My 10 Favorite Non-Nintendo Franchises

[@super10zx]

Don’t comment much but have been watching you for almost a decade now. It always feels sweet to see another review or top 10 from you to see your still around

[@a100kz2]

I am the same way, love your energy CJ been a fan since middle school bro !

[@WEEGEEplus1]

Yo I'm exactly the same! Even the part about watching since middle school lol.

[@Ryzeer2]

You were one of my OG subs back when I was younger, and it's always great to see you still going. Your drive truly is inspiring, and you've had a direct impact on my lives and plenty. Keep up the good work man.

[@toonzach2870]

I have to say, I really appreciate how emotional driven this one was. It really gave weight to the higher up segments.

[@CommandingVanguard]

Oh my God. I remember watching you back when I was in 5th grade. I can't believe how far everything has come since then, it's nice to see how much you've grown since then.

[@booberminfranklin3652]

The wait was worth it. This was the best version of the video we could of gotten.

[@palmer.jake1]

Your top 10 Nintendo franchises list was the first video of yours I saw. Kinda crazy watching this now after all those years ago

[@CacklingPumpkins]

What a fantastic video! It reminds me why I love top lists to begin with. Seeing someone else's different perspective of the gaming world! Been watching you for years and its good to see how much you've grown and still kept that spirit after all this time! Keep up the good work!

[@skx444]

I remember watching you for years when I was young and you were my absolute favorite youtuber. Been on a long binge of all of your content but it warms my heart to see this in my sub box. Thanks for all the memories and getting me into so many games and things that honestly changed my life!

[@BIGD-cc7ru]

Oh my god. It’s been so long since I’ve watched some of your videos, and man, it’s such a pleasure to see you still being active after watching your videos 13 years ago. Glad to see you still being amazing.

[@Grant_Scarboro]

It's been quite some time since the last countdown, but as someone who has been watching your videos for over a decade, this was worth the wait!

[@AlexSWarrior254]

1:03 DID. SOMEBODY. SAY. Obvious joke aside, this video was fantastic from start to finish. I felt every drop of love you had for these series, especially Banjo, Mega Man, Bomberman and Sonic.

[@jamesquinonez3914]

I watched your top 10 GameCube list many years ago and your list actually got me interested in playing Tales of Symphonia which is one of if not my favorite game of all time so I just wanted to thank you for talking about that game and for all your great videos!

[@charliebyrne8318]

Dude I've been watching for like 10 years. Great video

[@bluestreaker9242]

I can't but respect Sonic for always trying to branch out and do something new; even if he sometimes stumbles and doesn't always land on his feet, the fact that he keeps on getting back up, dusting himself off, all with a smile on his face, just to put smiles on OURS... We really don't deserve the true blue blur sometimes, I swear. I'm not gonna spoil Frontiers too much, but for those who've played it and have seen the first boss fight in all its glory...if you know, you know: that...blasted...SMIRK... It just SCREAMS "I'm back, baby; didja miss me?" Also, I just love how way back when I first played Sonic Adventure DX, my first Sonic game, that I just wanted to play in Mystic Ruins, thinking to myself how awesome it would be to have a whole game where you explore the world as Sonic...and then...years and years later, SEGA comes out swinging with a teaser trailer for Breadth of the Wind, I mean Sonic Frontiers, and I was like "Shut up and take my money!" I didn't even care if it was bad or good, I just wanted to play around in a giant open world as Sonic; fortunately, it did NOT disappoint...they even made fishing with Big the Cat fun...FISHING...WITH BIG...THE DUKE-NUKING-CAT...FUN! What witchcraft is this!? No...not witchcraft...chaos...the ultimate power, enriched by the heart... I wouldn't have it any other way. ;)

[@dracoshield2344]

It's been years since I've actually watched a video from you proper, but decided to take a look after all this time... and hearing that you still carry the same energy and passion now that you did then gave me so much nostalgia. Thanks for all the hard work you've put in over the years.

[@UltraNurture]

It's great to see this list you've been wanting to make for a while uploaded. Your expressive passion and love for video games got me to try out a couple of franchies over the years and I've loved them all.

[@Webbyneon89]

Congratulations on getting this big list completed, man! Even after all these years, your creative passion and editing are still going strong. Your number one, while not surprising in the slightest when ya really think about it, is cathartic to see in more ways than one. In an age of seeing certain people dunk on Sonic for "never being good", it's always heartwarming seeing praise and fondness thrown the blue blur's way. Honestly, when Sonic really nails those high points of energetic fun, as seen with Frontier's recent entry, it reaches the same timeless magic I feel with Kingdom Hearts arguably. Sonic the Hedgehog's vibrant cast of characters, world, and lore have so much untapped potential it aint even funny. It's why I enjoyed seeing Frontier's take more advantage of finally tying old lore together into its story, regarding the Ancients. While I think making everything canon can also be a double edged sword in telling a story, when certain beats land they hit real GOOD in Frontiers' story and overall characterization of this lovable iconic cast. I like to think of Sonic the Hedgehog as an underdog with a never say die attitude. He may stumble, but this Hedgehog is still full of surprises.

[@sarahelucey]

Man, I’ve been watching your channel since I was a little kid and now I’m in my first year of college. It truly makes my day whenever you upload. I just wanted to thank you for giving me my love of video games and for being awesome.

[@Knokalakooh]

Fantastic list. I’m also a massive fan of quite a few of the franchises you listed here. And I understand where your coming from with sonic, his whole design and concept is very much a lighting in a bottle type situation. I don’t think there will ever be a more iconic video game character than sonic. Even tho Mario has more success I’d argue design wise sonic is more iconic. And like millions of others I have a lot of deep rooted nostalgia for the series.

[@LotteYanson]

Some of my favorite non-Nintendo series that weren’t here are Persona, Crash Bandicoot, Spyro, Jak & Daxter, Final Fantasy and Resident Evil

[@vandal3136]

Oh man, I haven't watched a video of yours in years (favorite of mine being your top 10 easter eggs video) and I gotta say hearing that intro brought out a FLOOOOD of nostalgia. So glad to see you're still making videos - probably gonna have to binge some of your more recent uploads :)

[@Liamrunescapefunorb]

Great list! Also interesting to see at 1:03 a fellow A Hat In Time player (And Killing Two Birds is one of my favourite Deathwishes too)

[@alexk_9358]

It’s so good that a decade old mystery of who your fav video game character in one of your old Q&A’s from 2013 has finally been answered! I thought it was someone deep or melancholic at the time but it was Sonic all along! I thought it would’ve been too easy of a guess but it’s so cool that he’s your fav this whole time on top of your fav non Nintendo franchise! Great list btw, the passage of time has also allowed stuff like FNAF to be added which is also a very interesting pick

[@StylusShade]

I didn't see Sonic all list and I told myself "Ain't no way..." Then we got to the top...

[@TangerineTracy]

Now here's a video I didn't even know I wanted from you.

[@thewillster18]

Another amazing top 10! That intro music is still so nostalgic from when I found you back in 2014 with the best and worst Mario kart items.

[@DaizoDeeVonOfficial]

Very much happy to see a countdown from you again, especially one this detailed and edited. It's actually a nice nostalgia wave watching countdowns in this day of age, especially ones that don't spoil specific moments in various games...which is my issue with other current countdown artists when they do stuff like "top x best moments/bosses/levels" and such; you don't know what games they'll bring up that you didn't get/start/or finish. (I know that's kind of hard to avoid with what kind of content it is, but yeah) Keep doing what you do best, cj!

[@Jag2045]

it so great seeing you again

[@MagillanicaLouM]

Been a long time since seeing you pop up in my feed. Very nostalgic hearing this energy and just this kind of video now that gaming side of KZbin has become mostly just "stream whatever game is hot right now" city. Always appreciate the effort for this kind of thing, and the list itself was very fun. Love a lot on here myself, some i knew were cj mainstays and others surprised that you had even a modicum of interest in. But good time as always

[@Manectrix2000]

It is always exciting when I see that you’re uploading a new video!

[@earthboundian4871]

Awesome job as usual!

[@PkKirby]

Crazy I was watching your stuff 13 years ago and now we’re here still going

[@meta527II]

10:02 It's been a long time since I last heard that line.

[@bobfresh473]

Good to see u still making videos you put me on to sin and punishment a few years back

[@rustyapellido4611]

love seeing you upload man, godbless

[@TangerineTracy]

Was not expecting this order. Anyway, a great list that felt from the heart and encourages conversation, probably why I miss this countdown style. Also can't help but feel sympathy where I have so many countdown ideas and can only think of 9 entries. Anyway, here's my top ten on your rules. 1. Sonic (Same reasoning tbh) 2. Souls (Challenging games with mechanical depth that encourages replay value) 3. MegaMan (Challenging games with paternal depth that encourages replay value) 4. Danganronpa (Gripping story with great social commentary) 5. Doom (Not too big into shooters, with this one exception that has actual level design) 6. Castlevania (Need to play more but have loved what I played) 7. Resident Evil (Same but even more so in both ways) 8. Soul Calibur (Childhood fighting game that I'm still bad at to this day but it's so much fun) 9. Guilty Gear (Want to take it competitive) 10. Portal (I love puzzles and funny dialogue and this game has both)

[@NebLleb]

"Danganronpa" *NO.*

[@TheIkranRider]

Great to finally have you back, CJ! It was worth the wait!

[@averyseldin8485]

Since I've been watching you for so long, I knew that Megaman and Sonic were going to be the top two. I just didn't know what the order was going to end up being and I was super pleased that the blue blur got the top spot!

[@videogamerzero1schannel]

You may have been taking a while more than usual but it's nice to see you come back with something special & entertaining, very good video!

[@MrGameguyC]

Great work!

[@wademccormick254]

I hadn't thought about Ape Escape for a while, but man I had a lot of fun with those games as a kid. As unlikely as it is we'd get a new game, I'd buy it in a heartbeat.

[@caseythedigger4526]

Your passion talking about sonic made me cry

[@NebLleb]

Well, I might as well share my list in no order: Turok: Dinosaur Hunter (Can't wait for the 3 remaster at the end of the month) Gears of War (barring 5) Star Wars games (technically cheating since it's more a genre than anything else) Silent Hill Half-Life Ratchet & Clank Sonic (suck it, TBP) Doom And my favourite, _Resident Evil._ Resident Evil means a lot to me: old PS1 copies of Resident Evil 1 & 2 were my first horror experiences on my old PS2 as a 13-year-old. Then, when I played through 2 via emulation on PC as an adult, I became a horror fan full-time, having braved the streets of Raccoon City, the Police Station, the Sewers, the Factory and eventually the industrial corridors of the N.E.S.T.. Not only did I request my father to buy me a used copy of 3: Nemesis to complete the set, but for Christmas, I impulsively requested copies of REmake, Zero, CODE: Veronica and 4. Yeah, it was pretty stupid of me to do so, but my parents wouldn't let me play 18-rated games back then due to my autism so they banned me from buying the more readily available PC ports of REmake, Zero, and 4. Not only did I eventually buy those PC ports on Steam when I was finally allowed to, but despite selling those PS2 copies of Veronica and 4, I still hold on to my PS1 copies of 2 and 3: Nemesis, because this franchise helped shape me into a horror fan, getting me into the fun thrill of being scared by pixels and/or actors and lighting on a screen. And sure, recent entries like REmake3 and Village were lacklustre and reminiscent of the games from Capcom's Western-Pandering dark age (ESPECIALLY Village), but REmake4 surprised even me by being shockingly good and making me cautiously optimistic for the future. Of all the game franchises I'm into, Resident Evil will always be the franchise I keep coming back to.

[@SuperNintendoTeam]

Yessir. You are top tier!

[@ultimatehedgehog4]

CJ this is a wonderful list I loved it

[@electromagneticpsychopath4973]

Those reasons you listed for sonic are the exact same reasons why I love this blue hedgehog

[@takodacorliss5838]

14:35 “My Yes Please but Never Happening” is 100% The Rocky Horror Picture Show now that Disney owns Fox. I am genuinely interested in just how they would adapt something like Rocky Horror for a Series like KH, which is why I want it. My idea is to make it kinda like CoM and have the Arena’s be separated from the rest of the World, which fits best given most of the Film is Indoors. Also the Music SLAPS and I NEED TO SEE YOKO SHIMOMURA GET HER HANDS ON IT!

[@Alberto_Tellez]

Gotta say, Seej: Sonic certainly is one heck of a cartoony experience with ALL that will power, making it the fastest selling franchise ever even with bad games. I think Crash Bandicoot is another great franchise outside Nintendo but even Crash would never exist if it wasn't for this unstoppable blue hedgehog himself.

[@BugsyFoga]

Ratchet and clank is my all time favorite game franchise.

[@Touhou20246]

Tbh CJ you actually indirectly inspired Me to try banjo and kazooie on the Nintendo switch online in general and I am still trying to beat clankers cavern.🥰👍🏻

[@markasscop]

playstation consoles were just as instrumental to me growing up as nintendo ones, so my favorites would be something like this: Metal Gear, GTA, Persona, Final Fantasy, Jak & Daxter, Dark Cloud, Phoenix Wright, Burnout, Ape Escape, Ys

[@RifeXD]

Hi and thank you for mentioning Bomberman. I wouldn't say you're going against the mainstream here. The most common opinion on Bomberman out there is "I'm a fan of [one or two of the games] but haven't really explored/am not a fan of the series as a whole". Fans of the 2D games hate the 3D games and fans of the 3D games hate the 2D games. And the respective fans of 64, Hero and Second Attack usually hate the other two. The Bomberman "community" is just as much of a disconnected mess as the series itself. Also, anyone reading this who has not yet watched Jetters is hereby commanded to do so right now.

[@cjszero01]

That's kind of sad to know but I can at least say I really enjoyed Bomberman Tournament on the GBA and Super Bomberman R 2 already feels like a MASSIVE improvement over the first game especially in the Single Mode.

[@orangeslash1667]

@@cjszero01 Banjo was never met to continue. The original intention for Rare is to create an adventure game called Project Dream on the SNES, but it was moved to the N 64, it wasn't working for some reason. Mostly like because realistic games can be difficult to work on N 64, such as Golden Eye. So Project Dream became Banjo Kazooie. However now that the N 64 era has ended, Rare no longer needs the Banjo and Kazooie. Why, DK 64. People did not like the backtracking of that game, and while Banjo Tooie's backtracking isn't as bad. Rare might be worried that another Banjo game would suffer the same problems as DK 64 if not worse. It's sad but it's true, some of the greatest games exists because of hardware limitations. Thankfully there are games that due capture the spirit of Banjo such as Demon Turf Neon Splash, Fez, Shantae: Half-Genie Hero, Hat in Time, Tinykin and the upcoming billie bust up.

[@cjszero01]

@@orangeslash1667 Rare doesn't like to make sequels, there are exceptions but they'd rather make something new. That said, and as I said in the video, they will let someone else make the games and this is also true for the other properties such as Killer Instinct, BattleToads, and even Perfect Dark.

[@orangeslash1667]

@@cjszero01 The collecting genre would eventually lose popularity somewhere in the mid-00's as games like Grand Theft Auto III would expand further on the open-world concept, thus making Collect-a-Thons redundant for the most part. That said, the notion of exploring worlds in order to find and collect things was not lost in many modern games. In fact, it still persists even two decades later. 3D Platformers, however, would fall to the wayside. However collecting platformers do exist in indie games, because the smaller companies don't have the resources to make an open world game.

[@redrazorx-23]

0/10 No Fighting games. Lol no i’m joking good vid bro.

[@entertainer_ev2747]

Stull waiting on that Shadow the hedgehog review

[@nnbandicoot1135]

god i miss your videos

[@deadlysword1000]

Nice, my favorite sonic characters are Tails and Ray the flying Squirrel. Love the Video BTW.

[@Jamess-tv]

36:18 - this is so beautiful 🥲. this perfectly describes why sonic is great!

[@demi-fiendoftime3825]

My personal list of such franchises in no particular order... Shin Megami Tensei/Persona, Kingdom Hearts, Final Fantasy, Rachet and Clank, Super Robot Wars, Metal Gear, Castlevania (not the show it lacks the energy of Iga's original vission Bloodstained is more castlevania then the netflix series), Mega Man, Bravely, and Tales of... is it obvious I'm a JRPG fan

[@ninjamoncaudle5320]

10:24 Bow chicka bow wow!

[@i8dacookies890]

I think the only video you need to make now to talk about all your favorite games is your favorite indie games

[@MegaDarkness5000]

Hype!

[@meta527II]

31:51 That's not a spinoff, that's a main-series game.

[@abareamphibia6812]

My favorite non Nintendo franchise would have to be in no particular order, Sonic,Megaman,castlevania,mortal kombat,ratchet and clank.

[@tangentingtangerines5709]

Great video as always! Did you delete your Pokemon Battle Revolution review? Randomly felt like rewatching it today but I cant find it anywhere on your channel.

[@cjszero01]

It's not deleted but it is privated as it has a word in there can trigger some people.

[@tangentingtangerines5709]

@@cjszero01 That's a shame, I don't recall anything people would find offensive, especially from a guy like you. Any chance you could give me the link? Back when I first watched it, it was the only review of the game made by an actual Pokemon fan who played the DS and Stadium games, so you had a frame of reference to compare it to, and I have a ton of nostalgia for it like with your other videos.

[@cjszero01]

@@tangentingtangerines5709 No, it's a word that can be offensive. My intention wasn't to insult people but use it insult the mechanics of that game. Still though, people have gone crazy and I'm not going to get in trouble for a review that could easily be done better. Maybe I will go back and redo the review and give it more of the indepth detail I do now-a-days. As for a link, sorry but KZbin tends to flag those as spam, don't know why but I don't like it.

[@TheKoopaManSho1]

"Ill get a PS5 if they release an Ape Escape Game" Should I make the Monkey's Paw joke or would it be too low hanging fruit. Either way you wouldn't even need the monkey's paw for the wish to backfire on you with some of the crazy decisions sony's been making lately.

[@cjszero01]

Yeah it's best to wait for new management so we don't get a "Behind the shoulder, hyper realistic story more important than the gameplay" that current day Sony only seems to be interested in.

[@TheKoopaManSho1]

@@cjszero01 Makes ya wish that Sega was still in the game if what replaced them are This bs from Sony and Microsoft going full Bob Iger and buying Companies they don't need with Money they don't have that theres no way they'll make back. And at least when Disney did it there wasn't as wide of precident. Seems like the future for the Console Side of things is looking Grim for anyone not based out of Kyoto.

[@greentoad64]

Street Fighter is my favorite

[@unclepaul1995]

I wonder if You can make a Top 10 License Games like SpongeBob Battle For Bikini Bottom and The Simpsons Hit And Run?

[@cjszero01]

I actually don't have THAT many licensed games. Could be a 5 list but I don't think it would look that impressive.

[@unclepaul1995]

I see.@@cjszero01

[@meta527II]

21:58 a WHATogy?

[@markerikson7423]

what about the other Megamen?

[@cjszero01]

They were briefly mentioned plus they do fall under the Megaman Franchise.

[@markerikson7423]

oh yeah.

[@GamingAnimator1]

Wait you're 40???? Wtf????

[@cjszero01]

This year I turn 40.

[@ZippoIII]

Where on earth is Persona?

[@cjszero01]

I made a deal with a friend. I would play Persona 5 Royal while I still had Game Pass if they did something for me. While I found the story (though I wasn't that big a fan of some of the heavy stuff but that's just me), characters and combat engaging, I found a number of annoyances as well such as never spending time with a confidant whenever I want, having to look up the answers for the questions and tests, and if Joker dies that's it. I could easily overlook all of that, until I found out about a Persona you unlock in the game. I was disgusted at this particular one and I broke the deal right there. The gameplay is fine, I completely understand why people go crazy for it, but THAT one Persona caused me to stop playing and that's not up for debate for me. If you enjoy it, I understand why. But for me, it crossed a line and I'm not going any further than that. If you want to know how far I got, I beat the Fifth Palace and I did it on my first try. I was told horror stories about it so I grinded to level 48, raised my confidants as high as I could, and had some amazing Persona's (along with about 3 small tips) that allowed me to beat Okumara.

[@ZippoIII]

@@cjszero01 You broke the deal... Because of a persona you unlock in the game? 🤣

[@cjszero01]

@@ZippoIII That is correct. The friend understood it very well and was just glad I gave the series a chance. Besides even if I had finished it these games on the list and more just mean so much more to me. I have far more time, history, and memories with them.

[@phoenixdouchebag904]

​@@cjszero01may i ask what that persona was?

[@cjszero01]

@@phoenixdouchebag904 The being of pure evil.