The idea of a crossover can bring two fandoms together and video games are usually common when it comes to the concept. Imagine bringing two or more unlikely video game franchises coming together to give us a game that fans will talk about for decades. Games like Marvel vs. Capcom or Super Smash Bros. have a lot of variety when it comes to characters and they excel in adding them for representation from where they came from. While there are some amazing crossover games, there are, unfortunately, some awful ones.
Whether the bad crossover games lack in gameplay, graphics, or the all of the above, those that fail hard really do fail hard. Some crossover games are even downright embarrassing because of how terrible they are. There are times when it is okay or not okay to bring these two franchises together. Think of dancing to terrible covers with awkward graphics and terrible timing, for instance. Or have a game that takes cartoon characters but rip off one of the greatest fighting games that ever existed.
It might be too good to be true when we imagine characters from different series come together, but sometimes it won’t work out like peanut butter and jelly. While there are the bad, the good crossovers show gamers that there is potential and care for giving two franchises that don’t fit or do fit into a game that is amazing. Here are ten crossover games that are good and ten that are just bad.
20 Good: Mario And Sonic At The Olympic Games Series
Before Mario and Sonic could fight in Super Smash Bros. Brawl, these two iconic gaming rivals competed in the Olympic games. The Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games series is kind of like Mario Party, but with Sonic characters and competing in one of the most ancient events in the world.
While the series might not be for everyone, but for what this series has to offer, it has lots of fun games. After all, there are arcade versions of Mario & Sonic in places such as Dave & Buster’s. Let’s not forget the epic commercial that featured “The Final Countdown” as the song playing.
19 Bad: PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale
Now, this might be a controversial choice, but when you compare it to the legendary Super Smash Bros. series, this is pretty much Sony’s response to making a game to rival Nintendo’s greatest crossover game. Honestly, the roster is interesting, featuring Nathan Drake, Dante, and Sly Cooper.
However, Nintendo got Sonic and Snake before Sony could touch them.
It might be great to include Sony’s iconic characters to fight it out, the lack of presentation and content ruins this game greatly. It’s also no surprise that the story mode is taken from The Subspace Emissary from Brawl. Let’s just hope that there’s no sequel for this game in the future.
18 Good: Battletoads/Double Dragon
Weird crossover? Definitely. Great game? Absolutely. Battletoads/Double Dragon is a beat em’ up game that came out for the Nintendo Entertainment System developed by the amazing company Rare. If a video game is made by Rare and it is during the 90’s, then the game will be one of the most well-constructed and fun.
The plot is simple and straightforward, but the gameplay is golden. There are seven stages and five characters to choose from that are (not so) evenly spread from both the Battletoads and Double Dragon franchises. The game was so good that it would be re-released on the SNES, Sega Genesis, and Game Boy.
17 Bad: Nickelodeon Party Blast
What is unfortunate for video games based on shows from a kids network are essentially made with no care and for cash grabbing. Nickelodeon Party Blast is a game that sounds fun, but once it is played, it will leave many frowns on the kids who see SpongeBob SquarePants and Tommy Pickles.
The game is pretty much impossible to play.
The controls are clunky, and the sound design is terrible for a game that was released in 2002. It is also repetitive, acting as a Nickelodeon version of Mario Party, but with awful execution. It’s a shame how most games like these are just bad.
16 Good: BlazBlue: Cross Tag Battle
BlazBlue: Cross Tag Battle is the perfect definition of a fun 2D fighting game that has great visuals and flashy, but eye-catching animation. Although the DLC practices were very controversial, looking at this entry as a game is still a lot of fun.
After all, it includes characters from the hit Rooster Teeth series RWBY.
With very little flaws, this game excels in the music, fighting system, character roster, and online functionality. It might have been tempting to get it on day one, but it is better to wait due to the amount of content the game had at launch.
15 Bad: Cartoon Network: Battle Crashers
What is up with third-party games getting little to no care for the source material? Cartoon Network: Battle Crashers is simply one of the worst games to tarnish Cartoon Network’s image. The only reason why this game was even purchased is because parents noticed the characters from Cartoon Network and assume their kids would like it, only to be left with tears and angry frustration from them.
This game is a tedious beat em’ up with so much repetition. It also did not put a lot of attention to the characters from their respective shows, making them untrue and inaccurate that would honestly offend the creators.
14 Good: Project X Zone 2
Bandai Namco knows how to bring together different franchises and make the characters go well together, with the exception of one game coming up. However, the games this amazing Japanese video game company put together in Project X Zone 2 are great choices. This tactical RPG is clever and is the first to feature Nintendo characters with Fire Emblem Awakening’s Chrom and Lucina.
In fact, if a sequel is confirmed to be made, there is a possibility of adding Bayonetta, and everyone loves the Umbra Witch. With this witty and charming game became a success in sales and critical response, that just might be a possibility.
13 Bad: Soul Calibur IV
To clear any ideas, Soul Calibur IV is not a terrible game. It has some improvements from Soul Calibur III and it might not be the best in the series, it is at least salvageable than Soul Calibur V. As a crossover, the choices of adding DLC characters were questionable and, for a lack of a better term, unsuitable.
Seriously, Darth Vader, Yoda, and Starkiller from Star Wars?
Mixing in the historical with the futuristic characters sounds like an unfair advantage if the fights were actually real. Thankfully, V and VI features Ezio Auditore and Geralt of Rivia from Assassin’s Creed and The Witcher respectably as guest characters.
12 Good: Tokyo Mirage Sessions FE♯
At first, fans of Fire Emblem were puzzled at how Tokyo Mirage Sessions FE♯ is actually a crossover with Atlus’ Shin Megami Tensei series. The game takes place in modern Tokyo, but with supernatural entities and Fire Emblem characters acting as the playable characters’ Performa attackers.
The game is silly, but it has a lot of charm and is surprisingly engaging. This might be a sign of when Fire Emblem crosses over with other games, like Monster Hunter, then it can make any game look fun and worth checking out.
11 Bad: Cartoon Network: Punch Time Explosion
If there is one thing that any game, regardless of what franchise it is from, do not copy Super Smash Bros. at all. Apparently, the game Cartoon Network: Punch Time Explosion seemed to have missed that note. It is way too similar to the acclaimed series and it is just a terrible fighting game with Cartoon Network characters.
The upgraded version of this game isn’t saving anyone. Not to mention, the story is ridiculous. It is cheesy and predictable. If anyone wanted Cartoon Network characters in a fighting game, then they should just endlessly hope that Smash Bros. would do it, but it is just not meant to be.
10 Good: Injustice 2
Learning from their past mistake with a game that will be mentioned later, the Injustice series served as a faithful and fantastic fighting game consisting of DC Universe characters where Superman turns into a corrupted dictator thanks to the Joker.
The sequel, Injustice 2, features great DLC characters including Sub-Zero and Raiden from Mortal Kombat as well as Hellboy and the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. This game also has a better story and a lot of content to offer. You can set up your favorite characters to make them stronger as well as customize them. This is how a sequel is done right.
9 Bad: Dance Dance Revolution: Disney Channel Edition
Dance Dance Revolution became a hit sensation in arcades with the unique concept of stepping on directional arrows in time to the music. Speaking of which, the music is made by wonderfully talented artists from Benami, a subdivision from Konami. What happens when you mix this amazing arcade phenomenon with Disney Channel songs and characters?
An absolutely bad dream.
As a game, Dance Dance Revolution: Disney Channel Edition is a joke. The songs from Disney Channel have terrible covers, the playable characters look weird and awkward, and the timing is undeniably bad. How and why did this happen? It is because this game was made by a developer team from Germany and not Japan.
8 Good: Dissidia Final Fantasy
While the characters do come from the same series, they are from completely different worlds. Dissidia Final Fantasy offers an amazing game that features the main characters of each Final Fantasy title from its current date and they represent their games greatly.
Having Cloud fight against Squall or even Cecil versus Sephiroth would make for interesting matchups. The combat system is rather interesting, and the Limit Breaks are a joy to watch when the opponent gets caught in the attack. Some of them are absolutely insane, like Sephiroth’s. Hopefully, the current game, Dissidia Final Fantasy NT can meet the expectations of fans and gamers alike.
7 Bad: Nicktoons Unite!
Here we go again with Nickelodeon and awful games under their belt. If anything, Nicktoons Unite! might be just a mediocre game overall, even though there are some really tedious parts in the game. The fact that this game spawned three sequels is just mind-numbingly crazy.
It might represent the playable characters such as SpongeBob, Danny Phantom, and Jimmy Neutron decently, but it’s the same song and dance when it comes to the game’s story. For kids who are crazy for these characters, they will probably enjoy this game, but hardcore gamers will get bored pretty quickly.
6 Good: Pokémon Conquest
When you mix Pokémon and a tactical JRPG, you would get Pokémon Conquest and it is an amazing experience. It is essentially a game like Fire Emblem, but with Pokémon to add a twist, despite not being made by Intelligent Systems.
Many fans consider this one of the best spinoffs for Pokémon.
The Ransei region is unique and the idea of Pokémon in a feudal like area can make for an interesting story. We really hope that there will be a successor to this great game, because with many more Pokémon in each new generation, it can make for a great sequel.
5 Bad: Marvel Vs Capcom: Infinite
Capcom, what happened? Marvel vs. Capcom is a crossover game series that did the unthinkable and put together Capcom’s popular characters and Marvel comic book characters fighting. The idea was fresh and it was awesome to see Deadpool fighting Dante or Ryu with Iron Man. The recent release of Marvel vs. Capcom Infinite just failed to impress us.
It’s no wonder why this game did not meet its selling expectations.
The game’s presentation is weak and this game certainly did not get a lot of time in development. First Street Fighter V, now this? Capcom, you can do so much better than this excuse of a game.
4 Good: Kingdom Hearts Series
Combining Disney, Final Fantasy, and adding in original characters created the beloved Kingdom Hearts series. Square Enix gave us one of the most complicated, but beautiful stories from these games. The music made by the lovely Yoko Shimomura is unforgettable and beautiful. Add in Utada Hikaru to sing the Japanese and English songs for each main game and the songs are essentially masterpieces.
Kingdom Hearts 3 couldn’t be here any sooner.
The fandom for this series is huge and we can see why. There are a lot of great characteristics that make this series amazing, and that includes, the gameplay, graphics, characters, and the stories.
3 Bad: Marvel Vs. Capcom 3
Now, compared to Infinite, this game is slightly better, keyword: slightly. If you compare this game to the second of the series, Marvel vs. Capcom 3 is incredibly disappointing. The game modes are also the same song and dance, which does not add anything spectacular to the table. There is not enough diversity and the game can get repetitive very quickly.
For those that are big in online battles, the game mode is weak and literally waiting feels like there are crickets chirping due to barely any players wanting to play online. Watching the player cards bump into each other certainly does not make the wait worth it.
2 Good: Super Smash Bros. Series
There is no denying at how much of an impact the Super Smash Bros. series brought among us. Masahiro Sakurai is a genius and created a franchise that invited Nintendo’s mascots to duke it out and answer the question of who will win in a fight.
Who is excited for the upcoming Super Smash Bros. Ultimate?
The series even did some good things, such as bringing Fire Emblem to international interest due to Marth and Roy being in Melee. We hope that Sakurai will be able to get his deserved vacation for all of his hard work in this series.
1 Bad: Mortal Kombat Vs. DC Universe
Easily Midway Games’ biggest mistake. The idea of having the Mortal Kombat characters and the DC characters is a great idea, but not only did the game end up getting a T-rating, the violence is toned down greatly. Not to mention, the game’s mechanics were a chore to get through.
It wouldn’t be a surprise if this game was one of the reasons Midway Games filed for financial troubles.
What is the point of Mortal Kombat without the over-the-top fatalities and violence? This game might have included them, but they were incredibly lackluster and weak. While Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe is a disappointment, it at least gave us the Injustice series.
