Short but brilliant trilogies you can beat without a huge time commitment

Gamers wanting a shorter amount of time between a game's beginning, middle, and end has largely changed in recent years, with the rise of open-world games having a huge influence on how modern releases are designed, with even relatively linear, story-driven games often having free roaming, side quests, or additional activities these days.

Thankfully, some franchises have an entire trilogy of games that offer short and sweet experiences, allowing players to progress through a comprehensive overarching story or enjoy the flow of expanding game mechanics as sequels try to improve upon their predecessors. The running times for the entire trilogy on this list are taken from the combined completion times of the main story on howlongtobeat.com.

Jak and Daxter (Precursor Trilogy)

Running time for the entire trilogy: 38.5 hours

Game:

Available in a package?

• Yes – Jak and Daxter Trilogy

Jak and DaxterThe Precursor Trilogy is a rare example of each game in a trilogy offering a unique experience. Jak and Daxter: The Precursor Legacythe first game in the franchise, released in 2001, is a 90s-style mascot platformer with collectathon gameplay. Jack 2on the other hand, decided not to offer another cutsey collectathon and instead switched to a gritty cyberpunk setting, with plenty of weapons to use and a variety of missions to complete.

Jack 3 leaned even further into the darker setting, with a combination of platforming, shooting and racing like the previous game. The franchise has had a few spin-offs over the years, most notably Jak X: Combat Racingbut the Precursor trilogy remains the franchise's only main series entry.

Tomb Raider (Survivor Trilogy)

Running time of the entire trilogy: 37.5 hours

Game:

Available in a package?

• Yes – Tomb Raider: Definitive Survivor Trilogy

The recently released remasters of the first two Tomb Raider trilogies could have easily fit into this list, but since there are a couple of other remasters of older games, the newer Survivor Trilogy gets the nod.

The 2013s Tomb Raider was a reboot of the franchise that fans weren't too sure what to expect when it was released given the franchise's up-and-down history, although fans and critics were pleasantly surprised with Uncharted-inspired fixed games and fun game loops. Rise of the Tomb Raider and Shadow of the Tomb Raider build on what the original created and offer a cohesive story and gameplay experience that can be purchased at a great price thanks to Tomb Raider: Definitive Survivor Trilogy.

Spyro the Dragon (Reignited Trilogy)

The entire trilogy Running time: 30.5 hours

Game:

Available in a package?

The original Spyro the dragon trilogy is an iconic set of games exclusively released on PlayStation. Along with Crash Bandicoot, Spyro was a mascot platformer designed to take on Mario and Sonic. The games did not disappoint and were redone in 2018 Spyro Reignited Trilogywhich is the best and most accessible way to play the trilogy today.

The first two Spyro games offer similar collectathon platformers that likely inspired the aforementioned Jak and Daxter: The Precursor Legacy. While the third game, Spyro: Year of the Dragonhad the same basics, it offered much more gameplay variety thanks to the addition of playable characters like Sheila the Kangaroo and Sergeant Byrd, and had Spyro hop on a skateboard for some unique challenges.

Sly Cooper (Original Trilogy)

The entire trilogy Playing time: 30 hours

Game:

Available in a package?

With mascot platformers on the decline in the early 2000s, Sly Cooper and Thievius Raccoonus revived the genre by combining platforming with stealth – two genres that seem to be polar opposites. Sucker Punch Productions found a winning formula with Sly Cooper and Thievius Raccoonusand kick-started one of the PlayStation 2's most beloved trilogies.

After the success of Sly Cooper and Thievius RaccoonusSucker Punch Productions leaned further into the stealth aspects of the original in the sequels and introduced more playable characters to vary the gameplay. All three games are currently available via Sony's PS Plus Premium service.

Max Payne

The entire trilogy Playing time: 24 hours

Game:

Available in a package?

• No – Definitely a remake of Max Payne and Max Payne 2: The Fall is in progress and will be sold together.

Max Payne is a unique trilogy in that its first two entries were released a couple of years apart, before an almost decade-long gap to the next entry, with no spin-offs in between, nor have there been any to this day.

The Max Payne the trilogy offers over-the-top action-packed fun, with third-person shooters taking clear inspiration from The matrix with slowing down the bullet time that feels cinematic every time. With a total play time of just 24 hours, the trilogy can be completed within a week, and it's guaranteed to be one of the most fun weeks of your gaming life if old-school shooters are your thing.

Crash Bandicoot (N.Sane Trilogy)

The entire trilogy Playing time: 15 hours

Game:

Available in a package?

The original Crash Bandicoot the trilogy managed to give worthy competition to Mario and Sonic, making the PlayStation a must-buy for platform fans who had to try Crash Bandicoot and the aforementioned Spyro. The corridor platformer style is, surprisingly, still unique to this day, with few other platformers even attempting to replicate the level design so synonymous with the orange marsupial.

Like many great platformers, while the main story of Crash game takes only 15 hours, there are many things to collect in each level, such as chests, gems and relics, which greatly extends the potential playing time. The relics are especially good for those who want replayability, as they give players an excuse to endlessly replay the tightly designed levels. Originally only Crash Bandicoot: Warped had the time travel relics, but it N. Sanne Trilogy added them in the first two games too.