The Japanese video game developer, distributor, and publisher Square Enix is a wildly successful company thanks to its role in the creation of numerous popular and critically acclaimed titles. They have also been responsible for several titles most gamers aren’t even aware of via their subsidiary companies.
This list explores their franchises that received the highest average ranking by Metacritic. Interestingly their most popular and well-known series such asFinal Fantasy, Dragon Quest,andKingdom Heartsdon’t make the list due to the large number of critically panned titles within those franchises. We’ve taken all of the Metacritic scores and averaged them out.
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10Life Is Strange (Metascore 78.54)
Perhaps the most mainstream franchise on this list,Life Is Strangeis an interesting series that utilizes time travel to explore the effect and consequences that simple decisions in our lives can make, the tragedy of sacrifice, and the morally grey concept of the greater good.
Following the popularity of the original installment, Square Enix went on to publish a number of sequels, prequels, and spinoffs. This graphic adventure game series has been steadily releasing titles withLife Is Strange 2putting out its final episode in December 2019.
9Darius (Metascore 78.66)
Dariusis a series of arcade games produced in the late ’90s by the subsidiary Taito. It’s a side-scrolling shoot-em-up adventure with players controlling a space ship named the Silver Hawk as they battle through various enemies to reach the final boss.
The series was on hiatus for several years before Square Enix released the titles for the Playstation 4. The series hasn’t seen a sequel or reboot sinceDariusburstin 2009 and there appear to be no signs of any being released in the foreseeable future.
8Parasite Eve (Metascore 80)
Parasite Eveis an interesting RPG survival horror series that is a continuation of the novel by the same name. The players step into the role of NYPD rookie Aya Brea as she battles with a mysterious parasite named Eve seeking to replace mankind with the Ultimate Being.
The games have been praised for their interesting and engaging storylines although they have seen criticisms regarding gameplay. The final entry in the series,The 3rdBirthday,received mixed praise and Square Enix doesn’t seem to be interested in releasing another game in the franchise any time soon.
7Deus Ex (Metascore 80.14)
TheDeus Exfranchise had already seen incredible success when Square Enix came along as the publisher in 2011 and developer for the titlesDeus Ex GoandDeus Ex: Mankind Divided. The series as a whole has been very popular with critics thanks to its thought-provoking themes regarding conspiracy theories and social issues.
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Square Enix has had a positive influence on the series and turned it around after it reached a low point withDeus Ex: The Fall. No doubt further titles will be released considering the game’s profitability and popularity with critics.
6Ogre (Metacritic 80.75)
Ogrewas a strong franchise that was doing very well in Japan when Square Enix became involved. Square Enix was responsible for bringing the popular releases to North America along with many ports to handhelds and other consoles.
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TheTactics Ogre: Let Us Cling Togetherremake for the PSP is seen as a high point in the franchise and was both developed and published by Square Enix. The series hasn’t seen a new entry since the release of that popular title in 2010 which is surprising given the number of sales and praise by both fans and critics.
5Groove Coaster (Metascore 82.5)
The arcade rhythm gameGroove Coasterhas been praised by Metacritic. It has several popular titles within the franchise, though not all have been released in North America. Taito, a subsidiary of Square Enix, has been releasing new titles almost every year since 2011 and all of them have done well.
It’s a relatively simple game that’s performing well on mobile devices such as Android and the Nintendo Switch. The last title,Groove Coaster 4: Starlight Roadwas released in 2018.
4Bravely (Metascore 83)
TheBravelyseries is a spinoff ofFinal Fantasy: The 4 Heroes of Lightand has seen a lot of praise by critics for keeping what made theFinal Fantasygame popular while introducing new game mechanics. The series started withBravely Defaultand its success has lead to several titles.
Given the prominent sales and praise, developers have stated their interest in releasing titles every year. In 2020, fans can expect the release ofBravely Default IIfor the Nintendo Switch.
3Bushido Blade (Metascore 83)
What’s interesting about this series is there are only two games and they were both released in the late ’90s.Bushido BladeandBushido Blade 2are 3D fighting games that pit the player in one on one combat with a weapon-wielding opponent.
The games were incredibly popular when they were first released for the Playstation. There have been no followups or spinoffs sinceBushido Blade 2was released in 1998. Given the games’ success, it’s a surprise to many fans that the series has been in hiatus for over two decades.
2Chrono (Metascore 85.66)
Considered thegold standard of JRPGsby both fans and critics, theChronoseries deals with a party of characters using either time travel or interdimensional travel to stop the villain and end up creating a number ofinteresting endingsas a result.
The first game,Chrono Trigger,is still considered by many to be one of the greatest games ever made and fans have been demanding a sequel since it’s release in 1995. It has had several ports and remasters, along with spinoff games likeRadical DreamerandChrono Crossthat have also been popular. Some fans thought the trademarkedChrono Breakwould be the sequel they were hoping for, but the trademark was eventually dropped.
1Chaos Rings (Metascore 86)
Square Enix’s highest-ranked franchise according to Metacritic is theChaos Ringsseries. These traditional role-playing games have been released exclusively for mobile devices and have been doing really well according to critics and fans.
Chaos Ringsfirst released in 2010 to wide praise and the latest release wasChaos Rings IIIin 2014 and 2015 in North America. Unfortunately, the last title received flak from critics thanks to a bug in the Western version that crashed the game during a boss fight and almost a year went by before it was finally patched.
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