When a franchise hits, its developers can think of numerous ways to branch off and keep it alive. It’s amazing that so many franchises from the 80s and 90s are still around today because, somehow, the developers are able to rejuvenate interest between releases.
Some franchises are not so lucky and haven’t received a game in ages, like Wild Arms and Kid Icarus. Then there are franchises that are still good, but they probably already hit their watershed moment recently, or years ago. Can these franchises have a cultural impact again, or have they reached their highest point and cannot expand further?
Call Of Duty
A Yearly Tradition
The first few Call of Duty games were popular as World War 2 shooters of their era, but Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare changed everything. The modern setting and RPG mechanics introduced in multiplayer innovated shooters as a whole. Year after year, Activision puts out a new entry with small tweaks and innovations. For a good decade, fans couldn’t get enough.
Now, Call of Duty almost feels like a yearly tradition that comes and goes like a holiday. There are certainly those who wish to celebrate it, but at this point, Call of Duty no longer feels special despite consistent, solid gameplay.
The Legend of Zelda
Hard To Innovate On Perfection
The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild reinvented the wheel for the Zelda series as the franchise’s first true open-world game. It innovated the series and the genre as a whole with mechanics like the paraglider and stamina meter. Its direct sequel, Tears of the Kingdom, was just more of the same with building mechanics stacked on top, and Echoes of Wisdom was a top-down version of the open-world design.
Both of these games were good and well-praised upon release, but Nintendo will need to produce something beyond imagination to top the feeling new Switch owners experienced when they launched Breath of the Wild for the first time and became mesmerized.
Assassin’s Creed
They Finally Went To Japan
Assassin’s Creed 4: Black Flag
- Released
-
October 29, 2013
Assassin’s Creed Shadows finally gave fans what they have wanted since the Assassin’s Creed series began in 2007: a trip to Japan. That game is not the peak of the series, but it did fulfill a wish.
It’s hard to exactly say where the fandom branched off, as some games are more popular than others. It could be argued that Assassin’s Creed 4: Black Flag is the last game that gathered all types of players together and dominated the year upon its release. Assassin’s Creed Origins certainly raised the bar by introducing RPG mechanics. Either way, despite the series still having fans, it certainly doesn’t have as much cache within the video game world as it once used to.
Super Smash Bros.
Can You Go Beyond Ultimate?
Super Smash Bros. had one of the best commercials when it was released on the N64. The idea of iconic Nintendo and third-party characters duking it out was funny, but also fun to play.
Nintendo went all out on Super Smash Bros. Ultimate in terms of characters, including not only EVERY character from the past, but new ones as well, like Sora from Kingdom Hearts. While a new entry with cool guest characters would pop off in discussions online, the surprise of getting everyone back together again seems like an impossible task to repeat.
God Of War
How Many Times Can Kratos Be Angry?
God of War was a late addition to the PS2 and surprised everyone with its level of violence. The original trilogy was adored by fans, with the third game being the high point as sort of the end of Kratos’s journey. It didn’t seem like there was any juice left in the tank until the 2018 sequel/reboot.
The 2018 game was well-liked, but did it, or its sequel, draw in more players than previous entries? The only possible way it could surprise new players is if the next game ditched Kratos in favor of a new character or religious pantheon, but for some, that really wouldn’t be God of War anymore.
Mario Kart
Not Every Series Needs To Go Open-World
Super Mario Kart dazzled SNES players, offering a wackier racing game to get into. For decades, fans thought Mario Kart 64 was the peak until Mario Kart 8 Deluxe absolutely wrecked sales charts year after year. It was well-supported through the years, from new tracks to additional racers, including non-Mario characters like Link from the Zelda series and Isabelle from Animal Crossing.
Technically, Mario Kart World is a bigger game thanks to the open-world design, but is it really better as a game? It’s an evolution of the concept, but not a revolution. Beyond having an even bigger open-world or more characters in the next game, it’s likely Nintendo doesn’t have anywhere else to go with Mario Kart.
Final Fantasy
Will There Ever Be A Final?
Final Fantasy had two high points in the series that could both be argued as the peak. Final Fantasy 7 got more players involved in RPGs, leading to the success of the PS1 among other hit titles. Final Fantasy 10 is beloved for different reasons, and the PS2 era, overall, is probably the last great generation for the series.
Since then, Square Enix has seemingly been more obsessed with nostalgia by bringing back their best Final Fantasy work through remakes and remasters. Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth is a great game, but it drew on the past and merely reminded players of what the franchise used to be, and not what it is today.
Cannot Do Better Than Kojima
Metal Gear Solid 5: The Phantom Pain is the last game that Hideo Kojima worked on before departing Konami. Since then, Konami has mostly focused on re-releases along with a spinoff of Kojima’s last work via Metal Gear Survive.
They have yet to innovate on what Kojima started way back in 1987, and it’s hard to imagine anyone at Konami stepping up to the plate and creating something new, as they would have to fill some gigantic shoes. So, the Metal Gear franchise, beyond remasters and remakes, may be dead, at least to Kojima fans.
