Top 20 Greatest Spin-Off Video Games

Spin-off? Yeah, I think so... Did other people consider it a spin-off? …That’s not an important question at this juncture, so I’m gonna move on. An exciting aspect of spin-off games is how they expand the original game’s story, adding depth to the plot, characters, and nuances. Crisis Core: Final Fantasy 7 excels at this. Crisis Core doesn’t just excel as a game on its own, but it enhances elements of the original game in indescribable ways. While its over-the-top style and melodrama might not appeal to everyone, these qualities contribute to its charm.

You might be more familiar with developer Telltale’s OTHER games, like The Walking Dead and Game of Thrones. But did you know they made an OUTSTANDING Telltale-style game in the world of Borderlands? Set between Borderlands 2 and 3, this episodic story centers on Rhys, an ambitious corporate climber eager to take Handsome Jack’s place as Hyperion’s leader. Teaming up with Fiona, a savvy con artist, the two are pulled into a dangerous scheme gone wrong. The game has events that directly affect the main series, which is one of those ingredients of the recipe that makes a delicious spin-off game.

I fully and truly believe that if Revelations had been released BEFORE Resident Evil 6, it may have been more widely appreciated, but the general public was fatigued from this weak sixth entry before the series was saved by Resident Evil 7, the entry that is often wrongly celebrated as the franchise’s return to survival horror. IT WAS REVELATIONS, YOU GUYS!! PLAY THIS GAME!! Originally released as a 3DS exclusive, Revelations didn’t let its platform limit the intense atmosphere and grotesque monsters Capcom created. Revelations follows Jill Valentine and Chris Redfield as they uncover the secrets of the T-Abyss virus, and it, as well as Revelations 2, have stories that are incredibly full.

The Legend of Zelda series (EVER HEARD OF IT?) follows Link, a young Hylian who repeatedly finds himself responsible for the fate of Hyrule, defending it from dark forces seeking to overthrow Princess Zelda and claim power. While Ganondorf is typically the main antagonist, a few titles break from this tradition. None, however, diverges quite like Hyrule Warriors. Instead of the usual high-fantasy adventure with exploration, monster battles, and dungeon crawling, Hyrule Warriors shifts focus to fast-paced, hack-and-slash gameplay where players take on waves of enemies in action-packed battles. It’s dope, and you should play it.

Not only is Tony Hawk’s Underground one of the best spin-off games ever made, but I’d make an argument that it’s the BEST Tony Hawk game ever made... But that’s contentious, and not what we’re here for. The story is actually engaging for the first time ever, allowing you to take your own self-made character on a journey to becoming a pro-skater. The gameplay introduces mechanics that make the world feel more full, and placed the stepping stones for future games that made the gameplay go from amazing, to mind-blowingly incredible. It’s the first game in the series that allowed you to dismount your skateboard and explore the world on foot, and the first game in the series that glued me to my couch for weeks.

Final Fantasy Tactics stands out as a fan-favorite FF entry, even among the mammoths in the main series. What makes Final Fantasy Tactics such a beloved spin-off is how it captures the spirit of the main series, feeling both fresh and familiar. This familiarity is largely thanks to its class system, inspired by the mainline games, and the inclusion of iconic Final Fantasy characters. It’s a gameplay style that feels different, but scratches the same itch as the turn-based style that defined the series at the time.

Turn 10 Studios’ Forza Motorsport launched in 2005 on the original Xbox, providing Microsoft with a strong contender to Sony’s Gran Turismo series on PlayStation. Whether Forza Motorsport ever surpassed Gran Turismo is still a topic of debate (it didn’t), but it undeniably offered Xbox players a top-tier racing experience to enjoy. However, the game’s intense focus on realism and accuracy proved polarizing, leading to the creation of a more arcade-friendly spin-off: Forza Horizon. This new direction offered a more accessible experience that appealed to a broader audience while still honoring the spirit of the original.

Judgment is a standout spin-off because it combines the gripping crime drama of the Yakuza series with fresh perspectives and gameplay elements. Set in the same gritty Kamurocho, it tells a unique story through a detective with a complex past, offering players a new lens on the criminal underworld. With investigative gameplay, including tracking suspects, collecting clues, and courtroom battles, it adds depth beyond the traditional brawler mechanics of Yakuza.

Pokémon Go! EVER HEARD OF IT!? A global sensation upon its release, Pokémon Go took the world by storm when it launched on mobile in 2016, racking up over 500 million downloads within its first year. Right from the start, players recognized the brilliance of this deceptively simple game. By encouraging exploration of real-world locations and chance encounters with other players, Pokémon Go offered a unique journey that continues to resonate. Though walking around isn’t practical or enjoyable for everyone, the game brilliantly expanded on the universal charm of the original Pokémon games, making it a groundbreaking experience.

A near-perfect game in many ways, and TECHNICALLY a spin-off, even though many people think it’s Mega Man 10, not Mega Man X. With a thrilling soundtrack, vibrant color palette, tight controls, and iconic bosses and stages, Mega Man X truly delivers. The game also shines with replay value, hiding secrets like the Street Fighter Hadouken and adding clever features, such as completing one level to change another's environment.

I guess Metal Gear Solid could technically be argued as a spin-off to Metal Gear. So does this mean Rising is a spin-off to a spin-off? Spin-off-ception? The series is famed for its stealth-based gameplay, encouraging players to slip past enemies with patience rather than brute force. Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance, is as far the other direction as you can imagine. Set in 2018, four years after the events of Metal Gear Solid 4, players take on the role of Raiden, slashing, smashing, and bashing their way through enemies.

NOW! This was up for debate, but even the DEVELOPERS consider Apollo Justice a spin-off from the Ace Attorney series, so take your comments to their inbox! Apollo Justice: Ace Attorney excels as a fresh addition to the Ace Attorney series, introducing new characters, innovative gameplay mechanics, and a story that is as good IF NOT BETTER than the main games. The game also cleverly ties into past series events while carving out its own identity, presenting complex cases and memorable characters that add fuel to the franchise.

We could do an entire list of Super Mario spin-offs, because TECHNICALLY the majority of their games are just spin-offs of Super Mario Bros., but we’ve shown restraint. Luigi’s Mansion is a delightful twist on the series, putting Luigi in the spotlight as he explores a haunted mansion filled with secrets and surprises… OH and ghosts. Armed with his trusty vacuum, Luigi’s unique ghost-hunting gameplay is both charming and inventive, blending puzzle-solving with exploration. Luigi’s mansion rocks.

Released the year I was born, Donkey Kong Country was the second best thing to drop that year! With exceptional controls, Donkey Kong Country on the Super Nintendo stands as one of the finest platformers ever made. Its outstanding level design, packed with cleverly hidden secrets, vibrant colors, iconic pre-rendered 90s graphics, memorable characters, and some of the best music on the SNES, make it a near-perfect game. Wait, is Super Mario just a spin-off to Donkey Kong? IS ANYTHING ORIGINAL!?

Released in 1992, Super Mario Kart was a kart spin-off game to Super Mario Bros... And it began one of the best Super Mario spin-off series, if not THE best, ever made. What can I say that hasn’t already been said? From Mario Kart 64, to Mario Kart 8, this game defined couch co-op for a whole generation, and has gone on to define online competitive gaming for a new generation of Nintendo players. It’s fun, it’s easy to pick-up, and it’s dope to master... Go Mario Kart, you’re doing great!

Respawn Entertainment’s high-speed shooter, Titanfall, always seemed overshadowed by Battlefield. But in 2019, Respawn struck gold by launching Apex Legends, a battle royale spin on Titanfall featuring hero shooter mechanics. Apex Legends has blown up beyond expectation, making most players forget it’s even related to Titanfall at all. Released with a surprise same-day announcement across multiple platforms, Apex Legends quickly captured a massive audience. It has since become one of the top battle royale games, arguably only rivaled by Fortnite.

Revelations: Persona (or Persona 1) was the first entry that kicked off the beloved series, but it was in fact a spin off of Digital Devil Story: Megami Tensei, which began as a sci-fi/horror novel trilogy in the 1980s, and was later adapted into a video game for the Famicom in 1987. Since then, over 40 Megami Tensei games have been released. While it retains themes from early Megami Tensei titles, Persona shifted focus to psychology and relationships. By the 2008 release of Persona 4, the series had eclipsed the original franchise in popularity.

The Sims is one of the best-selling games ever, and has become so engrained in pop culture, even for non-video game fans. It basically popularized the simulator genre, which as we all know is insanely popular today. The series’ roots go back to the first SimCity game, released in 1989, followed by sequels in 1993 and 1999. Ironically, this spin-off, The Sims, became a far bigger success upon release than the original SimCity titles, with most players now assuming SimCity is a spin-off of The Sims, and not the other way around.

Fallout... Ever heard of it? The Fallout series places players in a post-apocalyptic world shaped by nuclear devastation, staying true to its name. With multiple main titles and an online multiplayer entry, the franchise expanded with a beloved spin-off: Fallout: New Vegas. Developed by Obsidian, this entry is WIDELY considered the series' best. It is insanely open, giving players more control of the world than any other title in the series. Considering New Vegas as a spin-off is hard to do considering JUST how integral it is to the series overall, but, technically, it is!

It’s surprising to think that World of Warcraft is technically a spin-off. When it launched in 2004, it quickly outlasted the original Warcraft games that defined Blizzard’s real-time strategy series and helped popularize gaming in the ’90s. Although the three Warcraft games were critically acclaimed and successful, none could match the impact of World of Warcraft. This MMORPG spin-off vastly expanded the world of Azeroth and beyond in ways few could have predicted. It is the king of the MMORPG genre, and probably will be till this big blue planet of ours explodes.