episodic game where a normal man investigates and fights against a villain that is responsible for said paranormal. || ''Alone in the Dark'' is the continuation of the classic series set in [[BigApplesauce New York's Central Park]], while ''Alan Wake'' is set in rural Washington state and is inspired by Creator/StephenKing and ''Series/TwinPeaks''. || ''Alan Wake'' got a much better initial reception than ''Alone in the Dark'', which was first released in [[ObviousBeta a highly unpolished state]] that landed on many "worst of the year" lists. However, an UpdatedRerelease for UsefulNotes/PlayStation3, ''Alone in the Dark: Inferno'', corrected many of these problems and received better reviews. ||
|| ''VideoGame/EternalDarkness'' (2002) || ''VideoGame/{{Resident Evil|1}}'' remake (2002) || UsefulNotes/NintendoGameCube-exclusive[[note]]The ''Resident Evil'' remake would later get an UpdatedRerelease in 2015 for PC, UsefulNotes/PlayStation3 and [[UsefulNotes/PlayStation4 4]], and UsefulNotes/Xbox360 and [[UsefulNotes/XboxOne One]][[/note]] survival horror games released in spring 2002, set in a vacant mansion filled with grotesque monsters and idiosyncratic puzzles. At the time, they were the only M-rated [=GameCube=] games on the market. || ''Eternal Darkness'' is a psychological horror game strongly inspired by the works of Creator/HPLovecraft, while ''Resident Evil'' (aka the [=REmake=]) relies more on BodyHorror, science fiction elements, and jump scares. || Pretty much a tie. Both were well-received by critics and players alike. However it's worth noting that the ''[=REmake=]'' has been ported and rereleased several times since it came out, while ''Darkness's'' SpiritualSuccessor ''Shadow of the Eternals'' has failed to hit Kickstarter targets twice and is stuck in DevelopmentHell. ||
|| ''Infestation: Survivor Stories'' (formerly ''The War Z'') (2012) || ''VideoGame/ZombiU'' (2012)\\
\\
''VideoGame/StateOfDecay'' (2013)\\
\\
''VideoGame/{{DayZ}}'' (2013) || Four ZombieApocalypse games built heavily around survival, with players experiencing {{Permadeath}}s when killed and being given new characters instead of respawning. || ''[=DayZ=]'' began life as a PC-exclusive GameMod for ''VideoGame/{{ARMA}} II'' that takes place in that game's [[{{Ruritania}} Eastern European setting]], eventually being expanded into a stand-alone game in 2013. ''State of Decay'' and ''Infestation'' are set in [[FlyoverCountry rural America]], with ''Decay'' available on both UsefulNotes/XboxLiveArcade and PC, whereas ''Infestation'' is a PC exclusive. Finally, ''[=ZombiU=]'' takes place in UsefulNotes/{{London}} and is exclusive to the UsefulNotes/WiiU, making use of that console's touch screen controller. || ''[=DayZ=]'' wins on account of the hype that came out of its beta, to the point where sales of its "daddy" game, ''VideoGame/{{ARMA}} II'', skyrocketed, people purchasing it just to play ''[=DayZ=]''. Its success helped [[GenreLaunch spawn]] an entire new genre of survival games -- and all this was ''before'' its full release! Both ''State of Decay'' and ''[=ZombiU=]'' received positive reviews, though ''Decay'' takes silver on account of it being [[http://www.destructoid.com/state-of-decay-sells-550k-on-xbox-live-arcade-256497.phtml the sleeper hit of summer 2013]], selling over half a million units in two weeks despite being a downloadable title that relied almost entirely on word of mouth. ''[=ZombiU=]'', meanwhile, [[http://www.destructoid.com/ubisoft-zombiu-not-profitable-no-sequel-plans-257720.phtml lost money]] for Creator/{{Ubisoft}}.\\
\\
The big loser was ''Infestation: Survivor Stories'', a blatant [[TheMockbuster mockbuster]] of ''[=DayZ=]'' that is best known for the outcry that resulted when it was released with [[ObviousBeta severe bugs]] and [[NeverTrustATrailer without a number of promised features]] -- but hey, [[BribingYourWayToVictory the microtransaction store]] was working perfectly! The backlash was loud enough that UsefulNotes/{{Steam}} not only pulled the game from sale, but '''offered refunds to those who weren't satisfied.''' As a final insult, ''Infestation'' wasn't the game's original title -- the developers[[note]]Whose boss is also known for VideoGame/BigRigsOverTheRoadRacing[[/note]] had to change it from ''The War Z'' due to a trademark dispute concerning [[Film/WorldWarZ the film adaptation]] of ''Literature/WorldWarZ''. ||
|| ''VideoGame/DeadByDaylight'' (2016) || ''VideoGame/FridayThe13thTheGame'' (2017)\\
\\
''VideoGame/LastYearTheNightmare'' (2018) || AsymmetricMultiplayer horror games where players take on the role of either the killer out of a SlasherMovie, or the would-be-victims trying to survive his rampage. || ''Dead By Daylight'' has a selection of original killers along with classic killers like Michael Myers from the ''Franchise/{{Halloween}}'' series, Leatherface from ''Film/TheTexasChainsawMassacre'' and Freddy Krugger from ''Franchise/ANightmareOnElmStreet'' to play as.\\
\\
''Friday the 13th'' is a licensed adaptation of [[Franchise/FridayThe13th the film series]], boasting the involvement of special effects artist Creator/TomSavini, composer Harry Manfredini, and actor Creator/KaneHodder, all of whom are famous for their work on the films. Initially, the studio was working on a SpiritualAdaptation of the ''Friday'' films titled ''Slasher Vol. 1: Summer Camp'' (which would've dueled with the ''Friday'' game itself), but when Sean S. Cunningham (the director of the first film) saw their work, he gave them his blessing to make a licensed adaptation.\\
\\
''Last Year'', meanwhile, was successfully funded through Website/{{Kickstarter}}, but is currently on hold due to an IP dispute with Creator/NewLineCinema over similarities to the ''Friday'' films. The developers have continued working on it, however, and intend to release it in fall 2018 with the offending elements removed. The game also notably has a more lighthearted tone, informed more by '90s teen horror movies than the '80s slasher influences of ''Friday'' or the TorturePorn of ''Dead by Daylight''. || Both games got similar review scores, but ''Dead by Daylight'' outlasted ''Friday the 13th'', which ultimately wound up [[ScrewedByTheLawyers a victim of the legal battle]] between Victor Miller and Sean S. Cunningham over the rights to the ''Friday'' film series but had been losing for a while by then. Currently, ''Dead by Daylight'' manages well over ten thousand players average at any given time and over 25,000 at peak hours, while ''Friday the 13th'' had been bleeding players even before the lawsuit forced Illfonic to cease all development; these days, it's well under a thousand players even at peak hours, and at times only a few hundred. ||
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Tower Defense]]
* ''VideoGame/DungeonDefenders'' (2010) vs. ''VideoGame/OrcsMustDie'' (2011)
** '''Concept:''' TowerDefense games with a mixture of third-person action and RPGElements.
** '''Approach:''' ''VideoGame/OrcsMustDie'' is faster-paced and single-player, while ''VideoGame/DungeonDefenders'' is slower-paced but can be played with up to four players at a time.
[[/folder]]

||border=1
|| Initiator || Imitators/Competitors || Description || Implementation || Winner? ||
|| ''VideoGame/DungeonDefenders'' (2010) || ''VideoGame/OrcsMustDie'' (2011) || TowerDefense games with a mixture of third-person action and RPGElements. || ''VideoGame/OrcsMustDie'' is faster-paced and single-player, while ''VideoGame/DungeonDefenders'' is slower-paced but can be played with up to four players at a time. || Both games received very good reviews, but even though ''Orcs'' came out one month earlier, ''Defenders'' won out on account of its larger scope (multiplayer and multiplatform) and regular content updates. ||

||border=1
||Initiator || Imitators/Competitors || Description || Implementation || Winner? ||
|| ''VideoGame/FireEmblem'' (1990) || ''VideoGame/ShiningForce'' (1992) || Fantasy-themed strategy [=RPGs=] where you command a squad of up to a dozen heroes at a time. || Nintendo's ''Fire Emblem'' series focuses more on its story and character development, while Sega's ''Shining Force'' puts more emphasis on its combat system. The ''Franchise/ShiningSeries'' later branched out into ActionRPG territory, while ''Fire Emblem'' has stuck to its SRPG roots throughout all of its incarnations. || A strange reversal: in the '90s, ''Fire Emblem'' was virtually unknown outside of Japan, while ''Shining Force'' and its sequel quickly established themselves as must-have [[UsefulNotes/SegaGenesis Genesis/Mega Drive]] titles. Come the TurnOfTheMillennium, ''Shining Force'' games have remained exclusive to Japanese gamers[[note]]coinciding with the franchise's general shift to {{Action RPG}}s[[/note]] while ''Fire Emblem'' began to gain popularity internationally thanks to, [[EarlyBirdCameo of all things]], ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBros Melee''. ||
|| ''VideoGame/FireEmblem'' (1990) || ''VideoGame/TearRingSaga'' (2001) || Fantasy-themed strategy [=RPGs=] where you command a squad of up to a dozen heroes at a time. || ''Tear Ring Saga'' is essentially a SpiritualSuccessor to ''Fire Emblem'' on the UsefulNotes/PlayStation. It was developed by ''Fire Emblem'' creator Shouzou Kaga, and incorporates the vast majority of its game mechanics, to the extent that Nintendo attempted to sue for copyright infringement. In fact, it was originally meant to be called ''Emblem Saga'', but the lawsuit prevented this. || ''Fire Emblem'' has far more name recognition and success, especially since its gain in international popularity and securing of an American release since Marth and Roy's cameos in ''Super Smash Bros. Melee''. ''Tear Ring Saga'' [[NoExportForYou wasn't released outside of Japan]], but is [[FriendlyFandoms well viewed in the]] ''Fire Emblem'' [[FriendlyFandoms fandom]] which gave it a FanTranslation. ||
|| ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyTactics'' (1997) || ''VideoGame/TacticsOgre'' ([=PS1=] UpdatedRerelease) (1997) || TurnBasedStrategy games for an EasternRPG series. || Both games were designed by Creator/YasumiMatsuno and were released in the same year (1997 in Japan and 1998 in North America; release order remained the same). It should be noted that ''Tactics Ogre'' is originally a 1995 UsefulNotes/SuperFamicom game and that ''Final Fantasy Tactics'' is its SpiritualSuccessor. || GermansLoveDavidHasselhoff strikes. In Japan, ''Tactics Ogre'' was a well-remembered and beloved game that had already received an updated release on the UsefulNotes/SegaSaturn the previous year. It sold very well and was the clear winner. ''Final Fantasy Tactics'' was seen as a FollowTheLeader game and sold poorly. In North America, ''Tactics Ogre'' was being released for the first time. But with ''FFT'' being released first, ''TO'' was seen as the knock-off. The [[CashcowFranchise cash-cow name recognition]] of the ''Franchise/FinalFantasy'' brand (fresh off the success of ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyVII'') meant that ''FFT'' won by a landslide to the point where most people there didn't know or remember there even was a dueling game. It also sold well enough to get a reprint before the Japanese market got one. ||
|| ''VideoGame/StarWarsRebellion'' (1998) || ''Star Trek: VideoGame/BirthOfTheFederation'' (1999) || Strategy and empire-building games based on the ''Star Wars'' and ''Star Trek'' franchises. || Both games were released around a year apart. ''Rebellion'' (also known as ''Star Wars: Supremecy'') was a hybrid of turn-based and real-time elements, whereas ''Birth of the Federation'' was a more straight-up turn based game. || ''Rebellion'' sold a lot more copies, but ''Birth of the Federation'' was better-reviewed and seems to have more of a fan modding community than ''Rebellion''. ||
|| ''VideoGame/XCOMEnemyUnknown''(2012) || ''VideoGame/{{Xenonauts}}'' (2012) || Squad-centric TurnBasedTactics games focused on repelling alien invasion due for release in 2012 || Until Firaxis revealed ''Enemy Unknown'', which is a full-blown official "reimagining", ''Xenonauts'' was considered the only credible FanRemake of the original. ''Xenonauts'' is more faithful to the original's mechanics, while ''Enemy Unknown'' has made some changes to the formula. On the record, [[http://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2012/02/14/chat-xenonauts-dev-on-firaxis-and-outdoing-x-com/ both]] [[http://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2012/05/05/firaxis-on-xcom-vs-xenonauts-optional-kill-cam/#more-107061 sides]] are fairly sporting about the competition. || ''Enemy Unknown'' was released on October 9, 2012 and received widespread critical acclaim (along with a similarly lauded expansion pack, ''Enemy Within''), although the legion of TheyChangedItNowItSucks naysayers was inevitable. ''Xenonauts'' came out two years later to favorable reviews, though not to the degree of ''XCOM''. ''XCOM'' also boasts a large and healthy mod community, which has helped significantly extend its shelf life to the point where Firaxis decided to start development on a sequel. ||
|| ''[[VideoGame/ElementalWarOfMagic Elemental War Of Magic/Fallen Enchantress: Legendary Heroes]]'' (2010) || ''VideoGame/{{Eador}}: Masters of the Broken World'' (2013)\\
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''VideoGame/AgeOfWonders3'' (2014)\\
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''[[VideoGame/{{Majesty}} Warlock 2: The Exiled]]'' (2014) || Turn-based strategy games set in fantasy worlds with hex-based battlefields released in late 2013/early 2014. Also, three of the four games are sequels to other turn-based fantasy games, two of whom were direct competitors (''Elemental'' and ''Warlock''). || ''Age of Wonders'' has the pedigree and history, with this being the first entry in the series since 2003. ''Warlock'' is based off of the ''Majesty'' universe, but is considered the spiritual successor to ''Wonders'' old rival ''VideoGame/MasterOfMagic'' and was released to take advantage of ''Wonders'' fans' waiting. ''Elemental'' is marred by the abysmal failure of its first game, while ''Eador'' brings something different to the table with its "shards" of territory. || The Metacritic scores between all four games have a spread of ''seven'' points between them. ''Age of Wonders 3'' and ''Fallen Enchantress'' both led the way with 80 each, with ''Eador'' and ''Warlock 2'' behind with 74 and 73, respectively. ||
|| ''VideoGame/AutoChess'' (2019) || ''VideoGame/DotaUnderlords'' (2019)\\
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''[[VideoGame/LeagueOfLegends Teamfight Tactics]]'' (2019)\\
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''[[VideoGame/{{Hearthstone}} Hearthstone Battlegrounds]]'' (2019) || "Autobattler" games: players buy units, place them on a grid, and have them fight against other players' armies. || ''Auto Chess'' started off as a very popular GameMod in ''VideoGame/Dota2''. Valve attempted to contact the mod's creators, Drodo Games, to collaborate with them in making a stand-alone version of the mod (similar to ''Dota 2'''s own history as a custom game in ''VideoGame/Warcraft3''), but found that they had already started work on such a project, so they made ''Dota Underlords'' in response. ''Dota Underlords'' thus started out as a nearly identical port of ''Auto Chess'', though later patches have since caused it to become significantly different by introducing new items, heroes, alliances, and [[HeroUnit Underlord units]]. ''Teamfight Tactics'' is Riot's own answer to the autobattler phenomenon, featuring ''League of Legends'' characters and items. Unlike its competitors, ''TFT'' is played on a hexagon-based grid, and it is played within the ''League of Legends'' client, rather than as its own stand-alone game; this also means it does not have a mobile version, unlike the other games mentioned here. ''Battlegrounds'', Blizzard's take, uses a simplified format with two rows on the field instead of a grid and combat using a fully turn-based attack order. It is also directly built into ''Hearthstone's'' client, and is available on both PC and mobile. || The ''Auto Chess'' mobile app currently has many more downloads than ''Dota Underlords'', in part thanks to its earlier release and less resource-intensive graphics, but its PC version is not yet available. ''Teamfight Tactics'' lacks a mobile version, but has the advantage of being integrated into the ''League of Legends'' client, making it easily accessible to that game's extremely large player base, but also making it hard to determine how popular it actually is on its own. ''Battlegrounds'' brought a lot of attention back to ''Hearthstone'' and remains a very popular gamemode among players and streamers. However, since it is built into the base game, it's also hard to know the exact numbers. ||

||border=1
|| Initiator || Imitators/Competitors || Description || Implementation || Winner? ||
|| ''VideoGame/ReaderRabbit'' (1986) \\
''VideoGame/TheClueFinders'' (1998) || ''VideoGame/JumpStart'' (1994) || EdutainmentGame series, in which games up to second grade only involve {{Funny Animal}}s while games from third to sixth grade are about mystery-solving humans. || While the ''VideoGame/ReaderRabbit'' and ''VideoGame/TheClueFinders'' names are used for the Baby-2nd Grade and 3rd-6th Grade series respectively, ''VideoGame/JumpStart'' games from 3rd-6th Grade still keep the same title as the Baby-2nd Grade series. || None; both series sold very well. ||
|| ''VideoGame/MarioPaint'' (1992) || ''Art Alive'' (1992) || Console painting programs. || Even though Sega released Art Alive first in 1991, ''Mario Paint'''s SNES Mouse made painting easier and had more things to do with its custom stamp maker and music composer, and the flyswatter game made ''Mario Paint'' more recognizable. || Neither sold well in their heyday, although ''Mario Paint'' has gotten a new life fan-interest-wise through Website/YouTube (and before [=YouTube=]'s existence, it also had the fly-swatting minigame). ||
|| ''VideoGame/TheFiremen'' (1994) || ''The Ignition Factor'' (1994) || Super Nintendo Action games where you play as fire fighters, putting out fires. || Of the two, ''The Firemen'' is more cartoony, while ''The Ignition Factor'' is more grounded in reality. || Both got decnt review scores at the time. ''The Firemen'' recieved a sequel fro the Playstation, whle ''The Ignition Factor'' was released on the Wii Virtual Console in 2011. ||
|| ''VideoGame/TheIdolmaster'' (2005) || ''VideoGame/DreamCClub'' (2009) || UsefulNotes/Xbox360 games, [[NoExportForYou in Japan]], which had DatingSim and RhythmGame elements. || Although ''Dream C Club'' is a game which focuses on hostesses, it still has singing idol elements for no other reason than to attract ''The iDOLM@STER'' crowd. || ''Dream C Club'' remains a fairly modest series compared to the giant that is ''The iDOLM@STER'' in Japan. As a result, each new ''Dream C'' game got more and more {{Fanservice}}y while ''[=iM@S=]'' remains fairly innocent in comparison. ||
|| ''VideoGame/WiiFit'' (2007) || ''EA Sports Active'' (2009) || Fitness games for the Wii. || ''Wii Fit'' uses the pack-in Balance Board for its exercises, while EA Sports Active uses its own motion sensor and resistance band, allowing for more varied exercises. || Obviously, ''Wii Fit'' has Nintendo's brandname behind it, so in terms of sales, [[CurbStompBattle there's no contest]]. However, many regard ''EA Sports Active'' as the better program. ||
|| ''All-Star Cheer Squad'' (2008) || ''VideoGame/WeCheer'' (2008) || UsefulNotes/{{Wii}}-based [[TheCheerleader cheerleading]] games. || THQ's ''ASCS'' shoots for realism, while Bandai Namco's ''We Cheer'' games take a more cartoony approach. || Both games had [[SurprisinglyImprovedSequel improved second installments]], but the slight critical edge goes to ''ASCS''. ||
|| ''VideoGame/TheElderScrollsVSkyrim'' (2011) || ''VideoGame/DragonsDogma'' (2012) || WideOpenSandbox HighFantasy [[ActionRPG Action RPGs]] with a large focus on dragons as an antagonistic force. || ''Skyrim'' is the fifth game in the long-running ''[[Franchise/TheElderScrolls Elder Scrolls]]'' series, while ''Dragon's Dogma'' was created by Japanese developer Capcom. ''Dragon's Dogma'', however, has much in common with Western [=RPGs=], particularly from an aesthetic standpoint. || ''Skyrim'' is the very clear winner. From a critical standpoint, it's no contest: while both games were well received, ''Skyrim'' has absolutely dominated in review scores. To best illustrate this, Famitsu gave ''Dragon's Dogma'' a score of 34/40, while ''Skyrim'' was given a perfect 40/40 score, [[GermansLoveDavidHasselhoff the first Western game to be given such a score.]] ''Skyrim'' has also enjoyed far greater longevity in the gaming zeitgeist, receiving ports, UpdatedRerelease[=s=], and [[BreadEggsBreadedEggs ports of updated re-releases]] to practically every console released since the game first came out with continued support. ''Dragon's Dogma'', meanwhile, received an online multiplayer follow-up in 2015, which ran for four years and [[NoExportForYou never officially launched outside of Japan]], along with an upscaled port for contemporary consoles. ||
|| ''VisualNovel/KatawaShoujo'' (2012) || ''VisualNovel/EverlastingSummer'' (2013) || {{Animesque}} freeware visual novels with romance and erotic elements, both made in the West and originated on ImageBoards (Website/FourChan and the Russian iichan) roughly at the same time. Both have AnAesop: "the disabled are people too" and "don't waste your life". || ''Summer'' was originally conceived as a horror game and so is more fantastical than ''Katawa'', including elements of time travel, alternate dimensions and such. Also ''Summer'' wears its imageboard origins on its sleeve, with lots of references to Russian anon culture and in-jokes. || ''Katawa Shoujo'' is way more well-known, critically acclaimed and originated several (failed) imitators. However ''Everlasting Summer'' is still very highly regarded among its smaller audience. Since both games are completely free to play, questions of "winners" or "losers" are entirely academic anyway. ||
|| ''VideoGame/FateGrandOrder'' (2015 (JPN), 2017 (NA)) || ''VideoGame/FireEmblemHeroes'' (2017) || Gacha games based on two [[Franchise/{{Nasuverse}} established]] [[Franchise/FireEmblem franchises]], with an overarching original story and the catch of gathering your favorite characters throughout the franchises to form a dream team as well as being playfully referred as a 'waifu simulator' using both franchises' characters. || ''FGO'' was a Japanese exclusive release at first, ''FEH'' had a simultaneous global release, then ''FGO'' had its global release two months later. Because of this, the ''FGO'' NA players actually are given insight on what to come next in order to prepare their savings. || A very tight tie for a long time. Both Aniplex and Nintendo gave these games heavy attention, whereas Aniplex caused the game to become a GatewaySeries for the Franchise/{{Nasuverse}}. ''FGO'' is known for its VERY stingy gacha rate, but it can be done with Single Player. ''FEH'' has an arena-based ranked features where CasualCompetitiveConflict may rear its head, but it has the more widespread brand power of Creator/{{Nintendo}} and the gacha rate is more forgiving, although it has the Boon/Bane system whereas getting your favorite hero doesn't always mean it's the most optimal version (whereas ''FGO'' has none such thing to balance its extremely stingy gacha rate). By 2020, however, ''FGO'' has steadily won awards even in the Global version, while ''FEH'' hasn't seen a great increase in players and introduced a subscription system (FEH Pass) that enraged a lot of fans, thus ''FGO'' currently has the advantage, despite the battle still going on. ||
|| ''VideoGame/EnsembleStars'' (2015) || ''VideoGame/{{IDOLiSH7}}'' (2015)\\
''VideoGame/TheIdolmasterSideM'' (2015)\\
''VideoGame/UtaNoPrincesamaShiningLive'' (2017) || Idol training games born from the gamut of idol training games made in the mid 2010s, but focusing on boys instead of girls. || The majority of these games are spinoff of some sort; ''Enstars'' is a spinoff of the female idol training game ''Ensemble Girls!'' from the same company, ''[=SideM=]'' is spun off from the main ''[[VideoGame/TheIdolmaster iDOLM@STER]]'' franchise, and ''Shining Live'' yet another installment in the popular ''[=UtaPri=]'' franchise. ''[=IDOLiSH=]'', on the other hand, is an original work. || ''Enstars'' by a huge margin. By no means are any of these series suffering, but as far as merchandise, mobile revenue and fan reception go, ''Enstars'' gets the lion's share of love. It regularly competes with mobile giant ''VideoGame/TheIdolmasterCinderellaGirls'' and ''VideoGame/LoveLive'', scored four original stage plays, and has a wealth of supplementary material to keep fans satisfied. And all this ''before'' it even got an anime, something the other three franchises can't say for themselves. However, ''[=IDOLiSH=]'' is not far behind; it follows just behind ''Enstars'' as the second most popular male idol game on mobile and scored its own very successful anime adaptation. While ''[=SideM=]'' and ''Shining Live'' are lagging behind quite a bit, with ''Live on Stage'' being a contentious game, both are still well loved; ''[=SideM=]'' has had two well received adaptations and a handful of manga, while ''Shining Live'' has been trucking along. But even with all these factors, one cannot deny just how big each series is. ||
|| ''VideoGame/{{Dreams}}'' (2020) || ''VideoGame/GameBuilderGarage'' (2021) || Console exclusive GameMaker games that uses built-in programming nodes to program game logic. || ''Dreams'' is a SpiritualSuccessor to the ''VideoGame/LittleBigPlanet'' games, allowing players to design detailed environments, characters, and even sounds and music. ''Game Builder Garage'' is a stand-alone expansion of the "Toy-Con Garage" editor from ''VideoGame/NintendoLabo'' and is simpler to use than ''Dreams'', but is more limited in that only built-in models, characters and environments can be used, outside of a limited sprite editor. Last but not least, ''Dreams'' has an in-game online portal allowing players to easily find new content while ''Game Builder Garage'' content can only be shared through codes on other online platforms. || Too early to tell. ||