Our new Indie Games subforum is now open for business in G&T. Go and check it out, you might land a code for a free game. If you're developing an indie game and want to post about it,
follow these directions. If you don't, he'll break your legs! Hahaha! Seriously though.
Our rules have been updated and given
their own forum. Go and look at them! They are nice, and there may be new ones that you didn't know about! Hooray for rules! Hooray for The System! Hooray for Conforming!
When should a game series end?
Posts
I'm not sure what that contributes though. I guess I'll say I don't have issues with new games as long as there some time and innovation between iterations. I can't imagine coughing up the dough for the new CoD every year. And I don't. Cuz I don't like them. But my point is that those games are out every year and I can't imagine there's as much innovation as there should be. But I may be ignorant to the facts there.
When the next installment is going to be packaged with the original, not as a Limited Edition but because that's the only reason anyone will buy it.
When the hook is that the once-affable protagonist is now an emo extreme sports fanatic.
When the hook is that they're taking emphasis off the driving in a driving game.
Actually, The Legend of Korra only takes place ~60 years or so after the first Avatar series.
On topic - I think Henroid's answer is the best so far. It all depends on the games' genre, plot, and overall prestige. There's no answer for all franchises. Instead, they need to be looked at individually.
If I were to name a series that, at the very least, needs to get to the point, it would be Assassin's Creed. Far too much time spent in the same era, and not enough of the meta-plot explained.
On the opposite side, I'd love to see a new Chrono game. SE has ported the original to a variety of devices lately, and it would be nice to see them recognize that they have the licence to more than just Final Fantasy and Dragon Quest.
Stack Exchange | http://www.mpdevblog.blogspot.com
Sonic the Hedgehog?
Don't know this one.
Pretty sure this is Prince of Persia.
This has to be Need for Speed.
In some cases (for example shadow of the collosus) the actual gameplay may be strongly tied up with the narrative and atmosphere of the story, in which case you can still look at it from a gameplay perspective if you include those things.
I'm roughly ten million percent gameplay focused though. For example, imagine a game with a plot and story so compelling, so interesting, that then ends its arc with, I don't know, something incredibly final and satisfying.
IF they brought out another installment that had excellent gameplay and the story was lip service I would still think it 100% worthwhile as a game. So best to keep that in mind when dealing with me.
Riddick
See, the problem with this (and with some of your original points) is that it has nothing to do with the actual game / IP it's dealing with. After all, it assumes that publishers / fans even know what's good for them; look at series like Tony Hawk / Guitar Hero, or the Sonic franchise. Many times, the whims of either a bunch of people who's only interest in an IP is money or the whims of a mob with no knowledge of formal game design is not how the future of an IP should be dealt with.
Sure, there WILL be exceptions. Publishers will get lucky extending an IP past its prime. Sometimes, the mob gets things right. On the whole, though, that's why I think the 3-part system I posted last page is strong: because it focuses solely on the IP and its design / purpose. Bringing in random variables like the desires of fans or publishers FEELS nice, because we want to feel like our desires matter, but artistically, it harms more than helps.
but Riddick is actually an awesome game
(But it does, so keep your eye out for steam sales and whatnot!)
I myself would have to go with Viewtiful Joe for the Franchise Fuckup Award.
Guerrilla so good how did they destroy the entire series
Realistically: When it stops making money
Personal opinion: When it stops being fun.
Fairy-land reason: Because the last game in the series was so fucking awesome there is no way to top it.
It makes me sad to agree with this. I wonder if the two games were actually made by the same team, since there seems to have been some disconnect on what makes Red Faction awesome.
Hint: generic brown tunnels is not what made Red Faction awesome.
I can think of a few examples offhand where this line of thinking would have been enormously detrimental though. Unless that is what you were going for there and its a bad fairyland, of course.
Not in High Art. Too bad Videogames don't fall into High Art.
:rotate:
I'm thinking the one you couldn't pick out would be White Knight Chronicles.
I can't think of an art medium that isn't affected by this. Shit, even paintings come in series.
I was thinking more along the lines of Seinfeld, get out at the top of your game. The fairyland part is of course the fact that that would never happen because of the monies to be made.
It seems to me, more often that not, that if a Dev/Publisher (whoever makes these calls) has a hot franchise on their hands, they will milk the shit out of it until all that remains is a broken shell of the awesome it used to be. I understand it is business, but it is still sad to watch a series you love get grind down to nothing (only to have to wait ten or so years for the "reboot" only to watch it happen all over again).
Some call me cynical.
And for those bemoaning the lack of new IPs - all of these series were brand spanking new at some point. There will continue to be new IPs developed as the current ones fall out of favor or stop making money. It's a business/popularity contest. Why on earth would they stop making Modern Warfare games when they reap so much money?
I get what you're saying, but it sounds like you're taking the "glass is half-empty" position. We're both arguing that it can be for insidious or genuine reasons why the series is made to continue, but it seems like you're more pessimistic on the issue saying that it's most likely just about money. Which is kind of a slippery statement to make in the first place because this is very much a business; money will always be an issue to some extent.
No, that's not what I said. I said that for publishers it's just about money (and it is; no stockholder cares about "artistic value"; they invest for the monies), and for fans it's about a love for the series, but neither should be used when deciding whether to extend an IP past it's limit. Investors will tank a series for easy money (see: Kotick and GH) and fans have no idea what they want.
I mean, listen, fans are great. But, gamers bitch. A lot. And most of the time, they don't even know what they want, because they can't articulate what they want. That's why they are fans, and not designers. Let me give you an example.
Schindler's List is a great movie. I'm sure a lot of people love it. I'm sure there are people who would love to see more of Schindler's story. Does that mean there should be a Schindler's List 2? Of course not, because the movie was never intended to have a sequel. It would be the film equivalent of my first IP classification. Fans are wrong a lot , and shouldn't really be relied on. If a series wasn't made for a sequel or wasn't made with a sequel in mind, a sequel shouldn't be made.
Oh okay, I see what you meant now. And I agree. Sorry for misunderstanding.
(Side note: Schindler's List is my favorite film of all time and I would hate everything forever if they decided to make a sequel or prequel)
Hey, I liked Armageddon. Blowing everything to pieces and then putting them back together again with techno magic is exactly what the series needed. And Mr. Toots in cute.
I think there's never a reason to truly end a series of games, however extended hiatuses are sometimes needed.