Everybody knows that franchise games are terrible. All the videogame tie-ins for popular intellectual properties are absolutely horrid: rushed, broken, boring, sometimes unplayable. And this isn’t something new. While most of the current day franchise tie-ins are terrible, a franchise tie-in almost wiped out the video game industry thirty years ago. Nonetheless there are a few franchise games that are quite good and, curiously a lot of those are from cartoon franchises. So without further ado, here’s a list of the best animated franchise games.
10. Hercules
Whether you played it on your computer or on one of the 64/3d-generation consoles Hercules was awesome, possibly the last big platformer modelled after a Disney franchise. Though Capcom didn’t release it but (sadly defunct) Eurocom instead the game still had some of that old-time Disney flair despite boasting some 3-d level pizazz.
9. Ben 10
The world of cartoon videogames is past its prime but thankfully when it comes to videogame series you can rely on networks and fans alike to produce solid enjoyable old-school arcade games. Welcome to the world ben10fire.com n incredibly addictive compilation of fan and network produced old-school games based on new-school IP. Protip: don’t go over there during the workday or you might gather the wrath of your boss.
8. Beauty and the Beast (SNES)
Disney had a lot of fantastic tie-in games and beauty and the beast was no exception. Though it was released on several platforms the SNES version was the stand-out, weaving the story in between game levels and pitting you against the evil Gaston in the end. There was even a snowball fight sequence!
7. Epic Mickey
A recent addition to the Disney game library Epic Mickey is a reinventing of the Disney video game, a dark trip down nostalgia lane with a bright happy finish. Epic Mickey is proof that Disney still has it, even in today’s console world of triple-A titles.
6. Harvey Birdman: Attorney at Law
One of the funniest games on the list, the Harvey birdman: Attorney videogame tie-in was absolutely hilarious and kept the feel and look of the spoof show. It also gained quite a bit from Capcom’s own Ace Attorney series, the game playing exactly the same. A great game flavoured as a great cartoon IP? More like this, please!
5. Duck Tales
Everybody’s favourite gazillionairre duck uncle embarks on a globetrotting adventure with nothing but his wits and trusty cane. How could you not like this, especially in the days of the NES, when every other game was a dud. Duck tales was great and its music and sound design were fantastic for that day.
4. Chip and Dale Rescue Rangers
Speaking of the NES, here’s another game that was unbelievably good for 8bit and not only for a franchise tie-in but for a game in general. Chip and Dale Rescue Rangers was a breakthrough for its day and age and still is one of the best NES games out there.
3. The Lion King
This SNES marvel was one of the best side scrollers of all time, a game so awesome that you could not resist it back when it came out and that stands up even today as a great fun game and a fantastic movie tie-in if ever there was one. Charting the life of Simba from childhood to final battle with his treacherous uncle the game was challenging but not insanely so, so much that we all got to play and remember it.
2. Kingdom Hearts
Here’s a game that got made probably by way of some really potent drugs: a game that mixes Disney and Square Enix characters in a action-RPG. How did this game come about? We don’t know. But as one of the best and most memorable games ever made we are glad for whatever fortunate circumstances came together to get this.
1. Alladin
Alladin is a great game. No, actually Alladin is two great games. Two different games, one for the SNES and one for the Genesis. Different games, equally funny, interesting, lively, challenging and everything else that you might hope to find in a game. Intense and incredible, Disney hit a home run with Alladin on all platforms it was released on.
