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Having multiple franchises in one game has never been more popular

The whole "crossover" thing has been around for a long time. Comic book crossovers were big several decades ago, and movie crossovers go all the way back to Abbott & Costello Meet Frankenstein. Well, video game crossovers have also been around for awhile, and are very popular today. It's awesome to see characters from two VG franchises in the same game. Sometimes characters from multiple franchises find themselves in one giant game together. Today we're gonna look at some of the best crossover games. We can't look at all of them (there are tons!), but we'll look at the best from oldest to newest. Understand that these are full-on crossover games, not just games that decided to throw in some character from another franchise. Here we go!

Konami Wai Wai World (NES, 1988)

This Japan-only NES game may be the very first crossover video game. You start the game with Konami Man and Konami Lady, and one by one rescue Konami characters, including Goemon, Simon Belmont III, Getsu Fuma (Japan-only game), Mikey Walsh (The Goonies), Moai Head (Gradius), and King Kong. There's even a shooter level in which you can play as either Vic Viper (Gradius) or Twin Bee. Once the characters have been rescued, you can switch between them at any time. Each character also has a special ability. This was a truly great idea, and indeed was very unique at its time. It's a Konami Crossover Adventure! The game was a big enough success in Japan to get a sequel, which included Bill Rizer of Contra fame and Pentarou from the Parodius series.

Battletoads & Double Dragon: The Ultimate Team (NES/SNES/Gen, 1993)

The early '90s were when beat-em-ups were at their peak, and that peak can be partly attributed to three radical 'toads called The Battletoads; another part of the peak goes to Double Dragon. Well, these two awesome beat-em-up franchises came together to give us a crazy crossover which delivered over-the-top action. . . in space! Against pigs, punks, and the Dark Queen herself. While having characters from both series, the game was set in the Battletoads' world as you faced off against the Dark Queen, but some DD baddies, such as Abobo, were thrown in as well. You and a friend could choose to play as any of the three toads or the two Double Dragon twins. Of course, most kids would choose a Battletoad because they're just more cool, right? But this was a perfect team-up, staying true to the subtitle of the game.

Robocop Vs. The Terminator (Gen/SNES, 1993)

While movie buffs never got their wish of seeing this happen on the big screen, gamers were treated to this crossover action game, based on the comic book mini-series of the same name. You play the game as Robocop, dishing out pain and justice as you take down the terminators. The Super Nintendo version is regarded as a miserable game, but the Genesis version is decent and even fun. Everyone loves blasting stuff! The game also had versions for the Game Boy, Game Gear, and even the Sega Master System. Boy, these guys get around! Now we just need that movie crossover we've been waiting for.

Marvel Vs. Capcom series (1997-present)

There are a lot of fighting game crossovers (as we'll see in this blog). One of the greatest crossover fighting game series is Marvel vs. Capcom, which began in the arcades. I remember as a kid seeing one of the games in the arcade and being amazed. I loved Marvel characters AND Capcom characters, and here they could fight eachother! Spider-Man could take on Mega Man, or Ryu could face off against Wolverine. The series has only gotten better as it has aged, the newest games featuring tons of fighters from both franchises with crazy, over-the-top moves. It's super heroes vs. street fighters vs. supernatural beings vs. robots vs. ninjas vs. defense attorney, and that is nothing but awesome.

SNK Vs. Capcom series (1999-2007)

This series combined the two biggest fighting series rivals into one game, starting with SNK vs. Capcom: The Match of the Millennium on the Neo Geo Pocket Color in 1999. It featured nine characters from both series along with hidden characters and boss characters. The characters were in a chibi style, making the game even more endearing. The series continued with several card game-based games with SNK and Capcom characters duking it out on the cards. Perhaps the best fighting game in the series is SNK vs. Capcom: SVC Chaos, released for the Neo Geo in 2003. It featured ten characters from both series along with boss characters, mid-boss characters, and even secret boss characters. Granted, the game looked and played like an SNK fighter (meaning Street Fighter aficionados hate it), but the fact that you can duke it out with these fighting game rivals is wonderful.

Kingdom Hearts (PS2, 2002)

At first, this crossover doesn't seem to make sense. Final Fantasy characters and Disney characters? Yet Square pulled it off. You play as Sora, a boy with a special weapon called a keyblade. Along the way Donald Duck, Goofy, King Mickey, and others will join your side as you face off against Disney villains such as Jafar and Maleficent, but also Final Fantasy antagonists like Sephiroth. This action RPG will take you to several Disney locations such as Halloween Town, Agrabah, Neverland, Tarzan's Jungle, and many others. Over a hundred different Disney characters are in the game, many of which will aid Sora in battle. Kingdom Hearts was very successful, evident by the fact that the series has a total of seven games in just 12 years. It's a great crossover; everyone loves Disney characters, and Final Fantasy characters in the mix draw in the hardcore gamers, so there's something for everyone.

Dissidia: Final Fantasy (PSP, 2008)

This is the crossover game that Final Fantasy fans had wanted for years. As you know, FF games are not connected in story and characters, but each main game of the series is separate (except for sequels such as FF X-2). Dissidia takes the main protagonists and antagonists of each mainline game from FF1 through FF10 and puts them together in this action RPG-style fighting game. Characters from the 8-bit and 16-bit days are brought to life as never seen before. Characters' equipment can be customized, and experience and gil is gained after battle. There's also a special Arcade Mode exclusive to the western release in which the fight is like a regular fighting game. This game was truly a historical moment for all FF fans.

Project X Zone (3DS, 2013)

This giant crossover game features characters from Capcom, Sega, and Namco Bandai. It's a tactical RPG in which you move your units on a grid and attack other units. There are 40 characters in all, coming from games such as Resident Evil, Sakura Wars, Street Fighter, Mega Man, Virtua Fighter, Tekken, Rival Schools, Space Channel 5, Ghosts n' Goblins, Cyberbots, and many more. But that's not all: 22 villains of the same games are also in Project X Zone, such as Seth, Lord Raptor, Astaroth, Aya-me, Dural, and many others. No doubt you've never heard of some of these characters, but that's the joy of Project X Zone: it brings together tons of video game characters, famous and obscure, into one over-the-top tactical game.

Professor Layton Vs. Phoenix Wright (3DS, 2014)

This is the perfect crossover. The sophistication of Professor Layton and the truth-seeking prowess of Phoenix Wright are brought together in this awesome visual novel game. The two men and their sidekicks (Luke and Maya) are thrown into a bizarre fantasy world and must use their best abilities to find out what's going on. The game is split between Layton chapters and Wright chapters, the former giving you puzzles to solve, and the latter having you investigate and even compete in the courtroom. But the best part is, the two men come together to fight in the courtroom together, and the dialogue is fantastic, backed by a bizarre but brilliant story. It's great to know that such crossovers like this are possible today.

Super Smash Bros. (Wii U, 2014)

This is the big one. Possibly the greatest crossover series of all time started on the N64 with Super Smash Bros. It wasn't a giant game, with only 12 characters, but those characters were some of Nintendo's best. SSB was great because it was a unique fighting game that featured four players at once. The series has only got better with time, the newest game featuring 48 characters, some of which are not even Nintendo characters. With tons of modes, features, trophies, and remixed themes of Nintendo music, SSB is a giant love letter to gamers. You don't have to be a die-hard Nintendo fan to enjoy SSB; it has something for everyone. With so many characters and fighting styles, you won't have a problem finding someone to make your own, and that is the beauty of this finely-polished brawler.

What are some of your favorite crossover games? We would love to hear about them. Thanks for reading, and I hope you have a wonderful Thanksgiving.