Wrestlemania 40 is almost here. If you’ve been following WWE over the past three years, you’ll know that like almost every story from this period, this show revolves around one family: Bloodline. The extensive family tree of Samoan wrestlers stretches back decades and includes members of current undisputed champions Roman Reigns, Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, Yokozuna, Rikishi, and more. In a business filled with famous families, Bloodline is perhaps the biggest family dynasty in professional wrestling history.
That got me thinking about similar family trees across all video game novels and whether any of them could stand up to the bloodline. I’ve gathered a few worthy clans, and while I may never see them face off against Roman’s family for dominance, I can at least hypothesize who will get the right to recognition.
Kong Family – Donkey Kong
Donkey Kong first shot players in 1981 and established himself as a media icon and staple. Since then, Nintendo’s famous monkey has thrived with an extensive family tree comprised of children, grandchildren, nieces, nephews, and romantic partners with their own clan, all tied to the name Kong. Add up all the beans for appearances in games, comics, promotional material, and the Donkey Kong Country animated series, and there’s enough to fill a few buckets. And if you’re having trouble remembering some of the members, the infamous DK Rap is here to help. But when this match-up devolves into a rap battle, Roman’s cousins, the Usos, completely dominate the Kongs.
Belmont – Castlevania
Similar to Bloodline, the members of Castlevania’s Belmont family gained notoriety by being very adept at accomplishing the same task of killing Dracula. This lineage of legendary vampire hunters (though equally adept at eliminating all manner of supernatural threats) have been wielding whips and throwing holy water better than anyone else for centuries. The cruel irony is that their main enemy, Dracula, has a closer relationship with them than the Belmonts realize. Due to the generation gap, the Belmonts are not often seen working together, so members facing Roman could find themselves in a Cody Rhodes-like scenario, representing their family alone and at a severe disadvantage.
Nurse Joys/Officer Zenith – Pokemon
One of the Pokemon anime’s longest-running gags was that each town had its own Nurse Joy and Officer Jenny. They are not the same person, but rather visually identical members of two obscenely large groups of doctors and law enforcement officers. It’s incredible that a family can consist of not just two, but dozens of clone-like siblings, cousins, cousins, etc. Imagine that Bloodline is multiple copies of Roman Reigns, and only his wiseguy, Paul Heyman (who ironically plays Brock’s role), can tell subtle differences like eyelash length and tooth whiteness. One on one, Nurse Joy is too cheerful to fight, but Officer Jenny is always willing to fight. Plus, her almighty Arcanine can counter the inevitable run-in of Solo Sikoa.
Desmond Miles’ Lineage – Assassin’s Creed
This is interesting because there are more descendants than immediate family members. However, considering that Desmond’s most famous ancestors, Altaïr and Ezio, are separated by centuries, it can be assumed that there must be numerous relatives among them for his lineage to survive to this day. Thanks to the Animus’ advanced scientific magic, decapitating Templars has become an inherited trait rather than a learned profession. Bloodline only has to deal with Desmond, but he channels many of his ancestor’s skills (read: stabbing/climbing things) thanks to the scientific magic of the Animus.
Phase – Ace Attorney
From the outside, the Ace Attorney series may seem to be about winning and contesting court cases, but the franchise is supernatural. Phoenix Wright’s mentor was Mia Fey, a famous defense attorney and psychic among them. After Mia’s death, her cheerful younger sister Maya becomes Phoenix’s longtime assistant, and players meet more of their Fae relatives throughout the series. There are nine known members (all female, as only women can learn the art of channeling the souls of their families), but considering their structure with several families consisting of a “main” family and “minor” siblings and their kin, there are many more. It is estimated to be large. The Feys are able to play effective mind games by channeling the souls of Roman’s departed brothers. After Cody Rhodes claimed that Roman and Rock’s grandfathers would be ashamed of their evil antics, Feys could easily confirm this. However, the Feys were not immune to her internal turmoil and were willing to resort to murder to climb her hierarchy. This is a divide that Bloodline can capitalize on.
Aquato Family – Psychonauts
Raz’s family may not be wrestlers, but they are the next best thing: circus performers. Known by the stage name “Flying Aquatos”, Raz’s immediate (and very large) family excelled at water acrobatics until a water-related family curse derailed their performances. Bloodline could easily capitalize on this by literally playing the game on the Island of Relevance, triggering long-standing trauma for Raz and his family. Raz, on the other hand, getting inside Roman’s head and exploring what makes him tick would make for fascinating platforming. You’ll find plenty of Royal Rumble 2015 related luggage collectibles.
Coopers – Sly Cooper
Sly Cooper was destined to become a master thief from the moment he was born. Because he is the latest generation of benevolent thieves. After all, the Coopers, whose roots date back to the Ice Age, have been robbing since dinosaurs roamed the Earth, making them perhaps the oldest family on this list. As far as we know, the Coopers invented the concept of theft and, like Bloodline, were able to devise cunning ways to achieve victory. Additionally, the fourth game introduced time travel, allowing everyone to be present during the game. Win or lose, one thing is certain. There’s no way Cooper wouldn’t be out by a Roman belt, hook, or expertly executed conman.
What video game franchise do you think could take on The Bloodline? Let us know in the comments!