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I think everyone would agree that every sequel to the first Elder Scrolls game surpasses it. Fallout 2 is also often considered better than its predecessor, as are Baldur's Gate II and Street Fighter 2. Streets of Rage 2 as well, if we're talking fighting games. I think I enjoyed Arkham City more than Arkham Asylum on the whole. Age of Empires II is a lot better than the first one. I think a lot of folks liked Neverwinter Nights 2 a lot more as well. Oh, and Postal 2. Amazing game. Also the Thief sequels, though I liked the original a lot.

Loads and loads. Too many to list. Just about any gaming series : Civlization, Warcraft, Hitman, Trine, Anno, Tomb Raider, Command and Conquer, Simcity, The Sims, Fallout, Delta Force, GTA, Commandos, Mortal Kombat, Age of Empires, Need for Speed.
In all of those the first sequel surpassed the original, and in some cases also formed the high point of the series (commandos 2 for example)

Some example of the opposite: Unreal and Empire Earth comes to mind

Also, how did I forget Pokémon Gold and Silver?

They're vastly better than Red and Blue, and every iteration from Gen IV onwards has far better mechanics.

(Fight me, genwunners.)

The Witcher 3 is far better than the first 2. With some mods for alchemy, which was the biggest glaring fault of the game (I think the second one was the best mix of streamlined vs complex).

Morrowind was probably the peak of the Elder Scrolls series.

Darksiders was far better than Darksiders 2, though. Never got into the second game there.

Same with Prototype.

And Crysis.

and DMC 2.


Probably easier to list games that weren't better than their predecessors...

Well, the Hitman games. They only kept getting better and better until, arguably, Absolution put a dent in IOI's track record. Haven't played Hitman 2016 yet (incidentally I'll get it tomorrow) but I've been told that that one's the best one yet.

And in my opinion Doom 2 was much better than Doom 1. There's the obvious stuff like the introduction of the super shotgun and very nice new enemy types but what really matters is that, in my opinion, Doom 2's level design was much better.

Then there's Silent Hill 2. The first game was already fantastic but they really improved each and every aspect in the second game. There's the obvious stuff like better graphics, music and controls which were of course a direct result of the jump from PSX to PS2 but what really matters is that they created a story one can relate to and that explored serious themes which were pretty much untouched in video games at the time (and are rarely addressed to this day, for that matter).

And an extreme example is in my opinion Killzone 2. The first Killzone was, quite frankly, crap, and had almost no redeeming qualities in my eyes. The second one became one of my favourite shooters ever. Finally the Helghast, who only had a cool visual design going for them in the first game, became genuinely interesting and intimidating foes. The gameplay was excellent middle-ground between Halo and Call of Duty, a war shooter that uses the advantages of a sci-fi setting. And the presentation was among the best during that whole console generation.

Then there's the Assassin's Creed series which, in retrospect, started out very badly and also had its ups and downs throughout but once in a while a new AC would surpass all earlier games. AC2 was better than 1, Brotherhood was better than 2 and in my opinion Revelations was better than Brotherhood. Then came the mediocre AC3 but luckily the series had a winner again with AC4. And apparently Origins is the best one yet.

I lucked out because its the only one I've played but Resident Evil 4 is widely considered one of the best in the series.

The original Assassin's Creed was painfully repetitive; it was essentially a tech demo they released to recoup development funds. I should really give the second game a try, but I just haven't.

Disagree about some of the games already mentioned (both Commandos 2 and Fallout 2 are worse than the originals imo).
Personally I'd say Thief 2 has better level design than Thief 1.

Unlike movies I feel like there are a tooooon of games series where a sequel is better than the original. Not saying all of them obviously, but it's pretty common IMO. Off the top of my head Morrowind and Skyrim are much better than Elder Scrolls Arena for example. Later Ultimas and Wizardy games are better than earlier ones. Later King's Quest and other Sierra games are often better than the originals. I could go on and on...

FlatOut 2 is the very definition how a sequel should be made: bigger, better tracks, more carnage, better handling, and (debatable) better soundtrack. Pretty much everything that could be improved was.

Another vote for Diablo 2, and no I'm not kissing the new CM's ass.

I've been saying it's my favorite game ever since I joined here.

Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty.

After the first MGS, everyone wanted more. Then we all thought we had given more. But then Raiden comes, things happen, you're confused. You feel like you've been tricked.

So not only I consider it the best sequel to game because of the incredible improvement on gameplay, but because it plays with your expectations, makes them a part of the general feeling of the game, and gives a message and an experience totally different from the first one.