It may not be the most popular series about catching little monsters and training them to battle each other without mercy, but Digimon still holds a special place in the hearts of 20-30 somethings around the world. Much like the franchise it quickly followed, Digimon has branched out into just about every media possible, from anime to movies to card games to merchandise, and of course, video games. The Digimon World series is generally regarded as being one of the best pieces of Digimon media out there, and with it dating all the way back to 1999, it's likely the first entry point for many fans.
Beginning on the original PlayStation back in 1999, the Digimon World series has had six mainline entries, each of which improves on its predecessor in some subtle but distinctive ways. It may not be the best gaming franchise out there, but Digimon World is certainly a nostalgic one for many.
Digimon World
Technically releasing a few months before the popular anime, Digimon World, the first title in the series, dropped in January 1999 for Japan, and arrived in May 2000 for US regions. Set on an island full of feral Digimon, the player must train up their own Digimon partners and set out to battle and tame the rest of the island, saving it from chaos.
While Digimon World takes a lot of cues from the Pokemon series with similar turn-based battling systems and obviously a very similar premise, this first game puts more of an emphasis of training the monsters than battling them. Players will need to hatch their Digimon from an egg and take them through five distinct life-cycle stages. Interestingly, the player's Digimon partners can actually age and die, requiring the player to raise them again from an egg.
Digimon World also has a few minigames packed in, such as arena tournaments and fishing. Players can also accept various sub-quests, some of which will reward the player with some brand-new Digimon and stat upgrades. Being the first in the series, there are only 65 Digimon to collect in Digimon World.
Digimon World 2
Releasing just a year later, Digimon World 2 takes quite the departure from the first game in the series. Rather than having an RPG, Pokemon-like overworld, Digimon World 2 opts to go for the dungeon-crawler route, instead being quite reminiscent of future Pokemon Mystery Dungeon titles. While training is still a large part of the gameplay, Digimon World 2 really fleshes out the battling system and adds a slew of new Digimon to tame and train.
Digimon World 2 is also the first game in the series to include the Digivolution mechanic, whereby players can combine evolve their monsters when they've gained enough EXP. Additionally, players can also DNA Digivole their monsters, which is where two monsters of the same rank are merge together to form a new type of Digimon that's inherently more powerful.
Digimon World 3
Another year later, Digimon World 3 would release, this time bearing an even closer resemblance to Pokemon. Instead of 3v3 battles, Digimon World 3 pairs it back to just 1-on-1 fights. Digivolutions are also treated a little differently in this entry, acting more like temporary buffs in battle than permanent evolutionary upgrades. This is the first Digimon World game to include optional card battles as a side activity.
Digimon World 4
Taking a three-year break, the series would return with Digimon World 4 in 2005, this time jumping from the PS1 to the Xbox, PS2, and GameCube. With the generational leap also came a variety of gameplay and visual upgrades. Some of the new mechanics included four player multiplayer, boss Digimon, and Magic, Tech, and Weapon systems.
Digimon World: Re-Digitize
Taking another big break, the series returned once more in 2012 with Digimon World: Re-Digitize for the PSP. Much like the earlier entries in the series, caring after their Digimon is the player's first priority, with the player needing to maintain their hunger, health, and ensure that their personality needs are being catered for.
Digimon World: Next Order
The most recent game in the series, Digimon World: Next Order released in 2016 for the PS Vita and 2017 for the PS4. This latest entry takes an open-world approach, and allows players to choose two Digimon partners, needing to care for both simultaneously. Being the most recent entry in the Digimon World series, Next Order is obviously the most technically impressive, with the tightest mechanics and best visuals of the entire series.