The Megami Tensei franchise refers to the entire franchise of Megami Tensei games and spin-offs. The series began with a series of novels written by Aya Nishitani, the first of which is Digital Devil Story: Megami Tensei. The franchise has crossed many consoles and genres, and is the one of the most popular Japanese RPG franchise in existence. Although less popular, Megami Tensei or simply called "Megaten" by fans, contains more games and spin-offs than almost any other franchise.