God of War: Ragnarok and 4 Other Must-Play Sequels to Gaming’s Greatest Franchises

Last Updated on: 29 December, 2023 | 1:03 PM

Making a sequel to a game is one of the trickiest things to accomplish, especially when the former games have broken the records. This creates additional pressure on the developers as the players’ expectations reach a peak that is hard to reach. Developers often fail to meet players’ expectations, but a few renowned franchises consistently excel with each new release in their popular series. One can take the God of War: Ragnarok as an example. If you are a gamer, there are lots of exciting sequels that you should not miss. If you are looking for a few must-play sequels, this guide will provide you with the list.

Selecting the top five must-play sequels is not an undemanding job. From millions of games, it’s hard to find sequels that amazed players more than their prequels. But after a detailed research, we have made this list and suggest you not to miss them.

5. The Legend Of Zelda: Tears Of The Kingdom

The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom is one of the most successful games of 2023. After the massive success of The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild in 2017, players had been waiting eagerly for its sequel to continue their journey. Though Nintendo took six years to bring the next part, it blew away players’ minds. Until 2023, Breath of the Wild used to be the biggest game of The Legend of Zelda series, but Tears of the Kingdom has surpassed its prequel in every aspect.

This game features two new locations along with Hyrule to explore: the Sky and the Depths. While the Sky has floating islands to visit, Depths is an underground area beneath Hyrule. Players must explore both to complete the quests and find weapons. Even after being a Nintendo Switch exclusive game, The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom received popularity more than many other games on this list, or even other massive releases of 2023.

4. The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt

The Witcher series is one of the most renowned action-adventure series of all time. Though not every game of this series fulfilled the expectations of players, The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt nailed it. Released in 2015, The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt was the third and the most successful installment in the series. It has improved everything that fell short on its prequels.

Playing as Geralt of Rivia, players must explore the in-game fantasy world based on Slavic mythology. Compared to the prequels, The Witcher 3 has a more immersive world with insane amounts of detail and plenty to explore. The fast-travel system is well-crafted and though the main story sometimes lacks interest, the side quests compensate for all.

This game is available on every platform, including Nintendo Switch and Xbox One. If you haven’t yet tried it, we recommend jumping into the game without a second thought.

3. Resident Evil 4

Talking about survival horror games instantly brings to mind the Resident Evil series. This series has several excellent games to play, including the remake versions; but none can surpass the gameplay of Resident Evil 4. Released in 2005, Resident Evil 4 is an example of a nearly perfect video game to date. The developers often try new systems and the games go through transitions, but even after those, the 2005 installment is an incredibly well-made game. It has introduced a dynamic camera system and action-oriented gameplay in the series.

The basic story revolves around the mission of Leon S. Kennedy, who’s trying to rescue the US president’s daughter, Ashley Graham. But the storyline and the graphics of the game will give you goosebumps, for sure. The game’s campaign is pretty long with waves of zombies to take down and powerful bosses to defeat while solving the puzzles to find Ashley.

2. Silent Hill 2

Silent Hill 2, released in 2001, is the pinnacle of meeting expectations in a sequel, making it a must-play survival horror game for the fans. When the first installment of a series is considered scary, developers often fail to heighten the horror in the next one, but Silent Hill 2 is scarier than Silent Hill. This game has surpassed its predecessor in several aspects, like camera angle and controls, but what heightens it to the top is its storyline.

The game centers on the journey of James Sunderland, who received a letter from his dead wife and traveled to Silent Hill. The exploration will be more challenging than you can imagine as Silent Hill is filled with monsters. Making way through them to locate his deceased wife is what players need to do in the game, but it isn’t always so easy. If you haven’t played this game, dive into this scary experience.

1. God of War Ragnarok

Listing the best all-time sequels can’t be completed without the God of War: Ragnarok. Though almost all the God of War games are impressive, none received as much popularity as God of War: Ragnarok. Though it was only an exclusive PlayStation installment of God of War, its graphics and storyline nailed it.

After completing the Norse mythological series, the 2022 game covers Ragnarok, the central event in Norse mythology. The event was foretold in the previous games when Kratos killed Baldur and Aesir. The game features the Blades of Chaos, a double-chained blade besides the Leviathan Axe and the battle scenes and scenery are outstanding. This game requires players to solve puzzles as they progress and explore new areas. These puzzles are also well-made to test the intelligence and patience of the players. If you haven’t yet played the God of War Ragnarok, we suggest not to miss it.

These are the top five sequels that players should not miss. However, there are a lot more sequels that players should try once if they want, but adding them will make this list a never-ending one. In the meantime, check out the best Xbox games that you should not miss: The Best Games on Xbox Game Pass.