See what I did there?
To celebrate this magnificent 4th of July holiday, I am going to do a myriad of things: I am going to eat more hamburgers and hot dogs than most people would think physically possible; I am going to light a sparkler, wave it around in my hand, and pretend that I am Harry Potter; and, most importantly, I am going to present to all of you the best and worst “4th” games in popular videogame series.
Surprisingly, there are many videogames that produce very strong sequels — some even gettingbetterwith age. Unfortunately, there are also many games that just seem to get worse and worse the longer designers choose to drag them out. By the time games reach thefourthgame in their respective series, they are either thriving with a newfound creativity, or struggling to hang on to an already tired audience.
So which “4th” games are shining examples of sequels gone right, and which are sad reminders of what can happen when good videogame series go bad?
Hit the jump for a list of “4th” videogames that stand out as high points in their respective series … as well as some that, well,don’t.
And I am not kidding about that Harry Potter thing. EXPELLIARMUS!
Best!Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare(PC, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360)
Before I playedCall of Duty 4: Modern WarfareI had this completely ignorant impression in my mind that first-person shooters were nothing more than mindless games that had nothing else going for them outside of perfect headshots.
After playing this game, my opinion completely changed.Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfareis easily the best game in the series, with some of the most well-designed action set pieces and mind-blowing story sequences of any game I have ever played, FPS or not.
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Worst!Contra Force(NES)
Oh, Konami, what were you thinking?! After the perfection that wasContra III: The Alien Warsfor the SNES, you decided to go back to the original Nintendo and create this weird, slowdown-riddled mess of a sequel that doesn’t even feel like a realContragame. Shame on you.
At least the actualnumberedfourth game in the series — the extraordinaryContra 4for the Nintendo DS — made everyone forget about the dark times in theContratimeline.
Best!Final Fantasy IV(SNES)
Nowthisis how you do a sequel!Final Fantasy IVtruly revolutionized the series with a heavy (and successful) focus on story and characters. This, coupled with the new real-time battle system and some of the best music in aFinal Fantasyever, makesFinal Fantasy IVan absolute masterpiece and my personal second favoriteFinal Fantasygame of all time.
Best of the best:Oh my goodness, where to begin?! There are almost too many amazing moments to count: Palom and Porom’s noble sacrifice; Cecil turning into a Paladin; the trip to the Moon; Golbez’s secret; Edward’s relationship with Anna. Really, the list goes on and on.
Best!King’s Quest IV: The Perils of Rosella(PC)
As far as the absolutebestin the series, that crown (pun intended) goes toKing’s Quest VI: Heir Today, Gone Tomorrow. ButKing’s Quest IVis still an incredible game and one of the crown jewels (again, pun intended) in Sierra’s pristine adventure game tiara.
For starters, the game was the first in the series to implement the text-entering feature that actually pauses the action on-screen and lets you take your time entering the tricky combination of verbs and nouns that are required to proceed. (For anyone that is a fan of these games, you know how wonderful this pause function is.) Also, it was the firstKing’s Questgame to star a female playable character (Princess Rosella) — a revolutionary move for the time.
Best of the best:For fans of details, the way Rosella’s braids swing as she walks is a charming graphical touch. The whole game features welcome additions like these.
Best!The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening(Game Boy)
Following up the jaw-droppingly goodA Link to the Pastwith a new Game Boy-exclusive Zelda using similar graphics and gameplay was a huge risk. But one that paid off in spades!
The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakeningis a masterpiece in every way. The less powerful hardware didn’t even make a difference when bringing a series as epic in scope asZeldato the Game Boy. From the well-designed bosses to the surprisingly dark and moving story, every aspect of what makes a Zelda game great stayed intact inLink’s Awakening— some even improved!
Best of the best:“The Ballad of the Wind Fish.” Still one of the best pieces of music inZeldahistory.
Worst!Mega Man 4(NES)
Mega Man 4is notbadby any means. It is aMega Mangame on the NES, for crying out loud —allof them were at the very least decent! But when you are the first sequel to follow the extraordinaryMega Man 2andMega Man 3, some form of disappointment is inevitable.
It also doesn’t help thatMega Man 4has some of the strangest, most uninspired robot masters in the series.
Worst of the worst:Ring Man. Really?
Best!Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots(PlayStation 3)
Any talk of the newMetal Gear Solid: Risingor rumors of a supposedMetal Gear Solid 5game is always met with me covering my ears like a 5-year-old and singing “la la la” really loud to drown out any leaked noise. To me,Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriotsis not only a masterwork, but theperfectend to the wonderfully complicatedMetal Gear Solidseries. It makes me sad to think Konami would continue the series any farther.
Metal Gear Solid 4is filled to the brim with extraordinary production values, clever boss fights, and one of the greatest climaxes in videogame history. I really can’t say enough good things about the game.
Best of the best:The scene when Snake returns to a familiar location is a defining moment in the series and one of the most beautiful and haunting videogame sequences I have ever experienced.
Best!Metroid Fusion(Game Boy Advance)
Allof the traditionalMetroidgames are amazing! That’s pretty much all I have to say.
Best of the best:Although the game is more linear than others in the series, the level design inMetroid Fusionis stellar.
Worst!Resident Evil Code: Veronica(Dreamcast)
Dag! If only theResident Evilgames were all numbered correctly, this section of the article would be dedicated to praising howResident Evil 4is the best iteration in the series and one of the greatest (if not the greatest) survival horror games ever created.
Instead, the true fourth game in the series is the oddResident Evil Code: Veronica, originally released for the Sega Dreamcast.
Like withMega Man 4,Code Veronicaisn’t really a bad game. In fact, it’s actually a reallygoodgame, most notable for being the firstResident Evilgame to use 3D backgrounds and a semi-first-person mode. But despite the game’s strengths, looking back, it comes across as a very awkward installment in the classic series. Again, not bad, just …different.
Worst of the worst:Despite using new, fancy 3D technology, the archaicResident Evilcontrol scheme still remains. sigh
Worst!Silent Hill 4: The Room(PC, PlayStation 2, Xbox)
Fellow editor Colette Bennett really likesSilent Hill 4: The Room. And, honestly, that is almost enough to make me love it as well. Heck, Colette could tell me she loved eating razor blades and you can bet there would be a bowl full of Gilettes sitting on my breakfast table the next morning.
But, sadly, I can’t bring myself to fall in love with this sometimes sloppy sequel.
The gameplay in this PlayStation 2 iteration is very similar to its predecessors, and the classic canon and creepy atmosphere is intact … but something about the weird “room” mechanic and confusing puzzles makesSilent Hill 4feel off when compared to the rest of the series.
Best!Sonic & Knuckles(Genesis)
Right before I started writing this feature I had a vague memory thatSonic & Knuckleswas not a very good game. I don’t know exactly why, but I hadn’t played it in a while and something in my mind kept associating that troublemaker Knuckles with, well,trouble.
Once all the other editors started yelling at me thatSonic & Knuckleswas actually good, I went home and played it again.
Boy, was I wrong.Sonic & Knucklesis amazing! To be honest, I think I even love it more thanSonic the Hedgehog 3! Chalk another one up for the “best” side!
What the heck is wrong with my memory? Am I going to find out thatTwo Men and a Little Ladyis actually a masterpiece?
Best of the best:I never thought I wouldn’t miss Tails (I love the little guy!), but playing as Knuckles isawesome.
Worst!Star Fox: Assault(GameCube)
After the strange, but well-madeStar Fox Adventures, you would think that gamers everywhere would embrace a brand new, classicStar Foxflying game for the GameCube. Anything invoking the greatness that isStar Fox 64can’t be bad, right?
Sadly,Star Fox: Assaultturned out to be a surprisinglyblahentry in the usually exciting series. Even though three different modes of play were available — Arwing, tank, or on foot missions — only the Arwing levels (and the tank ones to a point) were tolerable.
Worst of the worst:The on-foot portions. These sequences suffered from sloppy control and, even worse, uninspired gameplay.
Best!Street Fighter IV(Arcade, PC, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360)
If you count all the special editions and re-releases, the technical fourth game in theStreet Fighterseries would easily have a “II” still in it. And that’s just really weird. So I am not going to count those and just go by the actual full game releases instead. It makes things less confusing.
For a “4th” game,Street Fighter IVis exceptional. Combining the best features ofStreet Fighter IIandStreet Fighter III: Third Strike, the anticipated sequel met its high expectations and managed to deliver arguably the most addictive fighting gameplay in the series.
Best of the best:A tie between Chun-Li’s massive thighs and Ryu’smassive package.
Best!Super Castlevania IV(SNES)
While technically not the actual fourth game in the series — there was a mini Game Boy adventure released before it —Super Castlevania IVis referred to by many as the true successor toCastlevania III, so that’s good enough to qualify it for this list!
Fond memories alone will qualify thisCastlevaniasequel as one of the best in the series. Although it got rid of the non-linearity ofCastlevania IIand the ingenious character-selection ofIII,Super Castlevania IVis basically a beautiful reimagining of the original game, which is a wonderful thing in many gamers’ eyes. Also, the music! Don’t even get me started on the music!
Best of the best:Remember the Mode 7-centric sequence when Simon Belmont hangs from his whip while the screen literally rotates around him? Classic.
Best!Super Mario World(SNES)
Some gamers callSuper Mario World— the fourthconsole-specificMario game (sorry for not counting you,Super Mario Land! XOXO) — the best Mario platformer ever made. Personally, I give that honor toSuper Mario GalaxyandSuper Mario World 2: Yoshi’s Island, but I would be a fool to not understand why people would make that proclamation.Super Mario Worldis an outstanding game — one of the greatest 2D side-scrolling games ever created — and an absolute highlight in theMarioseries.
Best of the best:Yoshi! Also, do you remember the pure joy you felt the first time you entered a Ghost House?
Worst!Tomb Raider: The Last Revelation(PlayStation)
By the timeTomb Raiderhit the end of its third game, people around the world were starting to grow tired of Lara Croft’s globetrotting adventures. Instead of reviving the series with brand-new gameplay and a fresh approach,Tomb Raider: The Last Revelationfor the PlayStation brought back all of the same old moves and locations Lara had visited three times already.
The result did not destroy theTomb Raiderseries — you may thankThe Angel of Darknessfor that — but it didn’t do it any favors, either.
Worst of the worst:Nothing in particular. It is the lack of anything exciting that makesTomb Raider: The Last Revelationso boring.
So, as you can see, it looks like most videogame series have many moregreatfourth installments than subpar ones. In your face, movies!
Obviously there are hundreds more videogame series with hundreds more “4th” games that I didn’t mention. Do any of these stick out as having particularly great or terrible fourth games? Of all the “4th” games ever made, which is your favorite? Your least favorite?
Once you sound off in the comments, go outside and grab yourself some potato salad and a cherry bomb. It isn’t very often you get to enjoy some amazing food while watching things blow up in front you.
