With the next generation of gaming being unleashed on the world, we’ve recently been taking a look back at the current generation – more specifically, the popular game franchises that didn’t take the jump from PS1 to PS2 or Xbox to Xbox 360 very well. Here’s a look at our top three franchises that just didn’t cope with the switch.
As the gaming world evolves so do the franchises, with games such as Grand Theft Auto, Call Of Duty and Assassin’s Creed firmly taking over from Tony Hawks and Spyro The Dragon, and bringing in a definite shift in what gamers want. Gaming has become a lot more serious but we all reach that point where you’ve played endless hours of shooters and you just beg for the pure fun of Wipeout. All three of the choices below were firm favourites back in the day and very popular among most of the gaming community – but ultimately they gave up or are still struggling along to this day.
3. Tekken
Even though I love the series to bits, I do have to admit that if you play one Tekken game you’ve kind of played them all. The series has tried hard to get people to continue buy the games but you could easily skip a release and go buy something else that’s totally original. There hasn’t been a main series game since 2009 (spin-offs don’t count, even though Street Fighter X Tekken is badass) and the arcade-style of gameplay is slightly dated in the current and next generation of gaming. It’s not Tekken’s fault but you’re only going to play that new, original story mode once and even then it’s just fighting one person after another with the exact same moves. That’s just the harsh reality of it. Let’s hope the new Killer Instinct is so good that it injects some life back into the genre, especially the poor old Tekken franchise.
Will this group ever reach the highs they once did?
2. Crash Bandicoot
Crash Bandicoot is one of the most iconic video games of its time. It enjoyed a lot of success on the PS1 with a whole series of critically and commercially adored releases; but once the PS2 was released, the brand started to show its age (obviously there’s only so many times you can see a bandicoot in denim shorts). The first title, Crash Bandicoot: The Wrath Of Cortex, kept the same formula that made the franchise a success in the first place but it was plagued with bad game mechanics and a whole host of equally bad new characters. As a result, it opened to mixed reviews and gained a bad reputation.
From then on, the franchise began to fall off a cliff, thanks to cheap gimmicks and awful racing games. It was clear that Crash didn’t belong in the new generation of gaming. There have been talks of a reboot so he can thrive once again and return to his former glory; co-creater Andy Gavin has even come out and stated that people have forgotten that Crash ‘was once cool’, an accurate statement seeing as he would only appeal to younger kids now I guess.
Denim shorts were big back in the day.
1. Sonic the Hedgehog
Be honest, when was the last time you got excited for a Sonic The Hedgehog game? And did you even realised they were still making Sonic games? That’s right: the blue hedgehog is still hanging on for dear life. He thrived on Sega where he raced through 2D stages, bouncing off walls and running loops like a madman. It was highly addictive and made Sega known as a brand but following the eventual end of Sega’s life and rise of the PS2, the Sonic franchise had to crossover.
Unfortunately this is where the trouble started. Despite some success with Sonic Adventure Battle 2 on the GameCube, the series began to churn out some real awful games like 2006′s Sonic The Hedgehog, Shadow The Hedgehog and Sonic Unleashed. The franchise tried to appeal to those fans that were familiar with Sonic from the beginning by making their releases much darker, but this just alienated everybody who played the title the first time around in the process. Sonic, along with Mario, defined a generation back in the day and it seemed like these two would rule the gaming world forever; but the hedgehog has been tossed aside to the point where he may never bounce back, and for me that’s genuinely sad.
Can Sonic ever be cool again?
With all this talk of our favourite game franchises not being what they once were, attention now turns to the new generation of consoles and the franchises that may not cross over as well as others. Although it’s hard to predict which titles will struggle, you have to feel for series like Duke Nukem – those that are loved but have released some unsuccessful recent titles (let’s hope I’m wrong on this one).
With people wanting more originality in their games nowadays it’ll be hard, but fingers crossed not too many casualties are had and there’s enough room for both old-school and original releases going forward. For loved franchises from the 1980s, 1990s and 2000s to keep their place, they may need to reboot – especially when sitting on the shelf next to them is Beyond two Souls or Watchdogs.
