I don't have a great record of everything I played before the days of really being able to track things online. I may have double-counted a game or two, or left out a game here and there. I also cheated a little bit and grouped a few similar series together to come up with a neater list (otherwise there'd be a 6-way tie for 9th place and like an 8-way tie for 10th place...).
10. (tie) Devil May Cry / Donkey Kong - 6 gamesThis is basically the DKC games plus the original DK. I prefer the DKC games but I recognize the original as an arcade classic. I played DMC1-4 in order a while back, and played the more recent ones as they came out. Not my favorite series but 1 and 3 are excellent.
Favorites: Devil May Cry 3 (PS2), Donkey Kong Country Returns (Wii)
Least Favorites: Devil May Cry 2 (PS2), Donkey Kong (Arcade)
9. (3-way tie) Hitman / Soulsborne / Tomb Raider - 7 games First example of cheating, as I've played four proper "Souls" games but I'm including other FromSoft games in there as I feel like they all belong under the same umbrella, Sekiro maybe being the most iffy. With Tomb Raider, I played a few games from each era (early Core Design, mid-era Crystal Dynamics and the more recent reboots). A series I've always liked but generally less so over time. Hitman has become one of my favorite series with the most recent trilogy.
Favorites: Hitman 3 (PS5), Elden Ring (PS5), Tomb Raider '96 (PC)
Least Favorites: Hitman: Absolution (360), Dark Souls II (PS4), Tomb Raider: Legend (PS3)
8. Silent Hill - 8 gamesI'm counting P.T. as the 8th game here. Not my second-favorite survival horror series (I'd rank a few ahead of it) but my second-most played.
Favorite: Silent Hill 2 (PS2)
Least Favorite: Silent Hill 4: The Room (PS2)
7. Metal Gear - 9 gamesAnother classic Konami franchise makes the list. Like SH above, this isn't my favorite stealth series but it's the one I've played the most games in. I also have a clear favorite and least favorite. Even though Kojima's games are heavy on story and cutscenes - to varying degrees of success, I've always preferred his games which balance that out more with strong gameplay.
Favorite: Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain (PS4)
Least Favorite: Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots (PS3)
6. Metroid - 10 gamesI've played at least some version (original or remake) of each of the main games here. There's only one that I didn't really like, so it's easy to establish the bottom of the list. It's a very consistent franchise otherwise, as ranking them in order requires a highly advanced science degree!
Favorite: Metroid Prime (GameCube)
Least Favorite: Metroid: Other M (Wii)
5. EA Sports Football (Madden / NCAA) - 12 gamesAlmost forgot about ranking sports games. I'm not sure how accurate this is, but I've played a lot of Madden over the years. Need a game to get at launch? "Let's get Madden". Need something to rent for the weekend? "Let's just get Madden". In high school and college years, Madden and NCAA Football were among my most played multiplayer games with friends.
Favorite: Madden NFL 2004 (GameCube)
Least Favorite: NCAA Football 2007 (360)
4. WWE/WWF/WCW - 14 gamesCheating a little bit again here and lumping all of the pro wrestling games under one category, though most were under the THQ banner anyway. Most of these games weren't very good, but the four THQ-published wrestling games on N64 are truly great videogames.
Favorite: WWF Wrestlemania 2000 (N64)
Least Favorite: WWF Royal Rumble (Dreamcast)
3. Super Mario - 20 gamesAt first glance it seemed I may have undercounted, but I never really got into many of the side games, sports games or the RPGs. I'm not a huge Mario Kart fan either. I double-checked and I believe this is correct.
Favorite: Super Mario Galaxy (Wii)
Least Favorite: Mario Kart: Double Dash!! (GameCube)
2. Resident Evil - 21 gamesRemakes and remasters boost the count for one of my favorite series. It's feels weird to not list REmake as my favorite, but we live in strange times.
Favorite: Resident Evil 4 Remake (PS5)
Least Favorite: Resident Evil 6 (PS3)
1. The Legend of Zelda - 22 gamesI've played all of the main games in my favorite series (though I should probably finish TotK at some point!

), with some remakes and remasters boosting the total here.
Favorite: The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time (N64)
Least Favorite: The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass (DS)