We’ve all sat around and thought about our favorite franchises colliding or joining forces. Games are special in the way crossovers are commonplace in the industry. From Street Fighter x Tekken to Super Smash Brothers and Kingdom Hearts, you have multiple series that bring together various worlds and characters that people have grown to love. We are going to take a look at a few game crossovers we think need to happen.
10 Game Crossovers That Need to Happen
Castlevania/Dark Souls
Known for its challenging difficulty more than anything else, Dark Souls has left a major mark on the industry at large with many games trying to emulate the style of franchise. Souls-like has now become a sub-genre of its own, seeing the release of Koei Tecmo’s Nioh, among others. Similarly, Castlevania helped establish the Metroidvania genre of games and was equally challenging in its early days.
Both games exist in worlds reminiscent of late medieval Europe and make use of Gothic architecture and tarnished Christian iconology to promote a darker tone. The Belmont family, as well as the protagonists of Dark Souls, fight against demons, monsters and the undead, using a number of skills and magic to defeat their enemies.
The boss encounters in both series are iconic, the assortment of enemies include a half-spider witch, a giant butterfly, Death, Dracula, and much more. And let’s not forget how incredible the music is in both of them.
A crossover between these two franchises is a no-brainer. I’d personally like to see a Castlevania title in the Souls-like genre. Still, I wouldn’t be opposed to Simon Belmont making an appearance in one of From Software’s sadistic worlds, rolling around in an attempt to avoid enemies much stronger than him. It certainly feels like a match made in hell.
10 Game Crossovers That Need to Happen
Silent Hill/Resident Evil
The original PlayStation saw the introduction of some incredible survival horror titles, such as Silent Hill and Resident Evil. These games are synonymous with each other for that reason. So, it makes a lot of sense for these games to crossover. The tones of these games are different as Resident Evil has had genre changes over the years. However, they’ve crossed paths as well, particularly Resident Evil 7, which shares gameplay elements with PT, a demo for the now cancelled Silent Hills.
These franchises have long histories with tons of characters to pull from. A fighting game using these characters would be probably the easiest way to create a crossover. Just imagine something similar to Mortal Kombat X, in terms of how that game introduced characters like Jason Voorhees, Leatherface, Alien, and Predator.
Capcom has some experience with fighting games with Street Fighter and Marvel vs. Capcom. Making a more violent and grittier title with the help of Konami could be really cool. Imagine Nemesis versus Pyramid Head, or Chris Redfield versus Harry Mason. The Arcade ladder through Silent Hill and Resident Evil locations would be great to see as well. Fighting on the streets of Racoon City, or in the fog world or village from Resident Evil 4 would be rather interesting. It’d be some gritty fun all with the quality of a Capcom fighter.
10 Game Crossovers That Need to Happen
Onimusha/Shin Megami Tensei
Demons. They come in all shapes and sizes. Some try to eat you, others like to have a nice conversation. In Onimusha, you play as a samurai that kills demons and absorbs their souls using a gauntlet given to you by the 12 Oni Gods. In Shin Megami Tensei, you must communicate with demons and convince them to join your team. You then use them to fight against other demons. In both series, you see demons as intelligent beings. They talk to you, threaten you, and try to kill you. Shin Megami Tensei takes place in modern or post-apocalyptic Japan while Onimusha has spent most of its time in Sengoku Japan, excluding the time travel plot of the third title.
Now, these games are different genres, with Shin Megami Tensei being a JRPG franchise and Onimusha being an action-adventure game. If they were to crossover, using the combat system from Shin Megami Tensei would make the most sense.
The best way of having these series crossover is reusing the time travel plot from Onimusha 3. Samanosuke is sent into the distant future, a la Samurai Jack. You can even put him in one of Shin Megami Tensei’s post-apocalyptic timelines. Samanosuke can meet, communicate and fight with demons from the Shin Megami Tensei games in an attempt to return to his time.
10 Game Crossovers That Need to Happen
Bayonetta/Devil May Cry
This one is kind of easy to see, and the comparisons have been made countless times. Both Bayonetta and Devil May Cry were created by Hideki Kamiya. Both have similar themes with the main difference being what types of enemies you’re killing. In DMC, you’re killing Demons, and in Bayonetta you’re killing Angels.
Now, the two games aren’t identical, but fans of both series have wanted the two to crossover for some time. Bayonetta and Dante especially have been compared to each other and both characters are familiar with crossover games, having appeared in Smash Brothers and Marvel vs. Capcom respectively. Kamiya himself even said last year that he wants to do a crossover with these two games.
Now, of course, seeing as both these franchises love large combo strings, any game that comes from the mixing of the two would be action-packed. There’s no better time to do it than now, as Devil May Cry 5 is coming out in March 2019 and Bayonetta 3 is currently in development.
10 Game Crossovers That Need to Happen
Megaman/Metroid
Classic icons of the Nintendo Entertainment System, both Samus and Mega Man are characters that people really do love. Now, the two have met before in Super Smash Brothers, but they should crossover in a different type of setting.
Both franchises started as platformers with distinct types of game structure, Metroid with its upgrades and backtracking-focused gameplay, and Mega Man, with its boss selection screen, allowing the player to decide how difficult they want the game to be, depending on the order they decide to challenge the Robot Masters. There’s something to say about the character’s designs too, seeing as they both have cannons for arms.
Samus and the Blue Bomber could join each other on an adventure in one of these two genres, working together to defeat a common foe. Or you could have them trade enemies. There’s a ton you could do with these jumping and shooting characters.
Capcom and Nintendo’s relationship has been pretty great as of late and Mega Man’s presence on the Switch has grown with the release of the Mega Man Collection 1+2 and Mega Man 11. Metroid Prime 4 is also in active development at Nintendo. So, alongside their appearance in Super Smash Brothers Ultimate, we should definitely see these two crossover.
10 Game Crossovers That Need to Happen
Star Fox/Galaga
Star Fox is a dog fighting, on-rails shooter and it’s one of the best. Galaga is an iconic arcade shooter. Now this wouldn’t be Fox’s first time collaborating with other franchises. He’s been a long-time fighter in Super Smash Brothers, and his father, James McCloud, is referenced with a character of the same name in F-Zero. On top of that, Fox is joining the Starlink crew on the Nintendo Switch on Oct. 16. Why can’t he fight giant insects alongside the iconic red, white and blue ship from Galaga?
It would also be really cool as a nod to gaming history. Bandai Namco could make a new Galaga game in the style of a Star Fox title. You can have Fox show up or have the Arwing available as a flyable ship. Or maybe Nintendo puts together an 8-bit, top down shooter themed around Star Fox. An 8-bit Arwing would be awesome to see.
These are games that are important in what they’ve done for the sci-fi genre. Especially Galaga, which could use a reboot. Crossovers have been in vogue at Nintendo as of late with crossovers between Fire Emblem and Shin Megami Tensei as well as Mario and the Rabbids. And like that last one, Star Fox and Galaga are a combination no one would see coming, but it would be one heck of a ride.
10 Game Crossovers That Need to Happen
Virtua Fighter/King of Fighters
SNK’s King of Fighters franchise has been around for quite some time, with its latest release being King of Fighters XIV. Alternatively, Virtua Fighter has been dormant for a while, with its last release being Virtua Fighter V: Final Showdown in 2012, a re-release of the 2007 game.
This one is pretty self-explanatory; fighting games quite often crossover and it’s the easiest way to bring different IPs together. KOF and Virtua Fighter are high-profile fighting game franchises that have consistently been outshined by their competitors, such as Street Fighter and Tekken.
Now, one obstacle for this crossover would be that Virtua Fighter is a 3D fighter and that KOF is a 2D fighter. That said, it would be really simple just to make a 2D fighter using both sets of characters. SEGA published Dengeki Bunko: Fighting Climax back in 2014, a 2D fighting game with Virtua Fighter poster child Akira Yuki available as playable character.
Another issue would be deciding on the roster because KOF has over 50 fighters in its newest release, compared to Virtua Fighter’s 20. However, Virtua Fighter has its share of spin-offs to pull from and a crossover between these two franchises would be pretty fun.
10 Game Crossovers That Need to Happen
Phantasy Star/Final Fantasy
Final Fantasy, as a franchise, is at the top when it comes to the JRPG genre. SEGA’s response to the success of Final Fantasy during the console wars was Phantasy Star. Phantasy Star put out some incredible titles on the Genesis, including Phantasy Star IV, which is definitely worth a play even today.
When it comes to JRPG franchises outside of Final Fantasy, a few stand out, such as Dragon Quest, the Tales series, and Persona. However, it’s been a long time since SEGA has put out a JRPG in the franchise, focusing more on the MMO and action RPG genres after the death of the Dreamcast.
Final Fantasy characters have crossed over a ton over the years, as far back as Ehrgeiz: God Bless the Ring in 1998, and have had Monster Hunter and even Assassin’s Creed crossover with their titles. You could easily have cross promotion between Phantasy Star Online 2 and Final Fantasy XIV. Or you can have Phantasy Star characters appear in Dissidia. However, I’d like to see a return to the roots of both franchises with a turn-based RPG and an original story that just happens to have characters from both series.
10 Game Crossovers That Need to Happen
Rayman/Spyro
Platforming icons, Spyro and Rayman have had similar paths in the industry. They were created to be mascot characters by two studios who would become very successful in Insomniac and Ubisoft. Both characters had three, generally well-received, games, but by the end of the PS2 era, they were either lost or non-existent.
Spyro would eventually drown in a sea of Skylanders and Rayman would be overtaken by spin-off characters, the Rabbids, but both are primed for a comeback. Rayman Legends has done well, so much so that series creator Michel Ancel says he wants to make Rayman 4. Spyro Reignited Trilogy is set to be released on Nov. 13 and fans are hoping that good sales will convince publisher Activision to make a new game in the series.
These two characters and game franchises are similar in a lot of ways. Both exist in magical worlds with awesome level design and musical scores. They are troubled franchises finding their way back from the ether.
Spyro has already teamed up with Crash Bandicoot in past games. With Crash, Spyro, and Rayman being some of the most iconic PlayStation mascots, it would be incredible to see a game with Spyro and Rayman finally teaming up. Now, Activision and Ubisoft working together to actually do it is another matter altogether.
10 Game Crossovers That Need to Happen
Ratchet and Clank/Jax and Daxter
While we’re on the topic of platforming mascots, during the PS2 era, two games stood out, and they came from very familiar places. Ratchet and Clank was the brain child of Spyro developer Insomniac Games, and Jak and Daxter was from the studio behind Crash Bandicoot, Naughty Dog.
Both of these titles are 3D platformers and have a very similar feel, despite their differences in setting. Ratchet and Clank is in the far future, while Jak and Daxter is in a more fantasy type setting, but they both approach magic in a very sci-fi kind of way.
As the title of each game suggests, these games have two main characters, the hero and the sidekick. They share very similar tones, have similar humor, and even released within one year of each other. These games are so close they generally are not spoken about independent of each other.
Now, full disclosure, they have crossed over before, but in the train wreck that was PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale. What needs to happen is a true crossover with Ratchet and Clank meeting Jak and Daxter. Maybe dark eco is involved, or you could have Ratchet and Jak switch places. Then, Daxter and Clank must help them with the goal of stopping the bad guy responsible. All so they can return to their respective worlds.
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