The Best Naughty Dog Game Franchises

Bad dog is one of the leading developers in the AAA market, and for good reason. The perfect combination of gameplay, story, and graphics has made Naughty Dog's recent franchises stand out as some of the best in recent memory. However, with a history in the gaming industry that stretches back decades, what are Naughty Dog's best franchises?

Naughty Dog didn't start out with a bang, and it wasn't until the seventh game that Naughty Dog made itself known with memorable characters that are still around today. People love Naughty Dog, whether it's for its old cartoony platformers or its mature, violently emotional stories, so it's time to rank each Naughty Dog franchise.

This list will only cover entries created by Naughty Dog.

4 Jack and Daxter

A new 3D mascot focused on action and adventure

Naughty Dog has moved on from Crash Bandicoot bringing further innovation of their technology and ideas to the PlayStation 2 era with Jack and DaxterThis inseparable duo would be the basis for character-driven moments in sprawling sci-fi worlds that would inspire other games in the series, where Crash BandicootLinear platforming was a thing of the past.

THE Jack and Daxter games were all about fun, and they are known as classics for a reason. Taking weird and wonderful elements and placing them in larger player spaces to allow fans to collect and explore the vastness of each area created an experience that was memorable at the time, but has since been silenced.

3 Crash Bandicoot

A bizarre marsupial that competes with Mario and Sonic

Naughty Dog achieved incredible success in 1996 when it released Crash Bandicoot on PlayStation 1. As the company's seventh game, it looked like they'd hit the jackpot with the wild, spinning marsupial, which entered the world of 3D platformers to compete directly with some other platform icons. Crash Bandicoot It's an absolute classic, still loved today, but it doesn't end there.

From the original Crash Bandicoot in 1996, the series continued to have sequels and spin-offs galore. From a spin-off racing genre to party modes, Crash Bandicoot has over 15 titles, and while only 4 of those are from Naughty Dog, they paved the way for this platformer mascot to go much further.

2 The Last of Us

A gritty post-apocalypse with complex characters and violent gameplay

The Last of Us is Naughty Dog's latest franchise to hit the market, and despite only having two releases in the last eleven years, it's still incredibly iconic, spawning an HBO TV remake and numerous remasters to ensure that PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, and PlayStation 5 players can all experience Joel and Ellie's story as they venture across an infected America filled with monsters both human and long-lost.

The Last of Us is easily one of the most recognizable games of all time, and the stories that can be told in this harsh and grim world are seemingly endless. With a focus on volatile emotions, heartbreaking survival, and a divided world, The Last of Us amazes in combat, exploration and storytelling with only two episodes.

1 Unexplored

An adventure packed with action, heart and story

Naughty Dog launches on PlayStation 3 with an entirely new franchise and a push for stories with Uncharted: Drake's Fortune in 2007. A story that pays homage Indiana Jones AND Tomb Raider with a touch of Naughty Dog, fans loved the charisma and puzzle-solving nature of Nathan Drake as he battles his way through ancient temples. In fact, they loved it so much that it extended to three additional sequels and a spin-off.

THE Unexplored The series is incredible, with each entry bringing something new and iconic to the table. Naughty Dog's transformation from a cartoonish platformer to an action-packed third-person shooter shows how innovative developers have evolved with the industry, delivering incredible action- and character-driven stories.