Games that killed Franchises?

[Emperor Megas]

Silent Hill 4: The Room. The franchise never recovered, and probably never will again. Having Western developers design the next installment didn't help matters any, either.

And I couldn't agree more about Phantasy Star Online. The success of PSO meant SEGA would never invest resources creating another single player Phantasy Star RPG.

[crazyjackcsa]

Silent Hill 4: The Room. The franchise never recovered, and probably never will again. Having Western developers design the next installment didn't help matters any, either.

And I couldn't agree more about Phantasy Star Online. The success of PSO meant SEGA would never invest resources creating another single player Phantasy Star RPG.

Right, but they're still around and games still get made. It just killed it for you, not for others.

[Robocop2]

I think that Splatterhouse 2010 killed all hope for a conclusion to its story. People clamored for years for a new SH and while I was personally very pleased overall; the general reception was so abysmal that I have doubt about ever seeing another one. Namco abondoning the game shortly before its release didn't help any either though.

Another series I think that is dead is Golden Axe. Not that it had much life left in it but Beast Rider sealed its fate. As an aside; its interesting that a significant portion of this thread is in relation to games that have Sega somewhere in the details no?

[Emperor Megas]

Right, but they're still around and games still get made. It just killed it for you, not for others.

Seriously? They actually sold some of those shit shingles?

[kedawa]

Actraiser 2 was a series killer. It's not a bad game, but it's hard as hell and omits the hybrid gameplay that made the original game so charming and unique.

Another series I think that is dead is Golden Axe. Not that it had much life left in it but Beast Rider sealed its fate. As an aside; its interesting that a significant portion of this thread is in relation to games that have Sega somewhere in the details no?

Everything that came after the original has been a disappointment.
Space Harrier, Alien Syndrome, and Altered Beast got shafted as well.
It's gotten to the point that I'd rather see fanmade remakes and sequels to Sega's games than anything official.

[Baloo]

Let's face it, SEGA doesn't know how to handle their IPs from their Golden Age for shit. Sonic is whored out, and everything else has gotten one or two sequels MAX on a recent console, if it's not being outright ignored. See:

NiGHTS: Journey of Dreams
Sega Rally
Virtua Fighter
Panzer Dragoon Orta
Jet Set Radio Future
Outrun 2
Phantasy Star Online
Golden Axe: Beast Rider
Altered Beast (PS2)

And lets not forget Ecco, any Sega Sports franchise, Streets of Rage, Vectorman, Eternal Champions, Comix Zone, Sega is sitting on tons upon tons of useable IPs that won't go anywhere because they're simply forgotten about. I suppose it's for the better, that means we don't have to see the Sonic treatment and get 4000 shitty sequels.

As for everything else, usually the companies have gone bust or the games have just sucked, a la TJ&E3 or Banjo and Kazooie: Nuts and Bolts.

[kedawa]

I actually liked Outrun 2 and PDO.

[Emperor Megas]

I haven't played any of the others listed, but OutRun2 is fantastic, and Panzer Dragoon Orta and Jet Set Radio Future were both great.

[kedawa]

Reading through it again, I don't think he meant those were all bad games, just series that got lacklustre sequels or were neglected entirely.

[jonebone]

Actraiser 2 was a series killer. It's not a bad game, but it's hard as hell and omits the hybrid gameplay that made the original game so charming and unique.

Good one, I agree completely.

I'd nominate Twisted metal III, which is right when 989 Studios took over. I've actually seen new publishers kill many series, as it happened to one of my favorites...

When EA took over Westwood Studios and Command and Conquer. It was never the same afterwards. I actually enjoyed a bit of C&C Generals made by EA, but I'd say the series lost me at Red Alert 3 or C&C 4, whichever one was first. Both were garbage and I'll never buy another.

[calthaer]

When EA took over Westwood Studios and Command and Conquer. It was never the same afterwards. I actually enjoyed a bit of C&C Generals made by EA, but I'd say the series lost me at Red Alert 3 or C&C 4, whichever one was first. Both were garbage and I'll never buy another.

It's the same thing with when EA took over Origin, and Ultima & Wing Commander sucked it up ever after. Looks like this is exactly what happened with Command & Conquer: Tiberian Sun.

I do have to begrudgingly admit, however, that C&C: Renegade was an apt swan song for Westwood Studios and the series as a whole. The campaign mode was very competent - what made it extremely fun IMO was the ability to see the world of the original C&C from the first person perspective (there's one moment where the 2D map transforms into the 3D FPS which was awesome...Youtube is crapping out on me or I'd find it and link to it; think it was the first or second mission). Then, towards the end of the campaign, you drive a mammoth tank and start tearing things up in the final assault on Kain's temple - it's a pretty memorable gaming experience. The multiplayer online mode got bogged down by too many cheats that EA never bothered fixing, but early on it was an amazing team-based competitive FPS - maybe the best I've ever played, to be honest, with a great balance between 3rd-person vehicular combat and FPS.

All that was done while EA owned Westwood, so I can't say their track record is 100% bad. Just mostly bad.

[xelement5x]

It's hilarious that there's all this talk about rebooting older franchises from Sega, and they just announced this sweepstakes: http://blogs.sega.com/2011/10/03/seg...ame-that-game/

Name the game the song is from and you get the chance to win it. I won't spoil it for those of you who want to test your mettle

[FrankSerpico]

Strider Returns. I know they came out with Strider 2 years later, and it's a game I like, but Capcom had the chance to develop the franchise into something huge back in the early '90s. It was one of the most successful arcade games of all time, and then they decided to farm out the property to some European developer that made an awful sequel. IIRC they didn't even publish the game in the US

[Crocket]

Strider Returns. I know they came out with Strider 2 years later, and it's a game I like, but Capcom had the chance to develop the franchise into something huge back in the early '90s. It was one of the most successful arcade games of all time, and then they decided to farm out the property to some European developer that made an awful sequel. IIRC they didn't even publish the game in the US

Actually it did get released in the States. It was developed by Tiertex who also made their own Street Fighter knockoff called Human Killing Machine. They must have a knack for butchering Capcom franchises.

I guess I'd throw Clay Fighter 63 and a 1/3rd in there, but it's not like the Clay Fighter series was critically acclaimed to begin with.

[Gameguy]

It's hilarious that there's all this talk about rebooting older franchises from Sega, and they just announced this sweepstakes: http://blogs.sega.com/2011/10/03/seg...ame-that-game/

Name the game the song is from and you get the chance to win it. I won't spoil it for those of you who want to test your mettle

Worst contest I've seen in awhile, the grand prize is a digital download. Not worth having your last name plastered all over their blog.

(5) First Prizes – Ten (10) winners will be randomly selected and each will receive a FREE digital download of the game (in the PlayStation® 3 format) associated with the song correctly named in the contest, Approximate Retail Value (“ARV”) $10. The prize will be fulfilled as a code, which the winner will use to unlock the game on his/her console using an Internet connection. There are a total of ten (10) prizes with a total ARV of all prizes of $100. The odds of winning depend upon the total number of eligible entries received.

[Cryomancer]

Dear thread: Toejam & Earl III is awesome, and stands as one of the best examples ever of how to take an old franchise into 3D. It combines elements of both previous games while also being it's own thing, and is very much a strong entry in the series for me. I'd rate it above 2. I really hope we get that 4 player co-op title some year.

also hilarious thing: spellchecker wants to change "Toejam" into tomatoes, how fitting.

[Robocop2]

I really need to go back to TJ&E 3 and finish it. I just wish it was on the BC list for the 360

[aryoshi]

There are also franchises that are dead to some people and not others, like Final Fantasy. Final Fantasy VII was the beginning of the end for the "Final Fantasy ended at VI" crowd. Obviously not for most people, though.

I agree, it does depend on the person in some cases. I'm actually one of those people that hated Final Fantasy VII and every entry after it, but adored VI and all before it. I think when Sonic went 3D is when it started to die out for me, SA 1 and 2 were pretty good but after that, it just went way downhill from there. And Zelda, I really stopped caring about it when Windwaker came out.

I also do agree about what one user said about EA taking over Westwood and practically destroying Command & Conquer, they totally butchered it. I grew up playing that game and loved it to death back when Westwood was making them, but wow EA killed it.

Reading through I actually didn't notice anyone mention anything about Castlevania, not that I saw anyway, I could be mistaken. But after Symphony of the Night came out, it really started to die off, there were a couple of good ones here and there but basically they just turned the series into Devil May Cry/God of War clones. Sad, they really had something going for awhile. Though, Castlevania's always been looked at by me as a classic, I always recognize it for the first 4 and those'll always be the ones that defined the series to me.

[Tempest]

Dear thread: Toejam & Earl III is awesome, and stands as one of the best examples ever of how to take an old franchise into 3D. It combines elements of both previous games while also being it's own thing, and is very much a strong entry in the series for me. I'd rate it above 2. I really hope we get that 4 player co-op title some year.

also hilarious thing: spellchecker wants to change "Toejam" into tomatoes, how fitting.

It might be awesome, but it killed the franchise. I think part of the problem was choosing the Xbox as the platform. Had it been released on the PS2 it probably would have done much better.

I heard it was originally going to be a DC game, that would have been a nice send off.

[NE146]

Count me as one of the "Final Fantasy VII was the end of the FF series" crowd. But honestly I didn't think FFVI was all that great as well. Of course I played and finished it completely, but was ultimately left feeling a little dissatisfied (unlike after playing FF1/ US FF2)